The Crutch Master’s Lament
Sam, our younger son, recently injured his hip. Nothing terrible, but enough to land him on crutches for ten days. As parents, Dena and I have had to manage the requisite injuries one might expect in a household with two…
Parenting an Only
This month, Susan Brown tackles two questions on the same topic. As the mother of an only child, she knows the territory well. Q: My husband and I made a decision to have one child and we are happy with…
What’s in a Name?
When we first moved to Virginia, my husband changed his name. We had been married for a little while with our respective last names and, since having a child, we made the family decision that we’d like to have the…
Parenting Blog Best Picks
When baby number one was still an infant, breastfeeding and naptime were spent soaking up parenting books. Many of my friends were in a similar stage in life and were eager to swap stories and suggestions. Expert advice and the…
Just Winging It
“Funny how you’re the editor of this great parenting magazine and you’re really just winging it.” That’s what one of my daughters told me a few years back. I don’t remember the exact context. It might have been right…
What Dad Never Buys
It’s not that I’m cheap – though others living under this roof would be only too glad to say that I am. And don’t mistake me for one of those hoarders you see on TV, either. Just because I reserve…
You Have to Laugh!
As a father of three under nine (eight, seven, and three for the record) you could say there are few, if any, dull moments in our household. I work fulltime while my wife, Jamie, who just got her degree in…
Our Last Camping Trip
Whether or not it was part of an effort to process the trauma, our youngest daughter, Lindsey, drew an absolutely stunning picture of the ostrich that attacked her mother. On our last family camping adventure, the highly anticipated day trip…
Summer Camp Safety
I remember my childhood summers as a time of nonstop action. Whether I was setting up a lemonade stand at our neighborhood roller skating rink (otherwise known as Mrs. Swanson’s driveway) or inviting my friends over to run in the…
The Bridge
A few weeks ago my father entrusted me with some old computer hard drives that had been damaged in a power surge. They contained his collection of family photos and videos, curated over many years. Fortunately, the data was intact,…
