So I HATE trauma and that happens to be the rotation I feel like we are stuck on in the Girling Family. It's about 45 min before my alarm clock goes off and I haven't seen or even talked to Robert since Monday at 10pm, which means that he'll need some (ok 5 hours) of sleep when he gets home and every other Wednesday that he's been post call he's been in the hospital well into the afternoon. Basically WHY am I not using this time to sleep?!?! Needless to say I'll need a cup of coffee while I drive the kids to school today!!

 I want to talk about something that is kind of hot in the news right know... NO it's NOT the government shut down so you can keep reading.  Yesterday, I read on a Facebook post from our local news station, that a school in Michigan is banning Kindergartner's from playing tag, playing chase and running in "packs" because of the inherent danger that these activities posses.... HUH????? Running and playing tag is dangerous? I of course posted this on my page and got a few good responses.  One of which being "well maybe for the older kids but come on Kindergartner's are 5 & 6".  In case you weren't following me, my response was "don't ban it at all".  School yard games teaches kids things that aren't taught in the classroom.  Naturally a middle school or high school kid is going to drop the idea of playing chase (well that kind of chase anyhow, by that age it's all about "chasing" the opposite sex).  It's no longer a "cool" game to play.  And that isn't said out loud by some adult or some teacher or some administrator... it just HAPPENS.  The argument of that is "well until it does it COULD be dangerous".  Well yes but heck have you met me, walking across the street COULD be dangerous for me.  In fact look at all the unspeakably, disgusting things that have happened in schools in the past few decades... heck going to school COULD be dangerous.  Should we just STOP sending our kids.  And some people have decided yes maybe we should.  I grew up in the public school system (along with my  husband who, oh yeah, happens to be an orthopedic surgeon) and I have a master's degree (and secretly intend on another)... I'd like for my children to at least give it shot but things are getting out of hand even for this girl.  If you took away everything DANGEROUS out there you'd be missing a huge teaching point.  Those DANGEROUS games of tag taught those kids something.  It might have taught them to not play with bullies, or how to walk away from a situation they didn't like, or how to play cooperatively, problem solving skills... my list could go on but you get the picture.  Why would we want to take those lessons away from the next generation of adults (because lets face it we have to teach kids how to be adults and you and I use those tools on a daily basis)? And yet we wonder why there is a generation that thinks it's ok to go live with mommy and daddy for years on end after college.

So I get home last night and watched the news and found that this poor school in Michigan, who I had bashed all afternoon, wasn't in fact the dumbest thing I would hear.  A Rhode Island school district is banning all "balls, tag, and cartwheeling" during recess for the SAME reason!!!! I just wanted to throw my face in the pillow and scream!!!! All because you don't want to get sued.  Maybe that's where the conversation should start.  Let's not force a change in childhood games and growth but rather somewhere else.  Do we really need to support frivolous lawsuits?  If they wouldn't win people wouldn't do it again.  Leave my kids' childhood ALONE!