Flashback to the summer…a group selfie in Daddy’s “old car” after going to a car show!
Wordless Wednesday: Group Selfie
November 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The Bus Incident
April 27, 2012 by Leave a Comment
It’s never good to start your morning with a phone call from your oldest daughter who is hysterical. When I finally got it out of her, I was less than pleased to put it politely.
Apparently, her younger brother (11) had been pestering her on the bus that morning. You know how younger brothers are. They are annoying but we still love them. They are required to share a seat with our youngest daughter (5). There were a few words exchanged, some sibling pushing, and then the final knock out punch.
She was seconds from getting off the bus as the bus had pulled into her middle school. I’m sure the anger and annoyance with her younger brother had been building since way before they were assigned the same seat on the bus.
Let’s just show you the damage.
Not only did we have to make a trip to the emergency room to make sure he didn’t need a stitch (he didn’t) it also cost her 5 days out of school suspension. Yes, the handbook still applies even if it is more of a domestic issue.
Five day suspension equaled a five day vacation. Yeah, I did make her do some filing at my office, laundry at home, and work on her schoolwork during this time. However, it is still not the same as having to be in school. Didn’t seem like a punishment at all. Plus, common sense have you thinking this situation could have been punished differently.
This is mainly a Public Service Announcement to all brothers and sisters out there. Do not fight with your sibling on school property as you could get punished per the no-tolerance policy at your school. Even threatening to punch them later at home could land in you in suspension land!
By the way, now in Indiana punishment and education have to be separate. When I was a kid back in the day, if you were suspended you did not get to make up your work. Now you are a allowed to make it up. This is good and bad. As many of the kids now have to spend the time while on suspension on their school work but it also leaves me the question – WHAT IS THE PUNISHMENT?
I’m glad to know that my oldest daughter can handle herself should the situation arise, next time let’s use our words.
And I Only Need a Brain.
April 15, 2011 by Leave a Comment
(This post was written in early 2010, I just found it in my drafts to be posted!)
It is taking everything I can NOT to go completely ballistic about something that happened at my daughter’s school.
Conversation:
H: What do we need for class?
Teacher: Your Brain.
H: Okay, I’ve got that.
Apparently this is a normal question she asks the class. Okay, fine, I mean a brain is important to “bring” with you.
Teacher: Apparently, you left it at home yesterday.
H: What?
At this point she was probably bawling.
At this point of the story, I was raving mad. Hannah tells me, “It gets worse mom.”
So I listen as I was cursing inside. Even now as I’m writing this my face is hot and I’m angry.
Here’s what happened.
The previous day, the class was in the computer lab working on their poems. The teacher didn’t have time to get around and check everyone’s before printing so she told the kids who hadn’t printed their poems out to leave their station open and she would get it after class.
Hannah leaves computer lab and goes on to the next class. Thinking nothing of it. The teacher told them to leave it logged in.
Next day, the teacher confronts Hannah after giving her the “brain” one liner. Says she wrote all this nasty stuff on her own paper?
HUH?
Yeah, you would have had to leave your brain at home to write nasty stuff about your fat butt and ewwwyyyy on YOUR.OWN.PAPER.
Come’on, it doesn’t take a brain to figure she didn’t do it. Luckily, the principal agreed with me and the person who was really responsible was punished.
Moral of the Story:
NEVER leave your computer station open at school even when the teacher tells you to.
The State of Youth Sports
September 29, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Times have changed in some ways since I’ve played Youth Sports and some things have stayed the same.
Parents still think their child is the best player ever and think they should be the team superstar. The coaches kid gets tons of playing time whether it is deserving or not.
A disturbing trend I’ve noticed recently is the lack of interest from the kids playing. Apathetic.
Void of feeling; not susceptible of deep emotion; passionless; indifferent.
Some just don’t seem to want to even be there. Better yet, they say they hate the sport they are playing. They don’t want to even try. Yeah, I remember practices being boring when I was growing up too but aren’t the games at least suppose to be fun?
So what is their motivation for playing? Are they doing it just to have an activity, peer pressure, parental pressure, or some unknown force? Maybe they just haven’t found their thing yet or are afraid to admit what activity they really want to do.
If they are playing because their parents are forcing them to, I wish the parents would consider the teammates and coaches when they do this. Teammates get frustrated with an apathetic attitude and coaches don’t know how to handle kids who don’t care.
Then you have the segment of coaches that want to win at any cost. Isn’t the goal at a young age to develop your players and teach fundamental skills so they can succeed later. Right now they are young but eventually they will be in middle school and high school together playing on the same team, fighting for the same cause.
It seems the kids are beating down the kids on opposing teams. Trashing talking them because of being on opposite teams. When in reality, they are going to be teammates with each other in just a short few years.
From my years growing up, the common denominator with successful teams is a TEAM attitude. No, you don’t have to like everyone on your team but you need to respect your teammates and get along for the common good.
The win at any cost attitude really irks me. Of course, I want to win. Do I want to win at the expense of the children on the other team who are part of my community? I want to win because we are that good and the opposition is that good. I don’t want to win because of the mistakes another team makes.
I want to win playing our best, playing the best.
You said What?