Parenting

I keep telling my kids that I cannot wait to watch my favorite movies and shows with them when they are older. Game of Thrones The Matrix Scarface Last of Us Black Mirror Fight Club Arcane Fallout

Only when you have the wrong expectations. It is so easy to know what the right action is, but sometimes so hard to do it. Ayden is having a rough morning. Well, he was having a good morning until we took him to his soccer match. He got shy and didn’t want to play. I spent 45 minutes encouraging him. Getting frustrated. Getting embarrassed. Getting angry. I wanted to leave.

Ayden: I don’t want to lose my Pokémon cards Amer: ok Ayden: Pokémon cards are very important Amer: how so? Ayden: they have all the information about Pokémon. They are not like credit cards. They are better than credit cards.

Ayden: After we die if plants are eating our body how will we go to heaven Amer: Our soul goes Ayden: And we get a new body Amer: Sure Ayden: Can we get different skin Amer: Sure what color you want Ayden: Pink

Ayden deciding his career: “There are so many cool job, I want to be fireman, goalie, dad, police officer, monster truck driver.”

Dada - Dolphin DoDo - Shark Kaka - Orca Meow - Cat Moo - Cow Kaykey - sticker

Ayden: Baba, American flag is better than Texas flag. Me: How come? Ayden: Because it has more stars!

Driving to Ayden’s first Monster Jam show, as the AT&T Stadium came into view, he was getting excited. His heart was probably beating faster, and he could probably feel it. He said the cutest thing ever, “Baba, my heart is growing bigger.”

We are in our house on the second floor. There is a giant lobster outside. There is an Amazon delivery truck. There is a package. There is a car. The delivery truck is crushing the car and possibly the package.

Last year, Ayden got into Minecraft thanks to Evan Storm’s channel. So we bought Minecraft on PS4 and started to play. I preferred to play in first-person perspective, but Ayden preferred third person. But he didn’t know how to ask me to change the perspective. So he would say, “Be the people that Evan’s be.”

Tonight, I was reading the Puss in Boots bedtime story to Ayden. The story begins with the Old Miller dying. Ayden asked me if people die in real life. I was not ready for this conversation, but I also didn’t want to lie. I said yes and hoped we could move on quickly. Ayden’s eyes turned teary. In a crying voice, he asked, “Why?” “It’s just the way it is,” I said.

Last year, we took Ayden to a monster truck show. We didn’t know how loud these trucks could be. So we bought ear protection headphones for him. He was still feeling a little scared. Later he came up with the idea that the sound of the engine comes from the tires. He would keep telling me that monster truck tires are loud, or that they made it louder after he put on his headphones.

The other day while putting Ayden to sleep, he looked as if he was intensely thinking. I asked him, “Are you thinking something?” “Yes,” he replied. “What are you thinking?” I asked. “I don’t know what car to play with in the morning, baba!”

Today Ayden said, “Jack (his friend) wants to be firetruck driver and I will be ambulance driver. Jack will put out fires. I will take people to hospital. It will be so much fun.”

Yesterday, after I picked up Ayden from his daycare, he said he didn’t know what he wanted to be. I guess they asked him this question in his class. I told him he has plenty of time to figure it out. There is no rush. Then later at night he said, “Baba, I know what I want to be. I want to be a Tow Truck Driver.” He said it would be so much fun to tow cars.

Here is a list of parenting books recommended by members of the Hacker News community. All links are affiliate links to purchase these books from Amazon: How to Talk So Your Kids Will Listen, and How to Listen So Your Kids Will Talk # One of a few books that are recommended multiple times in this thread. 4.5 stars with 1000+ reviews.

It is amazing how having your own kids changes everything. I love my dog, and because of him I love almost all dogs. I hated leaving him home so much that I would not go to restaurants that don’t let dogs in the patio. (With Whiskey Cake being a notable exception.) Every grocery trip, I would buy him a new toy, and many times I had arguments with my wife because he had too many toys. Every vacation we would have a huge argument because I wanted a dog-friendly vacation where we could take our dog.