As the father of a child who doesn't live with me, one of my favorite parts of the day is catching Maddie on the phone and talking about her day. It isn't always fun — sometimes she doesn't feel like chatting, and there are days when getting any information out of her is like pulling teeth.

Tonight was a good night.

After discussing math class and what she had for dinner and movie night at school tomorrow night — where she'll see Kung Fu Panda for the second time — we got into more serious matters.

Maddie has, for some time now, been taking increasingly bolder steps in experimenting with her sense of independence. She has her own room at my house and about a year ago decided to affix to her door a note requiring any comers to knock. When I bypassed protocol one afternoon, my exasperated 6-year-old exclaimed, "Well, I guess my sign doesn't work!"

Last Christmas I bought for her a door bell which hangs from the knob and has a small dry erase board on which to write notes. And I've made a greater effort to respect her privacy; I hope in doing so I provide for her an example of how to respect others.

On the phone tonight, Maddie told me she had created a new sign for her door at her Mom's house. She read the sign to me:

"Warning: Don't come in 'til you knock! If you are a boy and don't knock, you are in trouble, Mister. Don't think about it!"

What a riot!