Ken Jennings became famous the easy waythrough an unprecedented 74-game victory streak worth $2.52 million onJeopardy.
Heres how he parents.
Tell us a little bit about your family and your career.
Did life happen mostly as planned or were there surprises?
The kids were planned.
(Well, the conceptions were planned.
Everything since then has been a total free-for-all.)
My career change has been the biggest surprise.
I was a perfectly happy suburban dad and computer programmer back in 2004, the year I turned thirty.
I was not expecting to win on Jeopardy!
for six months straight and start a new career as a writer and professional know-it-all.
Take us through your morning routine.
What are your best tricks for getting out the door?
I have the lifestyle of your 85-year-old grandpa, basically.
How much outside help do you get as a parent?
Who or what cant youlive without?
Even with just two kids, we are driving somebody somewhere all the time.
Carpools are a life-saver.
What are the gadgets, apps, charts or tools you rely on?
There are gadgets and apps that will parent my kids for me?
Has becoming a parent changed the way you work?
I thought about putting a lock on the door but I ended up just embracing the catastrophe.
How do you decompress?
We have a pretty hard-and-fast rule that the kids have to be in their rooms around 8:30 or 9.
Whats been your proudest moment as a parent?
I like to see the kids confident about stretching their wings a little.
We decided to let them walk over on their own and have a little adventure.
They could not have been happier or cuter about it, and also did not get kidnapped and die.
What moment are you least proud of?
100-way tie for every time they spilled water or broke a glass in a restaurant.
What do you want your kid to learn from your example?
Hopefully that every single person they meet deserves to be treated with decency and respect.
What are your favorite funny/weird/special family rituals?
Has anyone ever given you a piece of parenting advice that has really stuck with you?
All the cliches about how the days are long but the years are short are absolutely true.
Youre not going to be the parent of young kids for very long, relatively speaking.
Go to the park.
Buy them ice cream.
Whats the hardest part about being a parent?
Whats your favorite part of the day?
;) ;) ;) Thats usually when the UPS guy drops off any Amazon packages.
Any tips for teaching a kid how to be funny?
This is a cant-missas far as Im concerned.
Whats one piece of advice youd give to all parents?
Read to your kids every night.
Its not just an unwind-before bed ritual; it will change their lives.
