Oy Vey!

Two weeks into the school year and I'm already getting phone calls from the teacher . . . that would be Eric's teacher. It seems Eric has a problem with his listening skills and with following directions. He's managed to get all the way to a RED light on more than one occasion due to his behavior. Hmmmm, did I mention I was too old for this? On one hand, you could come to the conclusion that Eric is just a spoiled rotten kid who has been running the show the last five years and he just needs to learn how to behave in a structured environment. On the other hand, you could come to the conclusion my friend Peggy has, and that is that Eric is not being challenged enough, he is bored and he doesn't listen because he is thinking on an entirely different plane than what is being taught. Peggy warned me months ago that Eric would be seen as a problem child because of his intelligence. So, what to do? My first response was to threaten the kid with his life if he doesn't change his behavior and start doing what he is supposed to. However, after a long conversation with Peg, I think we make him aware of what behavior is acceptable in his current setting (with consequences for unacceptable behavior) and we get him involved in other activities to allow him to utilize all the information and ideas in his head, plus burn off some energy. Believe it or not, the kid already knows how to play chess! I'm thinking of adding soccer, piano and maybe Karate to his schedule. If things don't get better in the near future, I guess we revisit the gifted program. By the way, did I tell you I'm too old for this?

This morning, as Eric was (again) yelling at me on the way to school and then proceeded to make an about face and head back to our house because he hates school, I asked myself, why couldn't I have gotten a sweet, gentle little boy instead of an intense, high-strung monster (albeit a lovable monster). Then I realized that I did get my sweet, gentle little boy --- Jack. I imagine that if he could, Jack would be my teddy bear, my kid who would give countless hugs and shower me with "I love yous". He would be a "momma's boy". While Jack can't reach out and give me a big hug or say the words "I love you mom", I can still feel the hugs and hear the words through his eyes and his smile. I'll take it. I'll take that monster kid too - he does keep us laughing.

I took Eric to get new shoes tonight because one of his issues is that he plays with his shoelaces and eventually takes his shoes off during class and then he can't get them back on. His teacher asked if we could get him shoes with velcro straps so he wouldn't have the shoelaces to play with and it would be easier to get the shoes back on. Fifty dollars later, the kid has a pair of velcro strap shoes that light up. I just realized that he will now probably take his shoes off and proceed to smack the floor with them so he can see the lights. What was I thinking?

I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.