Feeling Frustration

I can tell when Riley is tired. He is so very tired these days. School is just beating him up this year. He's very frustrated with the work load and with the other kids. When he's tired, he tends to be a lot more emotional. He's beside himself tonight about the video game he's been playing. Even when he's doing things that are meant to "unwind" him from the day's frustrations, he gets frustrated. This frustration is also expressed towards his brother as well. I really really really need to figure out what to do about that, how to make it better for Quinn's sake. I wish I had a magic wand that could help Riley cope better, but I don't, and the teaching of these social skills and coping skills is a slow process.

Riley is a brand new 7th grader in this picture. He looks so young, and fresh. We are just trying to get through the rest of this week and next, and then we have spring break. He needs the break to regroup and then be able to finish out the rest of the school year.

This was taken the summer before last. I love this picture. It's a completely relaxed Riley, enjoying his summer break-we were with my parents on an RV trip. This picture was taken in Oklahoma at an RV park-a nice, new one. He loves the pool. He never really used to, was always afraid, but the last few summers he's been willing to take lessons so that he can be in the water. Mostly he likes to bob up and down, but last summer he made great progress with swimming, and can now do actual strokes and swim the length of the pool. Most kids have already learned to swim by this age, but it took us so long to get him comfortable in the water, and to get him to WANT to learn to swim. Better late than never right?

Riley's been complaining about what other kids are saying to him (again). I find this so very frustrating. He can't just let it roll off his back. He can't ignore them-it's hurtful to him and he's sure everyone hates him, and he always has to say something back, something logical. We talk about it constantly, giving him things to say in response to them, because he has to say something. He's very logical, so when they say he's short (which they do a lot), his response is the same, "I'm not THAT short," which really doesn't put the other kid in his place, but makes them say more, because he can't compete with their sophisticated ways. Right now, I am not doing anything, other than talking to him. I really can't keep fighting his battles, and this doesn't sound like true bullying to me. Sounds like normal kids saying stuff to each other. I don't know. Part of me wants to email the counselor and let her know, but part of me also wants him to learn to fight back. I can't protect him from mean people forever, they really are everywhere. It is so painful though, and I am torn. I just wish kids could be kind to one another. I will keep giving him "lines" to use with those kids, and I will step in if needed. I am so worried that he will eventually stop trying to fight back, and just learn to take it. I do not want that. It's a good thing we are going forward with the endocrinologist. Maybe we'll have some answers about his growth issues soon. We are still awaiting test results.