When I was pregnant with Sam, we didn’t know whether he was a boy or a girl. Not finding out his sex made it twice as hard to pick a name. While we were pretty sure that we loved the name Beatrix Suhani (or Beatrix Lenore) for a girl, we could not come to an
Dash doesn’t watch much TV. In fact, with the exception of listening to – and mostly ignoring – Dragonball in Japanese with English subtitles while playing on the other side of the room, the only TV he has watched is Yo Gabba Gabba. And he LOVES it. Especially the opening theme song. When the host,
A stranger at the grocery store insisted that Dash and Sam are Irish Twins because they were born less than two years apart. But I looked it up, and Irish Twins are children born within one year of each other – not two years. Sam was born 19 months after Dash, so they don’t quite
I was unhappy as a teenager. All I wanted was to be an adult. I despised school, but not because I was bad at it. I just wanted the freedom to make my own decisions and shape my own life. I wanted my own house to shift the furniture around. I wanted a husband to
In a perfect world, we would take our sons for a walk every evening after dinner. The exercise and the fresh air are obviously great, but I also love it for the time it allows Eric and I to talk without distractions. When we’re sitting at home, we’re inevitably splitting our attention between our computers,
Each summer, we camp with all of the aunts, uncles, and cousins on Eric’s mother’s side of the family for a reunion. This year, we met at Hocking Hills State Park in Ohio. It was the first time that many of Eric’s relatives met Dash and Sam, so I was happy that I felt well
While we were getting Dash ready for bed tonight, he found some of his bath toys and dropped them in an empty trash can. “Uh oh!” he said. “Uh oh! Uh oh!” He couldn’t reach the toys because the trash can was too deep. I laughed at him dubiously and said, “You’re resourceful. You’ll figure
Sam’s first month flew by. It felt much faster than Dash’s first month. With Dash, I had no distractions. Now, I have a rambunctious toddler to keep up with. I can’t spend every waking moment with Sam in my arms like I could with Dash when he was a newborn. Some days, Dash consumes so
A friend once told me that instead of the “terrible twos” or other year-long behavioral phases, her children go through rough patches lasting six months. With Dash, his disposition seems to fluctuate in three-month intervals. The first time I admitted that caring for a baby was difficult was when Dash was nine months old. During
We took Sam to the beach for the first time yesterday. He slept most of the afternoon while his brother played in the sand. Poor thing got a heat rash on his face and neck while we were there.
This weekend, we visited a friend that my dad has known since they were in high school. He took my family out on his boat, Hammer Time. I volunteered to stay with Dash and Sam because they are too young for the ride. I didn’t mind being left behind because I’m terrified of the ocean.
Lauren Newman lives in Richmond, Virginia. She majored in urban planning, married her high school sweetheart, and dreams about moving to Mexico. More »