Part Two; Parenting is the Hardest Job in the World

The rest of the story....

After the guy yelled at the Oldest, the Oldest said 'sorry' to him and I think it scared him into behaving for the most part the rest of the game; good outcome. BUT I was ticked off that someone we didn't know reprimanded him while I was sitting right beside him. Have the courtesy to at least say to the parent, 'hey get your kid in line' basically, politely would be nice but whatever get the message across to the adult first. So I stewed. I stewed out of anger. Anger somewhat towards the Oldest for his behavior and also at this guy for his outburst to the Oldest. I promised myself that after the fireworks, if the guy left my way I'd say something to him. If he walked the other way, I'd let it pass. Of course, as fate would have it, he left my way, passed right in front of me. I was shaking. Knew what I wanted to say but unsure of what I actually would say.

I said, "Excuse me"
He ignored me and kept walking.
I tapped his arm (really shaking now).
His wife glared at me and the guy stopped and looked at me. "Yes?"
I said, "I absolutely agree that my son kicking not your seat but five seats over from you was obnoxious. But a suggestion to you for next time, try speaking to the parent first before reprimanding a child you do not know especially if you see the parent of that child sitting next to him." (seriously hands shaking then and my honey clear at the other end of the row oblivious to all that was going on; I was totally on my own)
His wife glaring and boring a hole through my head at this point.
He says nothing at first. Just stood there with a deer in headlights face, turned red and then said, "Oh sure sure sorry about that." JA.
I turned my back on him and busied my hands since I did NOT want him to see them literally shaking.

What I was trying to defend, I do not know. And why I have to be the police of the world, I do not know. Why I could not let that moment pass and be fine, let it go, please tell me because I do not know. He WAS being a stinker. He WAS so kicking the back of that chair probably incessantly (remember I had tuned him out but when I clicked back into reality from the game, yes, he was kicking it over and over and over and over; so was). But this I say to you. What right does he have to say something to my child when I clearly was sitting right there?

Is this my sign? Is it flashing all neony now? Big arrows pointing right to the message? Does the sign say, "Hey you! Someone else had to step in because you weren't doing a good enough job!"? I mean seriously, ask the lady behind us, one row behind us, she would have told you, I fussed at him on and off for different things through the game till that point and the one time I tune him out, a stranger has to step in. To unending heights this rattled my cage.

So. Who's the idiot? Me or him? My husband had no idea what was going on and I know for a fact, even if he had been down by me he would have let the moment go, let him walk away and leave. But the wife, she kept looking at him like he was nothing, trash, shaking her head then look at me and look away. Come on. He can push buttons and he's high energy but he isn't that bad. She was judging me. Didn't like it. I'm hard on him. I want him to be well behaved. He is required to toe the line and when the line gets all loose and hard to walk on, he has to answer for it. But are children perfect? Were we not there to have fun? End of summer, fireworks show coming? Was it like a piano recital or a tennis match where you have to be so very quiet? NO! It was a baseball game were people yell and scream and clap and stomp and eat messy hotdogs and spill drinks. And kick backs of chairs. I guess.

He the poor Oldest got an earful on the way home. That we are not "meanies" and see? Now another adult, stranger to you had to ask you to chill out. It's not only us. Blah blah blah.

That was the part two of the story. The end of the story. So now you know I'm nutty. But I bet you knew that already. Huh?

Jenn