For those of you who weren’t aware, Life of Dad is a website that was created originally as one dad’s personal blog and evolved into a social network for dads. It’s in the tagline and everything: “The Social Network for Dads.” Anyway, the guys who run the site have a ton of podcasts that they publish on a regular basis, or that other guys put out and they sponsor, including the Life of Dad Show, Super Dad Show and Bobblehead Dad Parenting. One of their other shows, the Life of Dad After Show, focuses specifically on interviewing dad bloggers about their families, their blogs and anything else that might come up in a free-flowing conversation. They had me on earlier this week and I figured I’d post it here for your listening pleasure.
Tag: parenting
“Unleash the Tantrum!”
With all due respect to Jim Carrey, I’ve got a better one.
E is turning two in June and he looks every bit the part. Far gone are the days of the goofy little smiles, rattle distractions and innocent cries that beg for food or comfort. They have been replaced by full belly laughs, Sesame Street videos and demands requests that are getting clearer by the day. Continue reading ““Unleash the Tantrum!””
Dear E
Dear E,
I’ve been meaning to start writing you letters for a little while now. I suppose the blog that I’ve been writing for the last year and a half has basically been a long series of letters to you anyway, but I wanted this piece to be directed to you, in particular, as opposed to me just writing about you. There are some things I’ve been thinking about here and there, especially over the last month and a half since my last blog post, and I want to make sure I get them down before I forget them. Continue reading “Dear E”
The Five Stages of Sleep Deprivation
I have some good news and some bad news.
Good news: there have been signs of progress in E’s sleep training. Last week, on consecutive nights, he slept straight through until 4:30 and 5:15.
Bad news: he woke up three times during each of the following two nights.1
Good news: E only woke up once last night.
Bad news: it took him close to an hour and a half to fall back asleep.
Good news: T has been able to get a better night’s sleep because I’ve been getting up to put E back down at night.
Bad news: there is no bad news here. T chases after E all day, every day; I can deal with being tired at work. Continue reading “The Five Stages of Sleep Deprivation”
Where Did You Come From?
E somehow ended up in our bed last night.
The “somehow” seems confusing, I know. E is a toddler, almost 20 months old, so we assume that he didn’t make it out of the crib on his own. His upper body strength is actually pretty impressive, as I’ve seen him basically do pull-ups on his bookshelf and hoist his body up over the railing on his crib.1 That being said, it’s hard for me to picture him getting over the railing while still holding on so that he could drop down to the floor and land on his feet without hurting himself. Continue reading “Where Did You Come From?”
“Don’t Cry, It’s Only a Joke.”
I see a lot of different things when I’m working.
I have three separate jobs, so this is to be expected. I work full-time as a social worker, providing case management and counseling services to families who have children with mental health and behavior problems. I also have two part-time jobs at my local synagogue, teaching religious school classes to middle school students and leading junior congregation services a few times each month. Continue reading ““Don’t Cry, It’s Only a Joke.””
Miracle of Miracles
I don’t remember my family hosting a lot of big parties when I was young. We had family parties here and there through the years and we hosted a couple of birthday parties for my brothers and for me, but we didn’t have many huge gatherings at our house. The biggest gathering I remember was for my brother’s brit milah1 just after he was born. When I was in middle and high school, my family joined with a group of other families from our synagogue and we started a rotation of holiday parties and other Jewish activities, but we only hosted a few of them. My wife’s family, on the other hand, went all out for everything. They would have between 20 and 30 people at their house for every holiday and would make enough food for twice that many.2 I’m not saying her family did holidays better than mine, just that we had different experiences growing up. And I like to think that now that we’re married and have started our own family, we’ve done a pretty good job of combining traditions from each of our experiences. Continue reading “Miracle of Miracles”
Looking For The Right Words
Note: This post includes some derogatory language that some people might find offensive. I explain why I chose to use it again later in the post, but I’ll say it here, as well. I used these words as part of a broader analysis of language and its relationship to race and I thought that not spelling them out in full would distract from the message of the post. I apologize in advance if anyone is offended by my use of the words as they are. Please feel free to comment in the space below, to write to me using the contact form here or email me at sleepingonedge@gmail.com. Thanks again for reading.
I take language seriously.
I take pride in the fact that I use correct grammar and that I make spelling mistakes less often than the Cubs win the World Series.1 I still approach the quality of my writing with the same focus and intent to produce a polished product, even though this is a blog, as opposed to a research paper or journal article. You’re taking the time to read my work; the least I can do is give you something thoughtful and well-written to occupy your time. Continue reading “Looking For The Right Words”
Strep Throat Can Be Good For You
I’ve written a number of times about my admiration for the work my wife puts into being a parent. She’s home with E every day, feeding him, playing with him, cleaning him up, cleaning up after him, making sure he doesn’t set the apartment on fire1 and everything else a mom needs to do. She does an amazing job, even when she’s not feeling her best.
Which brings me to last week.
You might have noticed that’s it’s been about two weeks since I published my last post. The first week was just really busy with work, as I had to prepare a presentation for the entire department, in addition to my usual responsibilities of home visits and other paperwork. Last week was a little different, though. T wasn’t feeling well on Monday evening and woke up Tuesday morning with a fever above 103, so I took a personal day to look after E and let her recover a bit. Continue reading “Strep Throat Can Be Good For You”
“I’ve Been Robbed”
(Approximately 2:45 AM)
Police: Police precinct, how can I help you?
Aaron: I need to report a crime.
P: What happened, sir?
A: I’ve been robbed. Continue reading ““I’ve Been Robbed””
