Thursday, April 7- We had joy, we had fun; but there are brats in every country

Well yesterday I got to take the first and second year students to Southside, a swimming resort.  Now it really never occurred to me (although it should have) that some of the kids may not know how to swim.  I found out upon arriving that for most of them, this was the first time in a swimming pool.  The boys were all fine swimmers, so I assume they learned in a river, but only one of the girls was at all confident in the water.  Thankfully, they all had a really great time and were able to still enjoy swimming since the water never got deeper than 5 ft.  

Although the day was really fun, especially for me since I’ve wanted to go swimming ever since I got here, there were two little things that made the day a bit of a drag at times; their names are Amy and Sam.  Sam is the 3-year-old son of Jiji (who was there with us) and Amy is 2-years-old and is Indi’s daughter (Jiji’s sister who was not there).  These two kids are adored by all around here and are both very cute; frankly though, they’re spoiled brats.  I am amazed that they can managed to be so spoiled and parented so poorly when they are living on the same property of 30+ orphans who are all (well, almost all) so well behaved and far from spoiled.  Amy, once again is 2, and weighs 25 kilos (that is about 55 pounds.)  She’s 2!  Her parents’ brand of spoiling has turned more into child abuse since frankly it is not her fault that she is overweight.  She cries for even a moment (or SCREAMS) and is given something to eat.  Her mom always says things like, “It is hard to stop Amy from eating.”  Um, NO! She’s two!! Stop handing her food!! I never see her without food in her hands.  She also still takes a bottle and wets herself every day when she naps on the floor.  Then there is Sam.  He is adorable and has the longest eyelashes I have ever seen.  Amazingly, he is more of a brat than even Amy is.  He has a shrill scream and he uses it often.  He throws amazing tantrums and I have never once seen him reprimanded.  The moment he starts crying he is comforted with hugs and kisses, even if the reason for his tears is that he was just told ‘no.’  He runs away from Jiji when she is calling him and she runs after him, but never punishes him.  With both of these children I have to bite my tongue and sit on my hands.  I am not a fan of parenting books most of the time, but even the most radical ones could have some great effects here, if they were even read.  I just want to find “Parenting for Dummies” and send it over.  This is harsh, but frankly, I care about these kids and I really hate seeing them raised poorly.  God works miracles though so maybe they’ll turn out alright. 

Okay, enjoy the pictures below. Love you all! 21 days!!

This post is for Ariana, Meghann, Renee and JaLynn. I got your package!!! THANK YOU, THANK YOU a million times over. I love you all.

This is also dedicated to Blythe Meyer.  We really need to write “A Nanny’s Guide to Parenting.” Hahaha. Love you.

Amy

Lecio

Jessa, Grace, Bekah, Jennefer

WooHoo!!