My wife’s cousin gave us three boxes of books, including what seems like the entire Berenstain Bears series. It has been a true delight to see my daughter consuming book after book over the past 24 hours. All this reading culminated with her bringing two books to school and reading them–out loud–on the way homeContinue reading “Boxes of Books”
Author Archives: Jonathan Sircy
The Case is Solved!
Tonight, my daughter solved her first Encyclopedia Brown case. She solved “The Case of the Blueberry Pies” and explained the solution to me before we heard the solution on my audiobook copy of Encyclopedia Brown Gets His Man. She intuited that something was up: two twins had pulled a shenanigan at a pie-eating contest. TheContinue reading “The Case is Solved!”
Reverse Engineering
Each day, my daughter engages in some kind of imaginative play that leaves me wondering, “Where did that come from?” It’s probably naive to think that I could find the source of every wackadoodle game she comes up with, but I’ve had too many epiphanies when catching a cartoon snippet or reading a book toContinue reading “Reverse Engineering”
Three Cheers for Perry!
I make a podcast about the TV show Perry Mason. This afternoon, I was doing some “research” (i.e., I was watching one of the Perry Mason made-for-TV movies), and I got my daughter to show some interest in television’s greatest defense attorney. My daughter was game. She guessed who the real culprit was, joined meContinue reading “Three Cheers for Perry!”
Game Night
“I’m so glad you joined us for Game Night!” said my daughter as I stepped outside. Though the weather was overcast, the temperature was perfect. I had on my work clothes–a button-down dress shirt and dress pants–with some grungy tennis shoes. I was ready for sport. Game 1: Cats and Mice. This game was basicallyContinue reading “Game Night”
She’s Got the Joy
Yesterday, my church celebrated its women with a special service organized by and featuring women. My daughter sang a solo as “special music” at the service’s beginning. We decided on Christian kids’ music classic, “I’ve Got the Joy.” I added the occasional, “Where?!?” and sang with her on the chorus. She was fantastic. She sangContinue reading “She’s Got the Joy”
Little Blessings
This afternoon, my daughter went to the dentist. She was great. In fact, she’s been consistently cool in her dentist visits. It made me think of all the small things she does that are blessings, such as: Sleeps in until 8am on non-school days Avoids bathroom accidents Takes a bath every night without complaint NeverContinue reading “Little Blessings”
New Scripts
I’ve been disappointed by the repeated refrains my daughter turns to in times of trouble. “I’ll never be able to do it!”“It’s ruined!”“It’s all your fault!” So at the end of each day, I’ve been having her repeat after me. “I’m going to have a good night’s sleep.”“I’m going to wake up in a goodContinue reading “New Scripts”
Surrounded By Family
My wife’s two uncles live within half a mile of us. Both are retired, and you can see them on any given day motoring up and down the road in their respective golf carts. Today, one of the uncles came by, and my daughter got to steer the car while her great uncle manned theContinue reading “Surrounded By Family”
Learning Moment: The Stop Card
On Thursdays, my daughter gets together with her cousins after school. They play, eat snacks, and generally enjoy each other’s company. Today, I showed up, and they were dressed up as knights. I was ready to take my daughter home. “But we barely got to play!” she said. “I can give you fifteen minutes,” IContinue reading “Learning Moment: The Stop Card”
Learning Together 