When You Turn 33 …

and you’re the father of a 4-year-old and two 2-year-olds and you’re married to me you get:

(1) a Graeter’s ice cream cake as requested but with 33 candles on it that melt everything in the name of tradition.

(2) take-out Indian food because, let’s be honest, you’re the better cook.

(3) two children helping you blow out the 33 candles on your cake.

(4) plus one more, from afar.

(5) help opening your presents.

(6) a big, soft, gray blanket because your daughter, while shopping in Target for you said, that you “like blankets.”

(7) a fedora because your daughter, while shopping in Target for you said, “you like hats.” (I tried to explain the difference between a baseball cap and a fedora, but she would have none of it—simply because this one had blue on it and she knows, because she’s asked you at least 100 times, that blue is your favorite color.)

(8) homemade cards.

(9) a child who promptly steals one of your presents for their own amusement.

(10) children who fight over said present, resulting in a hat party.

Happy birthday, my love.

“Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap-on-a-rope.” —Bill Cosby

It took me a good 30 minutes to get all three kids dressed to go outside for just a small bit of snow. The boys had never worn boots before, and it was a struggle to shove their feet into them. (I was so thankful for the boots though, hand-me-downs—as are many of the things they wear—from our good friends Rebecca and Chris’s son, Evan.) And while I was busy putting something on James, Owen would take off whatever it was I had just put on him—and vice versa. And the entire time Sophie was saying “let’s go! let’s go!”

We finally went. Here Sophie’s wearing the winter hat Nini and Pop Pop found for her in Italy.

The gloves—oh, the gloves. They, too, were a gift from Italy, from Nini and Pop Pop. As I was helping Sophie put them on, I realized she had never worn gloves before—only mittens. So this activity took quite some time, too. She’d put two or three fingers in one finger slot, pull them out to separate and in doing so, put two fingers in another slot. But now, she’s a pro.