Co-op

We went to co-op today. Both boys were signed up for "Play-doh studio". DS1 played with play-doh for 30 minutes, and DS2 played with toys on the other side of the room. They both had fun, and I even enjoyed those 30 minutes. Next was "Science Experiment" which is a simpler version of the science class the same mom taught to the older kids earlier in the day. It covered friction, center of gravity, and centripital force using eggs (raw & cooked), balloons, and paper. Loads of fun! DS1 had fun telling Daddy about it at dinner and remembered quite a bit. DS2 was doing okay until I popped his balloon, then he stuck his fingers in his ears and wanted to go home. It didn't help that at that exact same time (as the pop), someone started vacuuming in the next room. After we left we ran an errand then met up with some of the other families at a nearby park.

On a less pleasant and more adult (well, not-really so adult) level, there has been tension amongst the co-op parents. It started after some brainstorming was done about improving things. Since we're all new at this (doing a co-op) there are things that need improvement. Sounds simple, right? A question was posted to the yahoo list, asking for input and reactions to a couple of the ideas. Many people responded, but a couple responses were taken as nit-picking, criticizing, or otherwise strongly negative. I didn't read them that way, but several people did. So then they responded, then the original question-asker responded, and the people who got people's ire up responded, and it just got ugly all around. It made me want to crawl into a corner. I don't want to deal with politics like this. But unless I become a hermit I guess it will be pretty hard to avoid.

Sometimes I wonder if this group is a good fit for me. My boys like the playgroups and are starting to really enjoy the classes, too. It's the adults that sometimes make things tough. Someone reading this is probably saying "welcome to parenting" to me right now or "wait till they get in little league." If stuff like this went on at the daycare center where they used to go, I was joyfully oblivious.

Back to the co-op... We had a Parent's Night Out last Saturday. It was at a home. The 2 youngsters were asleep in the next room, but I don't know how they slept. The cacophony got so loud that I covered my ears a couple of times. Half of the group are the type who interject when others are talking and raise their voices louder so they can be heard. The other half seemed to not want to interrupt when someone else was talking, so they didn't speak much. Attempts were made to include everyone (when we were all in on the same conversation/discussion), but it took a lot of effort to have the quieter ones share their opinions, and it wasn't long before others joined in while the first was still talking, making it very hard (for me) to follow the conversation and sometimes even to hear the person closest to me. If any of you are reading this, please don't be offended. I like you all, I just don't like that style of discussion.

I did have a couple of one-on-one conversations during the evening. One was with the newest addition to our group. We talked about another group I am in. I mentioned that I get different things out of the two different groups. I don't feel that I contribute much to either group at this point, except my presence and occasional opinion. I feel pulled in two different directions, not quite opposite directions, but internally my struggles in finding my own way in the homeschooling journey are paralleled in the differences in these two support groups.