Now that we’re a few weeks into 2013, we checked in with some of our local parenting bloggers to ask what their parenting resolutions are and how they’re doing. Here’s what they had to say:
TO BE MORE PRESENT: “Sometimes I feel like I rush through the little moments of my toddler’s day: taking him out of his crib in the morning, answering his endless stream of questions, helping him build a block tower. Rather than be preoccupied during all these everyday tasks, I want to be better at savoring them. These moments are usually filled with love and laughter if I let them truly unfold. He won’t be a little guy forever, and I want to appreciate this fleeting time.”—Leah Black
LEARN HOW TO UNDER-REACT: “It’s written in huge invisible letters across my forehead. The children decide to “decorate” the walls with Sharpie markers? Under-react! They throw a massive tantrum when their snack falls onto the subway platform floor? Under-react! My husband says he’s leaving work for home ‘in five minutes’ and arrives an hour and a half later? You get the picture…under-react! It’s been working miracles around these parts in terms of the limits of my patience, my stress levels, and my overall day-to-day happiness. Turns out that when you pretend like annoying or frustrating things aren’t that big of a deal, they end up being not that big of a deal! Bonus!”—Sarah Torretta Klock
PLAY MORE: “After finally finishing my book in late 2012, it’s time to take a step back, loosen up some deadlines, and play. So far so good. 2013 has been a very fun year for me.”—Natalie Diaz
MAKE MORE TIME FOR MYSELF: “With a two-year-old and a nine-month-old, I feel like I’ve been nursing and diapering little ones forever. But now that the oldest is potty training and the youngest is sleeping through the night (finally!), I am going to carve out more time to recharge my mommy battery. I’m sure my entire family will appreciate a happy, well-rested mom!”—Angela Johnson
ASK THE KIDS FOR SUGGESTIONS: “This year, I asked my 16- and 19-year-old children if they had any suggestions for ways I could parent differently and, fortunately, they had two recommendations at the ready! The first: to refer to my husband (their father) as ‘Dad,’ not ‘Daddy.’ I can report that (a) I was unaware that I called him ‘Daddy,’ (b) I have since realized that my mother still refers to my father that way, and (c) although I desperately want to stop calling him ‘Daddy,’ making this small change is more challenging than one might expect. Second, my children suggested that I try to both limit my questioning of them and make my questions…less pedestrian (that’s now exactly how they put it). So now, instead of ‘How was basketball practice?’ a prime offender, I am more apt to ask, ‘Did anyone throw up at practice today?’ Kidding aside, asking my children what I should do differently in 2013 led to really interesting conversations.”—Barri Waltcher
COOK TOGETHER: “As a recipe developer a lot of my time is spent in the kitchen, and I’m able to chat with my 6-year-old daughter, Rosa, as she does her homework or plays. But is this really quality time? This year, I resolve to bring her into the kitchen with me more often. We’ve decided to make dinner together every Tuesday, and I suspect there may be some cookie baking happening on the weekends.”—Jenna Helwig
SAVOR ALL OF IT: “Not just the funny or touching parts but the annoying, infuriating, exhausting, and just plain gross parts too. The cliché is just too true: It all goes at warp speed and I just can’t imagine life being any more fun or interesting or meaningful than it is when you’re in the parenting trenches. It’s possible that my resolution is backfiring because I now find it even harder to keep a straight face when I’m supposed to be serious or stern. I have also probably let a few too many violin practices or sports lessons slide as I ‘savor’ procrastination and laziness. I am sure I’ll figure it out by the time they are both out of the house.”—Lani Serota
SMILE MORE, YELL LESS: “It’s been three weeks and I think I am smiling (through gritted teeth mind you) more. The yelling, well, I think if you yell and smile it’s a LOT nicer, right? Seriously – it does help if you really TRY to be nicer. I think we are all happier.”—Carla Sullivan
NO DRINKING IN THE NURSERY: “In our New York City apartment, Addy’s nursery doubles as a bedroom and playroom, and we all spend a lot of time in there. Already, we’ve had coffee, wine, milk, and cranberry juice spill on the new gray wool rug, not particularly easy to remove stains from! So on January 1, her room became a ‘drink-free zone.’”—Faye de Muyshondt
LOSE THE POTTY: “I am looking to be potty-free by April. We’re coming up on a year of diaperlessness. Now, we’re stuck on the potty stage; the potty being sort of the nicotine patch of the potty-training process. This is my vow: by April, it’s all-toilet, all the time.”—Joe Wack
SURPRISE THE KIDS MORE: “Some of the best moments I remember from my childhood were surprises. The other day, I led them into the kitchen and lined up on the counter were all the ingredients we needed to make chocolate chip cookies! They were both excited and wanted to help with everything. By the end, it seemed like there was more batter on their clothes and the walls than in the bowl, which brought me right to a perennial resolution: maintaining my calm!”—Elisabeth Reed
MORE OF EVERYTHING: “More playdates, more books, more adventures, more cuddles. Not that we were especially lacking on any of these fronts last year, but it’s always a good idea to set the bar high at the beginning of the year, right? So far, we’ve read just about every children’s book by the beloved James Marshall. We’ve had nearly a dozen playdates–half of them at our house! We’ve explored new parts of Brooklyn and happened upon a delicious, family friendly pizza place called Rosco’s in Crown Heights. Oh, and thanks to a New Year’s fever, we’ve had lots of kiss-it-better cuddles!”—Alex Richards
GOALS FOR MYSELF: “Every year I spend days thinking about and sometimes writing down resolutions I want my family to make. I create a few for myself but my focus tends to be on them. It’s a running joke now as they refuse to acknowledge my lists. While they laughed about it this year, I knew that it was all in good fun but it did make me stop and take a look at why I do that. It’s much easier to tell others what will make their lives better, but it’s really hard to take your own advice. So at the last minute with the countdown echoing in the background, I created a short list of goals for the New Year, my goals. Find my passion. Try something new. Laugh more. Seek daily peace. Learn to let go. Focus more on me. According to my family, just making my own list makes me off to a good start.”—Maria Riley
DITCH THE VICES: “Stop pretending I can multitask–be more present and mindful. Return emails more promptly, ditch soft drinks, and give up candy. Or at least better hide my vices from my children.”—Hillary Chura
TAME THE TOY MUSEUM: “Since our home has morphed into a toy museum over the past two years, I’ve decided that now’s the time to get it all neatly organized. So far I’ve saved about three hundred ideas on Pinterest, purchased several decorative storage baskets, and yet I continue to wonder how to hide all of the toys within plain view in my living room. Now I think I just need to amend my resolution so that I accept the fact that Fisher-Price and Disney are now part of our home decor for a while until we are forced to redecorate in Barbie chic style.”—Aimee Daly
