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| My oldest in his prime sandbox days. The sand was getting low in the sandbox so the planter box was his solution. |
I am all for kids getting dirty. In fact, I enjoy a good summer day driving home with three stinky, sticky boys in the backseat. However, watching the process of three boys becoming stinky and sticky from the sandbox is not so great. The sandbox. Oh, how I loathe the sandbox. This just might be the most disgusting and irritating of all things for them to play with...and they love it. It doesn't have to actually be a sandbox for my boys to make any amount of dirt/sand a sandbox.
If there is dirt in a mile radius my boys will find it. Hopefully there are shovels around but usually their hands work just fine for them. This isn't the disgusting part. I should start with my middle guy. He is three. There will be "poo poo pie" served along with a good dirt angel making session. If there is water involved go ahead and be ready for a dirt shake that he will eventually take a sip of. He also likes to pour dirt on his brothers heads too. This always makes his brothers laugh and a three person dirt-on-head game is in full swing. This is all fun and games until a poor, innocent kid gets a dose of the Mess Boys idea of fun. Now I have the A hole kids at the park. Thanks guys.
On to my youngest. He is 18 months old and a ball of disgusting fire. Watching him play in the sandbox is as fun as listening to someone scratch their nails down a chalkboard. He WILL eat fistfuls of sand that you get to see for about two days after his sandbox brunch. Then, an awesome diaper rash to follow. He also manages to get the sand up his nose and in his bellybutton every time.
My oldest is 5. He isn't so bad anymore. He thinks his brother's "poo poo pies" are hysterical and will play their dirt-in-hair game (after all he did invent it) but he gives me the glimmer of hope that the sandbox days come to an end at some point. That is him in the picture before I had any glimmer of hope.
Their sandbox play habits don't really bother me that much...I just don't want to watch it. All these disgusting things they do are so great for sensory and imaginary play. It is a good thing. I just don't want to watch fistfuls of sand enter the mouth or the sand getting between every single piece of fine baby hair that will doom my chances of not giving them a bath later. The end product I can deal with. The dirty kid doesn't bother me. I would rather not bath them tonight but fine. It is watching the entire ordeal unfold. Does anyone like to watch sand go up their kid's nose or in their hair? I don't.
I have mastered a parenting trick. It is where you only see sand flying. The second I see sand in the air I yell out my threats and go back to enjoying the day. You only have to threaten and follow through a few times about leaving if they throw sand that the threats work. I sit back, enjoy the sunshine and leave the micro managing for other parents. It's exhausting trying to keep three little boys from being disgusting. "Don't eat that!" and "Leave the sand IN the sandbox" can only be said so many times. I give up. Either you sit back and enjoy your day at the park letting kids be kids or micro manage the hell out of the situation and leave exhausted...with dirty kids regardless of your efforts. So, throw some SPF 30 on and wear your cool shades and declare, "I will not watch my kids in the sandbox!"
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