ever been the only parents at a function?

my wife and i went to our daughters little halloween party at her school and no other parents were there. i felt bad. i get some parents cant get away cause of work but there has to be some that jut dont come.
i took 1.5 hours vacation
it was fun.
the kids were all asking me about my tooth.. they got a kick out of it.
i was thumb wrestling with them.
i am missing a finger on my hand and of course they dont know. i had them give me 5 real quick then grabbed my hand and acted like i was hurting and then lifted my hand up and was acting like it just happened.

they were having fun...
i had fun too. just felt bad thinking some parents just didnt come.
kindergarten party man...theyre happening

originally posted by: TinySickTears
my wife and i went to our daughters little halloween party at her school and no other parents were there. i felt bad. i get some parents cant get away cause of work but there has to be some that jut dont come.
i took 1.5 hours vacation
it was fun.
the kids were all asking me about my tooth.. they got a kick out of it.
i was thumb wrestling with them.
i am missing a finger on my hand and of course they dont know. i had them give me 5 real quick then grabbed my hand and acted like i was hurting and then lifted my hand up and was acting like it just happened.

they were having fun...
i had fun too. just felt bad thinking some parents just didnt come.
kindergarten party man...theyre happening

Yeah, I went to a Halloween party last year and I think there were like two other parents there. Seems like most of the kids have both parents working, so it is difficult for them to get away. There as another event where it seemed like most of the parents attended, but there were a few who didn't. I recall seeing one kid balling his eyes out because his Dad wasn't there like the other kids. I felt really bad... sure his father just couldn't get away from work.

a reply to: TinySickTears

I am an early childhood education major and this seems to be an ever present problem in public schools. I am in classrooms and at the functions my daughter's school puts on all the time. Sometimes there are one or two other parents who show up, but it is usually just me and my wife. I see the children looking for male role models, because they seem to have none at home. Educators lament that there is no way to force parents to be involved in their children's educations, and it seems like the parents who never show support are the ones who complain the loudest when they have to be involved in some disciplinary action. These parents do not understand that if they have no respect for teachers and don't give a damn about what their children are doing, the children take that as an indicator that they need not take any responsibility either. I am sure your child, and her teacher were thrilled that you took the time to care. If no one else said it, I would like to thank you for making your child's school function a memorable event for all of the children there.

a reply to: Benderisfunny

the teacher just emailed my wife a minute ago saying thanks to us for coming and said the kids had fun. told my wife she had a PTA form for her if she wanted to get in on that.

a reply to: TinySickTears

I am glad the teacher recognized your effort. PTA is good, sometimes. They always need help with organizing these events. The only problems I have experienced with PTA mom's is that they do not always take to "outsiders" voicing their opinions. It turns into a popularity contest that is sometimes reflected by whose kid is the most popular. pTA can be a weird group to become active in, but I know from experience that it varies by school. If you have the time to commit, give it a try. Trying it won't hurt.

a reply to: TinySickTears


Yea, ive been one of only 3 or 4 parents at a school event where we thought that was a good turn out. In addition to all of the issues with both parents working and not having the option of PTO or using any vacation time, it gets further convoluted with the new rules implemented after Sandy Hook which limits the number of parents that can be in a classroom at any one time during normal school hours. We went for the costume parade to see all the kids in their Halloween costumes and as soon ad it was over, the made everyone leave. 10 years ago w my oldest we would all go into the classroom for the party and catch up with the other parents and get to meet the teachers and aides who worked with our kids in a more informal setting instead of just at parent teacher conferences and stuff like that. I'm closing in on my mid 40's and survived the 70's and 80's quite nicely. It seems San if the current generation of kids are being forced to exist inside an insular bubble and it doesn't appear to be anywhere near as much fun to grow up now as it was pre internet and Xbox.

During the school day, parents aren't encouraged to go to too many functions. However, we always go to the after school stuff like programs and one or both of us are always at his tae kwon do practices. Usually grandparents show up to the big ones too.

And while we seldom are both at parent/teacher conferences, one of us is always there and we trade off so that we each get to be at at least one during the school year. We also take advantage of any avenue of communication a teacher provides to stay in touch and volunteer to provide things the classroom may need whenever we can.

With four active grandsons, my folks are kept extremely busy in their retirement.

I'm not sure if it's because I moved to a different part of a large city, but it seems that Halloween isnt as big of a deal as it was when I was young.

We did manage to get over 100 kids come to our door last year, and currently about 50 or so (and still coming), but I've noticed a lot less people dressed up today, and a lot less decorations. Could be coincidence.

If i ever have kids though, I'm going all out for halloween, and I won't care if I'm the only one doing it

a reply to: Ghost147

We didn't take ours out this year for a few reasons:

1. He went to the annual trick-or-treat my office always holds for employee kids on Friday.

2. They had a costume parade and party today at school.

3. It was snowing.

4. There was a bullying incident that took place at school today that led him to come home with a massive goose-egg bruise and scratch on his forehead. Some kid has been harassing him over the course of the last several weeks and today it led to him tripping and falling in the bathroom and hitting his head on the corner of a stall door. We were concerned and keeping an eye to make sure all it was was a large bruise.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Ghost147

We didn't take ours out this year for a few reasons:

1. He went to the annual trick-or-treat my office always holds for employee kids on Friday.

2. They had a costume parade and party today at school.

3. It was snowing.

4. There was a bullying incident that took place at school today that led him to come home with a massive goose-egg bruise and scratch on his forehead. Some kid has been harassing him over the course of the last several weeks and today it led to him tripping and falling in the bathroom and hitting his head on the corner of a stall door. We were concerned and keeping an eye to make sure all it was was a large bruise.

at least they managed to go trick or treating at the office

a reply to: Ghost147

That was a big factor in deciding not to go out. He already has a pretty big haul. I will take him out tomorrow when he gets home to pick up some Halloween candy at the store too.

some parents just don`t care they think that kids raise themselves which leaves them more time to work more and chase that almighty dollar.

a reply to: TinySickTears

No other parents?! How did the kids get there?

——

It’s sad that so many kids have both parents that work. Can we blame run away real estate costs (in some places) and taxes? Stagnating salaries?

I’m all for women’s lib but I think it is a very practical solution to have mom at home with kids 24/7, at least while they’re young.

a reply to: ketsuko

I remember being a kid. I may have been an exception, but for me it wasn't just about the candy, it was about the game! Can you do a weird mashup of Halloween and Easter and hide candy around the house or something?

Feel bad for the kid. Bullying like that is BS.

originally posted by: Domo1
a reply to: ketsuko

I remember being a kid. I may have been an exception, but for me it wasn't just about the candy, it was about the game! Can you do a weird mashup of Halloween and Easter and hide candy around the house or something?

Feel bad for the kid. Bullying like that is BS.

He'll be going out to visit grandma and grandpa this weekend with us. I'm sure something can be arranged.