I recently had a dollar bill with the following stamped on it in red.

“See where I have been.”
“Track where I go next.”
“www.wheresgeorge.com”

I was skeptical of this at first, probably because writing or stamping in red on U.S. currency just seems like it is a big no, no.

Here’s to the educational value of geography and the convenience of taking a minute to look up where George has been.

We found the $1 bill started in Wattsburg, PA in December of 2008. Although the dollar bill had traveled a great distance, nobody else had bothered to type in their geographic location. Party poopers.

We can only imagine how many people may have used it as currency over more than a year and those 409 miles. Or, did it sit still for most of that time and one person transport it from Pennsylvania to Illinois?

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My two sons occasionally try to sucker me into doing things I don’t want to do. Usually, I sniff it out right away. Suggestions such as eating cookies for breakfast or filling our cart with toys at Target I tend to squash immediately. But last week, they managed to get the best of me.

I took the boys to Graham Crackers Comics in Downers Grove. A buddy from high school, Nik Jajic, was signing copies of his first comic book. “The Big Bad Book” is not a comic book for kids. It’s an independent comic book that’s pretty wild. Put it this way, the main characters are a clown and a monkey.

Regardless, I wanted to support my friend by buying his comic ($11.99). I also thought visiting the store would be a fun outing with the boys. Nik’s brother promised help me keep an eye on my three- and two-year-old sons.

All was going well. The boys were behaving, showing Nik’s brother and his wife some of their favorite Star Wars and Batman comic books. After about 45 minutes, I could tell it was time to leave. Bubba and Peter were starting to get a little crazy. Call it instinct.

I approached the counter, and the clerk rung up my signed comic. I was ready to hand over $13 in cash when my sons ran up to the cash register. They were each clutching a Star Wars toy. The toys were handpicked with the help of Nik’s family who babysat while I socialized.

“Can we buy these dad?” Bubba asked.

At that moment, the whole comic shop fell silent and all eyes turned my direction. The toys were pretty cool (see pic). Peter picked out a Luke Skywalker action figure from “Return of the Jedi.” Bubba held a Wampa snow monster from “The Empire Strikes Back.” The snow monster also featured a removable arm, just like in the movie.

The toys were grossly overpriced. But what could I do? The folks who were good enough to watch my kids were looking on. I also knew that not buying these toys would result in tantrums. So instead of paying $13 in cash, I handed over my credit card and charged $47.

Well played boys. Well played.

Dr. Seuss’ birthday may have come and gone, but the focus on reading should remain all year around.

No matter how nice the weather is outside, try to fit in some reading time.

Reading is important across the curriculum. You probably already knew that, but sometimes we need to be reminded of important it is to really think about that fact and apply that learning to everything we do.

A new program launched by Parents magazine called “Raise a Reader” caught our attention because you could win a $50 gift card just for reading each day.

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Parents know that products are being marketed to their children.

Chuck E. Cheese’s doesn’t sponsor PBS programming out of the goodness of its rat heart. Rather, the corporate marketing team realizes the value of having its mascot appear before and after kids’ shows. Thus, Curious George and WordGirl are preempted by a skateboarding mouse that waves to the audience. Chuck secretly wants the kiddos to convince their parents to bring them to his pizza arcade.

But how much of this type of marketing really sinks in? Until recently, researchers believed that “brand symbolism” did not develop until age seven or eight.

On Monday, a new study from the University of Michigan’s School of Kinesiology was released. The findings reveal that children as young as three years old understand brands, according to Bettina Cornwell, the U-M Kinesiology Sport Marketing Professor and co-author of the study.

“The researchers first assessed brand recognition levels in 38 children aged three to five years old. Mainstream brand logos, like Lego and Coca-Cola, were presented to children on a card. In individual sessions, brand names were shown to the children with questions like, “Have you seen this before?” and “What types of things do they make?” The children’s recognition rates were as high as 92 percent for some of the 50 brands tested across 16 product categories. The most commonly recognized brand was McDonald’s, followed closely by other brands of fast food, soda and toys. This showed clearly that children as young as three can readily recognize the brands marketed to them.”

Again, I’m not surprised how much marketing kids receive. The surprising thing is how much they comprehend. It’s sort of a leap to make the connection between that skateboarding rat and a dingy arcade that serves awful pizza. But the study shows that kids as young as three can make the connection.

Just one more reason to turn off the television.

When our two children were younger, the start of March meant planning summer child care.

When they were a little older it meant planning for a week at summer camp.

What about teens?

Don’t forget that planning is always an important part of best using each hour of the day.

What about summer jobs for teens, either paying jobs or just valuable volunteer work?

When my siblings and I were younger, it meant tackling bigger projects on the farm and many, many weeks of working in the fields. We looked forward to helping at Vacation Bible School and reading some books we personally chose from the library.

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When I was a kid, my three brothers and I would wait by the window after a heavy snow. We’d stare through the glass hoping that maybe - just maybe - Les Richio would visit with his snowmobile.

Les was a family friend. He was a retired truck driver. But most of all, he owned a snowmobile.

Our house boarded both the ComEd power lines and a golf course. We lived on a 90 acre farm. Thus, Les had good reason to visit on his snowmobile. The terrain was perfect.

He would typically drop in once a year and offer everyone a ride. If Santa Claus and Les arrived simultaneously, I’d be hard pressed to tell you who’d get bigger reaction.

It wasn’t until after we all four of the Ludwig boys graduated from college that my dad bought a pair of used snowmobiles. By then, much of the thrill was gone. Still, I’d make it out to the farm for an annual ride.

The past two years, I’ve been taking my sons with me. Bubba is 3 1/2 years old. Peter is 2 years old. (The picture here is from 2009. Bubba and my youngest brother, Tom, went snowmobiling on the farm.)

My dad and I took the boys for a 30 minute ride last week. Bubba would occasionally punch the throttle. Peter mostly just hung on tight, wearing snow pants, boots, a thick jacket, hat, gloves and a big smile.

Later that evening, I told The Wife about the days events.

“Is that safe?” she asked.

“I think so.” I replied.

Honestly, I didn’t really consider safety until she asked. I did make a conscious effort to keep my speed down. I kept thinking to myself, “If I fall off this thing with Peter going this fast, are either of us going to get hurt?”

With that in mind, I drove cautiously. Yet, I wonder if this sort of activity is one of the subtle differences between my boys being raised by a stay-at-home dad versus a stay-at-home mom. I’m not saying women can’t love snowmobiling too, just that men are more likely to participate in the activity.

I doubt that it will matter much when my boys become men that they went snowmobiling as toddlers. What I’m curious about is how all these subtleties add up and impact my sons as adults. I guess we will have to just wait and see.

Every day you go to high school or middle school and feel like you are on trial by a jury of your peers.

It doesn’t seem to matter what you say or have said.

It doesn’t seem to matter what you do or have done.

It doesn’t seem to matter what you see or have seen, or hear or have heard - you get where I’m going here.

I cannot speak for high school, but having two children in middle school, I hear that some days are like that.

What can be done about it?

“To Save A Life” might be the movie with the answers to a lot of the questions not just teens, but tweens have on their minds.

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I’ve met thousands of good dads. These fathers go out of their way to provide for their children. Some of these men are working dads who put in long hours and/or work a strenuous job to provide food and shelter for their families. Others are stay-at-home dads who work tirelessly to provide a loving home for their kids.

Perhaps it’s because I know so many good apples that I’m so appalled by the rotten ones.

I realize it’s only February, but I think Patrick Joseph Renk of Canistota, S.D. might be the winner of the rotten apple dad of the year.

According to the Post-Tribune in northwest Indiana, Renk “has been charged with neglect of a dependent after authorities said he left his three young children alone in a Hammond motel room while he went to a nearby strip club.”

That noise you just heard was my jaw dropping to the floor.

It is really not a secret that those who get the best test scores comprehended what was being read to them at a very early age.

Yes, we are talking about before they were in school and and before they were able to read independently.

So why aren’t all parents reading to their small children?

The list of excuses is too long to fit in this space, so we will move on.

The building blocks (the child’s base level for comprehending text in all areas of school) won’t stay up without support (from their parents and guardians).

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A buddy of mine recently forwarded me this YouTube video. The artist is a woman dressed in stereotypical mom fashion. With a sweater tied loosely around her neck, she raps about her daily duties. According to the refrain, the song details, “A Day in the Life of a Suburban Housewife.”

The video is hilarious, though I feel obligated to ***WARN EVERYONE ABOUT THE SWEARING***

If that sort of thing doesn’t bother you, the video/song is likely to provide any parent a good belly laugh. Some of the jokes are predictable like the jabs about laundry and soap operas. But others are truly original and inspired.

It sounds like this bit was recorded at a comedy club. I’m not sure of the name of the artist. Who knows, it may all be an act. Regardless, it’s a funny bit, particularly for parents.