Is it just me or has April been extremely busy for you too?

Maybe its because I always procrastinate and do my taxes just before the deadline. Or maybe because my wife’s birthday is in April and birthdays are significant planning celebrations in our family. Or maybe because its spring gardening season and we’ve planted our biggest garden ever. Or maybe because our little newborn has been helping me appreciate the value of sleep these past few weeks.

But in all this dad’s busy-ness, I have to confess that I’ve neglected something very important:

** Spending one-on-one time with my wife. **

She needs this more often than I typically realize.

She needs me to be with her at times without the kids clamoring around.

She needs regular doses of my undivided attention, looking her in the eyes, and engaging in ongoing meaningful conversation.

She needs my affection. In a purely affectionate, tender way.

She needs me to spend time praying together with her. And discussing her spiritual walk and mine.

I see where I’ve dropped the ball with my wife, so I’m doing something about it… starting tonight.

I’m picking her up at 4:30pm sharp and the rest of the day is blocked off just for her. And I’m putting this on my schedule for the weeks ahead.

How about your marriage?

Is your wife needing “more of you?”

Your marriage is the second most important aspect in your life — second only to your relationship with your Creator. It’s more important than your work. It’s more important that your church involvement, your “ministry” endeavors, your charity efforts, your hobbies, and also more important than your kids!

Yes, it really is. So let’s continue to keep our wives a top priority.

“Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your fleeting life…” Eccl 9:9

Recommended Marriage Resources For Dads
Love and War by John Eldredge and Stasi Eldredge
Two Fleas and No Dog by Craig Hill
Love and Respect by Emerson Eggeriches
Walking Worthy As A Husband by Norm Wakefield

Last year, our attempt at a backyard spring garden was pitiful. We started too late, the weeds quickly overtook our progress, my children hated to go out and work in the heat, and I think the bugs ate more of our harvest than we did.

This year, things are starting out MUCH better!

I did a lot of research during the off-season and made some BIG changes.

First, we started much earlier (in late February.) We’ve given considerable effort to improving our soil. We’ve found plant varieties that are more heat and drought resistant. We’ve laid down hundreds of feet of weed blocking fabric. And my children are actually enjoying our daily afternoon times working together with dad out in the family garden.

Honestly, I’ve been amazed at their improvement in attitude and willingness to work — even my teenage son!

Gardening can be a fantastic way to spend time together as a family. Not only can you grow much of your own food and cut your monthly expenses way down, but it is a great way to spend time together as a family doing something productive.

To this day, I can still recall my dad’s involvement and the exact location of our family garden when I was just a young boy.

You can also give away some of what you grow to those in need.

If you don’t have a family garden, I encourage you to start one. Together. As a family.

But take my advice — start small… very small. Don’t plant more than three or four things your first year. And do some research online regarding how to prepare the soil.

And if you’re going to do a family garden this spring and haven’t started yet, you’d better hurry. I don’t want you to experience what we did last year.

Happy Gardening!

PS – If you’d like some input on family gardening from a fellow dad who has done a lot of research and has a bit of experience under his belt now, contact me for some helpful gardening tips.

Today’s FamilyDads post is dedicated to the birth of my new son, Ahsher Boaz Watkins.

He was born at home early this morning (last night) at 12:14am local time, a very healthy beautiful baby who is already showing a rather peaceful disposition. Mom is doing super too. Best delivery we’ve had yet!

Quick story…

Neither my wife nor I had a boy’s name picked out. Even while my wife was in labor last night in our bedroom, we still did not have a single boy’s name “ready.”

At some point during the evening, I slipped into the family room and opened to a scripture passage I’ve read numerous times but felt led to read again. While reading, it mentioned the tribe of Ahsher (spelled “Asher” in most modern English translations.)

As I read, I sensed in my spirit that I was to use that name if we had a boy.

Ahsher was the name of one of Jacob’s twelve sons. His name is commonly interpreted to mean “happy” or “blessed” because that is how his mother felt when she had him.

But the full ancient Hebraic meaning is “Happiness is in YAH.” (Yah is short for YHWH, the personal name of our Heavenly Father used over 6,000 times in Scripture.)

The middle name “Boaz” is in reference to the husband of Ruth, the great-grandfather of King David. It means “by strength.”

Ahsher Boaz = “Happiness is in Yah, by strength”

Pretty cool how that happened just in time for his birth, without any “advance planning,” worrying, or input on my part or my wife’s.

Sometimes that’s how our Heavenly Father works. He doesn’t always tell us the details in advance — because we don’t need to know — but rather wants us to competely trust Him and not “sweat the details.”

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the counsel of YHWH that stands.” -Prov 19:21

He always knows what He’s doing, and we can truly find our happiness in Him, by strength.

After an almost “all-nighter” home birth, this tired but excited dad is ready for some sleep now!

PS – Here is my favorite macho dad video that is sure to give you a few laughs if you’ve ever had the joy of changing baby diapers. I first posted this video when my fourth child was born two years ago. I still crack up every time I watch it.

The events in Japan over the past week have been absolutely tragic. You’ve no doubt seen many of the tsunami videos showing the utter devastation from the massive waves of ocean water destroying everything in their path.

And now the threat of nuclear meltdown causes an even graver threat to these people, their country, and their economy.

Did you know that Tokyo, Japan, just 230 miles south of the epicenter of the earthquake, has over 32 million people and is by far the largest metro area in the entire world?

We can certainly pray with our families for the half-million displaced Japanese people and all those who lost loved ones from the floods, and we can look for ways to help, but we also need to learn an urgent lesson from this massive earthquake:

We each need to prepare our family for the possibility of a natural or man-made disaster nearby.

“The prudent man foresees calamity and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” -Prov 27:12

A prominent geologist with an accurate track record has predicted an upcoming earthquake in the USA in the days ahead based on patterns of recent earthquakes in Chile, New Zealand, Japan, the upcoming moon position, and the mass deaths of wild animals in recent weeks.

Several days before watching this video, I felt strongly impressed to research earthquake information in the USA.  There are two major fault lines — the San Andreas fault along the West Coast, and the New Madrid faultline along the Mississippi River.

Here are some pages you might want to bookmark:
Largest earthquakes in past 7 days
Map of Nuclear Reactors across the USA
Current Radiation Levels across the USA
Disaster Preparedness Checklist

This is not meant to sound “alarmist” or fear-mongering, but rather, as scripture says… to be “prudent.” In a nation that has become completely dependent on electricity, cell phones, and the Internet, we would be “prudent” to prepare for a situation in which we might be without these for an extended period of time.

Having witnessed the destruction in Japan, let us each take careful measures to be ready for what may come our way next.

Please pass this info along.