I’ve learned that brothers manipulate each other like salesmen. If one of them wants something, all they have to do is feign not being interested in it and the other one will back off. This rule holds true unless it’s something that has an attraction so undeniably strong that neither one can fake it. Enter the doughnuts. Our grocery shopping trips always starts in the far right of the local Publix supermarket. That way we can pop by the bakery and get a free cookie. Free cookies, especially when the kids need a snack or you’ll be in the store for a long time, help keep daddy sane ... … [Read more...]
Tourette Syndrome Creates Parenting Challenges Dad Must Address
“Argh, Aaargh, Mmmh.” “Daddy, what is that?” I remember the sweet, delicious voice of my almost 4-year-old son in the back seat of the car last week. It was the first time he verbally responded to my vocal tics. “Oh ... nothing”, I said. Nothing. Is Tourette syndrome nothing? Not to me it isn’t. The years of torment from schoolmates and perfect strangers who misunderstood my tics wasn’t nothing. The years of having to make an announcement whenever my vocal tics appeared in public wasn’t nothing. “Please don’t mind that everyone. I have Tourette’s.” I should be used to it by now. I … [Read more...]
My Son Wore a Dress to High School … and He Look Good in It
In preschool, elementary and middle school there were the occasional theme days: pajama day, crazy hair day and, of course, Halloween. My son often balked at these, not inclined to go along with the crowd. To be fair, my son has paid attention to fashion for a while. As a first-grader, he saw an older boy with long hair and said “I want that …” And, from first through eighth grade, he grew his hair out to a very long length. Known as ‘the boy with long hair,’ and often mistaken for a girl, he added to the persona by dedicating a year of his life to wearing only tie-dye. Notoriety followed … [Read more...]
100 Shades of Green Changing Like Kids Growing Up
Every morning, when the kids get downstairs, it’s the same ritual. Our youngest sits to my left and his older brother sits directly across from him. He’ll talk about how he had “a good sleep” and ask about what we’re doing tomorrow, at which point I’ll remind him that we have lots of fun stuff to do today. While all of this is happening, Abby, our 14-year-old flat coat retriever has already set up camp under our youngest’s chair. The boy is just the right height to massage her with his bare feet, and if anyone at the table is going to drop something edible it’s going to be him. At … [Read more...]
Waterskiing Bonds Generations of Dads, Sons
Before I was born, my parents lived in Charleston, S.C. Dad flew C-141s there, and they had a boat and several sets of wooden water skis. Dad would go waterskiing, doing slalom. Mom would drive the boat. Then, they'd switch places, and he'd pull her on a pair of skis. A few years later, I came along, and two years after that, my little brother. We never got to live in Charleston, but every summer, we'd get together for a week with two other couples my folks knew from the Air Force, and we'd spend a week on a lake in South Carolina or Alabama skiing and fishing. I was always amazed to watch … [Read more...]