Have your kids started playing Minecraft yet? If not, don't let them start! Once they do, you'll hear about things like creepers and some guy named Steve - all day, every day! You'll find your eyes glazing over as they describe their newest creation and what kind of armor they have now. And you'll curse the day you said, " This looks like a nice game for you boys to play."
This morning I took Ethan for a check up at the orthodontist. They're waiting for him to lose those last couple of teeth so they can slap some braces on him and take every last bit of our money...Anyways, the appointment ended up taking less time than it took us to drive there. I wanted to make our trip worth it so I bribed the kids with a ride on the carousel if they would keep the complaining down to a minimum while we stopped at the mall. Usually their OK for the first store. But then the whining starts and they complain about me wanting to make another trip to the fitting room forcing me to leave some amazing deals behind!
This time they did pretty good. Logan knocked down a clothes rack and Evelyn and Houston got into a slap fight but it could have been worse. As we walked towards the carousel the boys spotted the mother load of Minecraft items just inside the doors of F.Y.E. There were t-shirts, key chains, posters, and a ton of other things that made my boys squeal! They begged me to buy them every single thing and I said no to every single thing. I was the meanest mom in the world for refusing to buy them a cardboard box that was decorated to look like...a block. A $25.00 block of cardboard. No.
You would think that it was the end of the world! The entire ride home they went on and on about how awesome all the stuff was and how sad that they didn't get ANY OF IT! Ethan had tears in his eyes as he told me that he'd trade all of his toys for one creepier key chain. Or how he would rather have a t-shirt that says Minecraft than go to Disney World. You know. Because the t-shirt would last way longer!
As pathetic as it was, I took this opportunity to teach my boys that maybe next time they make me walk away from a shoe sale because they won't stop screaming, they'll be a bit more understanding of my sadness.
I must admit that I too have taken such opportunities to exude empathy from my own children. I don't think they really got it though. Ha, ha. Great post. I see that I'm not alone when it comes to shopping. Only now our mall has one of those super spongy, super cool, super germy play areas and my children beg to go the mall.
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