Parenting—The Other Olympian Sport

Father of one boy, Khalil (6 years old)

What's your biggest parenting challenge?

It's losing sight of him being a child. They do things that are so grown up, you know? They seem so advanced. They pick up on a lot of different things—with technology, they can pick up on it so quickly. But they're still kids. And sometimes you have to ask them, "What are you doing? You're way too smart for that!"

If there were an Olympics of parenting, in which field would you get the gold?

Discipline. Not coming down hard on him, but giving him a choice within boundaries. I say, "You can either clean your room and have free time or you can clean your room and go to bed ... So I suggest you be happy about cleaning your room."

Focus, too. I want him to be a focused individual. And I want to set up those qualities as early as possible. They can pick up on these things. You can start it young.

Finish this sentence: You know you're in the Baby Zone when…

… you're carrying around a diaper bag and a stroller. From when they're an infant up to 1 or 2 years old, you're changing those diapers. Man, if someone would've told me I'd be cleaning someone's butt or changing diapers for free… [laughs]