I am a very patient man. Always have been. That is, until Sam became a toddler. The biggest surprise I have experienced as a father is how quickly my patience has dwindled. I'm sure that part of this is that until I had children, nothing posed the challenge to my patience that a toddler poses. It is amazing how long a small being can take to do the most simple tasks. Wash hands. Take off clothes. Get a sip of water. Pee. Of course, I would like to think that by now, with Sam being 3, I have regained some of my patience--and, most of the time, this is true.

But there continue to be maddening times when I find my patience is thinner than I would like. I have adjusted to "toddler time", but not as much as I would like. Now, with Noah quickly on his way to toddlerdom, I have to make a more significant adjustment. I am not sure where this all comes from -- why the sudden lack or loss of patience? - but I don't like the way it feels. It is misaligned with who I strive to be as a parent and as a person, and correcting this misalignment is certainly one of my main goals for the year 2011.