I remember learning this brain teaser when I was a kid... you have a fox, a chicken, and some chicken feed on one side of a river. All three of them need to get to the other side of the river. You have one raft, but the raft can only fit two of the three at any given time. If you leave the fox and chicken alone on either side of the river, the fox will eat the chicken. If you leave the chicken and the feed alone, the chicken will eat the feed. So how do you get all three of them across?
Or the other set of brain teasers I used to do, like there are three people and three meals and each meal belongs to one person and each person has a certain color shirt on. Then you're given statements like "Bob doesn't like veal" and "The person who likes chicken doesn't wear a yellow shirt" and you have to puzzle it out to match people to food to shirts.[1]
I bring this up because when I am alone with my two kids, I feel like I'm playing out a live version of these puzzles in my head. Jared only wants to play with me or do whatever I'm doing. Audrey only wants to play with Jared or do what Jared's doing, however her version of 'play' is to destroy whatever he's building and giggle. Jared does not want to play with Audrey or do whatever she is doing.
So what this means is that when I am alone with the kids, nobody is happy. I can't keep Jared happy because I have to make sure Audrey doesn't destroy his stuff (tears and a mournful "she ALWAYS destroys EVERYTHING I do!" are a common refrain these days). I can't keep Audrey happy because all I'm doing is running interference between her and Jared. I can't keep myself happy because, well, nobody's happy.
It's not all bad. Sometimes there are moments of pure delight, like when I am about to take Audrey to bed and I carry her over to Jared for a hug and a kiss, and her face just lights up and he giggles and kisses her. Plus, it can't be nearly as hard as my neighbor who has twin boys who are Audrey's age as well as a daughter who's Jared's age. Yet somehow, neither of these facts make it any more bearable when I am stuck in the middle between the two of them in the neverending tug of war.
[1] I had workbooks that had dozens of these puzzles in them, and I used to do them for fun. I was such a dork.
Um, "was a dork" - past tense???????
Meanwhile, survival techniques - finger painting and a LOT of paper. Oh, and baby girl strapped into her seat. Audrey's old enough. I'd suggest play doh, but it depends on whether she'll eat it. Oh, and in case you didn't know this - hot pink play doh drool (you know, the result of darling princess consuming some of it) stains. Permanently. Not even the bleach pen saved the day.
Posted by: Karen | January 31, 2007 at 09:42 PM
I think sibling relations is one of the hardest things I have to deal with as a parent. I'm constantly wondering "how come these two people who I love more than anything hate each other?" It is not fun.
Not a lot of help from me, sorry.
Posted by: landismom | February 01, 2007 at 05:37 PM
I guess I'm a dork, too, because I LOVED those puzzle books! Now, I'm turning into a Sudoku nerd! I can completely relate regarding the kids. Only, mine are now 5 and almost 3. So they fight over toys All The Time!! It doesn't help that the younger one whines all the time, so I have to decide if she is the victim or just being whiny. See what you have to look forward to!!!
Posted by: Colleen | February 04, 2007 at 06:04 PM
You did GRE logic puzzles for fun? You are a dork.
(You send the fox and the feed over together.)(ok, I'm a dork too. I like those puzzles, AND I used to get hung up on making up stories about why Jed couldn't sit next to Cindy at the dinner party.)
Posted by: Kimberly | February 12, 2007 at 06:43 PM