My wife's problem with Norwich

Years ago we took my son for an overnight at Norwich. He went with a group of rooks and we were left to speak with parents of current students. My wife was told that their sons and daughters were magically transformed where they helped a great deal around the house and now always made their beds when they were home. My son must have missed that Norwich make your bed when home training. To this day when he is home he never makes his bed. It is still a constant aggravation for my wife!

Common theme.
My son attended FLC at Norwich.
Pushing in his chair after leaving the table lasted a week, 2:1 ratio
He will be a Rook starting next fall.
Perhaps it takes a few months or years for those "skills" to stick.

We were told the same thing about VMI. No luck. BUT, he has only been home twice so I'm still hopeful

Same thing continues when my son became a 2nd Lt. Of course he was just NROTC and not an SMC attendee but still he had been through OCS and TBS. Boys/girls will always be boys/girls especially when they are home with their parents.

Ha! The mythical SMC or SA transformation of your messy child into the highly disciplined, can't tolerate any dust, inspection-ready cadet/officer . . . I've read about these remarkable creatures. Unfortunately, they do not have my last name. Instead, I still call DS1 "Pig Boy" behind his back. It's a term of endearment--maybe.

Recently, DH and I visited Lt. Pig Boy; he is stationed overseas. To the young Lt's dismay, DH and I rolled up our sleeves and spent hours cleaning our Lt's apartment. I insisted that we drive to base to shop for cleaning supplies. While we were loading up from my list of supplies, a warrant officer who works with DS1 came through the aisle; she accurately (and obviously) sized up the situation. I thought DS1 was going to burn me into dust with his less than loving glare.

DS2 is currently cleaning his room. He is not as messy as DS1, but he has picked up some of his brother's bad habits. Sigh!

Interestingly, DH (former military) and I are neat freaks. I'm sure at least one published behavioral study exists on why some children of neat freaks are slobs. Reading that study is not on my bucket list; I suspect it justifiably criticizes my parenting approach in some capacity.

Norwich, so far, has not made my son any neater, better organized, or more courteous at home! He is, however, in much better physical shape, and has developed amazing powers of wearing dirty clothes so he does not have to do his laundry often.

Don't have anyone at Norwich, but there is a former Scout from our troop there who is doing well. We are two at TAMU, rooms are still a problem. I think Bruno first published this years ago but follows is an excerpt from Admiral Mullen's commencement address at VMI in 2011. The point is, this is an issue shared by all parents of cadets.

" ...And as you look upon these exceptional young women and men, it may be hard to imagine that the little boys or girls you once held are now the accomplished adults you see before you. Although I know at least one mom who lamented, we still can’t get him to clean up his own room back home. I’ll see if I can’t do something about that problem before I leave. But based on memories of my sons’ rooms, I can tell you there are real limits to a four-star admiral’s power. ..." http://www.vmi.edu/Content.aspx?id=4294974409

Lawman32RPD said:

Don't have anyone at Norwich, but there is a former Scout from our troop there who is doing well. We are two at TAMU, rooms are still a problem. I think Bruno first published this years ago but follows is an excerpt from Admiral Mullen's commencement address at VMI in 2011. The point is, this is an issue shared by all parents of cadets.

" ...And as you look upon these exceptional young women and men, it may be hard to imagine that the little boys or girls you once held are now the accomplished adults you see before you. Although I know at least one mom who lamented, we still can’t get him to clean up his own room back home. I’ll see if I can’t do something about that problem before I leave. But based on memories of my sons’ rooms, I can tell you there are real limits to a four-star admiral’s power. ..." http://www.vmi.edu/Content.aspx?id=4294974409

Click to expand...

That is awesome and so true. My son won't make his bed at home but his own place is immaculate. But Norwich gave him many great things. For that we are grateful!

Great post of a great speech -- had not seen that before -- reminder of the seriousness of our nation's business