avablog

While walking Emmett to school this morning (hand-in-hand…sigh), we spotted a murder of crows in the tops of the dying trees near the high school tennis courts. “I wonder what they’re doing up there,” I asked. And Emmett goes, “maybe they’re playing crowquet” (emphasis his). He’s gonna be OK.

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Emmett’s been having a little trouble this week at school dropoff. Mostly, he’s just been sad, refusing to go into the school and clinging to his mom. So, yesterday, Emmett and his teacher, Rachel, came up with a plan/compromise to help ease this process. It was going to be a surprise, so Leah was kept […]

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Aaaaaannnd we’re off! Ava and Emmett managed to set aside their petty sibling squabbles long enough this morning to pose for a quick shot in their First Day finery. It was a perfect morning for walking to school, which Leah did with the kids while I drove the car and met them at Hoover. I […]

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Emmett, during his bath last night: “I wonder how much my penis weighs?” I will spare you, dear reader, the details of the ensuing conversation. Suffice it to say, Emmett still has a very rudimentary notion of the relative weights of worldly items.

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This morning, Emmett wandered into the bathroom while I was getting ready for work and casually asked, “When I die, will I go to heaven?” My heart lurched at the question, and I felt tears prick my eyes, but I calmly said, “Some people believe in heaven. I’m not sure if I do. I don’t […]

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Emmett’s mom shares this tidbit from the boy’s bedtime last night: Mom, did you know that eons from now, narwhals will grow legs . . . and then hooves and tails . . . and then they’ll become unicorns? But it will take years and years and years before that happens.

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Leah, ECP, and I rushed up to school last evening after work to take advantage of the flu shot clinic being held there. Last year, Emmett opted for a shot over the nasal spray out of an abundance of ignorance. This year, though, he was adamant before we even got out of the car that […]

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This morning we sent Emmett off to his first day of kindergarten. Everything went much better than even a typical school morning. We gathered up all the supplies and backpacks and lunches and snacks and headed out the door right on time for the hot, humid walk up to Hoover Elementary. Once there, the kids […]

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Emmett’s just learning to ride his bike. We’ve had some periods of impatience and frustration, but overall, things are going well. The other evening, he and I were out in the street, practicing his starts, when some of the neighbor kids came over to ride, too. Emmett got upset, because he can’t seem to not […]

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Last week, you found one of your baby toys–a stuffed frog that plays a lullaby–in your toy basket, and you clutched it all evening. You seemed very melancholy throughout the night, and at bedtime, I realized that you were sobbing quietly into your pillow. When I asked you what was wrong, you said, in a […]

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Emmett likes to hear stories when he’s drifting off to sleep at night. Recently, he’s been taking the initiative. He had the following conversation with Leah tonight: Emmett: Now I am going to tell you a story about when I was a baby. Leah: OK…sounds great! …long pause… Emmett: Hmm. It seems I have forgotten […]

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Life’s little moments. So precious! Emmett (out of the blue): This car smells like asses. *long pause* Me: It smells like what? Emmett: ASSES! It smells like ASSES! *shorter pause* Me: What makes it smell like that? Emmett: It just smells like fire asses. I don’t know. Ava: *LOL*

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Last night, as I was lying with Emmett, he (out of the blue) said, “I will be five soon, and then I will go to kindergarten.” We talked for a bit about kindergarten, and how he would be at school with Ava, and then he got very quiet. After a moment, I realized that he […]

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Well, it finally happened. Meet Teddy, the latest — and hopefully last — addition to our merry band.

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Emmett’s at the age now where it’s damn difficult to get him to do a plain ol’ smile without him immediately lapsing into some ridiculous face. Sometimes those faces are better than a plain ol’ smile. Mostly not. Behold:

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Not much breathing room this year between Thanksgiving and December. Leah made the executive decision to do all the holiday decorating this past weekend, and so that’s what we did. The weather was unseasonably warm, which made picking up our tree and balsam roping hardly chores at all. Almost before I knew it, the tree […]

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We watched Tristan over the weekend while his mom went off to Dubuque to take spa treatments with her husband for her birthday. Tristan is an agreeable fellow, nearly always ready with a smile and a laugh and a hug. So it was with no small amount of wonder on my behalf that Rachel and […]

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Leah’s been gently pressured by a member of her family who shall remain nameless that she should really be recording all the funny, cute, or otherwise notable things Emmett says and does so as to have a record of them. I encouraged my wife to avail herself of the user account she has on this […]

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I went to pick up Emmett for an appointment today. After strapping him into his seat and getting underway, I asked, “So, how’s your day been going?” To which I got, “It’s a long story. And there’s no short version.” Precocious little scamp.

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If I were better versed in child development, I could tell you the name of whatever stage Emmett is in at the moment. It’s characterized by fugue-like fits of hyperactivity and, alternately, periods of intense creative focus. Lately, the creative periods are filled either with coloring or completing puzzles. In Decorah over the weekend, Emmett […]

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