Forts

Remember how much fun it was to build a fort and play in it? Erin and I used to build massive forts that took up the whole living room. Her forts had different rooms for sleeping, playing, watching tv, etc. Using all the tables, chairs and blankets in the house the forts would become things that often stayed up for days and she was always disappointed when it was time to take them down.

Matthew is a 3 year old boy... he should love forts right? Well... sorta ;) Let me start at the beginning with a semi related story. There is about a foot gap between the couch and the recliner. Over the holidays Matthew would put a blanket over the gap and call it a bridge. He would then cross the bridge from the couch to the recliner. This worked ok because Dad was usually sitting in the recliner to catch him, and in reality he was just stepping over the gap. He tried it with me a few times, and mean nanny that I am, I let him fall through the gap ;) It was really a lesson in physics.... blankets make bad bridges. Ok... it was really because I was not a fan of him jumping from the couch to my lap.

So, the fort building was in progress, Matthew was excited. I am not sure if he understood what exactly we were doing. But getting all the chairs and blankets seemed like great fun. I had only built part of the fort I planned, when Matthew showed me what he was thinking. To him I was making large "bridges" He stood on a chair which had a blanket draped over the back of it. He proceeded to toss himself over the 4 foot chair onto the "bridge" (blanket) which of course brought him falling to the ground with blankets and chairs following him. Now to a child who will start crying when you look at him the wrong way I was expecting waterfalls. Instead he pushes his way out of the blankets, informs me that the bridge broke and wants me to build it again. I explained that he needs to stay on the ground, and not to climb on the chair, but I build the fort again. One would think that he would have learned, but no, he threw himself over the chair again, though I caught him this time. Then I started folding blankets and putting chairs away. My fort building days were over for a while.

And then the crying came :)