Candyland Lessons

This story is too funny not to share:-)

One thing about parenting that I have recently very much enjoyed is witnessing my children experience something for the first time. Their amazement and awe is so innocent and refreshing. What a precious gift we have been given as parents to impress upon our children the teachings of the world!

Last night we as a family, decided to play Candy land. It was Logan, me and Dad/Austin teams. It started off so nice and fun, Logan got ahead in the game and kept saying "I am going to beat you up!" I think he meant " I am going to beat you". So we gently told him that it wasn't nice to brag during a game and you can say things like " I am winning!" instead. Eventually Logan was 2 spaces (green and orange) from the finish and we was so excited! Dad/Austin and I were still really close to the beginning. Then he drew a card that wasn't ideal at all...the cupcake card. This card would send him back nearly 10 spaces from the beginning. His face immediately fell and he tried to put the card back and he said " No, I need an orange or green card". Mike and I looked at each other like 'oh great, this definitely needs to be a learning lesson, but how sad is it that he was so close to winning!!!'

I was actually kinda surprised that Logan understood the whole winning thing and that if he went back to the beginning he probably wouldn't win. If he understood that, then he needed to be taught the rules of the game and to start learning to not be a poor sport. While we are trying to explain to Logan that he needs to go to the cupcake space, and him fighting us, Austin shouts out in the manliest voice "Go to the cupcake!!!" and points to the cupcake! HA! Mike and I are practically rolling in laughter at the whole situation, but trying to keep a straight face so Logan knows we are serious. Eventually Mike took Logan on his lap, and quietly explained again the reason why he had to go to the cupcake space and prayed with him. Logan kept saying that he had to finished and win with the green or orange card. (All this over a game! But we knew the importance of teaching this now) Logan looked with a long face at the game board and said "But the cupcake doesn't understand where I am going!"

Bwaahhhaaahaha!!! Poor kid. Why couldn't he just win?!?! Guess there are always lessons in life, even in Candy land. Logan soon realized what he had to do and took his piece and slowly back-tracked all the pieces, jumped over Mike/Austin's piece and then jumped over my piece and tracked all the way to the cupcake space. We kept playing after that and to Logan's disappointment I won...or according to him "I beat him up!" Me winning took another break in the game to explain to him about others winning and being happy for them...yikes! This whole lesson teaching thing was hard when they don't want to understand it! Mike/Austin and Logan kept playing to see who would win next (should have been Logan, so we thought it would lift his spirits some to get him to win second place). Because we had played for so long we had to recycle the cards played from before. Logan was fairly close to winning again, when to his demise...he pulled the cupcake card again.....

I know this was probably more funny in person, but what a great responsibility we have as parents to teach them even these little lessons in social skills and game playing! There were plenty of times when I just wanted to let him win because he is ONLY 4 and I love my son, but I agree with Mike that even these little instances make a difference.