school vs disneyworld

[420WDW MONSTER]

i live in texas and school starts in aug. we are going to the world the last week of sept, i have custody of my 14 year old bro this will be his first year of high school. hes not the best student ....ok he doesnt get good grade but he trys....sometimes. we will be go from school for 5 days he can miss only 9 before he looses credit, hes never had a problem with attendance. my question is has anyone ever pulled thier kids out of school before? do i have to lie and say we have to vist our sick aunt or something.
this is the only time of year we can go
springbeak-too much money, husband can't get work off(plus star tours is closed)
summer-hotter and stickier than the devils ball sack!- husband cant get off work
winter break- way to much money! husband can't get off work
my husband is a chef in a tourist spot downtown san antonio and anytime anything is going on holidays and whenever kids out of school he has to work!

 

[Phonedave]

I agree with this, but I'll even take it a step further. There are a TON of people on this board and elsewhere that take Disney itself a step too far when it comes to the responsible management of a household. Just think of all the times somebody celebrates with a thread about how they just paid off their next trip. There was a thread recently about someone who managed to pay off their next trip and that there was a SECOND trip on the horizon that still needed to be paid off. Am I the only one who finds it totally irresponsible to book vacations that you may or may not be able to afford in six months?

That is not indicative of these boards, or of WDW, or of vacations. Unfortunately it is indicative of a large segment of this country - buying things they cannot afford.

I am not perfect by any stretch. I have a balance on one of my cards - it will be gone in two cycles. I could pay it off now, but it would involve moving money around and I will eat the $20 in interest so I don't have to. But the extent to which some people extend themselves amazes me.

There is not much you can do about it. The resources are out there, but people have to avail themselves of them and practice restraint when necessary.

-dave

 

[marcriss]

thats why i posted this question cuz i wanted to get everyones opion, if he was a straight a students and if we had money to blow and if my husbands work let him then i would have no need to ask i would be able to go whenever i feel like but things suck sometimes and i needed a lil help. from what it sounds like its not going to kill him to miss a week of school as long as we do everything we need to do. plus we will probaly never go anywhere for a while if ever again. this will be our first and last trip probaly. i just want a real family trip, like when we were lil and when everything was good

Here's my two cents:

Share with your brother your regrets over your high school experience. Make him know that you expect more of him, and that he must earn this trip by trying really hard and being in school. Your situation sounds like it has been rough and your brother can benefit from learning from your mistakes and also from having a positive family experience with you. Missing 5 days shouldn't be the end of the world, provided he knows that he's expected to make up that work. Push him to work hard before and after the trip, but then enjoy the time that you have together. Make the trip the experience that you obviously wish for him to have. Good luck with everything.

 

[420WDW MONSTER]

I was the one that asked. As a parent of two kids, I make it my business to know more than they do, especially about drugs.

Now, you can argue that pot is no worse than alcohol and should be legalized. That's not the point here.

The point is that it is clearly important enough to you to make it your screen name. If instead of phonedave i called myself Boozing_it_up_in_WDW I would think that indicates a bit of an obsession with alcohol.

So, no judgement here. But if pot (or for that matter any 'recreational' pastime that eats up money - drinking, gambling, shopping, etc) is a large part of your life, and you are the guardian of a minor, you may want to rethink your leisure pursuits.

As I said before, you got the short end of the stick, being 16 and all of a sudden having to take care of your siblings. But, as hard as that is, it is the situation. You are going to have to work hard to make the best of it, and in doing so, make some tough decisions about a variety of things, not just going to WDW during school.

Good luck (I mean that sincerely)



-dave

i think Boozing_it_up_in_WDW is an awsome screenname! lol
half of my wdw budget is for booze!! house of blues specials before 10!

believe deciding to go to wdw is not biggest decision i have to make.
over the years we have become good at handling our money
no debt
very low mortage
as long as i dont go to the bar i onlt spend 20 bucks a week on party supplies

i understand why people get upset with what i do but i do everything i can to make sure these kids are safe and happy our honeymoon is the only time spent away from them i felt horrible they really thought i wasnt comin back! i have givin up my whole life for them and i dont even have kids of my own. so if i wanna do what i wanna do i'm there everynight to feed them and there everymorning to wake them up!

(if u didn't know i smoke or was a dropout im pretty sure ur opions would have been diffrent)
thank you though for all of your opions

 

[420WDW MONSTER]

Here's my two cents:

Share with your brother your regrets over your high school experience. Make him know that you expect more of him, and that he must earn this trip by trying really hard and being in school. Your situation sounds like it has been rough and your brother can benefit from learning from your mistakes and also from having a positive family experience with you. Missing 5 days shouldn't be the end of the world, provided he knows that he's expected to make up that work. Push him to work hard before and after the trip, but then enjoy the time that you have together. Make the trip the experience that you obviously wish for him to have. Good luck with everything.

thank u, i tell everyday that hes supose to be better then us. he always trys to use the "well u never finished school" i said yea do u really wanna turn out like us,i told him when he gradutes and moves out he and F up his life all he wants. he gets up real quick lol. but he trys hard, he just forgetful so im always on him for that.
i could have graduated but at the time is was more important to make sure that they were in school, plus i had to stay home with my grandma(had cancer) and my daddy (paraplegic) untill they passed away.
i have gone to ged classes like 15 diffrent timesi and still haven't takin the test. but once i do i will be documented as a failure

oh yea this trip is also for my sister(22) who has a mental disablity and she graduting this year i wasnt worried about her, since she wont be in school. other bro 19 dont wanna go says disneys gay
hes gay!

 

[marcriss]

thank u, i tell everyday that hes supose to be better then us. he always trys to use the "well u never finished school" i said yea do u really wanna turn out like us,i told him when he gradutes and moves out he and F up his life all he wants. he gets up real quick lol. but he trys hard, he just forgetful so im always on him for that.
i could have graduated but at the time is was more important to make sure that they were in school, plus i had to stay home with my grandma(had cancer) and my daddy (paraplegic) untill they passed away.
i have gone to ged classes like 15 diffrent timesi and still haven't takin the test. but once i do i will be documented as a failure

Get your GED, it isn't a sign of failure. It'll show your brother that an education IS important. Not getting the GED is more the documented failure. A degree is a degree, it shows that you committed yourself to improving. Studying with your brother may help both of you, and it will certainly help you down the road if you choose to have kids of your own.

 

[420WDW MONSTER]

Get your GED, it isn't a sign of failure. It'll show your brother that an education IS important. Not getting the GED is more the documented failure. A degree is a degree, it shows that you committed yourself to improving. Studying with your brother may help both of you, and it will certainly help you down the road if you choose to have kids of your own.

yea i know what i gots to do its just getting up and doin it i always find some excuse no to do it

u got me thinkin maybe me and my hubby should get our ged before we go to disney.

 

[unkadug]

yea i know what i gots to do its just getting up and doin it i always find some excuse no to do it

u got me thinkin maybe me and my hubby should get our ged before we go to disney.

 

[lilclerk]

(if u didn't know i smoke or was a dropout im pretty sure ur opions would have been diffrent)
thank you though for all of your opions

My boyfriend and I are both dropouts, and we've managed to turn our lives around and live pretty well now. Don't worry about it :wave: What's done is done, right? I got my GED a month after leaving school, and it was the easiest thing I've ever done. That may have been because I was still fresh out of school, but I definitely encourage you to do it!

 

[The Mom]

You came here to ask opinions about taking your brother out of school for a Disney trip, and boy did you get them!

But I think you've also gotten a lot of good advice about life in general. I know that you've had a lot dumped on you, and you've been dealt a terrible hand in the game of life, but you're still young, and you don't have to let your past define your future.

Making your brother "earn" his trip by working harder at school, starting today, is one way to do so. Making education a top priority, and making yourself a role model by getting your GED, is another.

I personally wouldn't take my children out of school for that long, at that age, and they are/were excellent students. But my life is not yours, and it appears that you are facing a tough choice due to your work schedules.

So, do what others have said, and have him work as hard as possible starting today so he starts off with good grades, then have him continue that work both during and after your vacation, and for the rest of HS.

There are colleges out there who will be more than willing to give your brother a free ride, based on his life history, as long as he puts in the effort in HS to get good grades.

But, being a typical teenager, he's going to need a lot of support and pushing from you, which gets very tiring, but is worth the effort in the end.

So good luck, and let us know how it all works out. In the meantime, you can still post and ask questions about how to get the most bang for your buck.

 

[420WDW MONSTER]

my boyfriend and i are both dropouts, and we've managed to turn our lives around and live pretty well now. Don't worry about it :wave: What's done is done, right? I got my ged a month after leaving school, and it was the easiest thing i've ever done. That may have been because i was still fresh out of school, but i definitely encourage you to do it!

thanks glad to see that that there is someone somewhat like me on here

 

[Phonedave]

You came here to ask opinions about taking your brother out of school for a Disney trip, and boy did you get them!

But I think you've also gotten a lot of good advice about life in general.

Just to add to what The Mom said. Threads on this topic normally go downhill very quickly. This one has remained quite civil. I for one am surprised (and quite happy)

-dave