Last hurdle before spring

In the dregs of winter every year, we have to work towards surviving until one specific date. No, not the first day of baseball seaon. The learning fair. I hate the learning fair. It's Mom's (or a kind Aunt's) and Dad's (actually my sister helped with that one too) arts and crafts projects on display. Year after year. After year, after year, but my blog doesn't go that far back.

Every teacher in the school seems to think this is THE prime opportunity to assign projects. Because Mom and Dad have nothing else to do in the evening.

We have already completed essays and posters this year, and a model of a community that required legos, and I had to help my child make a 2 liter soda bottle look like a person. Not just any person, HANK AARON. Who, let's be honest, the first thing that comes to mind when you see a picture of him is "Pepsi bottle."

In my own defense this is not up to my usual artsy-craftsy girls standards because the entire afternoon we were doing it I wanted to kill him. Reason being, I had just found out that he was at a school event and someone asked him if he was going to another upcoming function and he said "No, my mom thinks it's stupid." The person chairing said other function overheard him. And apparently flipped out. Um. Did I evermention I'm "kind of" one of the PTA officers?

(Since I've already digressed on this topic, let me explain that what I think is stupid is the ongoing bickering involving certain people running that function, and that I also NOW think it's stupid to get upset because of something you overhear a ten year old child say. Ahem. )

All in all, the afternoon didn't go well.

So today Ms. Dramatical (hey! Flave is on tonight!) stomped out of school angry because I have, I mean she has, yet another learning fair project to complete before mid-March. A five page paper on a famous artist. I mean, FIVE WHOLE PAGES CAN YOU STAND IT HOW COULD SHE DO THIS TO US. Yeah. It turns out that what actually upsets her the most is the other bullet point about also doing a demo art lesson for the class on this artist's style. Um, hello? Middle school kids are going to mimic the work of one of about 15 great masters? (Yes, it is a fixed list to choose from).

Sweet groundhog ghoulash. Isn't it spring yet?