Category: Parenting

While the Whole Band Is Still Together

Meet the Beatles.

As far as I know, no photos, and certainly no videos, exist of my childhood family dinner table. What would I give to see, seated across the table from me, my older sister and my late parents? more…

How Long Does It Take To Fall In Love?

First, trust.

When we first met FD in Wuhan, it felt like we bonded with our new daughter incredibly fast. I’ve read so many accounts of other adopting parents reporting the same experience: The match is magical, the connection nearly instantaneous. Boom. In Love. Um, maybe. more…

Sleeping with the Light On

Oh, Mini-Me, don’t be scared.

I go to bed long after everyone else, and the last thing I make sure to do is look in on my girls. Last night — this morning, really — I found SD sleeping with the light on. It’s confusing, jarring even, to be standing over her in a brightly lit room this way. But I understand. more…

Happy Birthday, FD!

Too, too fast.

Today the heart of my heart is 14. Hard to believe. I can only make sense of this is by imagining that she’s still her little self, but riding around atop a large, almost-grownup body, like the alien in Men In Black. more…

Daddy’s Girl Is Now Mommy’s Girl, and I Miss Her

Sigh.

When we were first deciding to adopt, Doc and I each went off to think the idea through. I was at a local farm market when I finally realized how I felt. more…

The Best Fun Thing You Can Do with a Child

Do try this at home.

There are a lot of ways being with young children is fun. You can play with them, cuddle them, tickle them, or bounce them around. You can stand on the side and watch their silly, brilliant imaginations at work, or duck in laughter as they come careening by at crazy speed, likely en route to a spectacular slapstick wipeout. But there’s one thing that didn’t occur to me right away when FD was little more…

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