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This past summer, our son Jack started limping out of the blue without any apparent injury. Heather took him to the doctor, where they did an X-ray that didn’t show anything, so the doctor recommended monitoring the situation and then doing an MRI if needed down the road. Jack’s limping continued, and after the MRI, the doctor called and said he was referring us to an expert for a hip disease called Perthes. Heather contacted the referral, Gillette Children’s, but an appointm

If you follow my blog posts, you already read about my calf injury from playing in an alumni basketball game. It’s been about a month and after 3 weeks of PT, I’ve made progress by diligently doing my daily exercises, but am still not walking well. When my physical therapist asked if I’d ever heard of dry needling , I flashed back to being a kid with stubborn strep throat, facing a shot that sounded so scary I thought running away from home might be a reasonable option. �

A few weeks ago, Hannah shared her frustration with me. She had sat down at the piano at school and started playing a few bars of a Christmas song she knew. Before she could get very far, another student stepped in, sat down, and proceeded to wow everyone with “The Entertainer,” the kind of performance you’d expect from the pianist at the Grand Floridian at Disney. Hannah wasn’t upset with the other student. She was frustrated with herself. What she really wanted was a song

Last year I wrote a post called “Can You Hear the Progress?” about how growth often goes unnoticed in the moment, especially when learning something hard. Sometimes the only way to truly see (or hear) progress is to look back. You can read that original post here: https://jgrom6.wixsite.com/learningintheflowo-1/post/can-you-hear-the-progress Last week’s 8th grade band concert was one of those moments where the progress was impossible to miss. Listening to this group now, you

I’ve been thinking a lot about hard work and discipline lately, ironically during a stretch of time when I spent hours simply sitting and looking out at this view. First, I kept coming back to our daughter Hannah. She earned the title of Hardest Worker on her swim team and received her first varsity letter as an 8th grader. She wasn’t thrilled with her times this year, but her effort, day in and day out, stood out above all. That kind of work ethic is a foundation that will s

This is the famous line from the 1989 movie, “Field of Dreams” starring Kevin Costner. Yesterday, my son Jack asked me to play catch. It was right during the Packer game, but I immediately thought of the movie and said, “ABSOLUTELY!” Jack started using his little glove from when he was 5 or 6, stating that he wasn’t strong enough to use the bigger glove we bought for him. I told him I thought it was time to try. He started catching better than with the old glove, catching man

Earlier this year, I won a Muskie fishing trip through a donation to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. After some summer schedule conflicts, Jack and I finally went out yesterday with Ben Collette on White Bear Lake. Jack’s been hooked on Muskie fishing since catching a 45-inch Muskie in Rhinelander last year, so we were both excited, especially since fall is prime Muskie season. It was a warm, sunny October day. While we didn’t catch a Muskie, we landed a few pike, learn

Heather and I have been cracking up for weeks over how often “6-7” sneaks into our house. It makes no sense to anyone over 25 and perfect...

I recently came across a picture of my sisters and me on our first day of school back in the 1980s. We’re smiling, backpacks on, ready...

We’ve all heard the complaints: “Kids these days don’t want to work hard.” “They give up too easily.” “They’re not as motivated as we...

In our family, food allergies are not an abstract risk, they are a daily reality. Our son Jack has severe allergies to milk, egg, peanut,...

On my drive into work today, I listened to Charles Duhigg on The Peter Attia Drive podcast and one statement stopped me in my tracks:...

The short answer is…..NO! Instead in a family that values learning in the flow of life, we amplify the importance of learning by engaging...

Like everyone else still walking this earth, I celebrated another birthday this year. It wasn’t a milestone like 16, 18, 21, or 40, but...

Our water heater has a story to tell. Not one of rust or wear, or the slow ticking of time—no, this one speaks in dents. I noticed them...

Last weekend, we celebrated my in-laws’ 50th wedding anniversary in the Wisconsin Dells. One of the highlights? Riding in a DUKW—those...

I absolutely love the game of golf—both playing it and watching it. And when it comes to watching, nothing compares to The Masters. From...

For most of my life, I didn’t see myself as creative, identifying instead with my Gallup Strengthsfinder themes—Responsibility, Harmony,...

Sitting around the dinner table recently I got into a debate with my kids about whether using AI for certain tasks was cheating. I agreed...

This past weekend, I stepped into my first head coaching role for my son’s basketball team. I’ve been assisting all season, but with...