Signs of Life

I posted last week at a low moment parenting two boys post divorce. Y'all gave me a lot of really good advice and I did my best to apply it. Mostly I just tried to listen to my oldest, who is having the most difficulty with the new arrangement. My goal was to allow him to do what he needs to recover as much as possible.Last night he was acting up in a particularly frustrating way. They'd had one night at mom's house and came back sleep deprived and full of that transition angst. He was being super bratty so I just refused to read him the book we've been working through. I told him that he didn't want to read it if he wouldn't be quiet while I read to him. Instead I just laid in bed next to him, running my fingers through his hair.He laid still and asked if I could read the book. I said we need to be quiet for a few minutes, which he did. Afterwards I opened the book back up, did an abbreviated reading and then he went to bed with minimal fuss. He woke this morning and told me he wanted to have better bedtimes. I gave him a big hug and said that would make me really happy.Thank you all. One of the graces of the divorce is that its forcing me to have a complete relationship with my children -- not the other half of the parenting team. It's forcing me to be more emotionally available and more present during the times I have them. Its also making me pick my battles more strategically and think a lot more about our emotional connection -- not just if they are eating their vegetables. via /r/Parenting https://ift.tt/2O4KmBN