The Gingerbread Experience

Emma and Siri's Nana (pronounced correctly with a Long Island accent) brought them a gingerbread house kit and we decided to attempt to construct it yesterday since I thought it was going to be too chilly to take a walk (it turned out that my weather info was incorrect). Emma did a great job waiting and watching while I piped the frosting onto the pieces to put the house together, and she even occupied herself while we waited the obligatory 15 minutes for the house to stabilize. However, when it came to decorating with the candy pieces frustration set in. I let them each eat one gum drop, and for Siri this was just the beginning. Her hand became a magnet for gum drops, and her mouth the dumping zone. Emma barely put any candy on the house, and I just couldn't figure out why this was not an activity that she wanted to participate in. I told her that she had to keep decorating, or else we would be done, but she didn't want to quit, so when I let her stay at the table she just stared at the candy and at the house. Fifty percent of anything that did make it onto the house was pulled off by Siri...that part was very hysterical, and I found myself laughing a little at how fast Siri was at either pulling candy off the gingerbread house or putting gumdrops in her mouth! When I was nearing the end of my rope of frustration I realized that Emma was just scraping the nasty packaged frosting with her fingers off the house and eating it. Needless to say, that was when the activity ended. Not that the girls were disappointed or anything...maybe my loss of control of my emotions ruined the fun...I don't know. I'm sure its my expectations in an activity that bring on disappointment, which is manifested into frustration at my kids lack of cooperation with my expectations. Just another lesson learned on the parenting front! The afternoon ended with prying candy from Siri's clenched fists and cleaning their blackened hands.
And today we're going to go for a walk.... :)