Mom Is Teaching

Ok, so let’s talk about a few other manners.  Here’s another one that I have no problem with one child but the other is a major pain in the arse.  My oldest loves to talk.  He didn’t get his momma’s genes for no reason.  He has a seat at the back of the room, facing the wall because he simply can’t seem to keep that little rattle trap closed.

So, for Walker, he looks for reasons to talk.  Saying, “I’m sorry” or “excuse me” are good reasons to talk and he takes full advantage of any and all occasions.  He even likes it so much, that when he meets someone new, he quickly greets the stranger with a hello and if it is someone I’ve introduced him to, he knows to call them by the name I use when I introduce him. 

For instance, I call his teacher Tiffany, because that’s who I know, is Tiffany.  But, when I introduced him to her, I introduced him to Mrs. X.   Our main concern with him is that he will talk to anyone.  And, my fear is, that with a little prodding, he would go with a stranger if he was convinced it was ok.  That is scary and our last trip to the beach proved that and we had to have a talk with him about talking to strangers. 

Now, my second born, he is not speaking to anyone.  He doesn’t say hello to strangers or even family if he doesn’t want to.  (See yesterday’s post where he will do without food and drink if it means he has to say excuse me when he burps).  But, we are working on it.  He is simply not the social one like his brother and it is a bit more difficult.

And, finally, this last one hasn’t been too difficult for us just yet either but I suspect it is a matter of what they hear at home.  Remember your mom telling you, ‘If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”?  Well, since Wayne and I aren’t particularly rude to one another nor are the majority of the people my children are around on a regular basis, they simple follow this rule without thinking about it.  However, I am sure that the longer we are in public school, the more we will hear and this may become an issue then.

I do know that one of the kids in Walker’s class has two older brothers who walk around picking on one another all the time.  Their mother says they get out of bed and the first thing they say to each other is rude and obnoxious.  I would some examples but really, they are rude and obnoxious. 

Ok, I thought of one, something like “you’re an idiot” and the other says, “so your clothes don’t match so you’re gay”.  And, it goes on from there.  I know that the more Walker hears this stuff the harder it will be to help him understand that it is uncalled for.  But for now, when we get out of bed in the morning, we say “good morning” with an occasional laugh and a “hey, you have bedhead bad”.  That one is usually aimed at me because all these men in my house have buzz cuts.  But, it is done with a joke, not like the boys I mentioned above.

I will say that the advice in Parenting Magazine goes something like this, “avoid watching shows - or, at the very least, discuss the problem behavior with your child.  The example they use is this “Do you think that was mean of Simon to talk to the singer like that?”  I’m sure we all know the reference there but it makes so much sense.  If they hear it from friends or TV and it gets a laugh, they are more likely to do it themselves. 

Ok, closing my mouth on the manners issue for a little while.  I really do think my kids do well as far as I can tell.  And, as for my talking son, his teacher gives him props in every area, she says he is smart, he is nice to the other kids, he is respectful to her but he talks all the doggone time.  So, we shall see how that plays out in his future.

Discuss.