Initially built to share my Treehouse Building Progress, this is now outlet to share the things I love most: Family, Travel, Art, Surfing, Food, Growth, and any Creative Pursuits like building treehouses.
Follow me for treehouses, ‘ohana, travel, surf, food, growth, & art!
Treehouse Dad
Below are updates on how I built my first treehouse, my mistakes, and lessons learned along the way.
You’ll also see articles on new travel, surfing, food, personal growth, art, and the most important thing: FAMILY!
Heartburn & Meditation Challenge
Unfortunately, I’ve suffered from heartburn (GERD) since High School. Not good. It’s time to put a 100% concerted effort to stopping it!
Zakynthos and Peligoni Club
We’d just come off a week through the Greek Islands on a catamaran, and staying at a beach club didn’t sound half bad. With building expectations, we were excited to spend time on land enjoying the beauty, food, and people of Greece.
William Norberg
It's been over 12 years since we had to say goodbye to Will, and personally, I'm at a point where there are more good, positive memories and...
Will Lahaina’s Banyan Tree Survive the Fires?
Though the importance of taking care of our displaced people and animals comes first, we still have to work toward the Lahaina Banyan Tree’s future as well.
Saronic Islands Greece with kids
When friends ask us what our favorite part was on our Europe trip with kids across 9 countries, sailing in a catamaran through the Saronic Islands is first to mind.
Athens Greece with kids – 2 Days
Here we share the limited experiences we had in the short time before and after going on our week-long boat trip through Greece. We had a day before and after, and we took full advantage of the little time in Athens we were afforded.
Tuscany and Florence, Italy with Kids
My first trips to Italy 20+ years ago left me underwhelmed. Heat & Crowds turned me off. This trip, however, changed my opinion of what I now see as one of my favorite countries on Earth: ITALY!
Montmartre Paris with Kids – 2 Weeks
We’ve stayed at his flats in the past, but it was always just 3-5 days in Paris (and never with kids.) Traveling back to France after an 18-year break from Europe, we were itching to explore one of our favorite cities again.
Richelieu France – 5 Days
Our only exposure to Richelieu was a lunch 20+ years ago, so we were excited to spend some quality time in this old city after our stay in Geneva with kids.
Geneva Switzerland with Kids
I’ve shared some of our favorite things to do in Geneva with kids, within surrounding areas, and tips and tricks we’ve learned over the years and during this recent 2-week trip.
Virginia with Kids – 7 Days
7 nights is never enough in Virginia with our favorite people, but here are some fun things to do with kids in and around Aldie.
Maui Hawaii
I’ll be documenting each part of our crazy trip coming up, and I thought sharing packing and prepping would be fun.
Trekking the Sapa Region of North Vietnam
We did the 3-day 4-night trek in north Vietnam’s Sapa region. The following is our account of what happened along with some photos.
Hanoi Vietnam
We went to Vietnam on a whim knowing we’d spend over 60 total hours traveling on our 7 day trip. Crazy? A little bit. Worth it? Absolutely.
BREATH WORK & NO SOCIAL MEDIA: 21-Day Challenge
The Treehouse Dad is taking on another challenge… Let’s see how I fair with 21 days without personal social media and daily breath work.
NO BOOZE & NO CAFFEINE: 21-Day Challenge
I’m taking 21 days off from drinking as well as coffee to begin developing habits of abstinence and calm, but I’m mostly doing it to record how I feel. 2023 is all about health and growth.
NO SUGAR & BETTER SLEEP: 21-Day Challenge
I’m taking 21 days off from processed sugar (fruit ok) as well as going to bed by 9 pm (for at least 8 hours of sleep) to begin developing habits of abstinence and optimal health, but I’m mostly doing it to record how I feel. 2023 is all about health and growth.
NO BOOZE & DAILY WORKOUTS: 21-Day Challenge
I’m taking 21 days off from drinking as well as daily workouts to begin developing habits of abstinence and exercise, but I’m mostly doing it to record how I feel. 2023 is all about health and growth.
Treehouse Planning
I share our treehouse planning, including sketches, goals, and overall design thoughts moving into this project!
Treehouse Platform Structure
Building a strong, safe treehouse structure is priority #1, and I share the platform I created along with its supports.
Most Recent Video
We had a great time on a catamaran in Greece.
About the Treehouse Dad
To start, I have no business building anything. I’m a web geek, so anything I share is just to show how I did it, and I’m not making recommendations. My hope is to get feedback and learn from others!
A little about me.
Having been obsessed with both the book and movie (and Disney attraction till they changed it to Tarzan) Swiss Family Robinson, by Johann David Wyss, it’s always been a dream to build my own treehouse!
My experience:
- Garden boxes
- A deck and stairs 95% made from used pallets (see photo above)
- Chicken Coops. I’ve gone through building 2, and I think if I built a 3rd it’d be the best chicken coop tractor ever made.
- A custom lego table
- Various mediums of art
Clearly, I’m not a builder and all of my woodworking experiences were experimental, until now!
My Inspiration:
Our kid’s Grandmpa looked up into a small tree in our yard less than a year ago and said we should make a treehouse. it seemed way too small, but the idea was intriguing. Grandpa was definitely the catalyst and part of the inspiration. The other part came from, of course, Pete Nelson and his crew from Treehouse Masters. We love that show and have bought and watched almost every season.
I didn’t know until starting this project that my own grandfather was a carpenter in his youth, which could account for the ancient hand-me-down tools I still use.
Why now?
Being a good dad and husband are my most important jobs. As we first drew sketches of the treehouse, the excitement in my kids’ eyes was overpowering. It had to happen, and I’m loving every minute of it!