AVA'S SCHOOL PROJECT

On Sunday, I spent the day busying myself with helping Ava get ready for her Simple Machine's Fair at school.

I will start by saying this was a project that I had handed over to the Mr. a few weeks ago, thinking that he would be the best person to help Ava with it. Why? Well Ava was supposed to come up with an invention that included at least 2 simple machines. She was to build or purchase said invention, write a report on it and present it to the class, along with parents on the Simple Machine's Fair day. I am not all that savy with such things, and thought this was right up the Mr's alley, which it was. But I knew there may be a problem with handing the project over to him - the problem being he would not get to it until the very last minute.

And I was right.

Over the past 2 weeks, I continually asked him if he and Ava had chosen an invention yet, if they had started building it yet, if they had gone shopping for supplies yet, if they had done anything yet. The answer each time? "No, I will get to it."

For those of you who don't know me, I don't like to procrastinate. At all. My husband, on the other hand, enjoys waiting to the very last minute to do such things. I think it has something to do with him working better under pressure, or maybe he just never gets around to such things until he has absolutely no other choice. Whatever the case, it is a little something about him that I wish I could change. [We all have those "little something's", no?]

So, I was hearing "no, I will get to it" for days and was simply getting tired of that response. Ava seemed to be too, as she came up to my bedroom as I was putting away laundry on Sunday crying. Why, you ask? Because she had asked Dad to take her to work on her project, and he had said, "in a little bit." She cried and cried until he got the hint and finally took her to the store to start researching and getting the supplies for her project. For the next hour they put together her invention and I have to admit, the final product was quite impressive. What had they made?

A wheelbarrow.

Once that was done, the Mr. decided his work was done, and that it was my turn to take over, so I did. The next 2 - 3 hours were spent writing her report, drawing pictures, labeling simple machines, taking pictures, gluing, cutting, and strategically placing items on the tri-fold poster board.

By the end of the day I was exhausted. We did a project that should have taken a week to complete all in one afternoon. I breathed a sigh of relief and said, "thank goodness, I was so worried we would not get this all done." The Mr. simply said, "Why do you worry so much? I told you it would get done."

Why doesn't that surprise me?