For a toddler, work must seem like an evil, mysterious chore that eats up the fun time with the parents When I hear the garage door open, the countdown begins. I know I have maybe five minutes to wrap […]
Dad’s dispatch
The best-laid plans
Some days —as columnist Jon Willing recently discovered — packing ahead and an early wakeup are all for naught With my wife Nicole away with the family car for a massively deserved weekend with her friends, I was intent on […]
Back in the day
Columnist Jon Willing notes major differences between current school protocols and the ones he experienced as a student With the arrival of a new school year, it has struck me that it’s been almost 25 years since I graduated […]
Unsung heroes
Some of the city’s most valuable resources during the pandemic? The trusted professionals who care for our children, Jon Willing writes It was an easy decision for my wife and I when child-care providers were allowed to reopen after the […]
A woman of influence
The lessons Jon Willing’s mother taught him as a child carry on decades later in his young son, Miles Sometimes the most subtle, practical lessons from your childhood best inform your success in parenthood. I’m talking about the kind of […]
Joyride
During the pandemic, entertainment is sometimes just a hop, skip – or LRT ride – away In all the years I’ve been writing about the Confederation Line, I never guessed I’d be joy-riding the LRT system simply for something to […]
Not for the faint of heart
Ottawa winters can be quite brutal – but for the sake of his son, you’ll find columnist Jon Willing outdoors… and loving it The older I get, the less hardy I’ve become in Ottawa’s cold, damp winters. Winter activities […]
The new normal
For Jon Willing, that elusive perfect bill of toddler health is what’s needed to keep his family’s world turning during a pandemic Within the first three weeks of being back at daycare, Miles and his mom were in line at […]
A strange turn of events
In his debut column, new dad Jon Willing sings the praises of daycare and its value to his young son Like jailbirds scrawling the days on the prison wall, our small family was tracking our time spent semi-confined under the […]