An interview about parenting, some tidings, and [paid subscribers] Ask Me Anything about parenting
I was interviewed by Nicole Ruiz for The Third Oikos, mostly about my life as it relates to parenting. You can read Part One here:
I am not very practiced with interviews, so I’m never sure what people want to here. I hope you might find it interesting. If there’s something related you’ve been wanting to ask, feel free to ask any anything in the comments here and I’ll do my best to answer.
For this newsletter, Simi has a post about favorite children’s books that will come soon. And maybe one about baby sleep, but even after 3 children and some convictions, it’s uncertain how well advice translates to. And I suppose it’s the same with parenting philosophy generally: the best convictions can only be proven over a long time, and yet you must have convictions, because you must do something every day and every year.
Elsewhere lately I’ve been building Flora Carta, a garden design and (so far) rose compendium. It’s still early days but if you have a lot of roses, or an orchard, or a garden with many varieties of something, it may be helpful for keeping track.
And I’ve redone simonsarris.com to collect more lists and some of my favorite writing and books. See Bookshelf and Collected Works of Others under Tidings. I may also put some photography on that site, what I think has been the best over the years.
Finally I have a plan for a house extension, if only the town would issue a building permit, so there may be a live continuation to Designing a New Old Home soon.
Thanks Simon (and Nicole), I deeply enjoyed part I, I think interviews are a great format and would love to hear you on some podcasts (I can relate to not being a quick thinker so I understand that you don’t love that medium but I really think you’d shine through).
I’d love to read Simi on baby sleep. I have a 4 months old and it’s currently the most daunting part of my/our life/lives.
Without forcing you to go into the sleep part of it: how do you juggle so many projects with so many babies?? Artur is (at least currently) a velcro one that cannot nap without being attached to one of us. But even without that, I struggle to find the time (or maybe the will) to do anything in between naps, feeds, diapers, play…
I really cherish all of those moments, but would also love to be able to start some projects that I’ve been holding off for too long. Any secret tips for a first time father of (just) one?
Looking forward for the next posts (fingers crossed that building permit comes through quickly).
I hadn’t heard about eat play sleep but coincidentally we started transitioning to something similar recently.
Yeah, I can imagine with 3 it quickly becomes way more chaotic. Everyone tells me that it all goes too fast, to enjoy it while it lasts. But I really look forward to the time where Artur speaks and walks. Then I think I’d be ready for it all to slow down.
But right now, I’m just too curious about what he thinks, what he has to say; and I don’t want him to feel ‘trapped’ somewhere for 5min because no one understood yet that he wanted to move or to grab something that’s out of reach… Or maybe I’m just selfishly longing for the time when it feels no work at all. But maybe that’s when the actual work will start!
To be honest, it is a lot of work but it does feel less and less so with each day that passes. And I’ve learned so much more about myself, and about how I look at the world, in the last 4 months than in the previous 39 years. Parenthood is truly the most amazing and unexpected experience one can have.
Thanks for sharing yours, it looks like your beautiful family lives a beautiful life; and that you all have a lot fun along the way!