This week has been terrible. Either I'm getting only six hours of sleep followed by a grueling and exhausting day supervising students and standing on my feet and then cooking dinner and playing with my kid; or I say fuck it and go to bed early, only to have interrupted sleep.

Last night I put Erika to bed at 9 PM and I was so exhausted, I feel ( Read more... )

Erika today (March 8, 2012) at 22 months old. Sitting at the picnic table on the beach, holding a handful of pebbles and a shell, enjoying the wind and the sunset.

( Read more... )

( Read more... )

The way she smells; a sweet scent of milk on her gentle breath mixed with the sticky saltiness of sweat on her skin ( Read more... )

Early in the morning, when I unwrap her blanket, she stretches her arms out wide above her head, then scrunches up tight, bringing her feet up to her chest, then she slowly opens her eyes, blinking at the world, and when she catches sight of my face, leaning over her little body, she breaks into a big smile, and my heart melts all over again ( Read more... )

Regardless of how I word it, Brian always complains that (1) I don't present both sides of the argument fairly, and (2) since you're all my friends, most of you tend to side with me... but I'm going to ask anyway! I think you're all intelligent enough to figure out the nuances and biases that I present, and realize the crux of this parenting ( Read more... )