Bare feet will always be the best way to find lost LEGOs. The running joke I heard as a kid is that if I didn’t pick up my LEGOs, I’d step on them, break skin, and get gangrene. But fostering my kids’ creativity is worth the pain of stepping on their LEGOs.
Black Holes, the Couch, and the Minivan
The other day, I had the rare opportunity to clean the house from top to bottom without interruption. My wife and my mother-in-law took the kids to the state fair on a weekday to beat the crowds, which left me with an evening alone at home. I seized the chance to do some deep cleaning of the various nooks and crannies that tend to be glossed over when we tell the kids to pick up after themselves. I liken these areas to black holes, which have a gravitational field so massive, nothing can escape it. Not even information stands a chance of escaping, thanks to things only astrophysicists and mathematicians understand. But because I’m an armchair physicist today, this is my chance to compare something relatable to something as mysterious and terrifying as black holes. So I took my vacuum cleaner and prepared to begin my cleaning expedition into one of the most well-known, dangerous, and possible prospective areas inside the house: the couch.
How to Take a Nap in a House with Three Small Kids
In my recent post about how I put my three kids to bed by myself, I mentioned that I miss taking naps whenever I wanted. Before my wife and I had kids, we could nap after work, after church, and after pretty much anything. With one child, it can still be done, with just a couple exceptions. With three kids, the only way you’ll get to take a nap is in between daily activities with your spouse’s help. So if your iced quad-shot Venti vanilla latte isn’t curing your daytime tiredness, try these tips for taking a nap in a house with three small kids.
How to Put Three Kids to Bed By Yourself
Bedtime in our house is a bit of a tiresome (heh, you like that? Dad pun.) affair. It’s just me and the three kids each night, forever locked in a desperate game of chicken to see who will sleep first. First, some context. My wife works from home in the evening and doesn’t get off work until 10:00pm. That means I am alone to serve dinner and begin the evening ritual called Bedtime. How it goes down varies slightly each night, but here’s a rundown of a typical night and how you can successfully complete Bedtime on your own.
The Butt Crack of Dawn
I love sleep. It’s one of my favorite hobbies. Sleeping is free and contributes to good health. But unlike some of my actual hobbies like cycling or gaming, my wife can attest that if I don’t get enough sleep, I get cranky. How I wake up can really set the tone for the rest of…