Am I creating a Monster? (Full Version)

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Embark -> Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 10:48:04 PM)

So I was fortunate enough enough to have had my first child recently. A baby boy born on August 22nd of this year. Well if anything could be used to describe me it's obsessive. I tend to immerse myself in whatever it is that interest me at all hours of the day. Particularly lately its been all things WWII related.

So this leads me to the topic of my post. While my child is still very young, I have heard about the benefits of reading to them early. The only problem is that instead of what most new parents read their children (Dr Suess etc etc). I read Armor Penatration Value charts or AARs from the forums. Even when i just hold him, he watches me plot my next WITP turn or watches my turns play out in Combat Mission Afrika Korps. Instead of building blocks and other childrens toys, I fill his room with tank pictures and 1/35 models. Am I making a little history nut like myself or do you think he will grow up like a normal child?



kaleun -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 10:51:21 PM)

There are worse things than being a history nut.
Seriously, studying history gives such clarity and understanding of current events, that I for one, can't think of a better thing to do with my spare time, short of actually playing this game.
You might be rearing a new Nimitz, or Bradley.
Congratulations on your child.



DrewMatrix -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 10:52:37 PM)

Seriously, I involved my children with wargames from a young age. I played a lot of miniatures then. They had knights and tank toys they played with kneeling on the livingroom carpet.

When they were older (9 or 10) I found ways to involve them in a small way in "big guy" wargames. In a Napoleonic game they might have one gun battery, throw the dice when ordered, have fun shooting at the grown-ups. They loved it.

I read to them what you might call "stirring tales" about bravery and knights and monsters and valor and all that.

They seem to have turned out just fine.



pasternakski -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 10:52:43 PM)

What's his name? Erwin?



Bradley7735 -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:05:33 PM)

Well, I don't know why you wouldn't do that stuff with your kid. It's always good time spent when a parent does something with its child. Another benefit is that you will be teaching your child some history. Teaching a child is better than doing nothing. And history buff's aren't really weird. There are a lot of people who are history buffs. Especially males. Males can always bond with other males by talking about some little known battle. It's not like teaching him Ballet (I had to do Ballet as a child). I don't start a lot of Ballet conversations. But I can hold the ears of many friends on WWII in the pacific.

I wish my dad would have done what you can do with your son.



Feinder -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:07:37 PM)

My son was born on August 20th of this year also.

Even when my wife was pregnent, I read "The Hobbit", and "Midshipman Hornblower" to him. In the delivery room, when the nurses were cleaning him up (he wasn't particulary happy abouth that), I kept saying, "It'll be just a minute Matthew, we're right here, Dad will hold you in minute." He couldn't see me, but already knew my voice. He kept fighting to turn his head to my voice the whole time. WAY COOL. (Yes, he's -always- been able to hold his head up, gonna be a strong little bugger).

In the dark hours of the morning, if he's up, we've read quite a few chapters of "Leutinent Hornblower", and worked on many WitP turns together (with a strategically placed spit-rag for safety's sake). He's also going to learn how to play Squad Leader and Pacific War as soon as he figures out he's not supposed to eat the counters (*grin*).



* The Hornblower series is written by C. S. Forrester. It's very good (and in my opinion, not as dry as the O'Brian series). And the vocabulary is challenging enough to make my English teacher wife take pause, and she's read Tolstoy.



Embark -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:13:05 PM)

Hah it's great to hear all of you guys reply. I wasn't really serious in saying that I wondered if my boy would turn out normal. I was really just curious as to how many of you all did similiar things with your children. I just have to laugh sometimes when my wife tries to get me to read him a Dr Suess book or something similiar. I always tell her us "manfolk" (inside joke between her and I) like to read about history.



kaleun -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:27:00 PM)

When I was a child, my father would often tell us a history story during dinner. His favorite topic was WWII, but it could be anything, ancient Greece, Rome, Medieval Europe... He always wondered what would have happened if the CVs had been caught at Pearl.
[8|]It has of course completely traumatized me, and now I am incapable of performing in polite society, unless I find someone to play the Homeplate version as Japanese against me![8|]
Totally hopeless....



Yank -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:27:03 PM)

Embark - the very first thing I read my son when we got home from the hospital was an article from Proceedings.



Wooglin -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:30:58 PM)

My second little girl was born a month ago. When my two year old was born, I would waste time during night crying sessions pacing the floor. Now I comfort the new baby while watching WiTP turns play out. Great multitasking.

BTW if you like O'Brien/Hornblower, you must read the Ramage series by Dudley Pope. It is best to read the others before Pope so you have the background to appreciate him. The first chapter of the first Ramage book is still the most exciting literature I have ever experienced.



sveint -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:40:44 PM)

Enjoy the first 6 months to a year. After that the trouble starts...



RUPD3658 -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/3/2004 11:50:28 PM)

My father did the same thing with me and I turned out sort of normal. I was the only kid in first grade that knew the difference between a Panzer 3 and a Panzer 4. My room was decorated with model tanks and planes and I was building them by age 4 (Remeber Revel's Snap Tights?) He had me playing Squad Leader by thrid grade and the rest is history.

My 3 year old son also likes to watch me play WiTP although I think he would be even more interested if there was a train involved. Right now he is Choo-Choo obsessed.



kaleun -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 12:17:08 AM)

A boy must to have a train, otherwise he will grow up warped and become some sort of serial killer or sometin'

[;)]
I always wanted to be a train engineer, when I was a kid. [8|]trains actually belched smoke at that time and went choo-chooo-pfssss



pasternakski -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 12:45:29 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Feinder
* The Hornblower series is written by C. S. Forrester. It's very good (and in my opinion, not as dry as the O'Brian series). And the vocabulary is challenging enough to make my English teacher wife take pause, and she's read Tolstoy.


Tolstoy wrote in Russian, tovarishch. Forrester is fun, but nothing compared to the likes of Jane Austen ...



LittleJoe -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 12:50:07 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: sveint

Enjoy the first 6 months to a year. After that the trouble starts...



Are you talking about the baby or the Japanese War Effort? [:D]

Congratulations Embark



pompack -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 1:38:33 AM)

Don't forget MAPS! Don't give him Kermit the Frog posters, paper the nursery with MAPS. Carry him around the walls and show him the funny shaps of the countries, the mountains, the passes, the road and rail nets. Plan ahead!

Seriously my father was a history teacher and did that. Every night I would select a country and he would tell me a story about it's history. He also made me learn the name and location of every capital in Europe by the time I was five. How many American children (or adults) know the capital of Albania?



Embark -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 1:39:16 AM)

LittleJoe did you get the email thing worked out? I tried to send the first turn last night and it said your mailbox was full. The turns are a little over a meg a piece.

Ben



latosusi -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 1:48:37 AM)

You are doing the right thing; if you want you son to be a soldier that is!!!



Embark -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 1:59:22 AM)

Well being a Marine myself I cannot say I would be disappointed if he decided to follow in my foot steps.



Cav Trooper -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 1:59:25 AM)

Congrats on your son. No I don't think you're going to create a monster, on the contrary, you're going to create a young man who will always seek challenges, understand that there is a bigger world out there, and understand the "bigger" picture better than others who never had the experiances that you're going to share with him. I do not have children (am 41), and now you're going to wonder why I think like this, well here's why:

My Father retired (10 years ago) after 28 years in the Air Force as a Lt Col., and held jobs from being an EWO on B-52, FLIR operator on AC-119K gunships (both in and over Vietnam), tours on RC-135's, SAC assignment, USAFE (Ramstein GE)tour(s) in Electronic Combat / Electronic Intellegence. So, as I was growing up, for dinner it was Local News, National News, and International news, no talking during the news, but afterwards discussions as to what was going on. Trips to the A/C, Squadron parties with aircrew, Books at Christmas on History, Models, and all other things along those lines. I got to meet alot of higher ranking Officers, Intel Officers, and other highly educated people with expertise on all kinds of stuff. So, growing up I was taught alot of what you're teaching your son, learned critical thinking skills at a very young age, learned to how to compare and constrast many news, techincal sources to come up with a nearly (90%) accurate picture of the "true" story. So, today, I can hold my own in most "higher level" conversations with other people on World, National and Military / Political events ahead of some of my peers in the area I live in.

So in short, yes, I personally believe that you're on the right track with your son. Once's he's older, I'm sure he'll appreciate what you taught him more than you will know. Besides, he'll appreciate you even more for not sending him to Ballet lessons[:D]



BossGnome -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 2:48:05 AM)

first, I wish to clarify I don't believe there's anything wrong with history. The only far-off potential problem (and that is purely speculation) would be that your child could turn into a gun nut (the kind that keeps 3 automatic rifles in his house and goes shooting deer every weekend). Not my personal kind of friend, but I don't know how you feel on the issue of owning an automatic rifle, so I won't go further. You know, I think history's great, but there's so much more to it than just military: of course studying military almost always makes you study political, but there is also cultural history in there, and lots of other stuff that I find interesting.

Just for fun: try to get your child (when he is old enough) to get him to memorize the standard caliber of the US army rifles...that would be...pretty original!



latosusi -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 3:03:08 AM)

Your child is only few months old and does not understand the meaning of the
words yet! You have to careful when he starts asking questions and copying
your behaviour!![:D]



Admiral DadMan -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 3:32:40 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: pasternakski

quote:

ORIGINAL: Feinder
* The Hornblower series is written by C. S. Forrester. It's very good (and in my opinion, not as dry as the O'Brian series). And the vocabulary is challenging enough to make my English teacher wife take pause, and she's read Tolstoy.


Tolstoy wrote in Russian, tovarishch. Forrester is fun, but nothing compared to the likes of Jane Austen ...

OMG, I'm reading Pride and Prejudice with my 11 year old daughter... she gets annoyed if I don't get the accents right. Not much into wargaming, more into Zoo/Dino Tycoon.

But, I've got 2 more in the younger bracket...[:D]



Mr.Frag -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 3:59:26 AM)

quote:

my 11 year old daughter...


Oh man, I pity you ... you only have a couple more years until you'll be killing every guy who even looks wrong in her direction. Enjoy the time you have left. [:D]



Admiral DadMan -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 4:28:14 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Mr.Frag

quote:

my 11 year old daughter...


Oh man, I pity you ... you only have a couple more years until you'll be killing every guy who even looks wrong in her direction. Enjoy the time you have left. [:D]

Yes, I intend to shoot any boy whose tendancies I remember oh so well...[:-]. My wife has started searching eBay for chastity belts.

Click here to view: French Antique Chastity Belt 1910's



Halsey -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 4:39:42 AM)

Chess is the first game that you wean them on. It will give them the basics of strategy and tactics, and teach them how to plan ahead. Miniatures are the next level. Children love to throw dice![;)]

This way they can play there own games and leave you more time to play WITP![:D]

Naval fiction. Check out the Bolitho series by Alexander Kent. Very good 1800 era naval in the Forrester tradition.



LargeSlowTarget -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 2:53:36 PM)

I must do something wrong - I have a three-month-old son and haven't had much time to play WitP since he was born. If it wasn't for Internet at work, I wouldn't even have the chance to track the forum anymore. I DLed the patch, okay, but if I'm lucky I will be able to fire up WitP next Sunday, for an hour or two... And to add insult to injury, the few times I managed to play a couple of turns in the past few weeks, my little one started to cry when I tried to explain to him basic geography of the PTO or my defensive strategy early in the war. But he's very interested in watching nonsense on tv - the favorite hobby of my better half. Poor boy will be a tv addict instead of doing something meaningful in his spare time [:(].



Feinder -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 3:36:09 PM)

My wife has this doughnut-shaped pillow called a "Boppy", that my son lies on when he's saddled up to the tap. It's also useful for WitP if I'm feeding him a bottle, because he can lie on the Boppy, I can feed him with one hand, and click on WitP with the other. He's actually more interested in watching the ceiling fan than WitP, but it does get his attention with surface combat or bombing screen come's up.

-F-



Speedysteve -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/4/2004 4:32:27 PM)

LOL Feinder [:D]



Knavey -> RE: Am I creating a Monster? (11/5/2004 1:10:50 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Feinder

He's actually more interested in watching the ceiling fan than WitP, but it does get his attention with surface combat or bombing screen come's up.

-F-


Yeah,

Thats what mostly gets our attention also...the combat, that is!



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