No work and all play

Do you remember this scene? "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." I've got two little boys here who feel the same way. And, to my knowledge, they have never seen The Shining.

So, then, what causes the love of playing to override the need for hard work? Is it just an innate feeling? Is it learned? Where does it come from? 

Let me be honest... they hate work. Anything that is remotely like work. In fact, it is more like a nails-on-the-chalkboard screeching kind of look we get sometimes when they find out they need to do something other than play. This includes school work, cleaning, grocery shopping (oh, how they hate this one), among a few others.

Now, before you jump down my throat -- yes, they are kids so they will LOVE to play. But, as much as they LOVE to play, they HATE to work. 

Damian - the little smarty - politely told his teacher "no thank you" to the worksheet she handed out to the class. He wanted to play, not work - so why on earth would he accept the worksheet, right? At least he was polite about it. Unfortunately, he was very devastated when he learned he couldn't be rewarded with free play time because he didn't do his work!  

It has almost become a mantra in our house now that "work comes before play." Chores and homework need to be done before they can even look at a toy or consider touching a game. Its been a slow process, but we will get there. Baby steps. 

Here is what I think about so often. These boys are truly awesome (and by now you should agree). They are so smart and witty -- and can build incredible Lego machines quicker than I can scream from stepping on one. Imagine - just for a moment - what can be accomplished by such talent and dedication if the same energy that was applied to playing becomes applied to work? What great things they will do one day! I just know it. 

Buried tunnels

It is nearing the end of the school year. Perhaps that is why the kids are getting a little more rambunctious and the teachers look as though they are ready to take a long hike in the woods and never return. In fact, they look downright exhausted. 

So much so that apparently there was an incident in the classroom with a disruptive student (no -- not mine) and the room turned into a chaotic situation. While discussing this at the dinner table, we heard the story from the mouth of a 4th grader and felt that perhaps we should reach out to the teacher for some clarification. 

See, Tina and I really try to express the importance and power of words. We teach these boys -- all three of them -- just how powerful your words are. We tell them time and time again that you always want to make sure you are speaking the truth and keeping the exaggeration to a minimum. Because, let's face it, it today's world, people are very quick to act upon the things that they hear without doing much investigation. So, the words of an 11-year old could cause quite a bit of hype. 

The night ended and we let everything go until the next day. As I was sitting in the afternoon carline, I was spotted by this teacher. As the kids hopped in my car, the teacher was filling me in about the situation in the classroom -- and about how exhausted she really is. She proceeded to say that, with approximately 20 school days left, she is "finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel."

We continued our conversation for a couple more minutes -- and the boys were surprisingly quiet in the backseat. Then, AJ popped up and said - "Wait a minute! There are tunnels underneath the school? Where do they go?" You could hear the anticipation and thrill between both boys at this point. Instantly, they were planning on checking them out and making a plan. All of this while the teacher and I looked at each other dumbfounded -- what was he talking about!?

Then, he said... "You just said you saw a light at the end of the tunnel you were in... " He looked as confused as we had, but he said this with such confidence. 

We chuckled just enough to not make him feel embarrassed and then taught him what the saying meant. 

Lesson? Words are powerful. The things that you say can hurt someone, can cost someone something valuable, and they can lead children on a scavenger hunt for something that never existed. Watch what you say!

By the way, AJ turns 11 today. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, sweet boy!