Dad-alytics

Chasse Conque and his team at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley have been working hard to enhance the fan experience at athletic events.  We arrived in Vaquero Village about one hour before the game started and we were impressed!  They have a great lounge area outside, a bounce house for the kids, food (at reasonable prices - credit cards accepted), drinks (yes, beer), and a live band!  The band played music from Daft Punk, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, and my personal favorite - Rage Against the Machine!   Jesus T. Pena and Chasse Conque We purchased general admission tickets for the game.  Every seat in the house is great!  During the game, there are plenty of raffles and activities to engage the fans.  The men's basketball team is very competitive and we were on the edge of our seats the entire time! Warming Up We were glad the game ended with the Vaqueros winning.  We are looking forward to another Vaqueros game soon! ...

The Home Depot offers a Kids Workshop once per month.  The event is FREE and provides a great Do-It-Yourself (DIY) opportunity for you and your child! First, you need to register online for the event:   Workshops The event at my Home Depot is held outside in the Contractor Pick-up area.  Prepare to stand for a long period of time and bring a water and/or snack depending on the age of the child.  Some wipeys to remove paint from hands would also be helpful. The time of the activity is scheduled from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., but you should show up at about 8:50 a.m.  The event states "While supplies last."  This applies to the DIY project, aprons, pins, and certificates. The Home Depot provides tools; typically a hammer and a screwdriver are needed.  However, I recommend bringing some tools of your own since a large number of people attend.  If you have more than one child that will need help building the object, you shou...

Congratulations RGVFC Toros on defeating the Colorado Springs Switchbacks 3-0! One month ago, I collaborated with Ms. Gabriela Bernal on the RGV DADS Takeover event.  Our goal was to produce an event to celebrate Dads and their families.  It was a success! The event began with our children creating a Father's Day craft which included their hand prints.  Dads will cherish this memento for years to come!  Everybody enjoyed the time we spent in the VIP suite! Father's Day Craft Mr. Toro came by our suite to mingle with our children and take pictures!  He always brings a lot of energy and excitement wherever he goes. Mr. Toro and RGV DADS The Toros Girls were in attendance and took pictures with us.  They performed very well during the halftime festivities! Toros Girls H-E-B raffled off two gift baskets to the Dads at our event.  The baskets included:  H-E-B gift card, H-E-B chips, charcoal, lighter fluid, and other items for Dad...

We attended our first LEGO Monthly Mini Build on January 8, 2019.  JR and his LEGO team provided an excellent experience for my girls.  They were able to build a jet fighter and received the following items for free:  LEGO Friends set and posters!  Sign up for LEGO VIP Membership and you can sign up your children for the next Monthly Mini Build.  Everything is free and here are some things you should know: Monthly Mini Build Registration Website:   https://shop.lego.com/en-US/minibuild-registration Registration opens at 10 a.m. EST on the 15th of the month prior to the event Spaces are limited for each store, so don't wait! You will register for a specific date and time On the day of the event please arrive 5 minutes early and bring a valid photo ID  Children must be ages 6-14 Depending on the age/skill of your child, the build should take about 5-10 min. We are looking forward to the next one! If your organization is interested in ...

Like most children, our girls have been busy compiling their Christmas Wish Lists.  I transferred their Wish Lists to Amazon on Sunday evening.  You can even share lists with friends and family around the world if they would like to buy gifts for your children.  Evie and I started shopping via Amazon on Sunday night! ALWAYS compare prices online.  I typically compare Amazon, Walmart, and Target.  On Monday morning, we went to Target to get the items we could not find on Amazon.  It was nice to shop in person as the store was decorated for the holidays and the Christmas music was playing in the background.  I made sure to stop at Starbucks for my Love (we grabbed a taco for me too)! We were searching for a particular doll (the Target website stated they had some in stock...ALWAYS carry your iPhone), so Ryan (Target store associate) was kind enough to check in the back.  He found it and I told him he was our hero!  We found gifts for our fa...

LEGO has been around since 1932 and was founded by Ole Kirk Kristiansen.  I was given LEGOs in the mid-1980s and was hooked!  I enjoyed following the plans and building the various models.  It was even better when I constructed whatever was in my imagination. Several years ago I visited my parent's house and collected some of my childhood belongings.  I retrieved a blue Lego briefcase (1985) and inside was a skyscraper I had built as a child (broken in half so it could fit inside). Skyscraper and LEGO Briefcase LEGO - 1985 - Denmark My daughters have all kinds of LEGO sets and it has been exciting to see them progress from larger blocks to sets that contain thousands of pieces!  I appreciate the patience and step-by-step sequence that building a set provides for my girls. This past weekend, I learned that LEGO Master Builder Chris Steininger would be attending the Grand Opening for our LEGO store in McAllen, TX at La Plaza Mall.  Chris was s...

In about two weeks, our girls are headed back to school.  There are numerous things parents can do to ease the transition into the school schedule.  Taking action now can reduce stress on the entire family when school begins.  Students in our district are required to wear uniforms, so we made sure to shop for those items early.  We felt like we received a better deal on the uniforms this year and even received a credit back to help purchase new shoes!  We are also preparing for their return by having them go to sleep earlier.  We do not want our daughters to have trouble waking up in the morning.  During the school year, they use an alarm clock to wake up in the morning. This year we shopped for school supplies during Tax Free Weekend.  We stick to the list, but we let them pick out a few things that were special.  We felt like this would help them be more excited about return ing to school. Chosen Notebooks I asked family and fri...