The trio of Powergirl, L and I enjoyed something this weekend we rarely get: Two full days off.
Such is life for this full-time freelance writer who doubles as a stay-at-home dad; the downside of getting so much time with L during the week is that I’m usually working for significant portions of the weekend.
This weekend, [...]

We’ve had an eventful weekend here in Healdsburg, dominated mostly by the emergence of L’s molars—and the subsequent havoc that new teeth can wreak.
The poor thing is in agony. Her nose is running, pretty much non-stop. She’s got serious ear pain. And on top of all of that, our prize eater has been almost completely [...]

L’s vocabulary has been expanding exponentially in recent weeks; we estimate she’s adding six to 10 new words each day.
Perhaps her favorite new word: “No.”
At first, this concerned us significantly. Kids going through the Terrible Twos are notorious for talking back in this fashion, and Powergirl and I feared that L had evolved into the [...]

Yours truly returned to Healdsburg late last night after three days of reporting some stories in Western Washington State. Tuesday night, Powergirl is the one to take off—she’ll be in our hometown of New York City for four days starting Wednesday morning.
This, of course, means that L and I will be flying solo for pretty [...]

Leave it to L to find stuff I thought I had lost forever. The object of her eureka moment this afternoon: The only foul ball I’ve ever caught during a live Major League Baseball game (which, oddly enough, happened to be exactly ten years ago today, at the old Yankee Stadium, on July 6, 2000).
Some [...]

As my daughter’s personal chef, I privately vowed around her six-month birthday to feed her only organic foods until she was old enough to drink whole milk (in other words, her first birthday).
Apparently, she had other plans.
She made her intentions clear last weekend. We were out and about with some of my friends, lunching and [...]

If Thursday night had gone the way we originally had planned it, Powergirl and I would have enjoyed a wonderful dinner out in Healdsburg, and an intimate performance by the Indigo Girls in the nearby Wells Fargo Center for the Arts.
As it happened, however, we couldn’t find a babysitter, so I had to give the [...]

Today was L’s nine-month birthday—a major milestone considering her short time here on Earth. I was lucky enough to get to spend the better part of the day solo with my baby girl while my wife tended to some schoolwork.
The two of us started the day over breakfast at our favorite local Greasy Spoon. L [...]

The random stranger smiled at me and gave me the “what’s up” nod as he walked by.
“Oh, sorry,” he said, suddenly realizing I wasn’t who he thought I was. “You look like the guy who works at the gas station.”
This was not exactly a compliment. We’ve got five gas stations here in Healdsburg, and while [...]

It’s fascinating to me how quickly the “routine” of our (now) four-month-old changes.
For the better part of the last month, L was waking up every morning around 6:30 a.m., at which point I’d take over for Powergirl, play with her in her room and then bring her into town for a trip to the coffee [...]