Mother of a Man-Child

My life with teenage boys

Mother of a Man-Child: Twins – United Momentarily September 17, 2010

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My twin boys are very different – just like my twin sister and I were growing up.   They have different personalities, dispositions, appearances, and quite naturally therefore a different circle of friends.  I love the fact that they are different – completely unique individuals.

At home, they fight often, as all siblings do, especially teenage boys with testosterone surging through their veins.  In fact they remind me of tiger cubs on occasion, sprawled across furniture, the floor, each other, engrossed in TV, Facebook, PS3, then unexpectedly playfully lashing out at each other.  Invariably this sometimes escalates to high level fighting, complete with the strength of miniature men, and the man-child determination not to maliciously harm I think but to “win” – yes they are highly competitive.

Whilst they fight against each other, it is always interesting to see them unite as one in battle, or in sympathy with each other, or even perhaps conspiracy?  Because at the end of the day, whilst they may not like a lot about each other, when pitted against their parents, or other authority figures, they realize that they share a common ground, that of teenagers living in a world that doesn’t understand them, or allow them the freedoms they so surely believe they should have, or just leave them alone and stop nagging them.

So whilst some mothers might feel rejected, left off the adolescent bridge across which they travel, my over-riding feeling on these occasions is a silent pleasure that they can actually be friends (albeit momentarily), and that they do have things in common, and maybe even “like” each other.

I know my twin sister and I were extremely different growing up, with diverse interests, friends, and career paths.  But as we got older and married and children entered our lives, we became great friends.  We talk regularly by phone, we see each other often, we delight in being and having a close family (along with our other sister I should add) and we’re always there for each other.

So when I see Man-Child I and Man-Child II occasionally united, and even looking like friends momentarily, I have renewed confidence that in time they will become good, even great friends, and be there for each other, and I hope their younger sister.  Because we all know that family is the most important thing you can have in the world.

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Travelling Light Teenager Style September 10, 2010

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Have you ever watched a teenager pack to go away?  Girls being girls they pack everything except the kitchen sink.  I mean you can never have too many pairs of shoes can you?  Boys on the other hand are in the minimalist camp – why take something just in case – that’s excess baggage!

Typically as a mother I always worry about what my Men-Children pack to go away.  If it’s a school camp, I insist they take absolutely everything on the list provided (yes, I was always very obedient).  If we’re going on holidays, I like to have a list so we don’t forget anything.  They on the other hand are always aiming for light and lean – why take long johns on a winter camp to the foot of the snow ranges – it won’t be cold Mum.   Clearly they didn’t attend the Boy Scouts (motto “Be prepared”).

My favourite is overnight stays.  That takes packing light to another dimension.  Basically, my boys pack nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  They go in the clothes they have on their back, and come home in the same clothes.  They don’t take a change of jocks, or a toothbrush, or deodorant.  I thought it was only my two but when their mate turned up at the door the other night to stay, I was greeted by a boy with the same approach.  His mother didn’t seem phased by it, and surprisingly nor was I – I was actually amused and quietly relieved that I don’t have the only unhygienic children in Melbourne.

The funniest was Man-Child II who recently travelled to Tasmania to play rugby.  As they were representing school they had to travel in their school uniforms (yes they were not impressed) and appear in them each day, before the match.  Both my son and another boy who were billeted out decided the only sensible thing to do was to sleep in their school uniforms!  That meant they didn’t have to change from boxers into school uniform into rugby uniform twice a day.  I guess it’s efficient, but not what I call normal.  I can only hope their hosts assumed they were eager to get dressed each morning, and didn’t realise they had actually slept in their school suits.  Just as well I wasn’t there to see my son looking decidedly dishevelled in his uniform each day! 🙂

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Learning the value of a dollar! September 3, 2010

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Like any parent, I like to think we teach our Men-Children (that’s plural for Man-Child) lessons for life from time to time.   Naturally, some of those lessons relate to finances, and the desire to teach them the value of money, how to earn it, how to save it, and how to spend it wisely.

Until recently, our boys had to pay for their own credit on their mobile phones, in order to provide them some sense of value (and how quickly you can burn $ on one)!  Naturally, they did not often have credit, as they chose to spend their pocket-money on other things – namely food (the key to a teenagers heart).  I really should have shares in Maccas!  With the recent demise of their mobile phones, I decided it was time for us to partially fund their spend.

So we sat down and commenced negotiations.  What exactly would we fund, and what would they fund?  And what were the best deals to get?  Would we opt for a two-year contract, or stick with pre-paid?

What was interesting was to see the varied approaches by each Man-Child.  Man-Child I went straight for glamour – yes, it was all about the look of the phone for “Hollywood”.  If he could have an iPhone on the world’s worst plan he would – minor detail!  Man-Child II surprised me in being far more sensible, and had actually done some homework around good value deals online, even looking at call versus text costs – he knew all the hidden pitfalls of mobiles.  I was suitably impressed.

Of course common sense (namely their Mother) won.  I was adamant we stick with pre-paid, principally because boys are likely to lose/have stolen/break mobile phones.   They funded the handset cost out of their bank account savings (so they “invested” something) and we agreed to fund the monthly costs with a small contribution from them each month, so they share the ongoing burden (yep, get used to it guys).

For now we are persisting with re-charging every month – as painful as it is, it gives them a sense of the ongoing money drain that auto-payment doesn’t deliver when it’s Mum’s credit card.

Our next project is the world of part-time jobs – the boys will be able to apply for jobs by December, so that should be a very interesting exercise and learning experience for all of us.  Of course if any of my readers would like to offer a couple of likeable Men-Children employment at year-end, please let me know.  They come with glowing references.  LOL!

 

Mother of a Man-Child: The Challenge of Educating Boys? August 27, 2010

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Most adults understand the importance of a good education.  With hindsight we can all appreciate the value of learning, and the ability to continually learn throughout our adult working life.  No doubt some of us had better school experiences than others, but I’m sure we’d all agree school should be an enjoyable (or at the very least not un-enjoyable) part of your childhood.

And so it is that we are currently facing challenges with Man-Child II.  On the sporting field both our boys are excelling, both at school and outside school, with opportunities to play their chosen sports at elite levels.  Of course we couldn’t be prouder.

Man-Child I has applied himself increasingly well at school this year, following some pretty average school reports, and the results have reflected his improved application.  We are more than happy with this.

Man-Child II unfortunately has not.  He also had some pretty average school reports last year and earlier this year, and to date no amount of threats or other approaches have changed his attitude to school or his results.  He constantly has notes in his school record book about not completing homework, not handing in homework, not being prepared for a test.  And each evening and weekend we ask about homework in a vain attempt to ensure he is completing the work.  Unfortunately it seems this has not helped.  The reason for his attitude?  In short if he finds something boring, he just doesn’t do the work because he doesn’t see the point.

So now we find ourselves with a rather large dilemma.

Questions we are asking ourselves:

  • Is the current school the right one for him?
  • Would a different school be better for him – which one?
  • Would they teach in a completely different way that might engage a 14-year-old boy?
  • Should he repeat Year 8 due to immaturity and the fact he has obviously missed out on learning most of the basics this year (and which I believe are crucial building blocks for following years)?
  • What logic can we use to make him understand there is value in maths, english, history, geography (eg. you don’t know how these might be relevant in later life, it’s the breadth of knowledge and the ability to learn that benefits you, etc.)?

I tell myself the curriculum can’t vary that much from school to school, so if he hates science, english, history, geography etc then he just has to suck it up, because it’s a little hard to not do the basics in Year 8 isn’t it?

We did recently get him a tutor in maths, a subject he reluctantly admitted he was struggling with and falling behind in.  The good news is we have seen results, and it is the only subject that he has made improvements in – credit to his tutor.  But the reality is we can’t have a tutor in every subject – that to me isn’t treating the cause of the problem at the end of the day.

At this point our plan is to seek the school’s guidance and advice – they see 250 boys each year go through Year 8 – surely they must have experience with similar cases?  How have they handled it previously?

Of course the other issue this raises is a rather more delicate one.  What if the school agreed with us that he should repeat Year 8?  How would that make him feel?  Would you move schools to do this (I think yes)?  What is the impact on a 14-year-old boy with a twin brother (probably pretty rough I suspect)?

Not surprisingly the possibility of this infuriates Man-Child II.  We had the conversation just this week following yet another poor school report.  He is adamant he wouldn’t do it – naturally.  Part of me hopes it will be just the motivator he needs to pull his digit out between now and the end of the year, and to save him and us from some hard decisions.

But in the meantime, I think we have our own homework – to seriously consider some options that might help our son, and ensure his school life is both enjoyable, and fruitful.

Thoughts, advice, similar experiences all welcome from the readers of my blog.  Help!

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Don’t they learn? Part II August 13, 2010

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As you will recall, last week Mother of a Man-Child II had yet again performed his Houdini trick, disappearing at midnight for a late night visit with friends.  I discovered this at 3am in the morning when I found his bed looking rather empty.  You would also know it was 4.45am before his father arrived home with him, having picked him up from a train station some distance away!!!

The first thing I actually did when he walked in the door was asked for his mobile phone.  Two things surprised me initially:

  • One, his mobile had no pin code on it – I thought Mother of a Man-Child II was smarter than that – to protect it in case stolen and to stop prying mothers looking at the phone.
  • Two, much to my disappointment, there were no text messages on his phone.  When I enquired why, he said he always automatically deletes them (the opposite behaviour of most people I’m sure).

Momentarily deflated by this, I decided to check the call log on his phone.  Bingo!

Not only could I see all the recently received calls (including some stalker called his mother) but I could also see all the recently placed calls.  The best thing about call logs of course is that it includes times, numbers or names (when in the address book) and dates.  The detective now had exactly the evidence required.  And yes, I was particularly smug about this fact, and did think myself extremely clever.  I will enjoy it whilst it lasts, because it’s unlikely I’ll ever be able to repeat this feat – my son isn’t that stupid!  Score:  Parents 1, Kids 0.

So now armed with clear evidence of who had been involved in the late night escapade (and yes a girl was at the top of the list), we retired to bed for a few pathetic hours more sleep.  What astounds me is that Mother of a Man-Child II thought it was perfectly acceptable to be out from midnight to 5am and then have a 2 hour rugby training session and play an AFL game the following day.   The fact that he managed to play so well as to get Best on Ground left me further gob-smacked – freak child.

So Sunday morning came around.  My first call was to the home of his school friend to find out if he had been out the night prior.  Well, it transpires that this particular friend had actually been caught at the front door by his parents trying to leave home, and made up some bull-dust story about hearing noises at midnight.  When his parents found a backpack with clothing and shoes outside the front of the house, they quickly wised up.  When I told them about Mother of a Man-Child II’s travels, they knew they had foiled a clever plan.  Score:  Parents 2, Kids 0.

Then it was onto the offending female, who had called my son from her mobile and her home, thereby providing me with a landline number and direct access to her parents.   Glee – until I received a recorded message.  I was reluctant to leave a message lest the daughter erased it, or wised up to my calls but eventually I did.  When the father called me back he was naturally very interested to learn about his daughter’s activities the prior night.  Score:  Parents 3, Kids 0.

There were also some phone numbers that had no name, so naturally I called them.  One was a parents phone that the child had obviously used, the other interestingly was the phone of one of the 14-year-old female visitors to my house a few weeks ago – hmmm, seems she hadn’t quite learned her lesson, and was still roaming the streets late at night.

So now I have a dilemma.  The only way to let this girl’s parents know what she’s doing on a regular basis is to contact her school.  I am still thinking about whether or not this is the right thing to do, as it involves more than just her parents.  Advice welcome!

In terms of Man-Child II, I have told him that when we extend upstairs I will be having a zoned alarm complete with trip wire put at the base of the stairs, thereby ensuring he cannot leave our house without my knowledge.  And trust me the upstairs window won’t be an option – even for Houdini.  🙂

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Don’t they learn? August 6, 2010

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As those who read my blog regularly would know, we recently had an issue with Mother of a Man-Child II, who had four early morning (3am) female visitors to our house following a three-hour jaunt in the park along with three of his mates (all guests at our house for the night).  Of course Man-Child II was subsequently grounded for LIFE and we moved on.

So it seems did Man-Child II.  You see he was sick of being grounded and not allowed out, so he decided to go out, without our permission, thus inviting even more trouble.  The issue is not only the blatant disregard for the punishment, but that he decided to sneak out at 3am in the morning!!!!!  Or at least that’s what time I discovered him missing.

Call it female intuition, but I had overheard Man-Child II on the phone late on the Saturday night, and did get the distinct sense that something was being arranged.  When he went to bed I made him properly lock all his windows – you see I just KNEW.  And so it was that when I awoke in the middle of the night, I decided to check that all my darling children were tucked up in their beds, in the blissful land of nod.

As I poked my head into Man-Child II’s room, I strained to hear the familiar breathing of a slumbering child.  When I didn’t, it was with my heart in my mouth that I switched on his light, and found an empty bed.  Okay, don’t panic I told myself, he’s gone to the loo.  I checked every room of the house and when I didn’t find him, realised that my gut had been right after all.   And when his mobile phone was gone it was pretty clear so was he.

So what to do?  First wake husband – he’s not missing all the action this time.Second, send text to son advising him to come home (just to let him know we know).  Third, call son so I can scream down the phone at him, hurling the vitriol and hurt that only a mother can muster at 3am in the morning,  Fourth get angry that he won’t pick up (no wonder, he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of what he knew was coming).  Five, seriously consider ringing the parents of his mate, that I am confident he conspired with, then decide that they would NOT like a phone call at 3am.

After 30 mins of anxiety, he finally texted me back to say he was coming home.  That was only after I threatened to contact the police if he didn’t respond.  My poor husband decided to get in the car and drive around to see if he could find him – half asleep at the wheel, visiting 24 hour McDonald’s restaurants.

It wasn’t until 4.30am that my son finally answered one of the 20 calls I had made to his phone – by which stage it’s fair to say I was getting slightly hysterical, especially since my husband wasn’t answering his mobile either (visions of a car accident due to tiredness just to add to the turmoil of the event).

He informed us he was at a train station quite a few suburbs away.  I could hear his mates (male and female) in the background.   So my husband went and picked him up, and at 5am after yet another lecture and extracting diddly squat from him as usual, we all went to bed.

For now that’s where I’ll end the story.  You can read the second instalment of this Man-Child episode next week (if you don’t want to miss it subscribe to the blog).   Those who know me know that I wouldn’t be happy just to have my son back.  Oh no!  Detective Mother of a Man-Child had plenty more work to do!

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Smoking – enjoyed by rebels everywhere! July 30, 2010

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History is littered with rebels – those who do what they shouldn’t do, go where they shouldn’t go, say what they shouldn’t say.  And history and the media have often glorified rebels – to the point of “cool”.  I mean, who wouldn’t think James Dean wasn’t uber cool in Rebel without a Cause?

And why is it that being rebellious and “cool” seems to go so hand in hand with smoking?  One of the most highly addictive and expensive drugs still enjoyed by millions of people around the world, even though they all know it’s bad for them.

As a reformed smoker, married to a heavy smoker (yes shocking I know), I was hopeful that my children would be forever repelled by smoking, and never even contemplate trying them or taking up the habit.  Alas, there’s a rebel born each day, or at least a Man-Child who wants to test the boundaries just a little more as part of his journey through adolescence.

So it was after a recent party, where I had seen many teens smoking outside the party (no, it wasn’t very well supervised – but that’s another story) that I asked Man-Child II if he had been smoking.  Now I couldn’t smell it on him, but something told me if one of mine were to try it, it would be him.  He denied smoking, but when I explained that I would smell his breath when we left the car, he admitted to smoking that night.  I asked why, and he said because an older kid whom he didn’t know offered him one.  “If he asked you to jump off the West Gate Bridge would you?” I exclaimed (sounding very much like my own mother).

I said I was very disappointed, and didn’t want him to smoke.  I gave him all the logical reasons why you shouldn’t smoke, and warned him there would be punishment if he were caught again.  Two days later, during an argument, I caught a whiff of his hands – that same familiar smell of tobacco that I think an ex-smoker can smell even more acutely than a non-smoker.  So he was grounded for the week and missed a party the following Saturday night (I was secretly pleased at this because I didn’t want him to attend it anyway).

We went along for another couple of weeks, until I discovered he’d been smoking again, this time after school with some friends in the park.  So I tried another tack – “How stupid can you be smoking in school uniform?  If you get caught then the school could expel you, particularly if you’ve been in trouble before” (which he has)!!

Two weeks later, yep you guessed it, caught again.  This time though, something switched on in the deep recesses of my brain, a solution so simple that I’d completely forgotten it.  “Okay (Man-Child II), if you don’t smoke until you’re 18 I’ll give you $1,000.”  Well, that was it.  He was rendered almost speechless whilst he took this offer in, before asking me, incredulously, if I was serious.  I said indeed I was, and he promptly accepted!!  He then ran off to tell Man-Child I who quickly came to square the ledger and ask for the same rights – granted of course.

Sweet victory!  I can’t tell you how easy it was.  It’s actually an old family tradition, as my father received £500 for not smoking when he was 18, and we were in turn bribed with $500 for not smoking until we turned 18.  How simple!  Good investment if you ask me.  Now it doesn’t guarantee success I know, but it’s a good feeling knowing that Man-Child II is smoke free for now (but still a little bit rebel). 🙂

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Uninvited guests after midnight! July 23, 2010

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After Man-Child I’s recent brush with the law, Man-Child II decided it was his turn for trouble – what is it with twins?  Fortunately this incident didn’t involve the law, although some of his friends may think I have recently joined the force, such was my police-like response to the event!

The night unfolded like any other, with my man-child deciding to ask me, no in fact, beg me if three of his mates could stay for a sleepover during the school holidays.  They always seem to leave these requests for the last-minute, which they either do because they think it’s more successful, or because they’re too stupid to consider the impact on anyone else at 14 years old – sadly I suspect it’s the latter.

As it was 6pm, and I had just arrived home from work, and was now faced with the task of feeding an extra three hungry teenage boys, I am not quite sure what possessed me when I said yes.  Perhaps it was the opportunity to do something nice for my son, having been on his back about a few things recently.  A mother’s guilt goes a long way sometimes – little do they know!

At any rate, like a true Masterchef I managed to whip up a perfect gut-filler of carbonara and mounds of garlic bread, that seemed to satisfy the needs of five hungry boys and my daughter.  They then retired to their lounge room for a few hours, where they did all the normal boy things (farting, snacking, joking around, snacking, fighting, snacking, Facebooking, snacking, PS3 etc), before finally taking over the family room at midnight when we retired to bed.

Like all mothers, I remain the world’s lightest sleeper, so I typically hear every noise in the house (unlike my husband who could sleep through a freight train in the middle of our bedroom)!  So it was that at 3am I woke to the sounds of several teenagers…..”Shhhh……Be Quiet…..Shhhh……Giggle…….Be Quiet…..”.  I decided that 3am was late enough, and they really should all be asleep by now, so I promptly opened the door and turned on the light to tell them all so.  What I saw wasn’t quite what I expected – the sight of eight – that’s right – EIGHT bodies all diving under the doona covers in my son’s bedroom.  Eventually my brain took in this fact, and then realized that the extra four bodies were actually FEMALE!  Yes, we had four teenage girl guests in the middle of the night – yikes.

I calmly invited the four girls to join me in the family room, leaving the boys in the bedroom.  After a stern lecture, during which I ascertained that they had each told their parents they were staying at a friend’s house (yep, that old trick), I obtained their names and that of their school.  I then explained that under no circumstances could I allow them back into the dead of night, and that I would need to drop them home to one of their houses, where it was more than likely I would need to wake the parents and let them know what had gone on.

Whilst down the other end of the house doing a quick change (I didn’t think I should drive them home in my pyjamas), and simultaneously briefing my husband who had slept through the excitement to date, I heard the sounds of four screaming girls making a quick get-away down our side path, and quickly realized that my late night visitors had in fact done a runner!   I was so furious that I actually got in my car and tried to find them, unfortunately to no avail.   What we did find was Cinderella’s boots on the back doorstep – so one of them certainly ran home with cold feet.

We then dealt with the teenage boys, delivering yet another stern lecture, and extracting an apology from some (sadly not all).  As the text messages came in thick and fast to Man-Child II’s mobile, I told him that the girls had done an extremely stupid thing bolting, and that I would now make it my business to contact their school and/or their parents to ensure the event didn’t pass un-known.

Over the following days, the tale unfolded even further.  Amazingly I received hand written notes, text messages and phone calls from each of the girls professing their deepest regret at what had happened and assuring me it wouldn’t happen again – yeah right, how dumb do they think I am exactly?  It turns out, not only had they given me the wrong school name, but also used false names, and briefed my son, so when I drilled him he actually knew what names they had used.  Pretty conniving isn’t it?  When one of the girls offered her mothers phone number during her apology (which I did acknowledge was brave of them all) I joyfully accepted.  And that’s when things got even messier.

You see in assuring me of her absolute honesty with her mother, I decided to verify her story.  Alas, the truth had been twisted quite a bit, and the trusting mother had fallen for the very fictional version of events.  Eventually more and more of the story came out, until it was discovered that in fact the boys had all left our house for a midnight jaunt in the park with the girls.  At 3am they had come back to our house because they were all cold – and clearly all thought we would be none the wiser.  I’m not sure how long they were planning on spending in Man-Child II’s room, but the mind does boggle.

Needless to say Man-Child II is having a very quiet quarter, having been grounded for an entire term.  His friend’s parents have chosen their own punishment – that is for them to decide.  Unfortunately the mother of the “honest” girl in question decided it wasn’t her place to alert the parents of her daughter’s friends at all, which does disappoint me, as I think that’s extremely irresponsible on her part, but I can’t live someone else’s life for them.

So the lesson?  Hmmm, I’m not sure there is one, except that what goes around comes around.  Once in my teenage years I crept out of the house in the middle of the night for a party, unbeknown to my parents.  But I was so terrified when I arrived home and had to sneak back into the house, I was sure my heart could be heard pounding three blocks away.  I never did it again because I couldn’t bear the fear.  LOL.

 

Mother of a Man-Child: Post-Script to An Arresting Story July 21, 2010

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For those who read my latest post, no doubt you’ve all seen the recent news about Xavier College students aged 14-16 years caught shop-lifting in Queenstown on a recent school ski trip.  The NZ police made no arrests, nor issued fines or official cautions to the boys, and were quoted as saying they felt the disgrace the boys had bought to the school and the punishment that would be metered out as a consequence would suffice.

For Man-Child I, the severity of his punishment for attempting to steal $4.90 worth of lollies recently, versus the complete lack of police intervention for $5,000 worth of clothing is somewhat at odds in his view.  I completely understand his point of view, but through the eyes of a parent I can understand why the police acted in the way they did with each incident.  Man-Child I was taught a lesson for life, albeit a rather private one.  The Xavier College boys face public humiliation, along with repercussions that could be far-reaching, including their suspension and possible expulsion from school.  I hope one day that Man-Child I will consider himself lucky, as the lesson he received will stand him in good stead for the next 5 years and more!

Here’s the original post.  “An Arresting Story”.

 

Mother of a Man-Child: An Arresting Story! July 16, 2010

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Just when you think the “men-children” couldn’t possibly surprise us any further, or provide me with any other great stories for the blog, along comes yet another incident that will be added to the rich and colourful history of their adolescent years.

We have already had the delightful experience of parents who are called to the school to discuss their son’s behaviour.  Whilst initially it was for an incident involving Man-Child I, by the time the meeting came about there had been another separate incident involving Man-Child II, so we had the joy of back-to-back meetings – “in stereo” I called it.   I am quite sure one of the senior teachers who met with us almost felt sympathetic at the fact it was BOTH our charming sons who were in trouble.  He very kindly pointed out that we weren’t the only parents who had made a visit to the school to discuss their sons, but I bet we’re the only ones who managed a twin visit!!!  (Thank goodness I didn’t get triplets).

However Man-Child I did excel in the trouble stakes the other day, when I received a call from an out-of-town country police station whilst we were away on school holidays to say my son was at the local supermarket and had been caught shop-lifting.  Fabulous!  I was then asked to collect him and take him to the police station, where he received an official “Caution”.  Now for those who think that’s a nice kick up the backside and “don’t do it again”, you are mistaken.  The presiding officer decided he needed a lesson that would keep him on the straight and narrow for quite some time.  So Man-Child I was told he now has a police record (not a conviction) and is effectively on a good behaviour bond for the next five years.  He had his mug shot taken (this even alarmed me) and we were also paid a visit by another policeman sporting two guns and several Tasers – totally effective trust me.  In an amazing case of irony the “arresting officer” actually had a son attending the same private school in the same year level as my Men-Children – we naturally assume privacy is assured, but it did add to the impact of the consequences.

The officer was very convincing in ensuring Man-Child I understood the impact on his life in the event he is ever stupid enough to do something that earns him a criminal conviction.  It really can derail someone and totally ruin their life.  I explained to Man-Child I that there was no point punishing him, I figured he had punishment enough for the next 5 years.  I also made him share the experience with his friends and Man-Child II so they all learned from his lesson.  But I did say if I found out they had shared it on Facebook their lives would be short-lived.   I guess only time will tell whether our teenager has heeded the sage advice and life lesson given to him by a well-meaning, and totally savvy policeman.

Read my post-script to this story here.