crying

First loss: A friendship cut short (Letter #042)

Loss is loss, no matter how trivial it might seem from outside

In which Baobao made a new friend on Friday and suffered her first taste of grief in very short order.

Balloons have mayfly lifespans, and the thrill of discovering their joys on Friday afternoon turned to tears and heartbreak on Monday morning.

Papa provided as much solace as he could, but was it enough? Read More …

A papa’s delight is a toddler’s terror (Letter #041)

We'd have been *really* scared if we'd seen what was behind us!

Papa learned a valuable parenting lesson this past weekend: It’s really easy to over-estimate your child’s readiness for things.

We took Baobao to the Luskville Falls trail in Gatineau Park on Saturday, where the southern tip of Canadian Shield descends into the Saint Lawrence Lowlands. Our intention: to hike at least part of the Luskville Falls Trail.

In retrospect, a pretty dumb idea even if conditions had been idea. The National Capital Commission rates it as a “Difficult” climb, and we had a toddler in tow.

But it wasn’t the difficulty that made us turn around. Read More …

Monster! (Letter #037)

Run! Run like you've never run before!

In which Papa Zesser explores a new, and difficult, phase in Baobao’s development — fear!

There was a monster in Baobao’s bedroom!

If any of you have had experience dealing with a small child’s “irrational” fears, please read on and feel free to share your experience!

Meanwhile, whether or not you do, read on (if you dare!)

Inconsolable II (Letter #020)

Photo of baby Baobao howling.

In which Papa Zesser, after what was mostly a lovely day with his off-spring, considers the similarities between an infant who doesn’t realize she has gotten very tired, and a drinker who believes that an endless succession of “Just one more” will lead to eternal good time, and not sudden anger or tears followed by a brutal hang-over.

Maybe babies don’t work in such mysterious ways after all. Click the headline to read more.

Consolable after all (Letter #016)

Close-up photo of smiling baby.

In which Papa Zesser ponder a week that saw the emergence of not one — but two! — new teeth, amid much wailing and gnashing of teeth. And the baby cried quite a lot, too. (Click the headline to read more.)

Inconsolable: Letter #015

Photo of Papa Zesser holding Baobao the day after she suffered from teething

In which Papa Zesser reflects on pain following a miserable night, even as his Baobao plays happily behind him as he types; a far cry from the agonized howls that rang through the air 12 hours before!

Guess who’s up? (Letter #014)

Photo of baby on floor with toys.

In which an exhausted Daddy Zesser flashes back to the Bad Old Days, when sleep was a fleeting luxury, and curses his daughter with the wish that, someday, she too will become a parent, so that she’ll understand what she puts her parents through! (Click the headline to read on.)

Happy stress day to us (Letter 012)

Selfie detail of a very tired Papa Zesser, 2020-04-19.

In which Papa Zesser looks back on 244 days of his darling Baobao’s life, and is forced to consider how lucky he and Raven have been – because yesterday was a hard day indeed. Click the headline above to read more …