Today, I really think that I have levelled up in my parenting game.

Weekend mornings are usually a source of quicksand-like pain for me because my wife grabs the chance to sleep in, thus leaving me to engage my two kids for the greater part of 3 hours. You can imagine that this is not a task I look forward to.

This week, something happened that made me change my approach. I was reading “The Art of Possibility” by Benjamin Xander and his co-author when their advice about changing the lens in which we frame our problems struck me as forcibly as a glorious pearl sitting regally on an oyster. Indeed, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

With that impetus pushing my hunchbacked soul, I did something novel this morning. I first allowed my son to drown his senses within 20 minutes of television watching. Then, I changed both kids’ clothes and took them downstairs to an eatery, where I ordered kaya bread (bread with coconut jam; trust me, it tastes better than it sounds).

My plan worked! Due to the novelty, both kids ate their breakfast without any fuss. And because they were focused on eating, I didn’t feel like I had to distract myself by reading a book. I was fully present the whole time. I didn’t even glance at my phone for even one second.

Additionally, because we all finished our breakfast earlier than usual, I chaperoned them to the nearby playground, where they received their requisite 20 minutes of sunshine. I have high hopes that they have made enough melatonin such that they would be knocked out come bedtime later!

I hope I don’t jinx myself by saying this, but I’m going to follow my new plan tomorrow and hope that I emerge from breakfast, not feeling as if cannonballs have been shot through my psyche. Wish me luck!