December 25, 2007
Now that the brunt of the holiday chaos is winding down, I thought I'd pause a moment to capture some of the past month's moments that I told myself I should jot down. Ben and Lucy have been learning to skate with "Uncle" Paul LaGrand at the local hockey club. Last Saturday I decided that it was about time I …
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December 20, 2007
It's my birthday today. I'm 40 years old. And I feel surprisingly young. When I got home from work this evening, Sara presented me with the best birthday present I've ever received — a stack of emails from friends in response to one that she had written to them. Here is what Sara wrote: Karl turns FORTY next week and …
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March 20, 2007
Since none of my own words are worthy of blogging these days, I thought I'd at least give you an idea of what Ben and Lucy have been saying. They're a lot more entertaining than I am, that's for sure. A couple weeks ago Ben explained to his mom why he likes to watch Pokémon: Mom, do you know why …
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January 28, 2007
Last night Ben said he was playing with his invisible friend. When Sara asked what his friend's name was, Ben said, "Pathetic." Tonight at dinner neither Sara nor I would play "the quiet game" with Ben, so he said he would just have to play it with his invisible friend. "What is your friend's name this time, Ben?" Sara asked. …
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December 15, 2006
Here we go again with the proud father routine. I can't help being fascinated by the art that my kids create. It's such a clear indicator of their development that I look in awe as their little drawings and paintings and sculptures become more mature and sophisticated as they get older. Somewhere along the way, they'll probably stop creating visual …
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September 25, 2006
A few months ago, I started reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to my son, Ben. When we finished, I thought that we could go back to smaller, more manageable books. But Ben was adamant: "Daddy, let's read the next one." So we did. During scary parts, I would pause and ask Ben if he was scared and if …
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July 30, 2006
Sara and the kids took the bus downtown with me on my Friday morning commute, just for fun. The kids had a fun time riding in a moving vehicle without seatbelts, and Sara enjoyed meeting the few other regular commuters with whom I share the ride and shoot the breeze each weekday morning. All in all, it was a pleasant …
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June 25, 2006
Last December I wrote about turning Sara's handwriting into a font for a little Christmas present. People loved the sample so much that, with Sara's permission, I made the font available as a free download. However, it turns out that some people have had problems getting it onto their machines, so perhaps instructions are in order. Here are two links …
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May 23, 2006
On Sunday we spent the afternoon with two of my former students and current friends, Kevin and Christina. It's always fun to watch our kids interacting with adults, and this time was no different. After lunch, Ben took Christina up to his room to show her his latest Lego creation. He was explaining to her some of the finer points …
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February 14, 2006
Like all proud parents, I love watching as my kids develop into curious, independent creatures. It's pretty clear to me that the bromide about kids being sponges became a cliché for a good reason. Recently Ben has been learning more and more from others—pre-school teachers, neighbors, friends—and eagerly bringing home his newly discovered information. A couple weeks ago, he let …
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January 30, 2006
Thanks to all who offered thoughts and prayers during Ben's surgery today. Everything went well. What was supposed to come out came out; what was supposed to go in went in. Post-surgery involved the usual nausea and sleepiness, but he was able to leave the hospital by 5pm. His throat will hurt for a while, but we're hoping that the …
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January 26, 2006
On Monday Ben goes in for a little surgery to have his tonsils and adenoids removed and a new set of ear tubes inserted. He's excited about all of the popsicles and juice boxes he'll be allowed to have afterwards, but I don't think he's quite understanding the pain that he'll be experiencing. And I'm glad for that, since knowing …
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December 21, 2005
I've always loved my wife's handwriting—and not just for sentimental reasons. It has a fun and sassy kind of look to it that is clearly distinguishable as hers. Ever since I learned about font creation software a few years ago, I've been determined to turn Sara's handwriting into a font of her own. Unfortunately, I never got around to doing …
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September 3, 2005
Ever since Ben attended the neighborhood Art Camp run by Ms. "Superwoman" Peri, he has become addicted to drawing. His implement of choice is a set of washable markers, which is a huge relief to his parents, because he isn't just drawing on paper. No, drawing on paper would be too sensible. Instead, he's been creating designs on his legs, …
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July 27, 2005
Sara had just sat down with Ben and Lucy. The wedding was about to begin—an informal yet elegant evening ceremony on the beach of Lake Michigan. Ben leaned a bit closer to Sara and pointed out toward the horizon where rippling lake met sunburned sky. Ben said, "Look at that, Mommy." "Yes, I see it." "You know what that's called?" …
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June 13, 2005
The family took a trip down to Chicago this past weekend to celebrate nephew Michael's high school graduation. We had a terrific time seeing family, catching up, eating good food, looking at Michael's stellar photographs, doing the family thing. On Sunday we went to the Brookfield Zoo, which is probably the nicest one I've ever seen (I've never been to …
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May 6, 2005
If you were wondering why things have been quiet on the blog for the past week or so, it's because I was on vacation with my family in San Francisco. A great time was had by all. Thanks to our hosts, Andy and Pamela and Shoshana and Isaac, for a wonderful time. More photos to come. …
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March 27, 2005
Yesterday my son, Ben, asked if I would write down some stories in his little book as he told them to me. Here are the three that he came up with—in their raw, unedited form. I think you'll notice his literary influences right away. Curious George Went to the Museum George saw a fire lever. He pulled it right …
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March 6, 2005
A young artist has just burst onto the scene with this stunning work of mixed media. The sophisticated blending of natural elements with manufactured confections is suggestive of early Marcel Duchamp, while the STYROFOAM™ base clearly represents a breaking away from 1990s neo-expressionism. Look carefully and you'll notice the ironic juxtaposition of artificial color and natural tones, symbolically exposing society's …
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February 23, 2005
My son Ben has reached the age—four years old—at which many children become aware of death and try to come to terms with it in one way or another. For me, death was a major source of anxiety at that age, so I've been especially careful about how I respond to his inquiries, hoping that he may be able to …
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February 5, 2005
Today is the birthday of my father, Paul D. Swedberg. If he were alive, he would be 78 years old. A hard-working, generous man, my dad would snow-blow the sidewalks of everybody on the block and lend his tools as if they were library books. I got the feeling that he sometimes bought tools just so the neighbors across the …
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December 31, 2004
The kids (and Andrew) had a blast on the hill behind Andrew's house on Boxing Day. Here are a few pictures of the fun: …
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December 19, 2004
Just when the Christmas season started to feel like a burden rather than the joy that it should be, my kids came along and restored in me a sense of wonder. Here are a few highlights from this season: Ben's Number One hit: We wish you were Mary Christmas This song has been getting heavy rotation in Ben's brain the …
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November 10, 2004
Sara was in the kitchen, making herself a latte. Ben sat at the kitchen table and drew a picture of only he knows what. "Momma," Ben said, still rubbing the crayon hard against the pink construction paper. "Yes, what is it, Ben?" "When I grow up, I'm going to be a workerman, a teenager, a lady who serves food, a …
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September 26, 2004
Sara called me at work a few days ago to tell me that the mystery of the vanishing bat had been solved. One night last year while Sara and Lucy were on a weekend vacation, I heard Ben yelling from his room, "Daddy, daddy, there's a birdy in here!" My first thought was that he had been struggling to fall …
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July 8, 2004
Last week's iTunes update included a recording by the rapper Lil Wayne. The name got me wondering: How many other Lil' Rappers are there out there? By doing a simple artist search in the iTunes store, I came up with this lil' list: Lil' Bow Wow Lil C Lil' D Lil' Donte Lil' Fats Lil Flex Lil' Flip Lil Hound …
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June 20, 2004
A couple days ago Ben was testing out the playground equipment at the preschool he's going to start attending this fall. I wasn't there to witness it, but Sara assures me that he did a beautiful back flip before his faceplant into the wood chips. I guess he was pretty shaken up after the fall, but not nearly as much …
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May 22, 2004
It wasn't until after I recorded us singing this Beatles song that I went back to the original to see just how far we had strayed from it. Oh my. Let's just call our version a whole new song. Here's the RealAudio version, if you want to hear it streamed over the web: Listen Now Here's the MP3, if you'd …
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April 25, 2004
Ah! Spring is here, and Ben is taking some time to smell the tulips. It's great having kids to remind me to get outside and revel in the warm, soft smells of spring. …
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April 10, 2004
The other day Sara was reading a book to Ben about a bunny who later becomes a daddy. Sara asked Ben if he wanted to become a daddy, too, when he grew up. "No," Ben said, "I want to be a mommy. A grumpy mommy." …
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March 10, 2004
Benjamin went back to the hospital this month to get a second round of ear tubes. Apparently his hearing in his left hear was 1,000 times worse than in his right ear. So maybe he hasn't been ignoring us after all when we've asked him to pick up his toys or get off the kitchen counter or stop hitting his …
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