Sharing Struggles

It's tough to learn to share. Even grown ups aren't always good at it, so how can we expect kids to share lovingly. Lincoln had quite a lesson in sharing tonight. He was happily playing with his race car ramp when Beau barged in. Beau just wanted to be a part of Lincoln's fun, but Linc was so upset that the cars didn't flip over because Beau had messed up the ramp. Lincoln kept grabbing Beau's hand and pushing it away, but Beau was relentless! Each time I explained that Beau could play with the toys too, and perhaps Linc could give him a car to play with and show him how to use the ramp correctly. That must have seemed like torture to Lincoln!

Beau tried a different angle, but Linc was ready to block him. I made him take turns with Beau sliding card down the ramp, but he was being so possessive.
Beau got tired of all the shoving and whining and took a car elsewhere to play. He picked one that talked when he hit the top button, so he was chuckling away.

It wasn't too long before Beau had to come back over to the ramp. I insisted that Lincoln show Beau how to do it and share the cars. Luckily Beau played nicely and didn't mess anything up. Finally they had a few moments of togetherness!

I really do understand that sharing is hard for little ones. Lincoln has to share toys with the kids at school, and he probably thinks he's in charge at home. Beau doesn't really put up with Lincoln's bossiness, which really heightens the situation. Well, neither of them are going anywhere so they might as well get used to this sharing thing! I was happy that my endless preaching actually paid off . . . for tonight. I'm sure we'll fight this battle again tomorrow, but all the struggles are worth it when the boys have fun together.