The first time I ever heard the answer was about six or seven years ago when, in answer to the question, “So, what are you doing?” one of my good friends replied, “I’m being a dad.” He wasn’t being a stay-at-home dad. He had just decided that being a dad was the most important thing in his life and, as a result, that’s how he was more or less defining himself. He wasn’t defined by his zillion-dollar-a-year money management gig. He was a dad. Even before I had kids, I always thought that answer was kind of cool. [more]

T. has her own way of doing everything. You can show her the "right" way--or the way YOU think things ought to be done--but then she'll turn around and give the task her own personal trademark spin. If I give her a plastic bag, for instance, and ask her to help me empty the bathroom wastebaskets, she'll dump the trash onto the floor first, then spend her time picking it all up off the floor and placing it into the bag. [more]