Skirball

Today was a very good day. I don't know what the deal is but for the past two weeks the boys have been fighting a lot and I haven't had the patience. Probably a combination of change in routine, staying up later, eating more sweets and the mania that goes along with this time of year.

We've all been a bit snappish.

Of course, as it is every year, patience is at the top of my list of things to work on in '09. This morning in Tae Kwon Do, we spent the last twenty minutes of class talking about our goals for the new year and giving gifts to our master. It's a nice tradition and coincidentally Peter and I each gave Master D a book - a coffee table book of the cartoons from The New Yorker from Peter and a book of essays from The New Yorker from me. Seriously, we never talked about it. It's just weird. Anyway, Master D counseled me that it's not so much about becoming more patient as it is about being less frustrated and controlling my anger. He's right and after some discussion about triggers and the chemistry behind it (flight or fight anyone?), we moved on.

After TKD, I came home and cleaned up a bit then took a quick glance online to see what was happening at the Getty. It was crazy foggy here today - really unusual for this town. It's cold, too. I don't think it hit 60 degrees today. And yeah I know it's like below zero in Chicago but I don't live there. Where I live, below 60 is freakin' cold, ok? Anyway, on a whim I decided to take a look at the Skirball Cultural Center and it looked like way more fun than the Getty so that's where we went. It was really cool. The big exhibit there right now is Noah's Ark with all the animals made from recycled or repurposed materials. It was really neat and the boys loved it. There is also an archaelogical dig for kids but it was closed today because of the weather. I will definitely take the boys again soon. There's a superhero exhibit coming in February - perfect! Geena Davis was there with her kids. She's very tall.

The boys fell asleep on the way home and gave me a chance to just relax for a few minutes.

Now they're curled up on the couch watching a movie and I'm getting ready to start dinner.

I don't know what was different about today. Why I was more relaxed and present - was it because they were so good or were they so good because I was more relaxed and present? I don't know. But they were good and they had fun at the museum and I had fun watching them and I didn't worry about the time or try to rush them through any of the exhibits. I didn't try to force an experience that I wanted them to have. I let them move through it on their own based on their own interests. Maybe they were good because they felt empowered. Maybe. All I know for sure is that we all smiled a lot today, no one yelled at all today and I frequently found myself sincerely enjoying their company. What a great way to wind down our two weeks together.