Andy,
How about adding all the names of attendees who sign up before a certain cutoff date as a last minute insert to the program manual or something to this effect? Maybe a permission to display contact info on the application via a check box? Than a line to supply the preferred contact method, e mail, phone etc.
Great job and an Atta Boy, to all who put the convention on this year!

My Site, http://www.milehidad.com/ and my Blog, http://www.milehighdad.net/
Make Babies, Not War!
I Wanna Know How Forever Feels...

I would like to see the screen names from here along with the real names somewhere (on the name tags or even better in the program). It's sometimes hard to make the connections as to who is who on here vs. in the real world, especially with the guys who use fun screen names instead of their real name.

Check out my ramblings on life at http://www.sahdguy.blogspot.com/

The athomedad.org screen name on the convention name tags will be added next year. There will be a line on the registration form to include that, and if the gentlemen want to share "who they are" they will have the option. That has already been taken care of. Great idea guys.

Dayv

www.athomedadconvention.com

Before you book Napa, check out the Lodi Wine center. Lodi is 45 minutes south of Sacramento, (I live in Lodi) and is taking over as California's wine country. There are over 30 wineries in the Lodi area, and most of the tasting rooms are hosted by the owners or the actual wine makers. It is a lot less expensive to taste, and most have free tasting with a few only charging for tasting from the reserve list.

www.athomedadconvention.com

I like the idea of repeating Dads/Daughters. How about alternating it with Fathers/Sons? I think this would be good to talk about it going both ways...things we learned from our dads to carry on, and things we want to do differently with our sons.

I too would like an encore hair-braiding (and other fixin's).

Finally, there seemed to be a few themes, and it might be useful for newbies (this was my first) and for others as well, I guess, to have something from each theme for each time frame. To explain, there seemed to be a "practical topics" theme (stuff you would listen, learn and make changes the next day if you were so inspired). Child Safety, Financial, Legal, Hair Braiding, and Basic Repair Sewing fit into that. There there were "discussion forum" sessions: how to stay involved with older kids, dads/daughters, age-based forums, and communication in your marriage. There there were the "dad" sessions: Depression, Isolation, Anger, (hmmm????!!!!!), growing your own group, and "what about me?" open forums.

The reason for trying to fit sessions into categories would be to address the competing overlap a bit more systematically. If there is only one session each time frame on self, practical tips, and topic discussion, it would give planners and attendees an opportunity to strike a balance in the kind of sessions they attend. As I write this I think it also is a great way to promote balance in ourselves. We do need to take time for ourselves, get better at organizing the house, and we need to talk about things with other dads.

There are probably other 'themes' of importance, but those are what struck me from this past event.

Being a recovering academic, I think it would be nice to find an academic like Aaron to come and discuss research related to Dads, SAHDS, child-development topic du jour, or other relevant topics. This could be one general session at the end when we are all talked out and needing a nap anyway ;-)

Mike B
LinOma Dads

If you are looking for a recommendation for Lodi Wines, Check out Van Ruiten Family winery. Great stuff. The Cab-Shiraz is my wife and my personal favorite.

www.athomedadconvention.com

I'll bet that next year being held in Sacramento, not far from Lodi, home to the finest older Zinfandel vines in California or perhaps the younger Cabernet Sauvignon vines, you'll find some good hearty Reds while there! I am looking forward to that myself! I love the big reds! Anyway...

While neither Boulevard Brewery or Smokin Guns seems like the mixed drink/wine cooler places, I understand what you are saying. Don't know where we'll be at next year for the M&G or the post convention dinner. But as far as the hotel club room, I saw that some guys went out somewhere and bought some Mike's and Absolut and Cranberry. Maybe we'll have to make a run to the liquor store once we arrive in Sacramento next year. I think that things like mixed drinks should be up the guys themselves to provide, which I have no problem with. Just my .02

Brian

The request for a few more beverage choices is understandable. I think that the expense is probably the biggest hurdle. It can be tough to have something for everyone. Beer is not as big a problem, because most beer drinkers will stoop to the cheap stuff as long as its the free stuff. For those who prefer liquor, offering mixed drinks is harder because guys are more entrenched in their drink of choice. Wine might be easy as long as we weren't too picky.
As for wine coolers, I didn't know they were still around. I bet Dayv has a 2 liter bottle of SunCountry in his fridge right now.

I would suggest having beer as usual with a few bottles of wine thrown in next year. And, of course, welcome anyone to BYOB. You could find a couple of guys to chip in on a bottle of your favorite and make a run to the store.

And, you could ask Dayv to share his SunCountry. Heck, maybe he could get Bartles and Jaymes to moderate one of the sessions next year for you.

Finally, soft drinks and snacks must always be offered.

In honor of moving to the "West Coast," let's have some 40s next year, and we can pour a little bit on the ground for the Dads that couldn't make it to the convention.

Cash bar vs. Open bar. DJ vs. Live band. Rose centerpieces vs. Carnation centerpieces. Rice vs. Bubbles. Dance floor? Ice sculptures?

All in all a great convention err conference. My .02....

1) Two many Canadians! Maybe there should be a cap on their numbers. Or at least do something to screen out the ones that are way cooler than me.....

2)Cell phone jammers.

3)Convention t-shirts. Add a tshirt purchase option to the registration and get a batch done - (then organizers aren't buying them on spec).

Cdn Tim

I have been thinking about maybe pitching the idea of an embroidered solid color golf style polo shirt or maybe a long sleeve denim shirt with the athomedadconvention web logo on it. Then, THAT Canadian brought it up!
I think it would get a lot of positive response as my coffee cup has at Starbucks and the playground.
Just an ambitious thought at this point that still needs a logo approval.

My Site, http://www.milehidad.com/ and my Blog, http://www.milehighdad.net/
Make Babies, Not War!
I Wanna Know How Forever Feels...

Limit on Canadians. Check. I'll work on that.

Pre-registration. Not a bad idea. Might be able to do that along with the meet & greet.

Name badges. Funny, I just happen to know this company that does engraving and such. they do coffee cups and flasks, and they just happen to do name badges, and I'm sure we can get a good deal for those who register early to get real name badges done.

Maps and goodie bags. I hope to have those at the hotel registration. I'm going to try to get AAA to donate some sacramento area maps to put in.

Speaking of donations. Go find and read the donation threads.

Dayv

www.athomedadconvention.com

Gender roles/stereotypes and parenting: One forum at the '07 convention sort of touched on this subject, but not till the very end, and what little time we had for discussion was interesting and though-provoking. To what extent do we try to teach our girls to become ladies and our men to become gentlemen? What does that mean, especially since we, as SAHDs, are breaking at least some gender stereotypes.

Re-joining the work force: This may seem to go against the whole idea of supporting SAHDs, but hear me out. Many of us are SAHDs because our wives had more lucrative jobs. What if those jobs go away, and we start looking for work? How do we get leads, talk to employers, etc., given that it looks like we've got a giant hole in the resume? What about SAHDs that have older kids and are starting to think about going back to earning income?

Cooking: I'd be most interested in a class that taught ways to make cheap, quick, easy, yummy and nutritious meals without a long ingredient list or complicated recipe instructions. A lot of guys seem to enjoy cooking, so this would be a fun class. Of course, setting up just one demonstration cooking area is complicated.

Attachment parenting: I'm a big fan of Dr. Seares' books on parenting, but would benefit from a forum where we could talk about some of the practical ramifications and experiences related to this.

This is me just brainstorming. Thanks for a great '07 convention.

Heya guys- sorry I haven't posted this until now but life's been a little crazy this month.

Needless to say, I attended the conference in KC and enjoyed myself a lot. As far as suggestions go, the main thing I can add relates to my experience. I have a tendency to be a bit of a wall flower when outside my comfort zone. So, I would suggest a sort-of "howdy" system for newbies/first-timers. Maybe team them up with a buddy for the excursions, m&g and/or morning breakfast with a conference regular, at least initially for handshakes and hellos. That way introductions can be made by someone who knows everyone already and doesn't make the newcomer feel like he has to take the reigns. Alternatively, my wife mentioned a "Speed Dating" concept where each person has a two-minute window to describe themselves to a group of 5 or so people before switching to a new group (it could be called "Speed Greeting"). The morning breakfast had a "Green Name Tag Table Switch" which was along the same line, but since I was a late arrival, that meant a hand-written tag (and didn't know to move until too late). That was a good thing to do though. Perhaps it can be done more than once. It would be cool to chat with absolutely everybody at one point or another during the event, even if just to say "hello." I think this would make freshmen feel more a part of the group more quickly, because it's a long way to travel to feel, "Dang, I wish I connected more." This feeling of mine is probably all because I was a late arrival though, because everyone was as nice as could be. My feeling a bit like I walked into the middle of something is probably normal since the day-before meal had enough seats except for us two late-arrivals.

I would also suggest a way to introduce hobbies so people can find similar-minded people more quickly. Perhaps a "Stand Up and Say Something About Yourself" moment at mealtime (this could easily be done in a "Speed Greeting" session). I was hoping the "What About Me?" session would be along these lines. Because a well-attended one-day/weekend conference is a hard way to get to know people, especially if one is prone to lurk until comfortable like me. This session had to compete with the Nebraska/KU game though, so it never seemed to focus on "what about me?" issues.

Another thought- I was hoping to hear something about the medical reports regarding AHDs and the fact that a large number of them are unexpectedly stroking out in their 40s. I've seen this reported in a couple of places, but never heard it addressed in an AHD forum. So, a men's health breakout would be appreciated.

One last note- the convention was so well done that huge kudos need to go to the guys that put so much time and effort into it. You guys really came through and I really appreciated all the efforts.