Fanatical Focus on Father's Day

For those who know J, he is a very bright child - full of beans - but who can have a lot of trouble staying focused (for even short periods of time) when he is not completely interested in something. He can easily tune out/slip out - and this is fairly obvious to anyone who sees him! Yes, he is the child in the outfield who struggles to maintain focus on the game. He is often out in "la la land", rolling on the ground, rolling his eyes, or looking over to see what he is missing on the sidelines. Or, he's waving and making faces at me rather than watching the play. It drives me crazy and I'm forever reminiding him to focus and pay attention!

On the other hand, when J is "into" something, he is REALLY, REALLY into something! No problem with focus - it's tunnel vision all the way (he comes by this naturally - both his dad & I can be accused of this sometimes as well). He doesn't just give it his best shot, he gives it absolutely everything he's got - which is often 200%!

Anyway, this week his second grade class was working hard on their Father's Day project, and it was quite apparent that J was putting his entire heart and soul into it. He did not go out to play at recess! He did not go out to play at lunch! Even his daycare provider told me that she had to wait a full 20 extra minutes after school for him because he was still working away on his project. This week he did not talk about his little classroom economy, nor did he talk about his friends. All he could talk about was his "project". You see, he was making a wallet for his dad! He was working very very hard on this creation -- ensuring it was absolutely perfect! He told me he was sewing it together, making slots for credit cards, a section for bills, and change, and that it would have a velcro fastener etc. etc. I told him that it sounded absolutely amazing! Then, he mentioned to me that he was making this wallet out of recycled juice boxes! You heard me! Juice boxes! For some reason, I just couldn't envision it!?!

But alas, today I have actually seen the "final production" - and his father is going to absolutely love it, I know! He even made a membership card for unlimited hugs / no expiry date (and he delegated the task of laminating it to me at work). It is all very amazing (we'd best keep it for "good" though - I'm worried that this beautiful treasure could become completely ruined at his dad's work). So what do you think of it?