Aaron Rodgers
So I live about and hour away from Aaron Rodgers home town. Now anyone who watched the super bowl knows a little about his story. No one wanted him out high school so he went to a local community college and played QB for them there. He was great. All of a sudden all those colleges wanted him so he went to another local school in CAL. So basically I am writing this not only as a shout out to AR, but also I think its awesome that he worked hard even after people didn't want him and has now replaces a legend in one of the most storied franchises ever. If you watch the Green Bay games, in the beginning when they announce the players on tv and the player will say who he is and what college they came from? Well every once in a while AR will say Butte Community College. This is awesome! I love it. I have a friend who at the time lived up in Chico and actually went to high school with and he says the guy is legit. He actually is that down to earth and easy to get along with. Anyway I just wanted to do a quick shout out and drop little info about a cool local (to me anyway) guy.
Video Games...but not the way I usually write about them
Oh my goodness I have created a monster! We have recently let Little Man start playing video games. It’s a reward, only to be played when he has done his chores and been a good boy for the day, week or whatever. To have things as rewards that the child loves, as all parents know, is gold!
“Little Man if you don’t hurry up and get that room clean you will not be playing Mario today or tomorrow!”
“Ok daddy I’m hurrying.” Music to my ears! Then he is done in minutes and we go on about our business for the day. There is a flaw in this otherwise wondrous plan. He is catching on! He has been great! He is doing all the things that I have been telling him. My plan is awesome!
Wait! He is doing so well that he is playing games constantly! This is no good at all! Stop being so smart child! You are not supposed to catch on to my parenting ways so quickly. I have an image of Little Man sitting in my basement at 30 years old in a recliner that will forever have his butt print in it.
I am starting to think that my parents had it right when video games were not allowed in our house. Their thoughts were if they weren’t there then I would not feel the urge to play them. WRONG! So I am taking a different approach. They are in the house, but we are very tightly monitoring them. My thinking is that if he gets to play them while growing up that they will not be so sensational when he gets older that they take over his life, basically learning the balance now. There is balance in all things and this is included. So once again I am teaching Little Man something that is just hitting me.
So today he did a good job cleaning his room after school. He was not happy at all when he came to me asking to play the Wii and I told him no that he needed to find something else to do. As before mentioned I have started school recently and I am now having tons of homework that I was working on at that moment. So he went to his second go to thing to do, playing outside. Perfect, just what I wanted him to do. So he gets his jacket on and heads out the door. We have a gate on the front of our apartment that can be a pain to open, but he can get it. I see him working on it and then stop and walk back in.
“My hands are cold and I can’t find my gloves. I think I’m just gonna stay inside.” No! Not what I wanted. So he stays inside and proceeds to walk around me making every conceivable noise known to man. Eventually my head explodes and I let him play for a bit so that I can think enough to finish the homework that was due that night.
So obviously giving in is not the long term answer to the problem. Along with my idea of him learning balance in video games, apparently I have to teach it to him! This is going to be fun.
“Little Man if you don’t hurry up and get that room clean you will not be playing Mario today or tomorrow!”
“Ok daddy I’m hurrying.” Music to my ears! Then he is done in minutes and we go on about our business for the day. There is a flaw in this otherwise wondrous plan. He is catching on! He has been great! He is doing all the things that I have been telling him. My plan is awesome!
Wait! He is doing so well that he is playing games constantly! This is no good at all! Stop being so smart child! You are not supposed to catch on to my parenting ways so quickly. I have an image of Little Man sitting in my basement at 30 years old in a recliner that will forever have his butt print in it.
I am starting to think that my parents had it right when video games were not allowed in our house. Their thoughts were if they weren’t there then I would not feel the urge to play them. WRONG! So I am taking a different approach. They are in the house, but we are very tightly monitoring them. My thinking is that if he gets to play them while growing up that they will not be so sensational when he gets older that they take over his life, basically learning the balance now. There is balance in all things and this is included. So once again I am teaching Little Man something that is just hitting me.
So today he did a good job cleaning his room after school. He was not happy at all when he came to me asking to play the Wii and I told him no that he needed to find something else to do. As before mentioned I have started school recently and I am now having tons of homework that I was working on at that moment. So he went to his second go to thing to do, playing outside. Perfect, just what I wanted him to do. So he gets his jacket on and heads out the door. We have a gate on the front of our apartment that can be a pain to open, but he can get it. I see him working on it and then stop and walk back in.
“My hands are cold and I can’t find my gloves. I think I’m just gonna stay inside.” No! Not what I wanted. So he stays inside and proceeds to walk around me making every conceivable noise known to man. Eventually my head explodes and I let him play for a bit so that I can think enough to finish the homework that was due that night.
So obviously giving in is not the long term answer to the problem. Along with my idea of him learning balance in video games, apparently I have to teach it to him! This is going to be fun.
My Bad!
I was informed yesterday that by a good friend that my comment section was not working! To you I say thank you Mrs. Goldilocks! This is to let you know that I have fixed it and you can now comment. Lol I was cracking up because in my last few posts I'm asking people to help me out by posting comments and I then my comment things isn't working lol! So anyway it's all up and running perfectly now!
Something that I worte.
This is something that I wrote the other day. It is pretty self explanatory. I have an opportunity to maybe be a blog writer for and awesome local magazine here in Sacramento called Sacramento Parent. So I will let you know what happens with that I am SUPER excited about it. Anyway here it is. Like I said in my last post If you guys have any criticism or anything like that let me know! Your not gonna hurt my feelings, I love it!
I have done my best to teach Little Man to be polite and always have manners, to always be himself, but to not cause problems when problems don't need to be caused.
We are on our way home from school today and we are talking, as we always do, about his day. There is a girl that I know that he plays with on occasion. (We will call her Girl from now on)He all of a sudden looks up at my wide eyed, “Girl grabbed my arm and twisted it off today!” I am caught off guard. “ Well why did you let her do that?” I say. “I was playing and she ran up and she just grabbed it and she twisted it off! She is really strong!” he says, twisting his arm all over the place showing me how it all went down. “ You shouldn't let her do that.” I say, “Next time you yank it away so she can't twist it, do what you can to get away.” As I say those words it hits me that I am talking to a 5 year old boy. When I was 5 doing what I needed to to do something meant kicking, swinging and pushing, and I just gave him free reign to do it, to a girl none the less. Next I am imagining him getting called to the teacher and asking what happened and those great, awesome and powerful words being uttered from his innocent mouth, “My dad told me too!” Now I am being called into the principals office!
I quickly recant! “I mean don't hit or anything … ya know just don't let her have your arm.” Great! How do I explain this? “ Never hit anyone. That is not ok, and you never never never hit a girl no matter what is happening. You go talk to a teacher about it. Just remember Little Man you don't have to let things like that happen to you,” I tell him. He looks up at me with those eyes that tell me he's got what I'm saying for the most part. “Ok Daddy I don't hit, but I get away.” Perfect!
So we continue on our way home. We get there and we are walking in. “I ate half my sandwich today and I gave the other half to Girl. I thought that she didn't have a lunch, but she did,” he tells me.
“O ok. Did you ask her why she wanted your lunch?”
“ Yea, she just said, 'Give it to me I want it!' Its nice to share things so I let her have half.”
O awesome now my son is being bullied by a girl! Although is it really bullying if he is doing it to be nice and helpful?
“Yea your right, it is very nice to share, but remember if you don't want to give it to her you don't have too. It is your lunch ok?”
“I know, but I like to be nice and it's nice to share.” Kid has no idea he is being bullied and is happy with a big grin on his face!
It is a fine line that we walk as parents to train our kids, and the next generation, to be good people, but also show them that the world can be a place where people will take advantage of you. Little Man is getting the hang of it. I guess that I never realized that showing him all those good manners that I would in time have to talk with him about the times when you remember and use them, but you still stand your ground and be firm and don't get trampled.
I have been BUSY!!!
So I havent posted in forever! I have been so busy its not even funny! I am going to give you a quick update of whats been up so that you can kind of have an idea of why I am writing things. There are going to be some changes in the way that I write and also to a small degree the content of what I am writing. I will still be writing about the things that I used to but I will be talking about more too.
So my position at the company that I was working for got eliminated. Basically they had me training the owners son so that I was not needed anymore. I'm not bitter about this, but I gets calls from the guy a few times a week asking how to do things. There will be an update on that part of things soon. If they think that 6 months of on again off again training will replace 8 years of in the feild experience they are crazier then I thought they were.
So no job at the time, I decided to go back to school as my wife already had. I was able to work my school schedule perfectly so that I am going full time, working and no one but me and my wife are taking care of our 5 year old crazy son, who will be from now on called Little Man. So I am taking classes now. I decided that going along with my 8 years experience that will major in fire technology, or FT, BUT I am also taking 2 journalism classes! There is that change in the way that I am writing! It really cool! I am loving the classes and am greatly looking forward to learning so much more.
Now as for the content, obviously I am still interested in all the same things, i.e. sports, beer, video games, and cooking. I just don't have nearly the time (or money) for those things any more. I still do them and will still write about them, I just maybe a little more family oriented now as that takes up a majority of my free time now.
So I just wanted to let you know whats been going down and why you haven't heard from me. You will be hearing a little more from me know and I am really looking forward to it. I am going to posting writing projects on here and things like that also so if you guys have any ideas or criticism don't hesitate to let me know about them in the comment PLEASE!!!! Also if you guys have any great ideas on articles to be written please let me know!
So my position at the company that I was working for got eliminated. Basically they had me training the owners son so that I was not needed anymore. I'm not bitter about this, but I gets calls from the guy a few times a week asking how to do things. There will be an update on that part of things soon. If they think that 6 months of on again off again training will replace 8 years of in the feild experience they are crazier then I thought they were.
So no job at the time, I decided to go back to school as my wife already had. I was able to work my school schedule perfectly so that I am going full time, working and no one but me and my wife are taking care of our 5 year old crazy son, who will be from now on called Little Man. So I am taking classes now. I decided that going along with my 8 years experience that will major in fire technology, or FT, BUT I am also taking 2 journalism classes! There is that change in the way that I am writing! It really cool! I am loving the classes and am greatly looking forward to learning so much more.
Now as for the content, obviously I am still interested in all the same things, i.e. sports, beer, video games, and cooking. I just don't have nearly the time (or money) for those things any more. I still do them and will still write about them, I just maybe a little more family oriented now as that takes up a majority of my free time now.
So I just wanted to let you know whats been going down and why you haven't heard from me. You will be hearing a little more from me know and I am really looking forward to it. I am going to posting writing projects on here and things like that also so if you guys have any ideas or criticism don't hesitate to let me know about them in the comment PLEASE!!!! Also if you guys have any great ideas on articles to be written please let me know!
