A while back, J and I hit on the idea of using eye contact to get and hold C’s attention. He learned the trick quite well. Whenever he really (really, really) wants something he makes sure to somehow make eye contact. Sometimes that means getting in front of us. Sometimes, he grabs a pant leg. […]
Read MoreThere are few things more frustrating than a toddler who has decided to be bad. In this case, it was C. We have been trying to teach him "table manners" – no yelling at the table, be quiet when other people are talking, no feet on the table, and so on. A week or so […]
Read MoreAt some point in the past few months, J almost dropped N. Well, not really, but she looked like she was going to. It was one of those things where you’re carrying the infant and you switch from one arm to the other at the same time that he decides to try to fling himself […]
Read MoreFirst a little background is necessary. The Barnes & Nobles (around here at any rate) have train tables set up in the kids’ area. This is a little table that is about 2 feet high and covered with little wooden trains. Most of the time, those trains are Thomas the Tank Engine trains. The engines […]
Read MoreAre you familiar with the concept of patient 0? Patient 0 is the person who starts the outbreak of a disease or some other problem. For example, if your kid were to catch the flu in Chicago and bring it back to Orlando to give it to all his classmates, he would be "patient 0". […]
Read MoreKeeping a talkative 1 year old quiet in church is one of the most complex challenges a parent can face. There’s no way to discipline a child during a church service. Despite what you may have seen, stern disapproving looks made by desperate parents really have no effect on a 1 year old. All you […]
Read MoreFor all of you trying to figure out how to spoon feed your baby, here’s a tip that may work: hand him another spoon. He plays with one spoon while you feed him with another. It keeps him from trying to grab your spoon while you put the food in his mouth. Thanks to J’s […]
Read MoreThis one isn’t so much about the boys as it is about me. In some ways, I came into this whole Daddy thing astonishingly unprepared. For example, I didn’t know any baby songs. All those great little ditties that help out so much when the kids are upset? I had none of them. As you […]
Read MoreThis one’s for all the new dads out there. When you’re sitting on the couch with your family, do not show your son how much fun it is to pick up a pillow and bop his mom. Even though it is incredibly tempting – and I realize that it is incredibly tempting – resist. Yes, […]
Read MoreThe other night was beautiful here, so we packed up dinner and went to the park to have a picnic. The park we go to has mulch covering the playground, however, and this is a problem. C likes to throw mulch when he’s Being Bad. So, we’re sitting on the blanket eating, and C decides […]
Read More
