December 9th

We began December 9th as any other day - the boys had climbed in my bed sometime in the night. upon waking, they rubbed their tired eyes, started to harass one another about their claim to my snuggles and I shooed them out of the bed, tired of this.

Then I discovered that I was very tired. Admittedly, I don't go to bed at a reasonable hour and neither do the children, but these pinworms must be causing more trouble than I'd expected because I was dragging beyond my usual dragginess. Then the boys proceeded to trash the house beyond what I was emotionally capable of dealing with. Perhaps the pinworms were affecting their moods as well, making them crazed demons instead of their usual normal demon selves. Either way, I reached my breaking point. We did not fair well December 9th. No one did. And we did not make it to Candyland, as the envelope promised.

Fortunately, with some rest and recooperation, we were able to try again on December 10th. We made it - barely. My days are terribly convoluted with the extreme tiredness I am experiencing for whatever reason, though presumably it is illness that's doing it. I am exhausted. Thus I've been staying in bed long past when I usually do and could hardly manage to drag myself and the boys out of the trashed house until late in the afternoon. Candyland closes at 5 though, just like the A Christmas Story House. I got a bit lost on the way as well, so we arrived with but twenty minutes to tour the place. We did find out that they're open until January 4th, so if we're feeling really compelled, we could go back.

Candyland is a lot like the game. They even have sqares and cards so you can play a life-sized version of it, which we did until Aleks started to lose and I suggested they check out what else was there before arguing began and feelings got hurt.

Bastian on yellow amongst the gumdrop mountains.
Lollipop Lane.
Aleks tries to eat the giant gingerbread girl. I'm sure that never happens.

The twenty minute limit actually ended up being a bit of a blessing. Their attention wavered from Candyland itself and took us through the rest of the nature center, where the boys stared at lizards and snails and tiny fish in aquariums. They were able to get in just enough play without it devolving into too much of me chasing them around the place, trying like a lunatic to contain them and hating myself for it.

On the way home, we stopped at the Co-op for green peppers for chilli. I insisted on hand-holding the whole way through. I'm really trying too hard these days to control the children. It's one of those self-doubting phases. I have much to discuss on the matter. Perhaps later on one of the many message boards, though I am tired of being merely told that radical unschooling is right without any sort of contextual questioning or seeming self-doubt. I wish there were answers to parentings infinite questions...