School Trouble

Yesterday upon arriving home from work & school, we were surprised to have a phone message from Quinn's teacher. She explained that over the past couple of weeks, Quinn has not been very respectful of his teachers or his friends trying to complete their work. This Monday, the teacher was out with a sick child and the aide was the substitute for the day. Quinn was very disrepectful of the aide and was supposed to write an apology letter to her that evening at home. We knew nothing of this...on Monday, Quinn had told me that the teacher was out sick but nothing more. So yesterday morning, he had to write the apology letter first thing in the morning. We both spoke to Quinn last night, several times about behaving in class. James is more stern with him, the true disciplinarian. I am a softie, and would rather handle it from an empathetic approach. Today, I called his teacher in the morning to let her know we are on the job, and will keep reinforcing the behavior at home. She called back at lunchtime to say that he was very upset when she told him she was calling us, and that since that point he had shaped up his behavior quite a bit. Today, he also behaved very well and when I asked Quinn at the end of the day how he did, he said the teacher told him it was an excellent day. His teacher also reinforced that he's a "good little guy" and hopefully just by working with him at home we can nip this problem in the bud. I sure hope so, I don't like being surprised by things like this.

Again, out of my control and I feel so helpless. There is so much trust involved with parenting...you try your best and hope they make good choices when they aren't with you. I know this will only get more challenging as they get older, and it makes me yearn (slightly) for the younger years.

Quinn must be having a bad week, tonight he split his head open when he fell from a chair. He was standing on it, trying to reach something...something he's been told not to do...and he fell and hit his head on the corner of two walls. He's in bed now with a bandage on his head, looking like The Karate Kid. He also has a VERY loose tooth and refuses to touch it for fear that it may come out. I guess the tooth fairy is not enough to entice him.

So that's a glimpse into Quinn's life right now. I'm hopeful that his school news will be more positive next time!