It was an eventful week for our 12-year-old kid and appears to be an expensive month coming up for his parents.On Monday, Beckett had a teeth cleaning and I wasn’t prepared for what I heard. Because I’m scatterbrained most days, I wasn’t thinking the topic of orthodontics would come up at this appointment.I fully expected… Read more »

Last week’s column about my desire to see my boys back in school brought a variety of feedback.If you are like me your mind is scattered these days, jumping often among subjects and concerns, but there is one thing I am certain of currently. There is a tremendous division currently about three things in our… Read more »

Parenting is mental warfare, but in the middle of a pandemic it’s borderline impossible.An article in the New York Times Wednesday got my attention because it hit on some topics many parents are working through these days.The article, headlined “How to Handle Anxiety Over Back-to-School Decisions,” is written by Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, a perinatal psychiatrist.My… Read more »

Carson’s first fish will go down as a sting ray. For the last three years or so, Beckett and I have fished with the Ocean City Guide Service each summer. We started with a couple two-hour trips followed by longer four-hour jaunts. With Carson’s behavior and overall temperament at their best levels ever recently, Pam… Read more »

Carson went back to school this week.We refer to it as camp around the house, but it’s the summer academy program at Cedar Chapel Special School. He began his second stint as “camp counselor” this week. He’s, of course, a student getting some summer enrichment, but it helps us because his brother does summer camp… Read more »

It’s always interesting to me how my kids react to things.At 12 and 10 years old now, most of the time my boys are calm and mellow about things, but there are some instances – usually unpredictable — when they are dramatic and extreme with their reactions.It’s the latter cases that make for better copy… Read more »

This is going to be a different summer for sure.Due to quarantine, my kids have become so accustomed to social isolation they seem content hanging at home most of the time. In pre-pandemic life, we would hear claims of being bored and wanting to do something fun much more often than we do now. In… Read more »

The term “digital detox” has been tossed around a lot of late as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, remote workplaces and digital learning.If current news events allow me, I try my best to take a break each weekend. It’s good for the soul to stay off the laptop and cell phone as much as… Read more »

An open letter to Ocean City Elementary School:Disappointment is not a feeling my family ever felt with Ocean City Elementary School over the last seven years, but it’s exactly how we feel today.We were so looking forward to celebrating Carson’s “graduation” from school this spring. It’s a wonderful achievement for him and our family personally,… Read more »

Beckett finished sixth grade this week. It’s certainly a school year he will never forget.For our 12-year-old kid, life as he knew it came to a screeching halt Thursday, March 12, the night before we were to leave for Universal in Orlando. Pam received a message from her son who is a doctor in New… Read more »