Dadvice Weekly #10 / 10 Weeks
Dadvice #10
When Kyle and I started Dadvice, we honestly just went for it. No big plan. Just two dads sharing what’s been helpful in our own lives. Ten weeks later, I can say this has been a great project that I love getting to work on.
Some unexpected perks have been solidifying a writing process with Kyle. I’ve also received texts from friends I haven’t connected with in awhile saying they enjoy reading the newsletter. Another perk is I now live with a Notes app full of random ideas, tips, and things I want to share with you all. It’s changed how I notice the little stuff that makes life easier or more fun.
Ten issues in, we’re starting to figure out our identity. We still stand by the principles we started with, but at the core, Dadvice is about recommending useful things (items, content, and entertainment) that actually make life better.
A great exercise I’ve learned from work is to define what you don’t want to do. For Dadvice, that means avoiding lists like these:
37+ actually good early October Prime Day deals worth adding to your cart – where the #1 thing is an Echo Dot. I mean, who really wants to subscribe to that?
49 Coolest Things on Amazon for Under $25 - where you can buy a salad chopper or drawer liners.
That’s not us. We want to share things that matter and things you’ll actually use and enjoy.
If you’ve been enjoying Dadvice, here’s my encouragement: keep engaging with us. Reply to the newsletter like any other email (we actually monitor the inbox), shoot us a text, or share your own wins as a comment in the Substack app. And if you feel comfortable, tell a friend about it too. We don’t have a referral program but it’s fun to watch this community grow. -SW
With that said, here’s what we’re recommending this week…
Grocery Delivery Service - Boost by Kroger
A few years ago Brooke and I tried Walmart+ for grocery delivery. It seemed convenient at first, but we ran into a few frustrating issues. Groceries were occasionally delivered to the wrong house, and we even had to use a neighbor’s Ring camera to explain the mix-up. On top of that, the expectation to tip made things awkward. I always felt guilty leaving a small tip, but resented having to pay for both the service and a tip every single time. We eventually decided it was easier to get groceries the old fashioned way and just go to the store ourselves.
Fast forward to this past year with Mary Kate in our lives, and the calculus changed. We needed something more convenient. After doing some research, we found out that King Soopers (Kroger here in Colorado) offers a service called Boost. It’s $99 for the year, includes free delivery on orders over $35, and — best of all — no tipping required. There’s even a same-day delivery option, which has been a game-changer.
We’ve been using Boost throughout 2025, and it’s been solid. Every order has arrived on time and at our doorstep. It’s made grocery shopping so much easier, given us some time back on our Sundays, and we’ll definitely renew next year.
As a bonus, Boost includes a free subscription to ESPN+, Hulu, or Disney+. It’s not a huge perk, but it was nice to catch the Baylor vs. Kansas State game on Saturday without having to debate whether ESPN+ was worth it. -SW
The Gift Box Exercise
A few weeks ago I brought up Patricia Ryan Madson’s Improv Wisdom, and one exercise from it has quietly become a go-to: the Gift Box. You mime handing someone an invisible box, they open it, and whatever they find inside becomes the thing you play with—a great lesson in spontaneity and imagination. My two-year-old thinks it’s hilarious. We’ve bathed elephants, fed giraffes, tucked in kitty cats, all completely imaginary. It’s clutch for doctor’s office waiting rooms when you realize you left every toy in the car. But the real win? Bedtime. On nights that spiral into tears and refusals, I tell the kids there’s a mystery gift waiting in their beds. Suddenly they’re racing upstairs instead of melting down on the floor. It takes maybe ten seconds to set up, costs nothing, and somehow turns a disaster into giggles. It’s as close to dad magic as I’ve managed so far. -KC
Chase Offers ($20 off YouTube TV)
If you have a Chase credit card, you might have seen something called Chase Offers in your account. It is one of those features I usually ignore, until recently.
Here is how it works:
Log into your Chase account (app or web)
Scroll to Chase Offers
Click Add Offer on anything that looks good
When you make a purchase with that merchant using your Chase card, you automatically get the discount as a statement credit
Why mention this now? Because I just got $20 off YouTube TV through one of these offers. If you are like me and already paying for YouTube TV (and I am guessing a lot of us are), this is basically free money.
Take 30 seconds today and check your Chase Offers. If you have another bank there is the equivalent of Chase Offers for you too. You might find something useful. -SW
imarku Knives
I’ve been using the imarku Japanese Chef Knife for over five years now. It’s the knife I reach for every time. It fits my hand perfectly, holds an edge well for the price, and slices through a tomato like butter when you keep it sharp. A couple years ago we added their Santoku knife to the mix and it’s just as solid, maybe even better for quick prep work when you’re chopping an onion for fajitas or cubing chicken breast for a midweek meal. A warning: we tossed the chef knife in the top rack of the dishwasher for about three years and the handle eventually swelled and split. We hand wash the Santoku now and it still looks brand new. They’re about $30-$35 each, which feels like a steal given how much use we get out of them. Grab one when they’re running a sale—you can usually find them for about 20% off. -KC
Just for Dad: NFL Red Zone
Last year I watched NFL RedZone for the first time. I hated it.
I felt like I was watching every game and no game at the same time. The flow was impossible to follow. One second, I’d see a touchdown, then a turnover, then a sack, then a field goal, then a fumble all from different games, all within minutes. It was like trying to read five books at once, flipping pages randomly. Add in the stress of fantasy football, cheering for my team while rooting against my opponent’s players, and I was completely overwhelmed.
But something has clicked this year.
I’ve made a few key adjustments, and now I love RedZone. It has become my favorite way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
Here’s what changed:
I stopped trying to follow every game. RedZone isn’t about tracking the full arc of a single matchup. It’s about catching the vibe of the NFL (specifically the big moments, the drama, the highs and lows of players). Once I embraced that it became way more enjoyable.
I simplified my fantasy focus. I still know who’s on my team, but I’ve stopped checking my opponent’s lineup and the fantasy ticker until the second slate of games starts. It has helped me stay present and enjoy the action without constantly stressing over every point.
I discovered the magic of the Witching Hour. If you’re new to RedZone, here’s the pro tip: tune in at 1:15 p.m. MT. That’s when the early games hit the fourth quarter and everything goes off the rails. Scott Hanson calls it the “witching hour, where wins become losses and losses become wins.” It’s pure football chaos, and there are few places I’d rather be than parked on the couch watching it all unfold.
If you haven’t tried RedZone yet, give it a shot. If you’ve got YouTube TV, it’s an extra $10 per month. Or if you just want RedZone, you can get it through NFL+ for $15 per month.
It might take a week or two to get used to the pace, but once you do, it’s a dad’s dream: high-efficiency football, no commercials, and all the drama you can handle.
Dadvice Weekly is Kyle and Skyler—two guys in their thirties, living in Colorado, doing the dad thing. Every Tuesday we publish stuff that’s helping us at home: gear that doesn’t break, routines that stick, recipes we’re not embarrassed to serve twice.
If you have a tip, tried something we mentioned, or just want to say “hi”, reply to this email or message us on Substack. We read everything, and we’re always looking for things that work.