Elli awoke screaming. Again. It was clear she did not know that it was night time. We decided to set the mood. The lights dimmed throughout the house the next day at 7pm. TV off. Laptops closed. Phones away. Faded lights and lullabies. Babies and bottles. The girls fed. We laid them down. They slept. They got it. We crafted the peaceful, nocturnal environment. They went with the mood. So did we. Jen and I had time to connect. The house was more peaceful. I walked … [Read more...]
Winning the War
October 31, 2011 by
The final piece of paper left my hand. My signature in place. The condo was sold. It was on the market over two years. We got beaten on price and concessions. I played this hand poorly. We did not win this battle. I bought the condo for the wrong reasons. It was what I thought I was supposed to do. I bought into the dogma that renting is bad, owning is good. Owning would make me an adult, I thought. I bought. My decade of ambition had begun. The ambition was to be good enough. … [Read more...]
Idiot’s Delight
October 26, 2011 by
I’m learning that faith isn’t about fantasy or foolish superstition. It’s a matter of choosing an attitude of grace, optimism and humility. Grace - Letting things go. We free ourselves of the pain of anger for transgressions - real or perceived - against us. Does the other person deserve to be let off the hook? Who cares? You’re hurting yourself by carrying the burden. I choose freedom through grace. Optimism - Trusting that good and bad experiences ultimately produce the best … [Read more...]
Double the trouble
October 25, 2011 by
The Warheit Twins joined us last week. Today they are 1 week old. Sleep has been at a premium. Jen and I are adapting. We talked with another mom in the waiting room for the babies 48 hour doctor visit. We talked about when it gets better. Her observation, "I'm not sure that it gets better. I think we get better." Shortly after her comment, we realized we were in the wrong doctors office. It's easy to get caught up in waiting for "It" to get better. When we do that, … [Read more...]
Finding Grace
October 20, 2011 by
I bent over. I looked at the delicate, brown beauty resting peacefully in her lucite crib. She is around 5 pounds. A sign above her crib reads, "1 lb. 3 oz." Her birth weight. They stopped me. A young girl, in her wheel chair. Her mom at the helm. They were leaving the NICU. I was walking toward it. A car seat in my hands. They knew this meant my little girl was close to going home. They lit with excitement for me. They recognized me. They saw me the morning my girls were … [Read more...]
Conceiving the inconceivable
October 17, 2011 by
In 10 minutes, I'll be driving my wife to deliver our twins. I don't have any kids yet. I can't imagine what it will be like ... other than sleepless for a couple of months. I don't know what the experience of deliver will be like. I don't know what it will be like to hold them for the first time. I don't know the sense of responsibility I will feel when I meet my children. Jen and I launched this baby business around 12 months ago. We decided to see a doctor to make this happen. We … [Read more...]
Are you in a compromised position?
October 14, 2011 by
The offer came it. It was low. They asked for thousands in concessions on top of the low offer. I sent a counter. They held their ground. A few days later, they weakened and offered a counter. They didn't offer enough. It wouldn't have been a compromise. I would have been compromised. A week or so later another offer came in. It was low. They asked for thousands in concessions. I sent a counter. They responded promptly. They offered more than what I asked in my counter. They asked for … [Read more...]
Paint yourself into a corner
October 13, 2011 by
Sam has a really cool product. He plans on selling it via the Internet. He has one big problem. He keeps pushing his launch date. The Internet is virtual. As much as we want it to be real, it is not. We can't touch it. We can't feel it. We can't walk inside it's doors. The virtuality of the Internet (and other technology related products) poses a problem. Our brains don't respond to problems that they believe are imaginary. This is why arbitrary deadlines can blow up in our faces. … [Read more...]
What do you think?
October 10, 2011 by
Steve Jobs influenced the world. No doubt. Time will tell the significance and meaning of that influence. I did not know Steve Jobs to like or dislike him. I can't comment on his character. I never experienced it. He said things that inspire me. Based on the number of reposts and tweets, he inspired others, too. Steve Jobs seemed to demonstrate a commitment to refuse compromise, an eye for beauty and the ability to drive relentless execution. We can learn from that. His legacy can … [Read more...]
