who they are outside the house

sadly, just got my first "negative" report on ben from his teacher today. she said he was a little defiant. i almost laughed as she so gently presented this information to me like it was earth shattering. b/c....well....ben IS defiant. a lot. at home. and we do not take this behavior lightly. greg and i are pretty good (if i must say so) as addressing disobedience so ben knows that it is not acceptable. we talk a lot about loving others and what that looks like, including loving (and obeying) God and loving (and obeying) mom and dad. and we lovingly discipline him and desperately try to show him the love of God in all aspects of life. and pray for his sweet soul.

and until now, he saved most of his defiance for us. which is exhausting and frustrating. but made me think that all of our diligence at home resulted in good behavior with others which made me proud.

all this to say....it was only a matter of time before he felt comfortable enough at school with his teach and his friends to start pressing the limits.

so in the car, before we left the parking lot, we prayed and asked God to forgive him for not obeying Miss Nicole today.

and then on the way home, ben declared that he was "frustrated" and did not want to obey. ever. and that spankings do not help him obey (insightful).

grass helps him obey. really? grass?