DADS READ: “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle

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JER: “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle was published 50 ago, but it still feels fresh and new.  Just as my Mother - @cvalentiner - predicted on the sticker written at the baby shower before Lake was born, my kids love “putting their fingers in the holes”, and I’ve tried to “enjoy at least one thing everyday about their stage in life.” 

Right now, it is a lot of unintelligible 2-year-old-screaming from Ejler (and pure joy at learning a new word) and lots of 5-year-old-irrational-whining from Lake, e.g. “I want to catch minnows, but I don’t want to get my feet wet” - today.  Offset by being able to watch Lake’s sense of humor mature, she genuinely cracks me up.

There is a Stoic practice that is related to what my Mother suggested: try to imagine that each moment you experience might be your last chance to take your kids hiking, your last time to see your loved one, your last day to see your sibling, etc.  it helps me focus on living in the moment and trying to make every experience count.  I don’t always succeed, I often lose my shit, but every once in a while, this Stoic practice helps me be my best self.

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