The Recorder

I like to believe I'm more of a hands-off let them learn from the natural consequences kind of mom than a helicopter parent. For example when Hannah wanted to put a chair on top of a step stool (on uneven ground!) in order to climb a tree I tried to explain to her that it was a bad idea...once. Then when she wasn't convinced by my reasoning I sat back and watched as she attempted to climb the tree with the previously mentioned step stool and chair. I watched as she stumbled and fell and landed on her face. (She sustained no major injuries.) She hasn't attempted stacking objects to assist her climbing since. Lesson learned. And when the girls did not heed my advice to bring ALL their toys in from the backyard (because everything molds or rusts here) I let their purse sit outside for a few days before bringing it inside myself. I showed them the mold and tossed it in the garbage. Lesson learned. 

Thursday when Isaiah informed me at 7:10 AM that he needed a recorder for music class that same day and oh-by-the-way music is at 9 AM my first instinct was to say "Sorry kid I can't magically produce a recorder for you with that short of notice. But I can get it by music class next week." But I didn't. Against my better judgement I turned to google and Facebook in search of a recorder. I asked on a local buy-sell-trade mom site if anyone had a recorder or knew where to find one. Unfortunately I came to the same conclusion from these sources: they can be purchased at the music store that opens at 9 AM. I was ready to call my search quits when another residency mom messaged me with this insider tip: dollar stores sell recorders. I called my local dollar store to confirm this little known fact. It was in fact true! I grabbed my purse and a sharpie marker and left my other three children in my parents' capable hands and was off on a recorder hunt by 8 AM! By 8:45 AM I had delivered the cheapest most obnoxiously neon orange recorder with Isaiah's name scribbled on the side of it to his school's office. I was equal parts proud of my accomplishment and embarrassed (because I'm fully aware that is exactly the type of recorder the music teacher does not want in his class). I decided a dollar store recorder was better than no recorder. 

A couple hours later the kids and I returned to Isaiah's school to surprise him with a picnic lunch. (And by "picnic" I mean Little Cesar's hot & ready pizza.) A lunch surprise I had planned prior to the recorder situation. Isaiah was ecstatic to see us and the pizza! (Side note: I love that his face still lights up as a fourth grader when he sees me and his siblings at his school). I of course asked about the recorder and music class. Isaiah was quick to tell me that he thought the orange color was cool but the bottom part is too lose and falls off easily. You get what you pay for kid. Sorry. And then he told me that they had a substitute music teacher and did NOT play their recorders today!! 

And in that comically infuriating moment I decided I needed to go back to being my more laid back let-the-cookie-crumble-how-it-will kind of mom. This helicopter parenting is too exhausting for me.