This week, I am volunteering at my kids’ Vacation Bible School. I try to do this every year. In years past, I was in charge of ten kids, ages five and six. (HEADACHE!) This year, I’m working the arts and crafts room for the older kids. This means that I see a different group of kids every 20 minutes.
I like volunteering for stuff with my kids. I like for my kids’ friends to know me. I like to see how my kids interact with their peers. I like to be involved.
What I hate about volunteering is the inevitable encounter with “THAT” kid. You know, that annoying kid who either won’t sit still, won’t stop talking, won’t follow instructions or just generally finds the need to be difficult. “THAT” kid drives me insane. I can spot “THAT” kid within seconds. When I do, I roll my eyes (in my mind, of course), take a deep breath and ask myself why I volunteered for this gig in the first place.
Back to this week’s gig — VBS. So, in the crafts room, I see four groups of kids throughout the morning in this order: 5th/6th graders, 3rd graders, 2nd graders, 4th graders. Yesterday in the crafts room, my charge was to help the kids make beaded bracelets (sounds girly. It’s really not, I assure you).
It started out fine. One of the kids in the first group (no, not “THAT” kid, we’ll get to him in a bit) politely asked if he could make his a little longer and wear it as a necklace instead of a bracelet. Sure! Why not? There was enough string. There were enough beads.
In the next group, a sweet, soft-spoken girl asked if she could wear her’s as an anklet. Hmmmm… even better. Good thinking, girl. How fun! So, I fitted some of the kids (mostly girls) for their little beaded anklets. By now, I was becoming impressed with the creativity of some of these kids and how they found other ways to wear their beaded jewels.
It was moving along fine. With each group that came in, I seemed to have new alternatives to offer them. And they happily went about their business, making bracelets, anklets or necklaces.
Then last group came in. My nine-year old came in. ”THAT” kid came in. Yes, that’s right, my kid was “THAT” kid. He was fidgety, hyper, asking questions that were off topic, messing around with his friends and just generally pushing the envelope.
Trying to maintain my composure, I calmly explained to the group how to do the activity. I gave them the three options for what they could do with their craft. All the kids were seemingly content with those options. All but one.
“Mom, can I turn mine into a ninja headband?”
“No, child, you cannot turn your “COURAGE” Bible School bracelet into a ninja headband! How about a necklace. That’s what your brother did.”
“No way! That’s for girls. Ninja headband, please.”
“Nope. Sorry. Give me your wrist.”
That smart little sucker then tried to dupe me.
“Mom, okay, I’ll wear it as a necklace.”
“Yeah right. What do you take me for? You think I don’t know you’re just gonna slip that thing up over your ears to wear it like a ninja headband?”
I then forcefully ever so lovingly grabbed his wrist, tied the knot and snipped the ends.
“There. End of story. It’s a bracelet. Now run along little boy before I yell and embarrass you.”
Now I ask you, is this is the stuff of ninjas?
Was he acting this way because his mom was leading the charge? Perhaps. That’s what the other volunteer moms tried to tell me. But knowing my very sweet, very lovable but very antsy 9-year old, I tend to think not. It’s a good thing he’s a damn nice kid. It’s a good thing I love him so much!
I wonder what today will bring. We’re making tie die shirts. Crap.
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Both of my girls are those kids and no, I don’t take credit for it, since one of my girls was inherited. My oldest is the loud fidgety one and my youngest is the center-of attention know-it-all. I feel your pain, but it’s amazing how others see our kids.
It’s amazing how much more sensitive we are when it comes to our own kids!
I “coached” my son’s “soccer” (yes–it is in quotes for a reason…) team when he was four. He could not have been MORE obnoxious to me. There were days when he made it impossible for me to take charge of the rest of the team. N-E-V-E-R again! I totally feel your pain–and I think that those who are telling you that he is only “THAT” kid for you are right. No one can believe that my sweet boy (sorry–I just threw up a little) would ever behave that way! I can’t wait to hear about the tie dye…
Ha ha, it’s crazy what our kids do to us. Tie die went okay. It wasn’t the traditional tie die. They use sharpie markers to make deigns out of dots, then they put drops of rubbing alcohol on it. It has a similar effect as tie die.
That said, he started making his in the design of a knife. I reminded him that we are at VBS and make him turn it into a cross. Then when I told another dad about it, he said I’m stifling his creativity.
Bahahahahahaha! This would SO happen to me–you can’t win!
That’s what motherhood is all about — being constantly defeated!
I know EXACTLY how you feel. My oldest was THAT kid. LOL Thankfully he has made it to 18.
I also volunteered for VBS this year. I had 10 4 and 5 year old. Heaven help me. This time it wasn’t MY kid that was THAT kid but he certainly did remind me of him. LOL I think it helped me deal with him. He ended up hugging me one day and telling me that I was his favorite teacher ever. SNIFF!!
Don’t you feel bad when you are so annoyed with one of the kids and they go and do something like hug you? THat has happened to me. Makes me feel like a mean person for being so annoyed. Go you for continuing to volunteer even though your son is 18 and, I’m assuming, well past the days of VBS!
Well, I have 5 kids and 3 were going to VBS this year.
My youngest is 5.
Well, I think since I had dealt with my oldest I knew how to reach THAT kid better than most people. LOL
You seem like a pro!
LOL!! I don’t know about THAT… I sure don’t feel like one!
Ha ha… We are our own worst critics, aren’t we?
VERY true!! LOL
I think every mother… every good mother anyways… thinks their kids are worse than everyone else does. I went wedding dress shopping with my best friend a while ago, since we were 3 hours away from home I had to drag my babes. My daughter was little so she was just cute and everyone passed her around. My son, who was almost 3 at the time, in hindsight did a good job, but while we were in the store, I was mortified. As she was buying her dress, the kids and I went to the van, and I was scolding him for acting so badly, while inside, the clerk was telling her that he was one of the best behaved kids she’d ever had in the store!!! Stopped by from the Blog Hop and now I’m following you on Facebook! I would love it if you stopped over at Figuring it Out as we Grow and followed me back : )
I think we definitely think worse of our own kids. We want to be the one who has the awesomely well behaved kids. So, when they don’t meet our expectations, we are hard on them. I know I am!
Thanks for stopping by. Heading over to your blog now!
I just found your blog on the blog hop…..My daughter was/is that kid too..I used to be a Leader at Girl Guides – and she was constantly THAT kid……
I am starting to feel better now. I guess it happens to all of us! Thanks for stopping by!
I raised a “THAT kid” too – he was a corker. The Navy keeps him in line now.
Visited you on the blog hop. Give me a visit some time ~
thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com
I guess “THAT” kid is everywhere, especially under our own roofs!
I spend a part of my VBS time praying that I act the good Christian when “THAT” kid walks in. Of course it’s usually my own kid, like yours, and I change my prayer to “Lord, let me not attract the anger of Child Protective Services.”
Yes, exactly!
Oh my gosh, for about the first half, I was sort of sad wondering if my kid could be “THAT” kid (he’s on the autism spectrum but is only three so I have high hopes he will be socially polite by VBS time) and then when I read that it was YOUR kid, I laughed out loud! Awesomely written!
Thanks, Kristi. It’s ALWAYS my kid who’s THAT kid. Nobody warned me about that before I became a parent.