Terrible Ideas are Terrible

Today was Take Your Child to Work Day. Against my better judgement, I let Alexis come with me to work for the third year in a row. My office runs a program that involves keeping all of the kids entertained and away from the adults all morning, but then they make you take your kid back at lunch and the free babysitters all "SEE YA! BYE!"

I guess the "free babysitters" thing is why only 3rd grade and up is allowed. Or maybe I just haven't won the battle to get that fixed so that younger kids can join in on the VERY LOUD chaos. BUT I WILL WIN THAT BATTLE. (It used to be 5th grade and up. I've been single-handedly campaigning to bring the minimum age down each year. Slow and steady wins the war.)

It should be mentioned that while I'm all "free babysitters!" I'm one of the idiots who volunteers their time to help pull the day together. There's a planning committee and volunteers the day of the event. Basically, I had 10,000 steps before lunch, so I spent a whole lot of energy chasing kids all morning. A WHOLE LOT. Clearly I am one of the "free babysitters."

There were three important lessons that came of the whole thing:

1. I am a Product Manager. I gave one of the products I worked on to the kids to use and they were all, "This is easy!" and didn't need taught how to use it and basically I'm feeling like a winner right about now. So, bite me past Product Managers who made things more difficult than they needed to be. I TOLD YOU SO. Ahem.

2. Other peoples' kids are really super annoying. I barely like my own kids some days, but I REALLY don't like that whiny kid and this one who won't stop asking annoying questions and the ones who don't listen to any instructions and don't even get me started about the one who keeps asking for snacks. I am not a vending machine, kid. Go away.

3. I can never take Mila to Take Your Child to Work Day. While Alexis was happy to spend the afternoon in a conference room doing homework and reading, Mila would be busting down walls and making friends all over the building. I walked 10,000 steps in the morning as is, I don't need to walk another 10,000 in the afternoon trying to keep her contained. (If you think she's going to outgrow her Mila-ness, you are smoking crack. She is who she is and it is amazing and awesome and EXHAUSTING.) Also,I'm pretty sure Mila would have been the kid who turned the miniature zip line for the tiny people movers they built in one activity into an actual zip line because why wouldn't she go for a ride?

Mostly I'm writing this so I remember that I promised myself Mila would never learn about this day. When I forget that promise and take her anyway, I need to look back and see just how dumb I was.

And how very in need of a nap I was. That too.