Odds and Ends

My daughter, Kayley, is about to lose her first tooth. It has been wiggling for a couple weeks and now barely hangs on by a thin piece of flesh. I'm going to try pulling it out later tonight, at her request, so she can tuck it carefully under her pillow for the Tooth Fairy. Another first, another milestone. She is growing up too fast. Sigh.

My son, Zach, who is 2 1/2 years old was helping me with laundry last week, a chore that he excitedly and eagerly assists with. He accidentally dropped a sock on the basement floor and proceeded to say, "Dammit," about a half dozen times. By the time I realized what he was saying, I was torn between scolding him and laughing at him. I explained that 'dammit' is a bad word and asked him not to say it again. He proceeded to tell me,"Daddy says it." Touche, little one, touche.

Our baby, Jesse, is close to crawling. He's had an explosion of development in the last couple of weeks and has learned to roll over and partake in a bit of push-up action. He, too, is growing so quickly and while I am thrilled to see each new accomplishment, I find that I'm also a bit sad. Since going back to work almost 2 months ago, I feel like I've missed out on so much with my kids, especially him. Melancholy will not prevent him from growing up, however; all I can do is cherish the time I have with him.

I love Star Trek: The Next Generation. My kids have grown fond of it as well and now watch it regularly with me, alternating between Thomas the Tank Engine, Drake and Josh, and Star Trek. At first, I was concerned about them watching the show, but when you think about it, there are some very good lessons in each episode:

• Using diplomacy instead of violence to solve disputes
• Interpersonal skills and tolerance - being able to work with a variety of different cultures
• Communication skills
• Respect for authority
• The importance and prevalence of science in everyday life
• The value of exploration, asking questions, and seeking answers
• Facing the unknown, possibly fearing it, and facing the unknown anyway
• The value of life, not only our own, but the lives of others as well

Perhaps we could all learn a thing or two from Picard and Riker.

Recently, a young woman that I work with was speaking about a male co-worker that is rather attractive. She called him a "cutie-patootey." Yick.