Once past that little hurdle, I have to finish this semester, take three classes in the summer, pray (seriously) that I passed said CRC, then I graduate on August 4th. Hooray! The interesting thing here is that my son will then start kindergarten on August 6th. We will have exactly one day together that neither of us is in school. I'm having more trouble adjusting to his starting school than I thought I would. My protective (overly?) mommy instincts are coming out to play.
My son started Taekwondo lessons last Wednesday. We met with the instructor to see about him becoming a Lil' Dragon.
See, he has homework to do for next Wednesday. Actually, he has a lot of homework. This is new to him because he only spent about a year and a bit in nursery school and has been with his two grandmothers for the last year plus. They work with him on learning things, but no homework and LOTS of praise and rewards. LOL - this class is going to introduce him to the real world.
So, what homework would a 4-year old have for a martial arts class? He has to memorize the first (short) verse of their pledge, practice several blocks and kicks, and work on a whole chart full of things to show he is working to better himself. LOL, poor little guy looked and looks shell shocked. The chart is long and full of fun things like: brush your teeth, put the toothbrush and toothpaste up, dry the sink (rofl), pick up his room at night, put away his clean clothes, help clear the dinner table (uh-oh, mom's gotta start cooking), be respectful to all grown ups, etc... He is great and does a lot of the things already, but when you put it on a chart and tell him he has to earn stars and bring it back to the instructor in a week... he's a bit overwhelmed. The thing is that he has to do these things then recited the verse, demonstrate his blocks and kicks, and present his chart in order to EARN his white (first) belt next Wednesday. I LOVE IT! If all goes well, he starts the Lil' Dragons' class on Friday. (I'll be high tailing it back from Knoxville to take him to that... can't let dad be there alone for his first belt and first class!)
Let's just say that my son and I have had many talks about these first assignments being to earn his belt and the class will be different. His favorite line is that Taekwondo (yes, he can say it) isn't what he thought it would be. I tell him that the class will be but these first sessions are important. He said that it might be too much for him. Mean mommy said that he could now quit if he wanted to be a quitter. He did not like that idea at all. My deal was that he try it for a month. If he did not like it (he'll love it - you kidding, MY drama king?), he could then decide that it was not for him and stop the lessons. It took much contemplation and soul searching for him to agree to this. (Did I mention that he wanted them to have snacks each week as part of the deal, so I agreed to provide appropriate treats after the lessons? Hard negotiator my son.)
Even though we've had these disscussions, he still shows signs of being annoyed with me for getting him into this. Mind you the boy has been practicing fake karate moves forever and was very excited about this before the first meeting. LOL, still he has twice (once mildly and once with great heat and gusto) said that he would NOT have started this if it was not for ME suggesting it. He actually pretty much used those exact words. (We're in soooo much trouble later. He's way too smart for us.) The bottom line is that he won't let me discuss, practice, or correct him in anyway connected to Taekwando. (For example, he has to say, "Yes, sir" "No, sir" "Yes, ma'am" "No, ma'am" to adults all the time for instance. He's pretty good about it, but that's not good enough for this class - his grandmothers are loving it. He won't have me reminding him without expressing frustration.) That would be fine except I was the only one with him when he learned his blocks and kicks.
My first sign that I was now the bad guy for the first time with him came immediately after we got home after that first class. We were outside watining on his daddy to get home from work, so we could go to the carnival. I started going through his blocks. He put his hands over his ears, said for me not to do that, and someone might not like seeing me do that. He informed this shocked Mama that his DADDY would practice with him. Hmmm, okay, good for the father-son relationship, but what the....? This progressed to him covering his ears and saying stop saying that any time that I mentioned class-related items.
Well, I got the picture - especially after the two separate times he basically told me this was all my fault, but he didn't want to be a quitter. Fortunately, I have troops to call in for help. His granny is terrific at getting him to think things are his idea. They have worked on Bible memory versus together, so she was the natural to elicit help in getting him to learn his verse for next week. He also stays with her most of the week, so she's going to help with his behavior chart. His daddy is happy to help him practice his moves. My mama can back up all of this. My son seems perfectly willing to work with each of them as long as it does not involve demonstrating to me what he has been doing. It is a very good thing that his daddy is taking him next Wednesday!
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