Once upon a time I saw a young boy kick a similarly-aged girl. It was a ninja-style kick, his foot landing square in the middle of the bag she was carrying, right around her knees. I couldn’t hear what started it all – why he kicked her in the first place – but her retort made me chuckle a little bit. (I was smiling on the inside of course.)
“You have ANGER MANAGEMENT PROBLEMS,” she said.
And that’s when he kicked her again. I guess he couldn’t find a good comeback. As for myself, I couldn’t keep my thoughts to myself and spoke before my brain was able to catch up. Let’s just call it a reflex.
“HEY YOU. Stop that right now. That is NOT ACCEPTABLE.”
I might have even pointed a spindly old finger in his direction while I said it too.
And it isn’t acceptable, not by a long shot. We parents cannot stand by and watch bad behaviour unfold in front of us, even if the children we’re talking to aren’t our own.
In this particular case, the group of kids parted and a few of them moved to a different corner of the park. Several little boys were afraid to look me in the eye, sneaking peeks at me when they thought I wasn’t looking.
“What did she say to you,” mumbled one little boy to the offender. I didn’t hear the answer, but oh man, I hope he remembers me. Always.
I wonder if I have a reputation now, if kids steer clear of me lest I tell them to stop whipping sand at one another or shoving each others faces in the dirt.
I’m ok with being the mean mom at the playground. I really am. If my kid was the one doing the bullying I’d certainly want a parent to step in and say something. Wouldn’t you?
If you happened to ask us about how much Halloween candy we brought home last night, we would answer you with the following statement:
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I bought my first Robert Munsch book long before the girls were born. The Paper Bag Princess came home with me at some point during my university years. This is the kind of daughter I want to raise someday, I thought. (And if either of them starts dating a snobby tennis-playing Prince who gets kidnapped by a dragon we’ll find out if we succeeded.)
When Emma and Sarah eventually came along, Munsch became a regular visitor here (figuratively of course). I cannot properly explain HOW MUCH Munsch we read in this house when the girls were wee. But it was a lot. They were particularly enchanted with the story Pigs (do you know that one?) and we told it over and over again. And Thomas’ Snowsuit. Yoinks. We read that one A LOT too.
As someone who likes to spin a silly yarn, I really admired Munsch for his storytelling genius and his ability to capture children’s hearts (not to mention their attention). So when I heard that the Canadian Children’s Museum was hosting a Munsch-related exhibition I was really impressed. To honour a storyteller in this way? Pure awesome.
This giveaway is brought to you by the Canadian Museum of Civilization, a Fishbowl patron. It’s for 5 tickets (the family package) to see the The Much More Munsch Puppet Show at the Canadian Children’s Museum.
The 60-minute Much More Munsch Show features 35 puppets and six of Robert Munsch’s stories. A live narrator engages the audience, promising heaps of participation and fun for all. The puppets rescue a wedding party, chase runaway hair, invite an entire school to a birthday party, and Munsch more!
Featured stories include Angela’s Airplane, Ribbon Rescue, Get Out of Bed, Aaron’s Hair, Purple Green and Yellow, and Moira’s Birthday. Wide Open’s Much More Munsch Show received 5 stars and earned a spot on CBC’s Top Ten Picks of the 2010 Fringe in Winnipeg.
You can read more about it here. It sounds like a great show for families, doesn’t it?
Please note that this prize does not include general admission to the Museum. If you want to visit before or after the show (which I recommend!) you will need to pay your own way.
Want to win? Read on.
- This giveaway is open to anyone residing in the Ottawa area, but it is void where prohibited in Quebec.
- For your entry to qualify, use the comments below to tell us what your favourite Munsch story is. If you’re new to his writing, that’s ok, just tell us what stories your kids are enjoying right now. :)
- Please do not enter this giveaway if you can’t attend. The show will take place on Saturday November 19, 2011 and there are two showings: one at 11:00 am and another at 2:00 pm. The winner’s tickets will be held for them at the box office.
- One entry per family please! We want lots of people to have the opportunity to win.
- If you can’t post your comment here for whatever reason, you can email it to me for posting. Send it to andrea at quietfish dot com … however I cannot be responsible if your entry is misdirected or gets stuck in my Spam folder. Sorry.
- Good karma goes to those who tweet or post about this on Facebook. Do you know someone who might enjoy these tickets? Forward this info to them!
- I will do a random draw of all qualifying entries using Random.org at noon on Tuesday November 8, 2011.
p.s. If you don’t win these tickets you can buy your own at the Museum box office or by calling 819-776-7000 (service charges apply).
Sound good? Now over to you! Good luck!!
