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Parenting is such a peculiar occupation - you do it constantly even if you don't intend to. It is annoying at times because often the kids picked up something that you would not want them to learn - bad habits, for example. Both of my boys bite their lips and there is no way to deny that this "gift" came from me. Once in a while though they surprise me by showing that my nagging is taking its hold.

From my childhood I was taught that it is rude to refer to a third person in his/her presence using a pronoun (she/he), you should always use his/her name. As in, "Aleksandra asked you to do something" instead of "She asked you to do something." when Aleksandra is standing right there. I have been trying to pass it on my kids and those seemingly fruitless attempts felt exasperating.

Today I heard them both catching and correcting themselves on exactly this point. While having breakfast and chatting about dreams the younger one said "Remember that weird dream, sh...(quick glance in my direction) mom told us about?" and later in the day the older one corrected himself while speaking with his friends.

I hope that someday they will learn to keep their elbows off the table as well.

On the Bus

On the bus from the downtown to Hafnarfjörður I sat near a young teen. All black outfit adorned with skulls and holes, sweet face where roundness of the cheeks hadn't been replaced yet by angles and hard lines.

He stared at the window, I - at people. Either out of boredom or anxiety he brought his right hand to his mouth and mindlessly started to bite his nails. Automatically, I snapped, "Stop it. Right now!" He jerked his hand from his face, casted me a "what the f-ck" glance and glued himself to the window.

For the remaining 15 minutes of the road his hands laid still in his lap.

Elegant Solution

A geometry problem called for finding an unknown angle EOD. My son approached it steadily and safely:

< AOC = <AOB – <COB = 180° -125° = 55°
<EOD = <AOB – (<AOE + <DOB) = 180° – (40° + 55°) = 85°

I asked him to look for another way of solving this problem. This time after finding angle AOC he came up with 360° – 125° – 40° - 55°X2 = 85° , which essentially is a variation on the first method.

“Try something different”, I kept insisting.

After a bit of hesitation he found it.

<COB and <AOD are vertically opposite angles and therefore
125° – 40° will give us the answer!!

Only after he wrote it down I realized how graceful and succinct this solution is - the epitome of elegance.

<EOD = <AOD – <AOE = 125° – 40° = 85°

What a beauty!

*Why doesn't blogger support the symbol for angles? I had to substitude with "<" instead, which looks slightly odd.

How to Lose a Loose Tooth

How to lose a loose tooth:

• You can patiently and persistently wiggle it with your finger until it comes out on its own;
• You can go to a dentist and let him pull it out in a clean and safe environment;
• You can allow your mom to wrap a string around it, tie it to a doorknob, hold your breath and wait till the door will swing open;
• Or, you can go to play baseball, try to catch a hit that isn’t meant to be caught and let a ball get rid of you tooth.
  
  And that is exactly how my younger son lost his loose tooth yesterday.
  
  (I am utmost grateful that it was only a loose tooth. For some time there on the field with him crying and blood gushing from his mouth I thought that emergency room was in order.)

I Feel Anguished...

“I feel anguished when my Mom screams at me,” my older son wrote in his notebook in the classroom. I stare at the phrase, quickly drowning in guilt and self reproach, “ I am such a terrible mother; why I have to be so impatient; am I so bad?”, rushing through my head with crazy speed.

Anton, being a very smart 9 years old, sees humour in the situation; he suppresses his smile and goes:” Don’t get all stress out, Mom. It was just the first thing that popped in my head.” Cheeky little monkey.

Now the word “anguish” ping - pongs around our house. “Finish your homework, or I will make you feel anguished”, “Are you anguished yet?”, “I am anguished, can I have a cookie?”
You can see the young artist's work on the right.