Counter Productive Motherhood

I love my boys.  I often joke that my entire purpose is to make sure the boys arrive at the age of 18 and post-high school graduate alive.  Of course, we all know it’s a little more complicated than that, but there are definitely days I decide to keep it simple. 

So, why did I go shopping with my eight-year-old, Wyatt, to buy a skateboard? 

Cons:

1.  He’s fearless.  When they boys go snowboarding or sledding, it’s Wyatt who screams, “Whoo HOOOOoooo….,” as he goes flying by.  It’s so funny to watch the 10-year-old, Addison, observe, sigh, & then repeat the same action just because he can’t let Wyatt show him up completely.

2.  We live on a hill.  There’s even a street on this hill that runs in front of our house.  (Imagine that).  Even worse, cars occasionally drive on said street. 

3. He dresses and looks like a skater.  I’m only encouraging him.  It won’t be long before he starts saying, “Dude” and listening to hard rock music. 

I suppose there are also Pros:

1.  He’s fearless.  I’ve watched him repeatedly pull of stunts that I didn’t think possible for a skin and bones little boy.  Maybe, some of this courage can cross over into other areas of his life as he grows and faces challenges.  And I’ve already seen one example of how he encourages those  around him to push themselves a little harder. 

2.  We live on a hill.  I remember being 8.  It’s a God given slide, a playground.  We’re in a neighborhood teeming with a plethora of children that make use of the hill out front and the creek at the bottom.  Thankfully, the streets curvy and crowded and it’s virtually impossible to speed through it. 

3.  He dresses and looks like a skater.  He has always danced to a different drum than the boys around him.  He has long hair and he loves to cook…and play football (especially if tackling’s involved.  I mean, LEGAL, ENCOURAGED hitting?  Awesome!)  It won’t be long before he starts saying, “Dude” and listening to hard rock music.  But we’re kinda West Coast so I think, “Dude” is inevitable.  And then we can chat because I love hard rock music. 

On a mommy note: I did make him buy pads with his own money.  I am shooting for 18 after all.