By acting like a grown-up, he was showing his son that might wasn’t always right, even if the bullies sometimes walk away with the prize. … More Everyone talks about ‘Phillies Karen’ — but Dad and Son ‘just doing the right thing’ is the true lesson
Regrets … I’ve had a few … The older I get, the fewer regrets I hang on to, not that there were many to start with. I’ve had a great run for many years, and I’m not done yet. Many ups, many downs. Now I find myself sandwiched between childhood, parenthood, and spouse-hood. While my … More Regret: My Mother can’t realize how rebellious Daughter has inherited her ‘wild streak’
“I just want to stop by for a minute and pet the cats, and pick up something.” It was the first Monday following Daughter’s move, setting up house in a beachside condo with her boyfriend. She was coming off a 10.5 hour shift at the sandwich shop, but she was in a bright mood. The … More Our Empty Nest arrived early — but we’re rolling with some of the same requests from Daughter
One of the many gifts a child can share with you is the joy of imagination, the ability to sidestep the real world and build a unique environment — one that that can pull in adults and help them recover their own memories of childhood imagination. Each day is another amazing display of how deep … More The wonder of imagination: Wayward fish gets a condo; preparing for ‘awful’ nuptials
It’s interesting as to how life can take amazing twists and turns and yet somehow manage to land exactly where you hoped it was headed in the first place — even if it’s walking down the aisle at a wedding. No, our daughter isn’t getting married at the tender age of soon-to-be 9 years old. But she … More 4 years, a broken arm, a broken vow — but she finally walked the aisle as a flower girl
It sounded like a blog-worthy idea: Similar, coincidental events of reasonable significance overlapping between the 56-year-old and the 7-year-old. Opportunities for a few clever comments, and some deep-thought wisdom. That’s how these blog posts work: An idea presents itself; it crystallizes and then synchronizes my brain and my fingers. Truth be told (shouldn’t it always … More A Tale of Two Mouths: The Tooth Fairy pulls through
Last week, we had one of those “Yes, Virginia” moments. Knew it would happen eventually. Standing in the supermarket aisle, she turns to me and asks, “Is Santa Claus real?” I wondered if she intentionally phrased the question that way. It wasn’t the standard believe-don’t believe inquiry. Still, my immediate thought was that this would … More For grown-up and kids, Santa’s true home lies between the manger and the mall — deep in our hearts
When your child comes home with one of those little daggers in her heart — or you sense the threat of one — parental instincts move into overdrive. One time while she was in Pre-K, our daughter had spent a great deal of time at home drawing and coloring four unique pictures for four of … More Tiny daggers to a child’s heart: It’s parents who feel them most — and deepest
“Daddy, you smell like Sizzli.” I had just walked in the door after my overnight shift, and we were in the midst of our 3-way turnaround — Mom leaves for work, I get our daughter to the bus stop, and I come home and consider going to sleep. This all unfolds over 10 or so … More An old dog struggles to learn new tricks — but refuses to roll over or play dead
We didn’t have a lot of money when I was growing up. (Wait — isn’t that what everyone says?) It was a time when Moms stayed at home and Dads earned the paychecks. We had one “previously owned” car. I remember watching my father pull out the back seat and anchor and install seat belts, … More When parents do what they have to do to keep the family afloat
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