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You are here: Home / Archives for parenting

Some adults could learn humility, grace and dignity from my 10 year old. #milestones #parenting

January 6, 2015 by Wendy S

My 10-year-old gives me hope. She shows more humility, grace and dignity than some adults I know. 

On Sunday, Rachel started Volleyball training with VolleyGirls, they junior group of Halton Volleyball Club who’s team is the Hurricanes.  She has shown an interest in volleyball so we have tried to nurture it.

Volley Girls @ mapsgirl.ca

She did a small volleyball session with the Oakville Parks and Rec and she really enjoyed it.  When our babysitter recommended VolleyGirls, we looked into it. The sessions fit into our already busy schedule.

On Sunday, I had asked about volleyball at school and she said that the tryouts had already happened. Rachel said that she didn’t think that she could play because she had already committed  to being a lunch monitor.  (Rachel volunteers in the JK/SK classroom at lunch to help the younger kids with opening containers and stuff like that.)

I really couldn’t fault her for being true to her commitments. But I tried to explain that there might be a way for her to work around it and make both work. So I emailed the teacher who coaches the grade 5-6 volleyball team and explained the situation. The teacher replied and said that most of the JK/SK teachers are willing to make extracurricular commitments work and rearrange schedules.

Armed with this knowledge, Rachel went to school yesterday with gym clothes and the plan to talk to the JK/SK teacher. 

Since Craig and I were at the Bronze Medal Junior World Hockey game (Go Slovakia!), I didn’t get to find out how practice was until we got home.

Rachel, with sadness, said, “Mrs. Teacher thought your were the other Rachel’s mom. There isn’t any space on the team for me.”

My heart broke.

Seriously?!?

She had a bit of a quiver in her voice. She was disappointed but for the most part she seemed okay with it.  I had to walk away.

I emailed the teacher back and said that I was sorry for the confusion and that Rachel was looking forward to next year. The teacher came back with some blah-blah about commitment and if Rachel had talked to her mumbo-jumbo.  

Exactly. Honouring commitments is exactly what my kid was doing. Rachel didn’t realise that she could have made arrangements to cover her initial commitments so that doing both was a possibility; we had to explain this to her.  Too late though.

Rachel didn’t cry. She didn’t get angry. She didn’t rant and rave.  She sucked it up and said “It’s ok, Mom.”

Again I walked away. I needed wine.

I gave Rachel the biggest hug imaginable and said that I was proud of how she reacted and that I know a lot of adults who could learn from her.  I said to her that she’s not always going to get the answer she wants. “But you tell me ‘No’ all the time, Mom.”  I continued to explain that many people in her life will tell her no.  Many people won’t give her what she wants and if she’s able to learn from it and move on, that she’s going to be one amazing adult.

The child in me wants to email the teacher back in ALL CAPS and give her a piece of my mind. 

Rachel has taught me otherwise.

Humility Grace Dignity @ mapsgirl.ca

Win with humility, lose with grace, and do both with dignity!

Filed Under: Life, parenting Tagged With: dignity, disappointment, grace, humility, parenting, volleyball

Must be doing something right

December 21, 2010 by Wendy S

Munchkin has lost her first tooth!! 

Photobucket

At the end of October, we had a late Thanksgiving dinner with my brother, sister-in-law (SIL) and niece.  After dinner, Munchkin was complaining about something stuck in her tooth. My SIL is a dental hygienist so took her up stairs to floss it. Munchkin came bouncing back downstairs because it was discovered that her two bottom teeth are loose.  One a bit more than the other.

We were a bit nervous because the next Friday was picture day at school and we wanted her to keep it in for just a bit longer.  She was asked not to wiggle it until then.  But really, she’s 5 and it’s exciting to have a loose tooth so I’m sure there was still some wiggling going on.

—

A few Saturdays ago, we picked up the girls from their Grandparent’s house after their sleepover. BigDaddy and I had gone out for a Christmas party the night before.  Munchkin complained that her loose tooth had been bleeding.  BigDaddy commented that it was starting to look strange in colour.

I was concerned that something was wrong. It has been a while since I lost a tooth and had no idea what was going on.  We trekked off to the dentist to find out that nothing was wrong.  The tooth was so ready to come out that the discolouration was just from dried blood inside the tooth. Munchkin had been pretty good but started to look nervous when the dentist talked about taking it out.  Seeing the worry on her face, the dentist suggested using a topical jelly to freeze the area a bit before taking it out.

We left the dentist office with some gauze in case it bled some more, a princess crown, and a tiny little tooth in  a molar-shaped plastic container on a string.  She was so proud; running to show Daddy when we got home and showing all her friends at the Christmas party attended that evening.

She put it under her pillow that night.

What did the tooth fairy leave?

Sunday morning, she comes in our room. Pauses.

“Oh, I have to see if the tooth fairy came” and runs back to her room.

“Look!! I got a toonie!!”  (for my American friends, that is a $2 coin)

We played along with her excitement, as every parent should. “What are you going to do with with it?” we asked.

She hummed and ha’d but in the end said “I dunno.”

We all got up and started getting ready for Church.  After helping the girls get dressed, I was in my room getting ready when Munchkin walked in, holding the coin up, tightly pinched between her finger and thumb.

Must be doing something right“I want to put this in the offering at church”

I paused. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I confirmed that this is what she wanted to do. I said, let’s go talk to Daddy.
She repeated her request to him. Now there are two parents in shock.

Without skipping a beat, she then says that she needs an envelope to put it in. I got the box of envelopes out with the intention to use one from a week when we didn’t go to church.  But there in the box, were 2 envelopes dated for December 5th — one for the regular giving and one labeled “White Gift“.  That one had to be hers.

I let her fill it out with the amount and her name. But she also wrote… “My tooth fairy money” Too funny.

During the service she couldn’t wait to put it in the collection plate and when the time came she smiled with pride.

I cried.

Not even 6 years old and the only money that she has ever been given where she can do what ever she wants with it and she gives it away.


Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.
– 1 Chronicles 29:9 –


Filed Under: faith hope love, family, Life Tagged With: church, giving, love, parenting

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mapsgirl@gmail.com

Why “mapsgirl” ?

Wendy is a cartographer! She draws maps!

When not mapping, Wendy is also a mom to two daughters. They are the inspiration of this blog. Passionate about child passenger safety, Wendy was a certified Car Seat Technician in Ontario, Canada from 2008 to 2020. [Read More …]

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