Originally published on BabyCenter.com January 24, 2014
My wife had a singing engagement, so I was left alone with two kids who took turns crying for two and a half hours straight.
Uncontrollable sobbing is a good way to make a parent feel useless, especially in men since we lack the magic boobies that calm infants down. But in the end, it’s not that big a deal.
Continue reading “Dads, it’s Okay if the Baby Cries”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com October 10, 2013
You need to talk to your kids about sex, and you need to do it earlier than you might think.
Continue reading “Prevent Sexual Violence by Talking to Your Kids”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com January 21, 2014
My son was in a particularly whiny mood one night and wanted a story about dinosaurs and trains. Our e-copy of All Aboard the Dino Train by Deb Lund and Howard Fine was unavailable and everybody in the house was exhausted. Desperate for the sweet release of bedtime, I crafted the following impromptu story, which has since become a big hit with my son. (It turns out that two-year-olds have odd tastes.)
Continue reading “Important Storytelling Tips from My Children”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com November 15, 2013
I’ve been in hibernation for a couple of weeks as my body adjusts to the sudden lack of sleep and deprivation of freedom that accompanies any newborn.
It is, of course, totally worth it.
Continue reading “Helping an Older Child Make the Transition as a New Baby Arrives”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com November 1, 2013
My wife has given birth without painkillers for a second time. This terrifies me, because I don’t know what else she might be capable of.
Continue reading “Baby Number 2 is Here, and My Wife is a Warrior”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com October 23, 2013
I have discovered a way to make my son do what I want, and it involves using funny voices.
Continue reading “How my Toddler Turned me into a Clown”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com October 6, 2013
I’ve had a few recurring dreams in my lifetime, but none were as terrifying to me as Cookie Monster with teeth.
Continue reading “My Warped Dreams, My Son’s Thoughts, and My Wife’s Solution”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com September 14, 2013
When I did my introductory video many months ago, I mentioned that my interest in my son would make sure I had an interest in anything he got involved in, even if it was something totally foreign to me. I was thinking more along the lines of him getting into sports instead of my nerdy activities. I didn’t think I was talking about Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends.
Continue reading “Taking an Interest in my Son’s Activities: Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com August 19, 2013
I’m a man, and I like the color pink.
Were I in elementary school, this might be the cause of quite a bit of ridicule.
Continue reading “Raising a Boy Who Likes Pink”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com August 9, 2013
“More book?” is the boy’s rallying cry at bedtime. He knows it’s hard for us to say “no” to him wanting to read.
Sometimes, we read until he falls asleep. Sometimes we leave him with a book in his crib and let him look at the pictures until he finally shuts his eyes. And sometimes he wakes up screaming at 3:30 in the morning and only a story will calm him down.
It’s on those nights when the whole family is sleep deprived and I don’t want to risk turning on a light that I turn to the stories I know by heart – the simple fairy tales that almost all of us hear at one point or another in our childhoods.
And it’s usually in the middle of reciting these tried and true fairy tales that I realize how badly they need editing.
Continue reading “Editing Fairy Tales for Your Kids”
Babbling Brooks 