Unafraid of technology

I’m continually amazed at how a modern 5-year-old takes technology in stride. Driving Jacob home from preschool recently, I turned on the Pandora music streaming app on my iPhone and piped the music through my car radio, as I do routinely. Jacob heard a few bars of the rap song that was playing and said, [...]

Nostalgia engine

Back in 2004 (I think), I bought a Nintendo 64 game system for $20 at GameStop so I could play it with Charlie and Thomas during their visits. It was the same kind of system they had played on when they were young kids,  so we all experienced some nostalgia as we played again — [...]

“…”

I’m a lot less uptight about the words I use around Jacob than I was ‘a generation ago’ with Charlie and Thomas. Today, as I was putting Jacob in his car seat: Jacob: “Ow!” Me: “I’m sorry. Did I crush your nuts?” Jacob (laughing): “No, you didn’t crush my nuts! How did you know I [...]

A noisy life

I’m writing this from the place I go every Tuesday evening with my 4-year-old, Jacob. It has multiple playrooms for him, with inflatable ‘bouncy houses’ and slides, foam pits, riding toys and a great crew of employees who supervise the kids and do games and crafts with them. We get dinner here — they have [...]

An unprecedented toileting experience

I thought I had been through every kind of toilet emergency, but today my four-year-old sprung a new one on me: He says, “I have to go pee right now or I’m going to wet my pants,”  and the only available toilet is the one I’m on (and actively using).

Twenty-one on none

Confession: I still get a kick out of “Bears on Wheels” by the Berenstains. It’s one of the first books my parents read to me when I was little. I also introduced it to Charlie and Thomas when they were little, and it stuck with us. Even today, when I’m with my ‘big guys’ and [...]

Which family is his family?

For homework this past weekend, my preschooler, Jacob, was to make a “me cube,” a tissue box wrapped in colored paper and then covered with photos, drawings and information about him. One of the faces of the cube was supposed to feature a picture of “my family.” I agonized, as I often do, over whether [...]

The generation gap between the kids — and why it rocks

My middle son, Thomas, 18,  just went home after spending the weekend with me, my wife and our preschooler, Jacob. One of the joys of these visits from my older sons has been watching their relationships with Jacob play out. The age gap has had unexpectedly positive effects. With each interaction, I become more aware [...]

Four keys to a great multi-generational outing

Last summer, I tried taking my sons Thomas (then 17) and Jacob (then 2.5) backpacking.  It was hell. Yesterday, I took the same two sons kayaking. It was euphoric. Here are the four main things that were different about the two ventures, expressed as ‘keys to success’: Check the weather. Bring everything you might need. [...]

As long as no one’s reading, I’m going to blog about my feelings!

The start of school* makes me nostalgic for one of the two happiest times in my life: 12 years ago. Twelve years ago is when I started working nights on the copy desk of a regional newspaper. What was so great about that? Well, I didn’t have to be at work until 4 p.m., so [...]