I admit to being a complete art failure.  I still draw stick people!  In fact I simply do not draw if I can help it.  I just have never figured it out.  I married a man however with a talent for drawing. It seems to have been passed down to our daughter.  Our poor little boy seems to be even more artistically challenged than me!!!  I am likely biased, and also impressed even more than I should be due to my art challenge, but is this not pretty darn good for an 11 year old???

copied and pasted from my other blog:

I have been thinking about a conversation I had the other night with a lady who was giving Will a haircut. This woman totally rubbed me the wrong way and then scalped my son to boot. And I paid her for this!!?? Here's the scoop:

Hairdresser to Will - "Oh you need all this nasty hair cut off to look good for school eh?" Nasty? I liked his hair long we were mainly wanting to get some taken off the front because when he put his hockey helmet on it would push it all right over his eyes and he couldn't see.

Will to Hairdresser - "I don't go to school. I'm homeschooled." this leads to the look. And if you are a homeschooling mom you know the look.

Hairdresser to Wacko Homeschooling Mom - "and do you like homeschooling?" Um gee, let me think, NO! That's why I keep my kids home with me all day because I just don't like it.

WHM to HD (with sickenly sweet fake smile on face) - "yes I really do."

HD to WHM - "well it CAN be a really good thing sometimes. BUT it can be bad too. Do you have other kids you homeschool."

WHM to HD (a little unsure as to where this is going) - "oh yes, I have an 11 year old daughter too."

HD to WHM (now keep in mind my 8 year old MALE child is all ears during this exchange) - "Oh. Well that's what I mean. I find homeschooled girls can be very naive. They just don't have the street smarts and the teenage boys find those girls and they tell them anything. You know what I mean. Guys will do and say anything to get what they want and homeschooled girls are such easy targets. I would be very concerned if I were you."

WHM silently to WHM - "What the ______??"

HD to WHM (WHM was suddenly struck unusually mute) - "Well? Aren't you concerned about that? You do know what teenaged guys are like don't you?"

WHM to WHM - "umm no? Is that the right answer? No, never, ever met a teenaged boy. Nope didn't grow up in a house with 3 brothers. Never was my house filled with teenaged boys, all friends of the 3 brothers. No, never played hockey on entire teams of boys." I can't even begin to tell you how high my hair was raised, for, can you believe it? I LIKE BOYS!

WHM to WHM - "Does this lady not realize that she is speaking so very condescendingly of boys while she has one such specimen sitting right under her eyes! How the ____ can I get out of this conversation gracefully?"

WHM to HD - "Umm yes I am concerned." What? I am? Where has my brain gone?? Why has this woman reduced me to stupidity?? I'm not concerned, really I am not!

WHM to HD - "You might want to cut that a little shorter it's a bit crooked." What?? It wasn't crooked it was downright hideous but wooh, homeschooling/sexual predator topic averted.

WHM to HD - "You might as well take the clippers to it now."

Will to the entire shop - "I'll look like a freak!"

WHM to Will - "Don't worry. It will grow back fast!"

HD to Will - "It's going to feel like your head lost 10 lbs! Short hair will make you look like a real boy." What? Are you saying he looked like a, a what? A fake boy?

Will to HD (this is my kid who is never struck dumb) - "What does that have to do with anything?" really, that's what he asked her!!!!! now i am roflmao about it but then I must admit to being a little embarrassed.

HD to Will - "Well, you'll feel better. With all that hair gone. Your head will feel like it's floating." By this time the hair was gone.

Will to HD - "It doesn't feel lighter and I look like a freak."

HD to Will - "Oh you look handsome. A real little man. I'll put some gel in and muss it up for you."

Will to HD - "I still look like a freak."

WHM to Will - "You'll get used to it." Thinking, yeah he may look a little freakish, but quit telling the hairdresser that!

Will to WHM - " But Emily is going to die laughing at me!"

WHM to HD - "Thank you very much." OMG. I really did thank her very much! With such veracity too! She thought I truly was happy with her job. I think she even ended up thinking I was thanking her for the "tip" about those nasty, hormone driven, teen aged boys! And then I tipped her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sometimes you know I really dislike my meek nature. My husband is the type who would have refused to pay. He is the type that would have said something to lead her away from the homeschool topic, and I don't mean by a subtle choice of words. I'm thinking Will takes after him. I wish I could be more Will like at times. My parents call him "Tell it like it is Will".

Anyway, honestly, I was just shocked that a mature woman, this was not some 20-something happy-go-lucky hairdresser, but a 5o+ woman, would do this. How could she bring up such a topic with Will sitting right there? Does anybody else think that that is just wrong? And to tell him his longer hair, which he loved by the way, was not boy-like? I mean, come on!

So, as I said, I have been thinking about this for some time now. I can't say that I am not concerned at all about my daughter. I mean I think anyone who has a daughter hopes that they will always be treated properly by the boys/men that will enter her life. I think it's very important too to be open with them, somehow make them aware of dangers without making men and boys out to be some horrible, nasty creature to be avoided. I don't want my daughter to be afraid of men. I do think that she will be fine though. She is very astute and intuitive. She can often see through the social ploys she encounters now and then with her schooled friends. I almost think that when you are kept separate from that scene somewhat, but not kept in the dark about it it makes you far less of a victim than one who is constantly in the environment, yet doesn't get much of a chance to talk openly about what is going on. Does that make sense? So do I think homeschooled girls create an easy target? I have to say maybe yes some do, and likely no some don't. It all depends upon the situation. I blame this whole conversation on the stereotypical view of the sheltered, over-protected homeschooled kid.

Thoughts??