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In The Game

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Every month we attend a family literacy night held at a local school. There is dinner provided, activities for the kids while the adults hear from a guest speaker, and a free book to take home. We've been attending these nights since Little Man was six months old, and this summer he will be old enough to attend their summer camp. There are so many types of families who attend, many of whom look like ours. We feel so fortunate to have found this gem of an opportunity. Last week we arrived early to play on the school playground before dinner. After the requisite climbing and swinging, Little Man found a basketball and headed over the one of the basketball goals. As he played I noticed a young Black girl enter the playground and begin walking around the track. Soon, however, I saw her head our way. Without a word, she retrieved the basketball Little Man was using and began to play catch with him. Occasionally she would shoot the ball, then hand it back to him for his turn. If he made ...
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Sick Days

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Little Man was recently sick for almost a week with a virus and eventual war infection. Thankfully he had no other real symptoms other than a fever that just stubbornly hung on. We rested, begged him to eat and drink, and enjoyed lots of time on the couch watching the Olympics. Even the cat sat with him, when normally she would rather be anywhere else.  He first started feeling ill at school while I was out of town for the day, and though I was able to get home that afternoon I also had online class that night. The working parent guilt is real, as is the rejection that comes from being the non-preferred parent. All I wanted was Little Man to feel better, but for awhile there it didn't seem I had what he needed. Any hug or reassurance only seemed to help if it came from Husband. When I had to take over so Husband could go to work I became a reasonable alternative, but watching your kid be sick is no fun for anyone in the family.  Often when making the sick kid decisions -- when...
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Turning the Page

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Another holiday season has come and gone, and now it is time to welcome a new year. The last month has been a blur of final projects, events, and time with Little Man as we both are home on winter break. This was the first year he seemed more aware and enthused about celebrating holidays, including seeing cousins for Thanksgiving and Christmas. He was especially excited to light candles on Hanukkah, although for me that time was overshadowed by the terrorist attack on Jews at Bondi Beach. I chose not to allow Little Man to attend a public menorah lighting out of concern, which was an upsetting decision to even have to make. That being said, I've been encouraged to see him become more aware of the different parts of his life coming together in unique ways. We have also started to talk at dinner each night of Kwanzaa about the different values and how those might look in his young mind. Some, like Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) or Nia (Purpose) are a lot to understand, but he is star...
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Born to Fly

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I realized I last attempted to write a post in October, and when I looked at my drafts I made it to one paragraph before calling it a day...and then a week...and then a month. Needless to say, the realities of life won out. Lately when it comes to Little Man I have been thinking a lot about what and how he is learning. At his parent teacher conference we heard a lot of great things, as well as the goal of raising our hands more instead of blurting out answers before others have a chance to think. His enthusiasm for learning is clear, and even when it seems he isn't listening he will prove otherwise. He is honest to a fault, and when he does wrong he has the self-awareness to eventually identify where he could have made a different choice and why. As parents we couldn't have been happier with what we heard.  That being said, he is also still learning how to calm his body -- his brain is always so hard at work that the rest of him has no choice but to follow along. I love his ene...
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44 Candles

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In the blink of an eye I have turned 44.  Special shout-out to the coworker who was surprised I wasn't still in my 30s; I guess my personality stood out to her more than my gray hair.  As I've stated in most if not all of my annual birthday posts, the number doesn't really bother me.  Rather, I want to focus on what the previous year has brought and what the new year has to offer.  If the last week is any indication, I'm in for quite a ride. Having a birthday around the start of the school year is always an adventure.  Sometimes I get a day off, sometimes I get a mountain of work.  Adding my graduate studies to the mix, as well as a preschooler whose social calendar is often more packed than my own, means long days and hectic nights as I try to make it all work.  I do not burn the midnight oil (or even the 10pm oil), so I'm constantly looking for pockets of time to complete a few lines of writing.  I don't want to miss out on family time, and it's...
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School Days

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It's been awhile since I've had the time, energy, or capacity to post. Summer was filled with my personal studies and other adventures, and now I'm gearing up for year 21 in the classroom. However, we've reached a much bigger milestone in our house -- Little Man is officially a preschooler. Being away all day is nothing new; having been in daycare most of his life, Little Man has had the privilege of so many others besides us loving on him and shaping his early years. Some of those people are still in his life today, a fact for which we are so grateful. This summer he had his first taste of day camp, and though it wasn't so far off from any other daycare experience it also actually was. Watching him stride in and out of the building each day with his backpack (which is adorably almost as big as he is) made him seem so grown up. He still held my hand as we walked across the parking lot, but it was obvious he was ready to tackle the day on his own. Some days he would ...
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Slinging Arrows

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Little Man is taking the age of four by storm.  After having some really big feelings around that time he has started to somewhat find his footing again; his feelings are still big, but his reactions are starting to very slowly become more proportionate.  However, in an attempt to react intellectually rather than physically he has started to rely on his vocabulary to make his discontent known.  In the hierarchy of harsh roasts of others, young kids can absolutely hold their own. The latest weapon in Little Man's arsenal, like many his age, is to hit where he thinks it will hurt the most -- "You're not my best friend anymore.  I don't love you anymore."  While I obviously realize the intent is not genuine, it's hard not to feel the sting when he thinks he has made his point.  Recently on a night when Husband was away and I covered bedtime duties, we had a rough go.  As I helped him regulate by cradling him in my lap, he mentioned missing Daddy.  I ...
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