Not Even My Kids Have Tried It

Tell me a kid story, and I can top it. Not a nice, sweet story. A horror story. No matter how bad you think your child has acted, Foster stories will still surprise (or shock) you. Need a story about time out? Just ask about the time Makell chewed off the paint and sheet rock from the wall while sitting in the corner. Need a story that will make you speechless? Just ask about the time Makell smeared Desitin and baby powder all over the floor. Or even the time she threw EVERYTHING in her bedroom out her second-story window. Need a story about embarrassment? Just ask about the time that Makell told a nice african american man that he was the same color as a fudgesicle.

A couple of years ago I was dropping off one of my kids at a birthday party. The birthday girl's dad motioned for me to come over and meet his mom. He then asked me, "Tell her one of your stories, because you always have unbelievable stories." As a note, this dad had the kind of children we all covet. Well mannered, polite, calm, quiet children. Just the opposite of all things Foster. So, I just looked at him and said, "Well, I guess I could tell you some of the crap that has happened today. Would that work?" He then got a gleam in his eye, he folded his arms and said, "We're ready". It was at that moment that I realized that my everyday life just might not be like an everyday life for normal people.

With all this being said, it takes a lot to shock and surprise me. I'm a bit jaded. But this week, I was stunned when Todd sent me this news article:

PLAIN CITY, Utah – Police in Utah say a 7-year-old boy led officers on a car chase in an effort to avoid going to church.

Dispatchers received reports of a child driving recklessly on Sunday morning. Weber County Sheriff's Capt. Klint Anderson says one witness said the boy drove through a stop sign.

Anderson says two deputies caught up with the boy and tried unsuccessfully to stop the Dodge Intrepid in an area about 45 miles north of Salt Lake City. The car reached 40 mph before the boy stopped in a driveway and ran inside a home.

Anderson says when the boy's father later confronted him, the boy said he didn't want to go to church. The boy is too young to prosecute and no citations were issued, although police did urge the father to make his car keys more inaccessible to children. (Yahoo! News. Wednesday, July 29)

He. Drove. 40. Miles. An. Hour!! And he is 7!! I have to wonder, is this boy one of my kids and I just don't know it? Or maybe, just maybe, there is a child out there who has finally pushed my kids out of the limelight.