Willow and I ventured to the Rivergate mall on Thursday, and she had the time of her life. I graduated her from the carseat into the stroller seat that had been hiding underneath. And she loved it. As I whirled from department store to department store hunting for a particular gift, Willow grabbed the tray and pulled herself as far to the front as she could. From that vantage point, with the mall kiosks and storefronts zooming by, Willow laughed and screamed (her little baby screams of joy). This little 6-month-old girl spread more joy doing this than I have in many years. I was flying, folks (well, I was walking at a brisk pace), because the faster I went, the more fun Willow was having. As the pretzel-smell wind rushed through Willow's hair, she raised her arms and declared (I'm sure of it, though I'm not an expert baby-scream translator), "I am king of the world!" This trip to the mall was a blast. Other highlights: Willow loved zig-zagging through the cl...
A father's journey to finding the right words.