"Funny" G story:

We luckboxed and picked a neighborhood where there are a lot of other 3rd graders.  So G has a bunch of friends within a few houses away.  It's very nice to have a lot of friends that close.  We have a small shed/barn in the back yard, so the boys like to use the upstairs as a clubhouse.  Our house is also centrally located, so oftentimes they will come over here to play.  The other parents like us and seem to think that G is an awesome, super-polite and super-socially mature kid.  Because he is - most of the time.

My next door neighbor has a 5th grader who none of the other 3rd graders seem to like (and vice versa).  So when they see each other, they exchange the typical verbal pleasantries that you would expect - "Baby", "Stupid" etc.  LOL upper middle class suburbs.  Growing up in NYC, you're used to hearing more stuff like "mother f*cker", "cock s*cker" etc.  Ahhh memories.

Anyway, the other day G is playing outside with his buddies.  I get a ring at the doorbell so I go answer.  It's the 5th grader and his friend.  I'll call the neighbor's kid "EH" because he has a bit of Eddie Haskell in him (for those of you too young to remember, EH was a character on Leave It to Beaver who acted super polite in front of adults but was pretty mischievous).  Apparently, in the midst of their lover's quarrel, EH claimed that G called EH and his friend "shits" (denied), "stupid" (confirmed) and PEED ON THEIR LAWN (CONFIRMED!!!).

Of course I had to put on my best poker face and act all enraged - I called over G and told him to get in the house...  told him why that was bad and disrespectful, and at the same time, made it a point to tell EH he's older and shouldn't be "instigating" fights by name calling towards the 3rd graders.  And Mrs. Fly took G over to the neighbor's house later so that G could apologize.  G is grounded indefinitely (I'm guessing a "few" weeks - the Mrs. and I haven't talked about it).  Yada yada yada.

But c'mon!  A "small" part of me wanted to give him a high five.  Because a lot of kids when confronted by an bigger and older kid would shirk away.  Gotta love that tenacious, go f*ck yourself spirit.  I wonder where he gets it from?  I like my kids to have a little fight in them...  you don't get to the top of anything by being a mousy little follower.

Of course, a lot of people in prison are probably saying the same thing, so in case my parental talks with G are ineffective, I have to grind hard to get that bail money ready.

[sigh.  My posts are going to suck once G figures out I'm blogging and I know he's subscribing to it.  But don't worry - I think that's still a few years away.]