Behavior Archives
Seven-Year-Old Shows New Racial Awareness
How in the world do we deal with this stuff?
More Innocence Lost, Color Blindness Is Over
Blogged fast, out of need: Used to be hard to tell if Girl Child really meant what she said or was just goofing, pulling the Old Man's chain, trying to get… read on »
March 6, 2010
Dad, You Are Embarrassing Me!
Is crazy self-consciousness normal? Does it last?
Life Under Gaze Of A Million Invisible People
Challenge of the morning: How do we get Girl Child’s hair washed if I can’t help while she’s in the bathtub? For maybe a year now, she’s been modest around… read on »
February 19, 2010
Child Can Swear On Very Special Day
Isn’t control better parenting than outright curse-word prohibition?
Hearts, Flowers, Strong Adult Language On G*d D*mn Valentines
- Please Daddy. - No, honey, not yet. - Please, just a little bit. - I know how hard it is to wait. But it’s just like Christmas. If we… read on »
February 12, 2010
Never Again - Morning Homework
Do I really have to learn everything the hard way? Do you?
To Teacher, Pater Must Tell Shameful Truth
Damn you, Bonnie the Cat. Because of you, I have to email Mrs. Taylor, Girl Child’s first grade teacher, expanding on my earlier scrawl on a damp page fragment in… read on »
February 3, 2010
No Is New Yes
Do you and your kid(s) find happiness in refusal?
Negative Responses Liberate Positive Energy
Okay, that’s it. Five minutes after eight, right when we said we’d stop the movie and go upstairs to get ready for bed. Girl Child acts panicky – “But this… read on »
January 29, 2010
Loneliest Number Is Three
Why must triple-kid playdates end in tears?
Hold Line At One Friend Over At A Time
Can’t blame my one and only for saying “Yes” when Girl Child’s friend from up the block calls and asks if it’s okay to come over. Minerva spends less time… read on »
January 26, 2010
Daughterized Dad #1
Has fathering female(s) changed your world?
Call That A Ballerina? Are They Nuts?
Somewhere, probably right here on Wrenmead Street, a dad and male progeny watch a playoff game on TV and scream abuse at some screwup idiot knucklehead jerk with no business… read on »
January 13, 2010
Better With Beer
Your kid(s) put on shows at home? Do you watch them? Enjoy? Avoid?
Reluctant Pop Surprised And Entertained By Orphan/Wild West/Swiss Drama
“Play” in playdate has taken on a new meaning. Get Girl Child together with a friend or two, they spin some flippy make-believe into a theatrical production, costumes and… read on »
January 8, 2010
The Opposite Of Nostalgia
What don't you miss from earlier stages of parenting?
These Things Passed, And I'm Damned Glad They Did...
Around our Girl Child, the big, bright here-and-now throws everything else into shadow. Either that, or I've got some kind of weird memory disease. But I am often struck by… read on »
January 4, 2010
Damn That Potty Mouth
Have problems with profanity? You, kid(s), everybody?
Setting Bad Example Maybe Not So Bad
We have, right here in Upper Unsuburb, the world’s most depressing Chinese restaurant. Dark, fantastically dreary, serving food nowhere cheap enough to be so lousy. There ought to be an… read on »
December 11, 2009
Shoot The Care Bear
A little twisted humor is harmless, right?
No Mercy For Pink Ursine With Magic Rainbow
Eyeballs from Minerva, meaning that Girl Child’s playdate friend might be disturbed and her parents, if they hear, will think I’m psycho. Sorry, Baby, but GC has already hauled out… read on »
December 1, 2009
Minerva Discovers Rule Of Three
What if one/all of yours were triplets?
Imaginary Multiples For Enhanced Clarity
Minerva, in case you’re wondering, is blognamed after the Roman Goddess of Wisdom. True story. One of many that show why Minerva is a Big City Suit and I do,… read on »
November 20, 2009
The Capon Code
Ever (accidentally) cross the line with some kid’s mom?
Violations, However Innocent And Accidental, Carry Major Risks
“We should get together for a playdate,” says the mother of one of Girl Child’s friends from school. “Yeah,” I say, “The kids, too.” For a second-fraction the woman freezes,… read on »
November 13, 2009
Beastly Dad
Are you more of a jerk than you were before parenthood?
School Morning Reveals Loud And Really Unlikable Alter Ego
Jean-Paul Sartre was wrong. Hell is not other people. Hell is yourself – more specifically, yourself trying to get an obstreperous six-year-old geared-up and out the door on time. Painful,… read on »
November 10, 2009
God For Godless
Do you do religion for sake of kid(s)?
Defaulting To Faith Of Our Great-Great-Great-Grandfathers
“But I am Jewish!” That was our sobbing Girl Child, age almost three, after I mentioned in passing that we were not what her beloved Jewish Community Center preschool was,… read on »
November 3, 2009
No-TV Blowback
Thinking about weaning kid(s) off the screen? Already did?
Disarmed, Almost De-Fingered, By Media Ban
Parenting rule of rules: The Law Of Unintended Consequences. Do some right-minded thing, and suffer weird side effects. I give you… A sudden longing for the days when the Old… read on »
October 27, 2009
Generation Kinder-Kill
Is pretend violence okay?
Why We Should Give Up on World Peace
Girl Child at the mirror, grooming for school. She vamps for full effect. Little soon for that, but, hey, she does her own hair now. Brushing I do not miss,… read on »
October 23, 2009
Words Meant to Wound
What do you do when the child says I hate you?
Cranked-Off Kid Goes Over The Line
Girl Child has a powerful sense of personal sovereignty backed-up by a temper. Extra degrees of difficulty parenting-wise, but such stuff will arm her for life. So I don’t mind… read on »
October 15, 2009
Pater’s Plays
Father And Daughter by Paul Simon
Simon dead-on nails fathering a little girl. Chasing away bad dreams, standing guard as she goes back to sleep, loving everything that’s coming — “I’m gonna watch you shine/Gonna watch you grow.” Could be schlurpy, but just right.
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Pater’s Picks
The Hurt Locker directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Fatherhood adds immeasurably to the hurt of U.S. Army soldiers portrayed in this Iraq War masterpiece -- N-O-T definitely not for kids -- that deserved more than…
March 9, 2010 | Permanent Link
Recent Blog Entries
- Seven-Year-Old Shows New Racial Awareness · March 6, 2010
- Pater Shines · March 5, 2010
- No-Brainer Pancake/Waffle Batter · February 24, 2010
- Dad, You Are Embarrassing Me! · February 19, 2010
- A Man Must Do His Own Daisy Girl Iron-Ons · February 17, 2010
- Child Can Swear On Very Special Day · February 12, 2010
- Never Again - Morning Homework · February 3, 2010
- No Is New Yes · January 29, 2010
- Loneliest Number Is Three · January 26, 2010
- Ghost of Birthday Party Past · January 20, 2010
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