Ok, so I years ago when my mother stood over me yelling at me about my homework I vowed that I would NEVER yell at my kids when they did theirs......I was wrong. I vowed years ago to so many things that I would never do when I was a mom. I wasn't seeing the big picture then. I don't even think I saw the big picture when I had Brenden. He was simple. He was very independent. Hardly needed help and pretty much did his homework without me around. So not the case these days. And while we are on the subject of homework.....who is the freakin' rocket scientist who invented "new math"? Some one find this idiot for me and let me introduce him to my fist square between his eyes!
New math.....new math takes so much longer, is definitely not condusive to a busy family's schedule and why the hell do we need it? The answer still comes out the same....2+2 will alwasy be 4 no matter how you got there. Why do you have to write out a multiplication problem so that it takes 3 sheets of paper when I can do it and use one little square? What the hell is that????? If you ask me they just complicated the entire thing. Like math wasn't confusing enough to start with. Then they go and mix the freakin' alphabet in with the numbers and really started messing with our heads. No I am NOT smarter than a FIFTH freakin' grader and I am NOT ashamed to admit it.!!
If you have not figured it out by now homework is hard. We are struggling over here with it right now and there are just not enough mommy's in this house to suit everyones needs. I am spending endless hours on homework and while we are doing it I have to really sit back and wonder what the hell my kids are learning all day at school!!! Seriously! We are on homework overload. We have NO FREE TIME anymore.
Trevor has a project due. A HUGE project. He has to write a report on the Mid-West United States. He has to choose 4 states and write a FIVE DAY DETAILED ITINERARY! Yes, 5 days. It has to have hotels, retaurants, detailed descriptions of where he is going, what he is eating, he has to have 3 recipes native to his statesand a prepared dish to share with the class, maps, pictures and a project to display this itinerary and he has to know all this information to give an oral presentation. Oh and his display piece is 2 different types of scrapbooks that he wants to make.....each somewhat complicated and very time consuming. Plus he has all his regular homework on top of each....5 pages of math per week, 14 spelling words...think of words like boisterous for a child with a speech delay...and he has to write a paper this week that compares 2 books he has read recently. He needs to tell how they are similar, how they are different, he has to use proper punctuation, capitals, sentence structure, neatness and something else I can't remember. Did I mention he's in third {freakin'} grade???? He can't do all this by himself so I sit here night after night reading about states I could give a rats ass about.... I already did 3rd grade. It wasn't pleasant. I don't want to do it again!!!!! But I love him and I do it.
Tonight, oh tonight was a beauty. Brycen has to write about the Primary Vote in New Hampshire. He doesn't even know what a Democrat is ....nor a republican (that's for you dad;) ). He doesn't understand "independent's". Let alone trying to describe the issues to him. He cried, I got frustrated. I tried to explain politics to him.....it's so hard. He doesn't get it....nor, do I think he should. He's 11. At least if they are going to make him write a paper about this shit , in my opinion, they should educate him some on it. We were all over the place tonight war, healthcare, economy. He doesn't understand and I am afraid that Brenden and I just confused him more. So needless to say, we have 1/2 a paper written. We will miss basketball tomorrow night and trudge on. I don't remember school being this complicated when I was there. Was it? Did I really just fly right through it? Pretend I knew what I was doing or did I really get it then? Is it harder because of his learning disabilities? Is he playing me? So many questions tonight. And honestly, I don't want to answer another question for about 3 days!
And then their is Faith....she breezes through her homework. I sit with her just to make her feel good. She doesn't need me there. I love to watch her work. She's like Brenden, independent, doesn't want help. Needs to figure it all out on her own. A breath of fresh air for this weary mom. She finished in a short time tonight. She asked me to do math facts with her around 7:30....I told her 30 minutes. She cried. She went to my bed and waited. Brycen and I finished writing at 8:55 and we still had 30 minutes of mandatory reading to do (my favorite part...really...I look so forward to this part every day!!!!). I forgot about her :( She fell asleep in my bed.
I was sad and with a heavy heart sat down to unwind and read some Harry Potter with the boys. The phone rang. OH....MY....GOD!!! I forgot RAY at work! lol I felt so bad. I dashed out the door to get him. We only read a little. I was so bummed. We are reading the Goblet of fire and it's soooo good. but Ray was at work with all the doors locked, standing outside waiting for me. I failed the wife/mom thing bad today.
I have discovered that the working mom thing is hard. That I am not perfect. That homework sucks (shhhh....don't let my kids know I saidy this....this is my private vent), that life will throw me some curves, that eek....I may do things I said I would never do but I can look back through the generations and laugh because I know I am not the first mom to realize any of this and I certainly won't be the last. Motherhood is hard....but I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Tomorrow we get to see their school portfolios. I get to see what all our frustrations and tears have earned them to this point. They will show me all theirs stories, all thier math anything and everything they have done at school up to this point and I will know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this frustration, exhaustion and long nights of homework are worth it all. Tomorrow I will see the other part of my children that they keep for the 7 hours they are at school each day. I will get a glimpse into what makes them tick and I will Thank GOD that they are MINE!
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