Cora’s Parents: Not Very Smart July 1, 2021 Cora is a very smart girl, and sometimes she gets confused and saddened when she realizes the grown-ups in her life are not quite so smart. The other day, for instance, I found her favorite dolly, Diggy, face down on the ground in the sunroom. …
How to Make Your Sister Useful March 24, 2021 “Annie, please put your shoes away,” I said, as Annie kicked off her shoes after walking inside. This entailed picking up her shoes, walking about five steps, and putting them into her shoe bin in the closet. “Cora, will you please put my shoes away?” said …
Joms November 2020 Cora Rose decided to try toilet training, a few months ago. Her sister uses the toilet and she is fully capable of using it, if she chooses. Since she hates having her diaper changed we encourage her to use the toilet instead. Her sister was strongly motivated by stickers, and Annie’s sticker …
Cora’s First Day at School August 2020 Cora had been hoping to start school ever since her sister Annie started school. Annie was always so excited to go to school. She talked about her friends at school, and her teachers; she got a special lunch packed for her every day; she came home singing new …
How to Tell a Story with Children Present February 13, 2021 A good friend of mine got engaged recently. “So it was Friday evening, and she had just got home from work,” I told Peter, settling in to tell the story. We were sitting around the dinner table. The kids had their food, their drinks, …
Mornings with the Girls February 25, 2021 It is morning time. The girls are getting dressed before going downstairs for breakfast. Annie has tried on five different dresses and rejected them all for various reasons. She is putting on the dress she wore to school two days ago – and, having learned my lesson in …
What to Do With a Hypothetical Third Child January 21, 2021 We have discussed having a third child. Annie is in favor. Cora is a little more circumspect. She has not verbalized a wholehearted endorsement of the proposal. Annie gets very excited, and goes back and forth about whether she would prefer a girl or …
An Accident April 2021 It was nighttime, and I was encouraging the girls to get ready for bed. They had gotten naked (the easy part) and I was trying to get them to get on pajamas (the harder part). We were standing in the doorway of their room. Annie flicked the light on, and then …
Cora: Such an Adorable Child April 14, 2021 We were all sitting on the couch, but Cora couldn’t sit still, so she wiggled off. She stuck her face into the couch cushions and made a spitting noise. “Don’t spit on the couch!” I shouted. “No, I spit into the couch,” Cora corrected. “Well, don’t spit …
Skeleton Bears April 24, 2021 Cora and I were walking along at nighttime. It was very dark out. We were running because it’s fun to run at nighttime. “I like to walk outside at nighttime,” Cora had told me as soon as we got outside. We had meandered along for a little while, and then …
