Manners

Are my boys always polite, saying please and thank you and acting appropriate for the situation?  Ummmm  NO!   Not even close. It's a daily struggle to teach them about being polite.  I'm not saying they are horrid kids walking around with disgusting manners  but they are 10 and 12 year old boys.  They think farting and burping are hilarious.  They can make themselves burp and really wish they could make themselves fart. I know, I know!  Gross!  Totally, I agree. 

Some of what I have been pounding in their heads must be working a little at least because they do recognize when other adults that we encounter are completely rude.  A few years ago my husband, the only cook in the house, went back to grad school for a year and a half. Well, needless to say, meals were a challenge.  Hitting the drive though a couple times a week on the way back and forth to sports and school events was not uncommon.  I cannot tell you how many times we went to a drive through and the employee either didn't speak, didn't acknowledge me by saying "hi" or "how are you" and certainly didn't say "thank you", "have a nice night".  We'd get things like..."That will be $7.98"  Or they might not even say that. They will just stick their arm out so you can hand them the money.  Does "there ya go" count as a thank you?

At Daddy's graduation in 2008

My kids would totally point out to me every single time we encountered one of these horribly rude employees. They would tell me what they said that was wrong and what they should have said.  They'd say "another rude employee mom".  "She didn't even say hi!" Or.. "they didn't say thank you". 

When our kids are young, teaching them please and thank you seems important but only when we are older do we really understand the value of being polite. It's respectful, it shows dignity and a Thank You can really go a long ways. It tells people you care about what they did.

I have a sister in law who no matter the holiday or birthday for her or her kids or my brother, she is forever sending out Thank You card to people.  She takes time to write detailed notes to people telling them why they like the gift you've given or how it's being used.  She has done this for years.  Ryan just went to a birthday party a couple weeks ago for some triplets in his class at school. All three of them wrote him a Thank You note.  Really? That mom must be a rock star because I can't remember the last time I wrote a Thank You not for me or had my kids do one. Failure! as Jarred would say.  I really need to be a better example to my kids in this area.

Yeah!  Dad can cook dinner again.   

Last weekend I was in a craft store digging through the 90% clearance rack.  I saw a stack of about 4 or 5 scrapbooks that normally run $10-12 each.  I didn't see a price and turned to ask an employee about it. She told me they were $0.99 each.  I put the one I was holding in my cart, turned back around and was reaching for the rest on the shelf when out of nowhere comes these two hands and snatches the whole rest of the stack right out from under me. I was in such shock that I looked at her and all I could come up with was "Wow!"  The lady said nothing. She just turned and walked away, scrapbooks in hand.  The employee who helped me stood next to me with her mouth hanging open and  said "I've never seen anything like that."   To be honest, I really didn't need 5. If I had saw here eyeing them, I surely would have shared.  Not a big deal. I didn't really neeeed them. I guess I should have taken the other one out of my cart and gave that to her too if she needed them so stinkin bad. 

When I told my boys about what happened, they could not believe it. They were shocked at how rude it was and that anyone would do that.  That makes me feel good.

So as a mom, I am trying my best every day to instill politeness into my boys because rude kids grow up to be rude adults and we sure don't any more of them wandering around. There are already plenty.