Project 52: Lesson 2

Triple A Project 52: Lesson 2

Listen.

And listen some more.

I'm not a bad listener, I swear. But I will admit three kids, a cat and a daycare business has spread my attention around a lot lately. I thought I was simply surviving in the only way possible. But as my lesson has taught me this week, either I was over-doing the great art of multi-tasking, or it's finally going to mellow enough that I can change suvival tactics. I'm not looking for the answer to what's already been done, but I do know the answer to the present: Listen!

This weeks lesson comes curtesy of Waffles. Waffles is the latest addition to the family, an adorable six week old husky/lab mix. Somehow adding more to my plate has made me realize how important all the aspects of the meal are as individual flavours just as much as they are as a whole.

Puppies pee. A lot.

My little jewel needs attention, a lot of it. But she has a diaper. I don't need to know exactly what look she has on her face when she needs to go. And, admittedly, she's one of the most easy-going babies I've ever met, and I hate to say that I do take advantage of that. But I also take advantage of every other easy-going aspect of my entire day, of every function of both my family and my job. I've realized this before, in fits and starts, and I resolve to try harder, but I realized just how much it's time to truly change that.

It took paying undivided attention to the dog while she's sniffing around the house (which thankfully isn't often! I'm so glad she's smart and almost house-trained already! I don't think I'd manage it if she was older, more active, and not trained) to realize that I don't give my undivided attention enough, and just how much my undivided attention reveals. I stop washing that last dish to go see where the dog went and make sure she's not squatting somewhere.I stop... for the dog. And if I can stop washing that dish and pay attention, for the dog, I can stop for my family too. Washing dishes isn't as mindless as I'd like to think.

And it's paid off already.

The dog is nearly house-trained.

But more importantly, I've laughed more this week. Naturally. Because the kids are freaking funny, and I've been there to catch it when it happens, while it's still really, really funny. I've discovered just how much my Little Fire's been holding out on me too. I knew, deep down, that he was ready for kindergarten. I also knew he'd never even proven he could sing the ABC's the right way, never mind recognize the letters or even try to print them. But I figured he had learned it, he just wasn't a 'performing monkey'. Well, give that monkey attention, and he sure performs! Ten minutes and a Magna Doodle and there's the whole alphabet in lovely 4-year-old scrawl.

Listen.