Monday, January 21, 2008

I can't win . . . or I refuse to be happy?

The kids can be really challenging sometimes, or maybe I just have outrageous expectations?

I really liked that they built that fort this morning (see the post immediately located below) and I am glad that they were self-motivated and put it together and interacted with each other (which they are usually very good about) and didn't involve me. They came up with it and did it and entertained themselves.

All good things.

But then, when they were done, they just walked away and left it sitting there in the middle of the floor, right in the middle of everything, demanding that everyone and everything go around their creation. (Kids are like cats that way.)

So, one the one hand, I recognize and applaud their creativity and their (all-to-rare) independence. But at the same time I am completely frustrated by their inability to think beyond their own noses to see that what they do (or in this case did NOT do) impacts others.

They were warming up from some brief playground time in the backyard and I got to sit down and read a book for a bit. But when they were done with that, they wander over to me and ask "What can we do?"

That is a surefire way to frustrate me, since I really dislike being expected to be their lifetime cruise director. Add to that fact the reality that we have a house/basement FILLED with plastic crap toys that they hardly EVER play with enough and I don't like to be asked "What can I do?" Oh, I don't know . . . why don't you play with the toys you couldn't live without two weeks ago?

(Yeah, I'm sure that if my parents are reading this right now, they are laughing so hard they might strain a muscle.)

1 comment:

Sven Golly said...

And what good is a fort without a grouchy ogre circling around it grumbling to himself!?