It always amazes me how, for a toddler, just about anything can become a toy. Some of L’s favorites over the last few months have included an old cell phone, a wooden spoon and the tassel on a pillow at the cottage we rented in England (of course yours truly named the tassel, “Furry Tassel,” [...]

Powergirl and I are heading to Las Vegas on Thursday so I can cover the World Series of Poker final table. We’ll be gone until Sunday. Thankfully, my parents, whom L calls “Grandma” and “V,” are coming up to watch the baby in her environment here at the house.
Because my wife and I are neurotic, [...]

You’ll have to settle for a quick post today, since I’m off to Las Vegas to speak at the annual Society of Professional Journalists conference. Instead of my usual musings, I’ve compiled some recommendations for reading on fatherhood:

• This piece by Todd Mauldin (courtesy of The Good Men Project) about why he blow-dries his son’s hair.
• Some [...]

Earlier today I returned from three days of reporting a story in Las Vegas, and I couldn’t be happier to be home. Interestingly, the effects of my life as a stay-at-home dad followed me to Sin City in ways I never dreamed.
To make a long story short, my assignment was about spa treatments for men. [...]

We new fathers know our brethren when we see them. At least, we know what distinguishing characteristics to look for.
Case in point: my reunion in Las Vegas with an old friend last weekend. His wife recently delivered their second baby, and I hadn’t seen him since the little girl was born. Naturally, then, our get-together [...]

Because I must travel for work, I run the risk of being absent for some of L’s biggest milestones. Before this weekend, I had (somehow) managed missed no major accomplishments. Then, while I was in Las Vegas as part of an annual March Madness trip, the baby decided to speak her first words.
The phrase: “Bye [...]

We came home from our trip to Las Vegas to find a baby who only slightly resembled the one we left.
First and foremost, this new baby—still named L, of course—has ditched the cold (and congestion) that was bugging her before we took off, and is now talking and cooing and yapping like always. She’s also [...]

It’s been more than a year since Powergirl and I vacationed just the two of us—a huge deal, considering I’m a travel writer and she loves to travel. Our last trip came when she was five months pregnant with L; naturally, we have not gone anywhere together without the baby in the eight months since [...]

There are pros and cons to being so neurotic that you make all of your kid’s baby food.
On the plus side, you know exactly what your child is eating at all times. On the negative side, you frequently have nights such as the one I had tonight, toiling over my baby food-cooker for the better [...]

This weekend marked the 21st anniversary of my bar mitzvah (I’m what you’d call a pizza bagel; half Italian, half Jewish). I feel ancient. Like an elder. And it’s safe to say I’m starting to act a little older and more responsible, too.
Evidence of the transformation came this weekend, when L’s existence inspired me to [...]