Park with Dad. June 2008.

There is no question, Mike and Bridget are twins many years apart with one fathering the other but, when it comes to sleep habits, she is her mother's daughter. Is this all making sense?

Bridget tosses and turns, wakes up crying and talking non-sense. And I wake up to a large bang. Bad news, courtesy of Sleepeducation.com:

1. Do you imagine a sudden loud noise or explosion in your head just before falling asleep or just after waking up in the night?
2. Are these sounds normally free of any sense of pain?
3. Do these events wake you suddenly with a sense of fright?

If you answered yes to these questions, then you might have exploding head syndrome.

Ah, the ol' E.H.S. I've been saying it for years.

Let me be brief. Since Bridget was born I have struggled to find the words to explain the incompatibility between her life and mine. See, how horrible does that sound?



Here's what feminist icon Ani DiFranco had to say about that "perilous moment" that is becoming a mother:

"It can really be a shock to the system for a women who's only just learned how to do what she wants in this world - to pursue her own dreams unfettered by expectations that come from outside herself - to shift. It [feels] like, ' I have to put my own needs and desires down and focus on someone else again?' A perilous moment."

And a moment of patience. I realize now that being a patient mother is not just waiting for your kid to put their shoes on or pick a snack from the cupboard. It's about waiting for the chance to think about yourself again, and sometimes it sucks.

Happy father's day... to me! June 2008.