At first, everyone thought it was adorable. “She’s just a happy baby!” people would say, grinning as my daughter Leti giggled at nothing in particular. I wanted to believe it…
MY 8-YEAR-OLD BECAME AN INSTANT HERO AFTER WHAT SHE DID BACKSTAGE AT HER CHEER COMPETITION
We were already running late. Her bow was crooked, she had glitter on one shoe but not the other, and the only snack I’d packed was a half-squished granola bar….
WE GET TROLLED NONSTOP FOR OUR SON’S NAME—BUT WE’RE NOT CHANGING A THING
It started the day we posted his birth announcement. A sweet little photo of him in his bassinet, wrapped in that blue-striped hospital blanket, eyes barely open. Caption said: “Welcome…
A STRANGER SWITCHED SEATS ON OUR FLIGHT—AND MY DAUGHTER STILL TALKS ABOUT HIM
It wasn’t a long flight. Just under two hours. But when you’re traveling alone with a four-year-old who’s overtired, hungry, and slightly terrified of the seatbelt light, two hours can…
MY 101-YEAR-OLD GRANDMA HELD MY NEWBORN SON—AND PASSED AWAY JUST HOURS LATER
We weren’t even sure she’d still be here by the time I gave birth. Every time I called, she’d answer in that raspy voice and say, “Still kickin’. Just waiting…
KIDS AT SCHOOL STARTED SAYING MY EIGHT-YEAR-OLD LOOKED PREGNANT—AND NO ONE WARNED ME
At first, I thought she was just hitting that awkward growth phase—long legs, rounder belly, a little off balance like her body hadn’t caught up with itself yet. Totally normal,…
I ADOPTED A NEWBORN WHO WAS LEFT AT THE HOSPITAL—AND I’D NEVER EVEN CHANGED A DIAPER BEFORE
I wasn’t supposed to be in the NICU that day. I was just there dropping off a care package for a friend’s baby—diapers, snacks, those little preemie socks no one…
MY GRANDPARENTS LEFT ME THEIR TINY OLD CABIN—AND IT CHANGED EVERYTHING
When the lawyer called about the will, I didn’t expect much. Maybe some knick-knacks, a few photos, maybe that chipped cookie jar my grandma swore was “vintage.” But what they…
DOCTORS GAVE MY WIFE SIX MONTHS TO LIVE—THREE DAYS AFTER OUR WEDDING… AND I DIDN’T TELL HER
We were still picking confetti out of our hair when I got the call. Three days married. Still floating on the high of it all—her white dress crumpled in a…
I LET MY SIX-YEAR-OLD STAY UP UNTIL 1AM AND SLEEP ON THE COUCH—AND IT’S MADE ME A BETTER DAD
People are real quick to judge when you say your kid’s up past midnight on a school night. Last week, my buddy Mark overheard me telling someone that Mason fell…