I am a Dad with 3 kids and a wonderful wife. By day I am a computer programmer at a small company. I also occasionally write at: My wife Paula's Blog Green Colored Glasses Triond Writer Forums And sell my own t-shirt designs at CafePress (Just Fun Wear), Zazzle and T-Shirt Monster. I can be found on Twitter as JustFunWear http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/MarkBentley Thu, 16 Feb 2012 22:37:28 -0600 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.squidoo.com/ModYourPowerWheels We just got a Power Wheels for my daughter, so I started looking around for info about them. Pretty soon, I got sucked into the idea of modifying it (at least a little) and was amazed by some of the things that have been done to them. While I don't think that she is quite ready for some of the faster modifications (I have seen sites claiming 45mph!), we are definitely working on lights, traction and a few other ideas. We shall see where it all ends up. In the mean time, here are some ideas and links. hobbies-games-toys Thu, 24 Nov 2011 09:56:14 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/MiscarriageForDads Miscarriage sucks, but it happens a lot more than you realize until it happens to you and your family. Once I was sucked into dealing with it, I realized that while it hits the mother the hardest (because she bonds deeper with the baby as she carries it), people often forget that fathers are also dealing with not only the loss of a baby, but often they are then expected to deal with a wide variety of other issues in order to keep the family together. Please note that I am not a professional and have no training other than the fact that since our miscarriage, I have spent a lot of time dealing with this subject from a very personal point of view. I also periodically write about miscarriage at the site that we created for our two angel babies: Kye and Peanut's Blog parenting-and-kids Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:44:00 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/HandlingMiscarriage Miscarriage happens in about 25% of pregnancies (most very early on and un-noticed), yet it is rarely mentioned or discussed. This lens outlines my experience with the horrible world of miscarriage and what useful information I have found. Please keep in mind, I am just a dad. I have no formal credentials except to say that I know what it is to loose a child and I have had to learn fast because many of the professionals that I had to deal with were not helpful. I am hoping that not only will this lens help me to come to grips with things, but hopefully it will help others who are forced to take this journey as well. I also periodically write about miscarriage at the site that we created for our two angel babies: Kye and Peanut's Blog parenting-and-kids Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:47:33 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/must-have-attachments-for-the-kitchen-aid-professional-5-plus-mixer The Kitchen Aid Professional 5 mixer is a must-have for any kitchen. I got one for Father's Day one year and my daughter and I use it a lot. In addition to the standard attachments that come with the unit, there are a huge number of great Kitchen Aid Professional 5 Mixer Attachments that you can add onto it. food-and-cooking Thu, 24 Nov 2011 10:08:36 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/Free_Stock_Photos_And_Vectors Lets face it, more and more, having great content is good, but a nice graphic can really catch someone's attention and make all the difference between reading the content and moving on to something else. At some point, you find that you need to find some great graphics, but don't want to pay huge license fees and don't want to (or don't have the time or talent to) create them yourself. What do you do? Try one of these sites to find great graphics for free! internet Tue, 17 May 2011 08:42:45 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/LensRankStrategiesTest19 This is an overview of some simple tests that I did into ways to improve your lens rankings. I had heard a lot of suggestions and wanted to see if any really worked. squidoo-community Thu, 02 Dec 2010 13:32:49 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/cafepress/justfunwear This site has a number of humorous t-shirts, bibs, hoodies, sweat shirts and other apparel for pregnant moms and children of all ages. There is a large section for maternity t-shirts as well as toddlers and small children. Check out our great line of products at http://www.cafepress.com/justFunWear parenting-and-kids Sun, 22 May 2011 21:56:18 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/BestPortableApps If you frequently use several computers, it can be a real pain when you find that the utility that you want is on a different computer. One of the easiest solutions is just to load some of these apps onto a memory stick and then you always have the programs that you need the most! Here are some of the top portable apps that I have come across. computers-and-electronics Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:30:47 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-spit-shine-boots There are many suggestions for the best way to get a good parade shine on cadet boots. Here is a suggestion for getting a spit-shine on cadet boots. This page brought to you by the 3016 Airdrie Army Cadets (http://airdriecadets.com). fashion-and-beauty Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:10:44 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/FontList Over the last while (especially through SumbleUpon), I have come across a lot of great font sites that I wanted to keep track of for future use. After a while, I figured that my Del.icio.ous and Faves book marks were getting a little out of hand, so I figured that I would try setting up a page to maintain and share my links. Feel free to add your own! computers-and-electronics Mon, 23 May 2011 15:40:22 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/IllustratorResources Adobe Illustrator is the must have tool for computer illustration, but what do you do with it once you have it? Here are a selection of my favorite vectors, tutorials and other resources. computers-and-electronics Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:43:56 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/BestLegoArt Lego is a great toy that kids love. My family has always enjoyed playing with it, but more and more web sites are using it for all sorts of interesting things! Here are a few of them from sites like Flickr and YouTube. Of course, the next step is to try making a few of your own! arts-and-design Mon, 04 Apr 2011 11:56:46 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/badboss For many of us, Dilbert is so funny only because it is so true. We all know that things like that will never run out of things to write about because people are so inventive when it comes to ways to screw up. Here is a place to read about other people's horror stories or to add your own. Feel free to tell us about that bad boss you've had, but please keep it clean. business-and-work Thu, 02 Dec 2010 12:56:07 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutFernieBC Fernie, British Columbia is a great place to visit all year round with great hiking, mountain biking, skiing, and many other things for outdoor lovers of all ages! Any time of year, it is a great place to just get away and relax. travel-and-places Mon, 23 May 2011 00:17:38 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutCalgaryAlberta Calgary is a great city and while it is known for it's mountains, cowboys and oil companies, there is so much more to it. It is a great place to visit or live. Here is some of my links and information about Calgary Alberta travel-and-places Thu, 24 Nov 2011 09:53:42 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/PushYourSite I keep finding more and more interesting articles and sites for how to promote your website (to the point where you can easily spend more time promoting the site than developing it in the first place! After my Del.icio.us and Faves started getting a bit out of control, I figured that I would try this approach to share and maintain a list of useful information. Feel free to vote for your favorite sites and add ones that you find useful. internet Mon, 30 May 2011 10:09:50 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/PostPartum Post Partum Depression can be a horrendous ordeal for a large percentage of women and even men (yes, new studies say that men can get it too). Despite how common it is, people often try to hide it or pretend that it does not happen, causing even more stress for those families going through it. I am just trying to present a bit of information about this common problem and get people talking in the hopes of helping someone out. I know that it was a real eye opener after my daughter was born and we started talking to friends about things, and I hope that once people talk about it, they can understand and handle it easier. parenting-and-kids Thu, 02 Dec 2010 13:12:39 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AbcPrivatePractice Posted by Mark Bentley in Drama on February 19, 2009 | no responses ABC recently did an episode of "Private Practice" where they promised to talk about postpartum depression. Instead, they treated the far rarer, but more dramatic postpartum psychosis and blurred the lines between postpartum depression and psychosis. This made a tough time for families even tougher and it is this poor representation in the media that continually makes it hard for families to seek help with postpartum depression when they need it. entertainment Tue, 17 May 2011 08:55:13 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/top-wordpress-plugins Wordpress makes it quick and easy to start blogging. Once you get your blog up and set up your theme, there are a few things that you can do to make things run and look better. One way is to set up a few key plugins to improve the basic Wordpress setup. Here are a few of the modules that I always set up in a new WordPress setup that will make your WordPress blog run a little smoother. internet Sun, 15 May 2011 23:22:47 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/JustFunKids Everyone loves babies, but we often don't know what to get newborns and little ones. This is a selection of useful things for families with infants. Of course many of these links are also useful for expectant parents and baby shower gifts too! parenting-and-kids Sun, 22 May 2011 21:58:46 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/JustVote Right, left or center, the one thing that unites us is our belief that our position is right and all others are wrong. Show people where you stand and what you believe in with some of these great t-shirt designs for all positions. culture-and-society Mon, 23 May 2011 00:16:23 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/Stop-Biting-Your-Nails Nail-biting (onychophagia) is quite common in children and peaks with about 50% of teens. After the teenage years, children gradually do it less and less, and in most cases, they stop by age 30. For those looking for help stopping, this page has a few helpful tips. healthy-living Sun, 15 May 2011 23:28:20 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutNewYork This lens contains a collection of links, books, movies and general information about one of the best cities in the world, New York City. There is always something interesting happening in New York, so take a trip there (even if only on the web) and enjoy it! travel-and-places Wed, 06 Apr 2011 08:34:27 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/WhereIsJoe Well, my little brother Joe has always been a wanderer, and now he has gone off with some family that he met in Costa Rica and is traveling the world. We all miss Hippy Joe and hope that he has a great time! We can't wait for him to come back (you are coming back someday, right?) and tell us stories from around the world. In the meantime, I figured that I would create this Squidoo lens to keep track of where he might be and maybe help him find some cool stuff along the way! Joe can also be often found on Facebook, and even occasionally stops by the FaceBook "Where is Joe?" group at "http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7722594332". squidoo-community Wed, 05 Jan 2011 09:11:40 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/HelpingThroughMiscarriage Miscarriage happens in about 25% of pregnancies (most very early on and un-noticed), yet it is rarely mentioned or discussed. This lens outlines my experience with the horrible world of miscarriage and what useful suggestions I have for friends and family. Please keep in mind, I am just a dad. I have no formal credentials except to say that I know what it is to loose a child and I have had to learn fast because many of the professionals that I had to deal with were not helpful. I am hoping that not only will this lens help me to come to grips with things, but hopefully it will help others who are forced to take this journey as well. parenting-and-kids Sun, 15 Mar 2009 22:58:11 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/WebDesignTools There are some great tools out there for web design. Here are some of my favorites! internet Thu, 02 Dec 2010 13:07:16 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutCostaRica Costa Rica is a truly wonderful place. This lens is for family-friendly links and information about seeing all that Costa Rica has to offer. travel-and-places Thu, 02 Dec 2010 13:18:05 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TheSimpsonsShow One of the most popular cartoons ever, the Simpsons tries to leave no sacred cow un-abused. In their many years, they have constantly crossed the line in the cause of making us laugh! They have become America's favorite family along the way. This lens is dedicated to that family that always makes us laugh! entertainment Fri, 12 Sep 2008 13:58:36 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutHouston There is a lot to do in and around Houston. Here is some family-friendly info about some of it. travel-and-places Tue, 20 May 2008 23:36:38 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutChicago I spent a lot of time in Chicago and have missed it ever since. From Navy pier to China Town, Chicago has a lot to offer everyone of every age. This page contains some of my favorite family friendly Chicago things. travel-and-places Fri, 03 Jun 2011 08:19:27 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutDenver Denver is a city that many of us just travel through catching flights from A to B, but it is a great place to visit as well! Here are a few family friendly links about Denver and visiting with family. travel-and-places Sun, 29 May 2011 22:22:09 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutCanada Canada is a great country with a lot of amazing things to see, yet many people just know it as "that large icy area north of the United States". There is a whole lot more to Canada than Maple Syrup and Igloos. Here is a bit more information about Canada. travel-and-places Mon, 23 May 2011 10:00:09 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/Drupal-SEO Drupal can be a great website platform, but a lot of people quickly get to the point where they have a great website and now all they need is some people to come and view it. What then? At some point, you will have to move from just creating a pretty website that you like and start looking for ways to get the search engines like Google and Yahoo to look at it. Time for some SEO (Search Engine Optomization). internet Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:41:40 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TheBostonMarathon The Boston Marathon is probably the most famous marathon in North America, with every serious marathon runner dreaming of one day running it. Here is a quick rundown of the race. Photo from jeannejo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeannejo/3462209347/). sports-and-recreation Sun, 22 May 2011 23:54:39 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TopCodeSearchEngines Developing new projects, I constantly find that I am trying to do something that someone else has already done. Let's be honest, there are really only so many ways to do some things and sometimes it is just better to find some proven code and go with that. Here is a quick list of some of the best places on the net to search for sample code for your next project. computers-and-electronics Tue, 17 May 2011 08:45:37 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/ProtectYourBrand If you publish online, you need to protect your name or brand, much like any large corporation. This is important in order to establish a name for yourself and use this effectively as your brand online. squidoo-community Mon, 16 May 2011 21:25:21 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/WeirdEaster Easter is always fun for kids. But what happens once we are older and have eaten all of our candy? Here are some funny photos of the stranger side of Easter for a good laugh! Warning: Some of these are great fun, but might not be for all kids! Read on at your own risk! entertainment Mon, 16 May 2011 21:18:59 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/Mark-Bentley-Lensography I am a dad with 2 kids (a boy and a girl) and a wonderful wife. In March 2008, we had a miscarriage and lost our 3rd child (a boy). I started out with Squidoo after finding it while looking for ways to promote my sites on CafePress. I also mess around a lot with StumbleUpon, faves, del.icio.us, Twellow, Bzzster and have t-shirts at CafePress and T-Shirt Monster. My wife Paula Mitchell-Bentley is an excelent author and is starting to publish more and more. squidoo-community Sun, 15 May 2011 23:51:18 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/JustFunWear This lens is to show off the lovely t-shirts at my CafePress shop (http://www.cafepress.com/justfunwear). I hope you enjoy (and buy them) as much as I enjoy making them! squidoo-community Fri, 07 Nov 2008 23:46:19 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutParkCityUtah There is more to Park City than a quick ski. This highlights many of the family friendly things to see and do around Park City Utah. travel-and-places Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:10:00 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutTibet Tibet is a destination of almost mythic proportions. Here is some fun family oriented info about it. travel-and-places Wed, 27 Aug 2008 07:45:07 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/Wiilax Here are a few of my favorite Wii resources as well as places to add links to your own. videogames Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:44:45 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutQuebecCity Quebec City is one of the oldest cities in North America and is well worth seeing! It has a long and rich history and has lots to see any time of year. travel-and-places Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:03:11 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AboutBali Bali is an amazing and beautiful place. While pictures can not do it justice, this lens provides a little family friendly information about it. travel-and-places Sun, 13 Apr 2008 23:30:28 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/MyCanonXTI I had a 35mm Canon for years, but finally migrated to digital with the Canon XTI. I love it! It does great pictures and is quite easy to use. Here are some links and info about it and using it. arts-and-design Fri, 22 Aug 2008 09:31:34 -0600