It is our strict policy to never tell the children anything fun that we are going to do until we are already doing it. Plans change, things happen, and we don’t need twelve hours of two crying children because it rained on beach day. So when we told the kids on Saturday morning that we […]
Category Archives: Ruby
The Only Person I Hate
Yesterday, as we were driving home from a Vacation Bible School day during which we learned about serving our friends, I had an interesting conversation with my children on the subject of hate. You see, I asked them if they had made any friends at VBS, and our neighbor who was riding with us casually […]
The Desert of Maine – A Place Out of Place
Did you know that there is a desert in Maine? You know, sand dunes, camels, an oasis, etc. Well if you didn’t, don’t worry. You’re not alone. Alex Trebek didn’t either, and when someone on Jeopardy answered “What is the Desert of Maine” to the answer “This is the eastern-most desert in the US,” Alex […]
An Evil Cliché Comes True
Every morning for the past infinity days, we have had to drag my daughter out of bed and rush her crying off to school because, like her father, she is a night owl. She stays up in her bed reading until who-knows-when, and mornings are not her time to shine. I empathize. If I could […]
How to Ditch Your Kids and Enjoy Yourself at a Party
“Nooooooo! We don’t want to go to a boring work party!” shouted the kids in unison. “But kids,” I said with a twinkle in my eye, “get in the car. Or else.” “Nooooooooooooooooo!” So off we went to a boring work party, by which I mean an awesome party at a big house on an […]
Tenor Single Dad
It is, as my mother-in-law likes to say any time we have parenting difficulties, payback. For years I spent a large amount of my time on the road, at auditions, rehearsals, voice lessons, shows, and who the heck knows what else. When my first child was born I was in graduate school, and the plan […]
The Last Post I Will Ever Write About My Son’s Health
This was a bad one. We were at Dick’s Sporting Goods looking for a backpack for my wife, who was leaving for grad school the next day. Everything was fine, and my son said “Let’s go look at bikes!” in an excited voice, and less than three seconds later he was on his face on […]
Is It Good or Bad When the ER Staff Remembers Your Name?
Last night, because there is something wrong with my brain, I sat down to play a level of Candy Crush at 10:30, and five minutes later it was 1:45 AM. I trudged up to bed, knowing that I was going to be tired in the morning, and this was confirmed a short time later when […]
Maximum Freedom, Minimum Responsibility
Do you know what kids always want? To grow up. To be a little older. To be a little taller. To be a little bigger. This is because they are kids, and they have no idea of the crushing responsibility that awaits them as an adult. Although they may have some idea. Ruby told me […]
A Free Cone Day Miracle
Yesterday, as I’m sure you all knew, was free cone day at Ben & Jerry’s. As a Vermonter, and the person who ate a pint of Phish Food every single night for dinner for at least one year of college, this is a sacred event. We do not miss Free Cone Day. And yet, my […]