Called my niece in Southern California this afternoon and she told me her twin teenage sons, Chad and Kyle, had just gotten their driver's licenses.

But that wasn't the interesting thing. No, the best part of the story was this.

Back when the boys were 14, their father bought a seemingly ready-for-the-scrap-heap car.

"It looked like it had been in a fire," said my niece.

But Kevin had a plan. He and the boys would restore the car. They would work on it together. And they would have it road-worthy

by the time Chad and Kyle were ready to drive in a couple of years.

Doesn't that sound like a great father and sons project?

Oh, sure, there were some frayed nerves and moments of frustration along the way. But the thing is, they stuck with it. And now the boys have a car that wasn't just a gift from Daddy. It is something they earned. You know, sweat equity.

I suppose Kevin's worries are just beginning, now that the boys are on the road. But I still think the family-plan restoration was a great idea.

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