The follow up

Time for a quick spot check on my new year's resolutions:

1. Look for the positives in others - I think this is one of my biggest successes this year and one that I keep coming back to keep myself in check. With Jake growing up and more able/willing to be outside playing in a meaningful manner, I see more and more fathers and it makes my heart sing looking for dads fully engaging with their children and taking leaves from their books. It's interesting to see lots of different approaches to things like building courage, resilience and empathy, but the main thing is that it happens and the kids know they are loved and valued.

2. Being in the moment more - I'm now much more aware of times when I am zoning out, or not giving my full attention to Jake when it's just me and him and I'm able to call time on myself to fully appreciate each moment with him. It may sound sappy, but the quick pace of change and development combined with his upcoming 2nd birthday means that I'm aware that each stage is precious and I want to make the most of it. That, and he's now very good at coming and tugging on my clothes and saying "daddy" if he really wants my attention!

3. Listen more - I think one of the things that I'm most proud of about the way my wife and I parent is that we continue to discuss the big decisions. Sometimes we don't get it right, and sometimes we don't agree, but I know what her views and vice versa. It's interesting discussing different approaches to things like saying "no" and how to help Jake learn the boundaries for play and social interactions. Quite often we'll agree to try something and be ready to change it if it doesn't work out.

4. Be more creative - this is the ongoing challenge, for me at least. With this blog post in mind, I picked up some crayons and paper the other day and try to spend a little time with Jake each day just making marks and playing around with colours. When we visited some friends over the weekend, they had some chalk and paving slabs and again we had a lot of fun playing with those. These little activities mean that being more creative and artistic is a little easier so I will be looking for more ways to do this in the coming months.

5. Blog more - what an epic fail. This is my third post of the year, and while I can make excuses, I don't want to. I keep coming up with ideas for posts, little things I want to comment on and make memories of, but I then get caught up in day to day life. I'll put this one at the top of my to-do list and start making a list of post titles to expand on when I have time.