Saturdays are for sleeping in and feeling lazy. That’s how I feel any way. I need it after a long week at work. My girlfriend is not on side. She thinks Saturdays are for getting up early, running errands, cleaning the house, grocery shopping and basically running around non-stop. I’m exhausted before we even go to bed Friday night when she’s reading me the list of all the things she wants to get done!
I can’t sustain this and we fight every weekend about the same thing. I need to rest and recharge. She needs to catch up. How can I get her to slow right down?
Weekend Warrior
You can’t and you shouldn’t. The same way you don’t want her to speed you up, you shouldn’t expect her to slow down. Try a few different scenarios:
You each do your own thing on Saturdays and meet at the end of the day, for a night out, or in, or whatever the weekend calls for. She’ll feel accomplished and you’ll feel rested.
If that doesn’t work, let her get up early and run her own errands, or grocery shop (whichever she prefers to do alone), while you lie in and get some much-needed rest. Meet for lunch, and then together clean the house.
There are a multitude of ways to compromise but just work it out together so you are both doing what you want, getting what you need and NOT resenting the other in the process.
My daughter has a teacher that I find strange and I just can’t put my finger on why. I’ve asked other parents about this man, and several feel as I do. We’re new to the school, so I started asking parents with older children. None of the parents I asked really knew this teacher or had an opinion of him. But then I asked a woman who has a daughter in her last year at the school and she couldn’t contain herself.
She told me that she complained about this teacher to the school several times because he was messaging with his students outside of class time, outside of school hours, and NOT about school-related information. Her daughter showed her a message that he sent to her, which in and of itself was innocuous, but the girl knew enough to know it was inappropriate to be sent in the first place.
I’m thinking of placing a complaint with the school but I’m not sure I have any facts. What should I do?
Gut Feeling
Go with your gut because it is ALWAYS better to be safe than the alternative. I suggest speaking to the principal at your daughter’s school. If they don’t know about the messaging, they should. It’s not your story to tell, but this is not OK.
Children should feel safe going to school, and in the presence of their teachers. NOBODY should take advantage of children, but it’s even more heinous when it’s a trusted teacher. At the very least, you should request that your daughter be switched out of this man’s classroom.
If nothing is done and you still feel unsafe sending your daughter to school, you should speak to the school board, your local trustee, head of school or superintendent.
Don’t second guess your instincts. You’re a mom and you have a child to protect.
FEEDBACK Regarding strangers:
Reader – “In your response to keeping children safe, you mention telling them not to get into a stranger’s car. This is problematic because children don’t understand the concept of ‘stranger.’
“While teaching a class of seven-year-olds about not going with strangers, I arranged for a friend, who the children didn’t know, to knock and ask for help moving heavy boxes. All but one child raised their hand to be chosen.
“I asked, ‘Do you know this person?’
“It took a lot to bring the children around to the idea that this well-dressed friendly-looking person was a stranger.
“For young children, a better strategy is to designate a few ‘safe people’ and practice who those safe people are.… grandparents, trusted neighbours, babysitters, etc. Teaching children they can only go somewhere with their safe people is more concrete. If it’s not a designated safe person, they don’t go. It’s easy to role-play these scenarios.”
A retired teacher and conscientious grandmother