Author: Family Friendly Daddy Blog

Leave a comment Posted on Nostalgia, parenting, Uncategorized

Kids’ Show: Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest- Webisodes 7-11

Kids’ Show: Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest- Webisodes 7-11

In my free time this past weekend, I was editing and publishing the newest 5 webisodes of my kids’ show. That wraps up the total of 8 of them that I filmed over Christmas weekend with my dad and brother-in-law.

Now with nearly a dozen webisodes, I feel I have enough collection of material to submit to the major networks, as I mentioned previously.

After watching the finished product with my son this weekend, I am confident that children will really be engaged by Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest. At this point, it’s just a matter of being able to expose kids to my show.

Here’s an overview of what this newest batch of webisodes is about:

Webisode 7: Paulie the Puppy– When Uncle Nick decides to hike a new trail, it leads him to an empty old building and a mysterious barking sound.

Webisode 8: Pokey the Pot-Bellied Pig– Uncle Nick must figure out a way to cross the river to save the little pot-bellied pig who is stuck on the other side.

Webisode 9: Ralph the Red Panda– While hiking later in the evening, Uncle Nick discovers a rare animal as it begins getting dark outside.

Webisode 10: Slither the Snake– Freddie the Fox gets trapped by a hungry snake at the top of a large rock. It’s Uncle Nick to the rescue!

Webisode 11: Barry the Bear– When a scary-looking bear is soon in the Enchanted Forest, Uncle Nick decides to investigate; leading to a lesson about not judging a bear by his cover.

Barry the Bear was first introduced 4 months ago in my other series, Jack-Man:

There are elements in Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest that are unique to the field of children’s entertainment. In the likeness of a real uncle, I begin each show by trying to guess what color the viewer is thinking of, which is by default educational.

Next, I engage their curiosity by introducing them to a different, old trinket of mine. In other words, each webisode is infused with a touch of ongoing mystery.

Before heading outside for the adventure segment, I sing a few catchy (original) jingles to get the viewers excited about going outside in the cold.

Thanks for supporting Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest. My plan is to film at least 11 more webisodes; some of which will feature both the back story of Barry the Bear, as well as his adaptation as a newcomer to the forest.

Leave a comment Posted on Recipes, Uncategorized, vegan

Special Guest Vegan Blog Post: Vegan Broth Recipe by Oriana Maoloni of The Health Madam

The following is a special guest blog post, by Emma of The Health Madam.

Hello and welcome to my healthy lifestyle blog! A blog dedicated to posting information and recipes on nutrition and health, for individuals and families alike. I have a keen interest in nutrition for myself and my family. What to cook or bake, that makes me feel good about what I’m serving, is one of my biggest challenges and concerns. I’ve taken some favorite recipes, whether they are for vegan, meat, poultry, fish or baking, and added other nutritious ingredients, without compromising the flavor.  Along with cooking more nutritious meals, my family and I try to make physical fitness a part of our life, everyday.

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Vegan Broth Recipe

I created this vegan recipe from only vegetables and fruit. I freeze off any of the broth leftovers, and use it at a time when I need a quick and nutritious meal. It acts as a good base.  For the meat lovers in my life, I add beef, ham, chicken, pork or fish, which all work well in this vegan broth because of its subtle flavour. Barley or beans, which are both high in fibre, also do well in this broth. Leftovers are brought back to life when added to this broth. I use organic ingredients whenever I can. I sprinkle with Nutritional Yeast before serving (available at most health or bulk food stores). Nutritional Yeast is high in folic acid and tastes just like cheese.

Vegan Broth Recipe – Ingredients:

  • 1-2 medium or large peeled and chopped yams
    This simple recipe makes a hearty and nutritious vegan soup that can be enjoyed in the winter as well as the summer.
    This simple recipe makes a hearty and nutritious vegan soup that can be enjoyed in the winter as well as the summer.
  • 1 large peeled and chopped onion
  • 4-5 peeled and chopped carrots
  • 4 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1-2 peeled and chopped garlic cloves
  • Handful of chopped herbs – basil, rosemary, oregano (optional – you can add one, all or your own preference)
  • Few stalks of chopped celery
  • 1 -2 Large peeled and chopped apple, pear or both
  • Filtered Water

Vegan Broth Recipe – Instructions:

In a large stock pot, I throw in all the ingredients. I fill the pot almost to the top and bring to boil and let simmer for a few hours. I then remove from it from the heat and using a hand blender, blend all ingredients until uniform. I only take out the amount I need, add whatever other ingredients I might like to add, and season to taste. The longer the soup is left to stew, the better the flavour. I add seasonings after all other ingredients are in the broth, especially leftovers, to avoid over seasoning.

Leave a comment Posted on infographic, Storytelling, Uncategorized

How to Select Glasses that Compliment Your Face Shape: Infographic

How to Select Glasses that Complement Your Face Shape

I came across this handy infographic this morning and I liked it so much that I decided to do a quick blog post on it; for selfish reasons more than anything else.

The next time I need to get new frames, I’m going to pull up this blog post with this infographic on it, at the bottom. Then I’ll show it to the optometrist to help me pick the best frames for my face shape.

It can be difficult to self-diagnosis yourself on something like this, but I believe I have a heart-shaped face.

(I could be wrong, though!)

When I snapped this Instagram today to use as a reference, as well as going back and watching my newest webisodes of my new web series, Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest, I see a guy with a prominent forehead, high cheekbones, and a pointed chin.

While I’m not fully confident my current frames are the best for my face shape, I do know they’re my most favorite ever: I’ve had them for 2 years now and I have zero interest in getting new ones.

Granted, I only need my prescription eyeglasses to (legally) drive and whenever I’m in front of a computer screen. But considering I’m a commuter (nearly 2 hours round trip, daily) who is front of a computer all day long; plus, I am a blogger with my own YouTube channel, that means my glasses on my face most of my waking hours.

Hopefully, by me (selfishly) posting this infographic today, my readers and subscribers can personally benefit from it as well.

This, to me, is the perfect kind of infographic I can appreciate. It covers the kind of obscure yet relevant material that I don’t consciously spend time thinking about, but once I see it, makes me think, “Oh yeah! I’ve always wondered about that!”

Well, here it is. Enjoy.

[via Visualistan, image via FramesDirect.com]

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Leave a comment Posted on funny, Nostalgia, parenting, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Your “Dually Relieving” Animals Artwork

5 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack: Your “Dually Relieving” Animals Artwork

Dear Jack,

Monday afternoon when I picked you up from Pre-K, you asked me to help you get all your artwork from that day out of your folder. It was quite a stack of papers; probably at least 20 different pictures you had drawn there.

Right away, I noticed a peculiar, yet subtle piece of art. You had drawn a dog standing near an anthill.

Near the anthill was a sign that read “Boo” backwards. There were ants and spiders nearby as well.

As I examined the dog carefully, I noticed that as he smiled, he was also “dually relieving” himself.

To be clear, the dog was both “going #1 and #2” at the same time.

I verified what I was seeing, and you quickly admitted what was going on in the picture.

However, you weren’t laughing about it. You kept a straight face, as if to say, “What’s funny about this? This is art. It’s nature.”

I followed up by asking if either your friends or your teacher had seen the picture. They had not.

As soon as we got home, Mommy hung your picture up on the refrigerator.

To my surprise, the next day when I picked you up, déjà vu occurred as I saw a very similar picture; this time with a cat.

Dear Jack: Your “Dually Relieving” Animals Artwork

This time you smiled: “I made this picture for Mommy!”

We are indeed very proud of your artwork, as were many people on Facebook who saw the pictures as well.

Now that I look back on it, this wasn’t the first time you drew a “dually relieving itself” animal as artwork.

The weekend before the 2015 CMA Awards, a couple of months ago, our family met our friends Mohamed and Lena at the Cool Springs Whole Foods (in Franklin, TN) for a late lunch, around 2:00 PM.

As we were sitting down at the table with our food, Mohamed showed me a picture of both Jessica Biel (Justin Timberlake’s wife) with her baby, as well as Justin Timberlake’s mother.

Then Mohamed pointed over to just a tables away, asking us to verify that the people at the table were indeed the same as the ones he had pulled up on his phone.

Turns out, he was right.

Apparently, Justin Timberlake’s wife, son, and mother were having lunch while Justin was assumedly preparing for his appearance at the CMA Awards; where he would go on to do an instantly legendary performance with Chris Stapleton.

All of that was lost on you. I looked down to see you had just finished drawing a picture of an animal dually relieving itself.

Fast forward to this week: You decided to bring back the concept.

Love,

Daddy

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Dear Jack: ‘Twas the Tornado Warning before Christmas

5 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack: Twas the Tornado Warning before Christmas

Dear Jack,

We had originally planned to drive straight to Nonna and Papa’s house after I got off of work last Wednesday, on December 23rd.

However, it quickly became common knowledge that tornado-inducing weather would be surrounding us if we did.

So instead, our family stayed home that night, spending about an hour and a half in the downstairs bathroom over the course of a tornado warning.

You and I watched clips from the Rocky movies on my phone; like both of the fights between Rocky and Clubber Lang (Mr. T).

We made the most of it, but it is definitely problematic that the one room in the house you’re supposed to go to during a tornado is, by default, the most uncomfortable one for a family to hang out in.

I assume that in most houses, the bathroom in the middle of the house on the main floor is also the most cramped.

Had we been able to go to the bathroom connected to Mommy’s and my bedroom, we would have been fine because the walk-in closet is connected it.

However, that’s on the corner of the house so I guess it’s less safe in the event a tornado brushed by that corner of the house.

After the tornado warning was finally over, Mommy and I let you set up your Noah’s Ark camping tent (which was pretty relevant to the story, actually) and you got to sleep next to our bed.

That was a special treat for you because the last time we let you sleep in the same room as us, you were still a newborn.

I had predicted this at the time, and turns out I was right, that we actually could have gotten away with driving to Nonna and Papa’s house the night of the storm, because the storms were actually north and south of us the whole time.

But we obviously didn’t take that chance.

Christmas Tree

Sure, we had a wonderful Christmas once we got there. No chaos or conflict to speak of.

None except for that which I created in my web series, Uncle Nick’s Enchanted Forest, which I filmed 8 webisodes of while we were there.

Love,

Daddy