August 19

Something miraculous happened during dinner tonight. We ate in the family room, which usually leads to fighting because Abby is particularly possessive of a particular spot on the couch. So when she came down from her room and Brady had already parked himself in said-locale, I braced myself for an explosion of bickering.

But it didn't happen. She didn't say a word as she plopped down on an adjacent cushion and lifted her fork to her mouth.

'Twas a stunning turn of events and given that I'm having some irritating seasonal allergy issues today, I'm grateful for the surprise show of maturity from all involved parties. The silence is 100 percent golden.