Due Praise

He was so great today. That's really all I want to say. I mean, he's a great kid. Duh. We all know that. But he's six years old, so he's gonna have his moments. Today...I just have to praise him.

We try to make time for him to play with his friends every day after school, at school. It's first grade. Play time is precious. But today we had to run a dvd to CSUN for his mom's Monday night class, so we were on a mission. Usually when we have to leave right after school, he gets sad. Not today. An errand for Mom? No problem. I'm on it, Dad.

Of course getting to see Mom on a Monday, her tough long day, is a reward in itself. The fact that her office is packed with candy is a nice little benefit too. But still, we had to drive around forever and find a parking spot, then walk about fifteen minutes to her office, then back to the car, then stop at the dry cleaners. Nary a complaint.

All of this may seem pedestrian--some of it literally so--but it's these normal little moments of real life that make being a parent such a pleasure. He was so cool.

So we got home and his neighborhood friends were out playing. We should have gotten down to homework right away, but he'd been so good. So patient.

So I relaxed the schedule and let him head out to play. See a little joy there? So do I.

We got the homework done during dinner, so it worked out. Plus, we earned major points with Mom. Mom points, time for play, and homework completed...now that's multitasking I can get behind.