It's only our second time this year. So the kids were happy to go - but not really excited.
It's a lot of work to pack to go skiing. It's even more work to go with 2 kids. About 4x more work.
By the time we got to the hill we were all a little cranky and tired.
I realized that one of the ways I serve them is by being enthusiastic.
If you know me, you know I'm a pretty steady person. Rarely really "high", and rarely "low." One person called me the most calm person he ever met. (I'm not sure if I take that as a compliment.)
Sometimes people need a cheerleader. Someone who is excited, and they get excited because someone else is excited. A spark to get the fire going.
Sometimes that has to be me.
Except I'm not, naturally.
Except sometimes I need to be.
So I serve my kids by being enthusiastic. The cheerleader. "Carry your own boots" and "we haven't started yet, quit complaining" don't exactly get them hyped about skiing. On the way up the lift the first time one of them said they wished they didn't come skiing. It was hard for me not to reprimand them for their downer attitude (I didn't). But it would have helped if I provided an energy for them to feed off.
It's not my personality. But sometimes it helps them. So that should be enough reason.
By the end of the day we had a great time. We were tired, sunburned, and full of skiing (snowboarding). It was a wonderful day together, they way I thought it would end.
And if I was more thoughtful, they way I could have made it start.
