When people find out that I'm an at-home Dad, there's often an image that comes to mind that is not quite accurate, and is largely fueled by the "TV depiction" of stay-at-home and work-at-home Dads: A group of four or five guys standing around a park with outward-facing babies dangling from their chests. If this happens anywhere, I have not witnessed it, nor been a part of such a gathering in the past 4+ years of my career as a parent. When I have seen babies worn by other parents (and sometimes myself), the big question has always been "which way is the right way - inward or outward." It's been the subject of vigorous debate among parents, but the folks at Boba Family just might have the answer, and that answer is inward.

They have a tradition of releasing a metal version of a classic Holiday song each Christmas, and last year, AUGUST BURNS RED brought them all together for a full album called SLEDDIN' HILL: A HOLIDAY ALBUM. So what did they do for 2013? They've reissued they album digitally with an all-new track, "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" (available on iTunes and Amazon) from THE NUTCRACKER... and it's fantastic. Stream the new song below, and speaking of The Nutcracker, stay tuned to The Rock Father for my review of The Joffrey Ballet's 2013 performance of this Holiday Classic in Chicago...

It's December 10, and already, I'm exhausted. Regardless of the fact that I love the Holiday season, what I don't love is the amount of running around and what feels like a mad scramble, despite all the preparation. With it getting dark at 4pm, my wife working long hours (sometimes not home until 8), and the cold temperatures (it's 13 degrees as I write this), the days just feel shorter as it is, and I'm always looking for ways to ease the stress, expedite the process of certain things, and keep those warm feelings going... sometimes while multi-tasking. It's not always easy when I'm doing the balancing act between working at home and taking care of my two little girls, but it can be done. If there's one month where I could use some help making family size meals a little quicker, it's December.

THE RASKINS (twin brothers Logan and Roger) were born and raised in New York City in a musical household. Now, having left their East Coast home for Los Angeles, the duo are prepping their self-titled debut album for Spring 2014. In the meantime, they've served up a free single for the holidays with their version of "The Little Drummer Boy." Grab the download via the Reverbnation widget below, then check out their official website for more.

You all know Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder, Blitzen, and of course, Rudolph. But did you know that Rudolph has a brother... Santa's tenth reindeer? For 2013, there's a new book on the market that tells the tale of this mysterious 10th reindeer, and lands right here on The Rock Father as part of my 25 Days of Xmas. Recommended for kids ages 4-9, THE LEGEND OF RANGER, THE REINDEER WHO COULDN'T FLY features the writing of Alan B. Salisbury (retired Commanding General in the U.S. Army) with artwork by Roberta Baird. All profits from the sale of Ranger products will be donated to the Antonia Giallourakis Endowment for Art Therapy at the MassGeneral Children's Hospital Cancer Center, which makes this not only a great gift idea, but one that will do some good. Check out the full details below...

The folks at Iggy Learning just hit The Rock Father with news that their new App, JAMAROOS MUSICAL ABCs has just been released for iOS on the App Store, Google Play, and Kindle Fire for Android. Designed to help kids ages 2-6 learn phonics skills, the app features animation from the founder of Reel FX Creative Studios (FREE BIRDS). Full details below...

Out of all the toy companies out there, Hasbro is one of the most-covered here on The Rock Father. In addition to having some great toy lines (TRANSFORMERS, STAR WARS, GI JOE, MY LITTLE PONY, BABY ALIVE, NERF, etc.), they're also known for doing a lot of good, and as such were just named to The Civic 50 for being one of the most community-minded companies in the United States. While this is undoubtedly their busiest season, Hasbro's 5,000 employees in 35 countries worldwide became "elves" this past Friday for the first-ever Global Day of Joy, partnering with over 100 charitable organizations to bring cheer to kids in need.

There has never been another time when I could say that I've been "excited about chocolate." Sure, I like my peanut butter cups on occasion, but it wasn't until a couple of months ago when I discovered Wild Ophelia that I really became interested in the chocolate that I was about to eat or share with my children. Created right here in Chicago by noted Chocolatier Katrina Markoff of Vosges Haut-Chocolat, Wild Ophelia is "an American roadtrip through chocolate" that connects the American farmers' movement with chocolate through the sourcing of all natural, often organic ingredients. Their new line of extraordinary flavors and a surprising connection to THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE lands Wild Ophelia firmly in my 2013 Holiday Gift Guide here on The Rock Father.

'Tis the Season to be Jolly, and this year, my friends at Teleflora have decided to "Duck the Halls" with The Robertson Family and a variety of Christmas Flowers picked as favorites by the stars of A&E's DUCK DYNASTY themselves. Now through Christmas, if you order one of The Robertson's favorite flower arrangements, you'll get a Free Download of DUCK THE HALLS: A ROBERTSON FAMILY CHRISTMAS, their all-new, best-selling album. In the spirit of giving and all this Duck-tastic flower goodness, Teleflora has teamed-up with The Rock Father to get one lucky reader hooked-up with $75 to use on a beautiful bouquet. It would be nice for you, but a great gift for someone you love. Enter below...

The nominees for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards were announced yesterday, and as such it's come time to talk a little bit about their "Children's" category (which would be more aptly titled "Family" at this point). I have mixed feeling about the GRAMMYs overall, me being in the camp of people that finds the overall award system to be archaic, out-of-touch, and largely irrelevant. The nominees are often a crapshoot, and the winners... well, sometimes you have circumstances like the infamous upset of 1988 where JETHRO TULL's CREST OF A KNAVE beat out METALLICA's ...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL in the Hard Rock/Metal category, or how certain "older" artists seem to win a GRAMMY based simply on the fact that they released an album that year (check out the archives). While I've only been involved in the family music scene for a few years now (and for the past two, a judge for the Fids & Kamily Music Awards), I can say that the nominees for the Children's category can be equally curious, yet I'm certainly happy for everyone that finds themselves nominated. Here's my thoughts on the 2014 Children's GRAMMY Nominees... and who should win.

Sprout's Kindness Counts initiative has logged nearly 600,000 acts of kindness from children across the country as they continue moving toward their goal of 1 million kind deeds performed by Sproutlets. Meant to "encourage and celebrate everyday thoughtful acts while serving as a tool for parents to reinforce kindness and compassion," Kindness Counts actions are featured each morning on Sprout during THE SUNNY SIDE UP SHOW and with Good Egg Awards. Now, Sprout is nearing the announcement of their first-ever "Chief Kindness Officer," an exceptional preschooler whose kind acts have put them in the running through The Kindest Kid Contest sponsored by ABCmouse.com. Voting is open now, and for each vote received, Sprout will donate $1 up to $25,000 to a national children’s charity, as well as an additional $5,000 in the winner’s name! Check out the finalists below...

In the course of putting together my holiday coverage here at Rock Father HQ this year, despite all the cool toys and games that I've posted about, the biggest thing that is always looming in the back of my mind... influencing every move... is "The Magic of Christmas." While physical gifts are nice to have, for a kid, much of the holiday experience has to do with the vibe... the "magic," and I think that a lot of the time it's lost these days. One outfit that is helping to "Make Christmas Magic" is Portable North Pole. Would your little one(s) like to hear from Santa Claus himself during this season? They can... and here's a video that Kris Kringle sent to Rock Father HQ last week for my oldest daughter, Addie:

My friends at MEGA Bloks have just launched a new series of giveaways that I strongly encourage all friends of The Rock Father to enter. In their 12 Days of Giveaways promotion, MEGA Bloks will be awarding daily prizes for 12 days (a selection of their hottest toys), and then one Grand Prize Winner will get one of each. But that's not even the best part... the Grand Prize Winner will also have those same 12 toys donated to the charity of their choice! It's a giveaway with a "doing good" sorta twist. Head over to MEGA Bloks' Facebook page to enter, then be sure to follow along on Twitter. Check out some highlights...

My first experience with the NERF Vortex Revonix360 Blaster came on September 17, when I joined seven other Chicago-area Parent Bloggers at a Hasbro Hot Toys Lunch. Grownups playing with toys at a nice restaurant (312 Chicago) is always a good thing, but when when of these showed up here at Rock Father HQ last month, all bets were off. Recommended for Ages 8+, this bad boy holds 30 lightweight foam discs that can be fired up to 65' away! And, you can do trick shots like bouncing them off of things. It's surprisingly accurate, and the only blaster that I'm including in my 2013 Holiday Gift Guide. Lets just say it could get me into some trouble...