The summer has been busy and more challenging for my regular blogging activities. As the weather warmed and more of each day was spent outdoors or on the road, sitting in front of the computer has been tougher.

We’ve been on the road this past week, driving from Edmonton to Lake Louise, then onto Kamloops for a visit with an old, old friend. Now, we are in Kelowna enjoying a magnificient view, moderate temperatures and clear blue skies (i.e., no smoke from the BC forest fires).

Unfortunately, we are without Maddy who traveled to Toronto to visit friends and family before school starts again in September. And that got me to thinking about three – as in three kids.

From the very first day I met Maddy, she has been sweet and open-hearted. And this is how she is on a day-to-day basis (generally speaking) with her siblings. And I can’t stress how great it is to have an older sibling around for the little ones – and I’m not just referring to the care-giving aspect (though that fact is very helpful). Just having an teenager around who is generally a good example will hopefully help all of us when the twosome reaches their teen years.

Having twins has also been a blessing. There are many ways to have a family, but having some twins in the mix is a wonderful thing. They are at least double the fun, but rarely double the work. There are efficiencies of having them at the same stage of life and they are good friends to each other most of the time. When one of them is having a hard time, the other one usually wants to comfort and help. It is very sweet to watch.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how our perfect our family is. But Maddy is a year away from going to university. We’ve been talking about the U of A in Edmonton (that’s where she worked this summer) and that would mean we could have her around. But there are benefits (that come with additional costs) of her attending her undergraduate schooling away from home – independence and self-sufficiency at the top of the list. If I was going to bet, I’d say she will decide to stay in Edmonton.

Which brings me to my recent thinking. I think it’s time for a new blog. Don’t worry though, I won’t abandon this one. But I’ve been thinking its time to dedicate an entire blog to the homemaking dad. More and more dads are being called upon to play a bigger role in – even shoulder the majority of responsibility for – child care and homemaking. Yet, most dads haven’t learned how. Their dads certainly didn’t teach them. And their moms couldn’t get them to clean up after themselves, let alone make a good vinagrette or press a dress shirt.

I learned early to be a homemaker and a food person, rather than an amateur plumber, renovator or home repairman. And I learned from my mother. She expected us to help with the dusting a vacuuming and we learned to cook basic stuff. She taught me how to iron a shirt, make a bed with hospital corners, and make a good vinagrette.

There is much to share and I’ve been thinking a lot about it for a few months. Tell me what you think.