Disclaimer: The stories I talk about in this blog have some elements of my kids, but also the stories shared by other parents, which happen to be funny and entertaining. At the end of the day; the blog is to educate, inform, and entertain parents. So sit tight and enjoy the ride.

My Son and I arrived at the police station. Still lingering in the back of my mind is what my Wife was thinking? Did she forget about our conversation? Was she going to back me up? Where can I get a cup of coffee?

Officer Frederick was already there.

I ask, "How did you get here so fast?"

His answer was straight to the point, "I drive a cop car. It's got cop tires, cop shocks, cop --"

I interrupt, "Thanks, Elwood. Does it have a cigarette lighter?"

"What?" Officer Frederick replies as he reaches for his sidearm.

"Never mind!", I quickly change the subject, "So, I brought the boy."

Officer Frederick smiles, "Well, let me show you to his cell."

Just then, the screeching of tires breaks the silence and ends with an abrupt stop. A woman driven by rage enter the police station!

First words out of her mouth were, "Let my baby go!. He is not going to prison today!"

I reply, "You got the wrong idea. We talked about this last night."

My son says, "What do you mean you were mom talked about this last night?"

My wife yells, "When would you think it is okay for me to let you put our poor baby in jail? You must be out of your bleeping mind. As soon as we're done, I'm going to divorce you."

I try to think of something that will trigger her memory of last night when I told her about the plan.

I continue, "Don't you remember? You are about to fall asleep. I ran into the room. I let you know what our Son did. You said to stop calling him our Son until the situation is straightened out."

My wife replies, "I don't remember a damn thing! All I know is that you are trying to put our Son in jail and I will not allow that! Who knows what those juveniles are going to do to our poor innocent boy."

I said, "Our Son is an old kid he is not as innocent as he once was!"

"Shut your mouth. You're talking about my Son."

"That's what you said last night. He is your Son when he does good things. But when he does bad things, he's my Son until I can get him fixed."

My Son chimed in, "There is a doctor visit after this? Nobody said anything about getting fixed!"

I try to calm my son down, "It's just an expression Son. Nobody is trying to get you fixed like the dog. One day your mom is expecting to have grandkids."

"Ewwwwwww", my Son replies.

Then, my wife looks at my Son and interjects, "Don't be a baby daddy like your Uncle Carl. Get your education, get married, and then have babies. In that order!"

"That is gross. Especially from my parents. Let's talk about something else like me going to jail."

After a few seconds, and everyone's heart rate slows down, my wife says, "I'm in the police station. It's ten in the morning on a Saturday. If I am wrong, then why are we all here."

I say, "I wanted to make sure that our Son would never steal again. I talk to the store manager where the device came from, and he is dropping all the charges. I called Officer Frederick, who is the community police officer, to give our son a tour of the jail cell. This is so he can add two and two together. If you steal, then you go to jail."

My wife's heart rate to go down.

My wife replies, "So all this is a big practical joke on our Son?"

I retort, "Yes. I set all of this up to teach our Son a lesson. I told you all this last night exactly so what is happening now wouldn't happen."

My wife replies, "You can't tell me this stuff what I'm tired! I'm not going to remember anything! Leave a note next time!"

She turns to Officer Frederick, "I'm sorry for wasting your time. It looks like we don't have an issue."

I say, "Even though we don't have an issue, I still want to show my Son the jail cell. Hopefully, by showing him the cell, it will resonate in his mind, when you do bad things this is where you'll end up. Your future is changed."

My Son, whose heart rate has also gone down since entering the police station, says, "Trust me, I never ever want to be here again. I don't want to get fixes! I'm going to eat my cauliflower without complaining! I have learned my lesson! All I want to do now is go home."

I turn officer Frederick, "I guess we're all done here. Thank you for your time. And hopefully, I never see you again."

Officer Frederick smiles and says, "I absolutely agree. Have a great day."

My Son gets into my wife's car. I get into my car. Then, both of us drive home. On the drive back I unroll the window, let the air into the car, and think. I hope this last time that I have to see the police station. I think my son has learned his lesson.

Sometimes being a parent means that you have to make the hard choices. Right, I could have just returned the device and not taken my son to jail. But, how is he going to learn that breaking the law is serious business? If anyone asks the question, "What my Son learned in jail?", the answer is that now he makes better choices, to include never going back to jail!