So FavoriteSon was invited to go to the beach with a bunch of friends. This is a big deal. Going to the beach without us. Not even with an organized, supervised school or church group, but rather two vehicles full of kids and two parents/drivers.
That would be some new freedom. His dad was fine with it. I wasn’t sure. Here’s the way the conversation went:
Me: “FavoriteSon, if you want more freedom and privileges, you need to demonstrate some personal responsibility, like for your own self-care. For instance, what is one of the most important things you would need to do if you spent the day at the beach without me or your dad?”
FavoriteSon: “uhhhmmmm. Not do anything that would be displeasing to God?”
PinkGirl: “I know! I know! Wear sunscreen?”
Me, to FavoriteSon: “Your sister can go.”
Now, don’t get me wrong, I like his answer too, but seriously – what a suck up. Eight years of Christian school can sure bring out the Eddie Haskell in a kid. I would LOVE it if he spent his day at the beach thinking about how he could please God, but he would still come home crispy. I continue the questioning:
Me: “What would you look for to find out if there’s a rip tide?”
FavoriteSon:“. . . waves?”
Me: “At the lifeguard chair . . . ”
FavoriteSon: “a . . . sign?”
Me: “A red flag.”
Me: “What do you do if you’re caught in a rip tide?”
FavoriteSon: ” . . . relax?”
Me: “well, okay. Then what?”
FavoriteSon: “uhhhh”
Me: “Swim parallel to shore till you get out of it.”
FavoriteSon: “I KNEW THAT!”
Me: “umm hmm”
FavoriteSon: “REALLY! I KNEW THAT!”
Me: “You are so going to drown.”
Thankfully, the plans changed and they went to Wet-N-Wild instead. Lots of lifeguards, no rip tides. Just free water wedgies. We had to shell out $45 for a ticket, but it gets him in free for the rest of the year. I have a feeling PinkGirl and I will be buying the same ticket this summer.
Anyone want to hang out at Wet-N-Wild? I like me a l a z y river. Float. Walk backwards for exercise between lifeguards. Rinse, repeat.
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This was dual posted at Pragmatic Commotion, my “family” blog.