Some of the week's highlights (as of Wednesday):

* The boy is (finally) getting into this don't-pee-in-a-diaper thing.  He's embracing the concept that there is an appropriate place to pee.  The only problem:  the only place he'll pee during daytime other than in a diaper is in the backyard.  (Afterwards, he does this great backward walk to make sure he does not step in it.)

Note to self:  do not sit on our grass before the next monsoon rains.

* Cam sneezed all over the tortilla chips at lunch today, then fast as lightning covered his mouth with his hand.  Soon he'll have this one nailed.  Fortunately, lunch was over, and we know a restaurant would never give uneaten chips from one table to another one....

* I almost had to pull a frog (or was it a toad?) out from a mom-friend's bikini top yesterday.  She was hamming up her concern when her son kept putting it on her leg, but when it landed on her chest, she had had enough.  But who knows?  If she had been a bit more patient, it might have turned into a smiling prince.


- posted by Michael @ 10:41 PM

 
Two other quick items.
 
We're really in the zone now where he will play with other kids.  He prefers older girls--5 is an age he REALLY likes in his girls--but he'll accept other ages and even boys.  It's great to watch him play with other kids.
 
Of course, when he starts picking up all the negative stuff I've been shielding him from, that'll be another story entirely....
 
And on a different topic entirely, check out this troublemaker's web site:  http://www.daycaresdontcare.org/
 
I have only had about 15 minutes to review it so far, but one concept I did find interesting is the notion that when you ask a teacher who is a parent if s/he loves his or her students as much as her own children, they usually laugh at the absurdity of the premise.  (I'm paraphrasing, but you get my drift.)  My sense is this guy has about as much chance as succeeding as when we built walls of sand to protect our sand castles as the tide was rushing in--but I like his guts, anyway.
 
(That said, I am not endorsing the site, just suggesting you take a look at it.  It's certainly nothing you'll ever hear about from the mainstream media.)
 

- posted by Michael @ 10:10 PM

 
The boy gets very emotional when he gets overtired.  The other day, needing a nap, he said after he is 3, he wants to be 2 again.  I foolishly mentioned that in fact, after 3 he would be 4, as you get older, not younger.  He said he did not want to be 4, he wanted to be 2.  Still not figuring out where this was headed, I replied that once you're done an age then you move up to a higher one.
 
At this point he began sobbing, saying "I miss being 2."  He then asked why he could not be 2 again.  I weakly answered that "they" ("The Man"??) don't do it that way.  The only positive outcome from this was that I realized he needed a nap and he actually took one that day.
 
I am simply not ready to bum him out with the reality that he'll be old and achy like me someday.
 

- posted by Michael @ 10:02 PM

 
I hate to be serious over a Holiday weekend, but there's an issue that the at home dad movement (such as it is) will have to address one of these days.

The bottom line: every study shows that more men than women are prone to sexually abuse children. So as we call for more men to spend more time with and among children, how do we assure that we do not increase child victimization as a result?

I am posting this now because as I prepare for a TV appearance on July 7 (9pm EST on CN8, only available on Comcast cable from Maine to DC) representing the anti-crime group I run in my spare time (ThrowAwayTheKey.org), I have stumbled upon some stunning figures. I'll just bum you all out with one quote for now:

"Freel surveyed 183 child care workers in West Yorkshire, England, and found that 15 percent of men and 4 percent of women expressed sexual interest in children. When asked if they 'would have sex with a child if it was certain no one would find out and there would be no punishment' (p. 489), 4 percent of men and 2 percent of women indicated they would have sex with a child."

And that just counts those who ADMIT IT! The source for the quote above is this new study alleging loads of K-12 educator sexual misconduct, which we will be discussing (assuming I don't get bumped) on CN8 this Wednesday. The Freel article referenced is available here.

So one in 7 male child care workers in the UK admits sexual interest in children. And people are clamoring for me to put my kid in day care why again?

Seriously, this is a topic that will eventually come to the forefront as more men are spending more time with kids. I don't have any answers right now, except to say we must teach our kids never to keep secrets from us, even if people tell them to.

And I guess before I eventually send my kid to pre-school, I'll have to let everyone there know that I am a strong supporter of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

- posted by Michael @ 9:45 PM