Beckett wants to enjoy watching football games with me.However, the reality is he can’t sit through more than a few commercial breaks before he’s off to do something else. It’s just not exciting enough for him.He likes the idea of watching the game with his dad but he gets bored pretty quickly. When he gets… Read more »

There have been several instances of late that confirm I’m an enabler.Without question, and I know Pam would agree, I tend to baby the kids more than her. In my defense, and this may sound strange because it takes more effort on my part, the easier track to take at times is to just do… Read more »

In some ways, Carson is more outgoing than Beckett.Considering Beckett is a self-proclaimed and enthusiastic “lover of talking” and Carson is non-verbal, this is fascinating to me.For many years, I always thought of Beckett, 9, as the extrovert and Carson, 8, as the introvert. That’s still the case, in some ways, but there are times… Read more »

My kids have grown into perfect little travelers.Over the last couple months, we have taken several road trips, including central Pennsylvania for a soccer tournament and a visit to the Strausburg Railroad; two excursions to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg; multiple doctor’s appointments in Wilmington, Del.; and, most recently, a New Year’s jaunt to Sullivan’s Island,… Read more »

Nothing beats Christmas morning with young kids.However, before we could enjoy it, we had to make sure both kids were asleep at a reasonable time Christmas Eve night. We were concerned because both boys had been staying up later recently since there was no school.Around 9 p.m. after already falling asleep in his bed, we… Read more »

Like most families, photos with Santa are a must each Christmas for us.A faithful reader of this column recently wrote me to ask if I would consider putting a picture of my kids in this space each week so she and others could put their faces with the names.While I’m not entirely comfortable with doing… Read more »

We have two Christmas trees each year.One is a traditional one with all the ornaments we have bought over the years or were handed down from family, while the other we call the kid tree that consists of almost all of their handmade ornaments, photos and some Maryland blue crab shells painted by Pam.Because Pam… Read more »

If I can’t find my phone around the house, it’s likely because one of my kids confiscated it.What they are doing with it depends on the kid.If Beckett, 9, has it, he’s doing one of two things – looking through my settings to see how much storage space is available and how much data I… Read more »

We saw the movie “Wonder” last weekend.Carson fell asleep half way through. Beckett watched every minute of it with interest. Pam was touched to tears throughout. One week later, I’m still thinking about the movie and its message.The film is incredibly moving and I’m thrilled Beckett’s teacher is reading the book – of which the… Read more »

At 9 years old, Beckett is constantly wavering between being independent and completely helpless.It’s quite the range and on display multiple times each day. He likes the idea of being self-sufficient and not needing our help, but the reality is he’s far from it most of the time because it takes a lot of work.It’s… Read more »