Yesterday was the commencement of football training. Mark does not particularly enjoy football, he is quite good at it though. Mark (as I've mentioned before) does not particularly like anything, maybe with the exception of his iPhone.
So yesterday Mark and his mate M came to our place together. I'm unsure of my position about M anymore, he was gorgeous last year, polite, friendly and generally nice. He has become much more worldly now. Mark says he is at his friends place very often, they spent most of the school holidays at the pool - as far as I can tell unsupervised. These are 12 year old boys? I don't get it. But anyway, M said hello to me and that was about it. They came out here to use the computer, I did a couple of spring in visits to make sure it was appropriate - must remember to check the history on my profile. They were just Facebooking another boy from school. Anyway I think Mark feels this boy is super cool... and needs his approval.
Jamie arrives home, Mark refuses to feed the dogs or check the balls to see if they are pumped up (note: Jamie already mad at Mark) because he has a friend over. When they finally arrive home from training around 7pm. I could hear the yelling in the car. When they come inside:
J: Tell mum what you did?
M: silence
It turns out, one of Mark's team mates B came to Jamie after the training to chat, Jamie was talking up the team, saying there are some real guns this year, ready to play their hardest. B then said "if only the kids wouldn't muck up at training, it makes it so hard" he's talking about Mark, M and C (a very wayward chap, who is quite charismatic). Mark was refusing to do what his coach asked, he didn't want to do a lap, or do sprints... or it seems do anything.
The coaching has changed this year, Ross is the coach of the U14s and not Jamie (he's coaching the littlies U10 - a very disciplined team). Ross has the hard job. These boys are in puberty, several challenging children, and attitude like nothing else. The boy mentioned above C, is the worst offender, if he was the only challenge it is a HUGE challenge. Ross does not need Mark helping C out by mucking up. And blah blah blah on it went.
We'd made a deal with Mark only a week or so ago, that if he tries his hardest, he can have an XBOX 360. Jamie said one more training session like that and the deal is off the table. Mark then made the face and I said to him "don't you dare say you don't care" and there was a little smirk, yes that was exactly what the face meant.
Then I added to it... if the back answering and disrespectfulness continues at football, he will lose his iPhone - forever, not just a week. OMG! That is kicking him where it hurts. He said something along the lines of ok.
This morning I asked what he thought about our discussion last night. He said it wasn't fair that I was taking his iPhone away from him. I told him I have no such intention and it was completely up to him. All he has to do is concentrate for 1.5hours twice a week, so what his coach asks of him and try his hardest. As long as he doesn't muck up, he keeps his phone! Easy, its good parenting.
I was then told, "No mum, its actually really bad parenting" I love it when he says that. Like he knows!
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Anyway we all made up soon after, Ryan gave us all cuddles. This was extremely cute.
He was laughing and crawling around like a maniac, I called him over and put my arms out "Ryan come for a cuddle", a HUGE smile came over his face and he crawled over, climbed up and gave me a cuddle and a kiss. Marko then sat onto the floor about 5 Ryan steps away from me and put his arms out, he stretched his arms out and walked over to give Mark a big cuddle and maybe a kiss, then Jamie arrived and did the same thing, and he gave his dad a big cuddle. Then it was back to me. Some of it he walked, some he crawled. But man it was cute.
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