Playing I spy is always a good time killer in the car (and the bath as noted here).
The 5 year old is very good at it, the 3 year old not so great. He finds it difficult to believe that steering wheel and mirror do not begin with a B and car, tree and hair do not begin with M.
On Sunday we were sat outside a shop waiting for the husband to emerge bearing party food. The 5 year old was in full flow and we were having a pacy game of I spy.
The 3 year old who had been enthusiastically cleaning his window with an squeegee/ice scraper decided he wanted to join in. I decided to humour him and off he went.
“I spy with my little eye something beginning with ….. C” he said
“Car? … Cat?” the 5 year old offered
“Nope” he said
I decided to try the unorthodox 3 year old method. “Mirror?, steering wheel?, seat?, light?, bag?” which were all met with a “Nope” from him and a “But they don’t begin with ‘C’” from the 5 year old.
We continued and after naming at least 40 things we gave in.
“OK, what is it then?” I asked.
“It’s a secret” he said and went back to cleaning his window.
18 Comments on "How utterly frustrating …"
That’s just typical of men, that would drive me bonkers too! You have inspired me to write a post about an utterly frustrating moment I will link to this one too. Cx
I remember playing this with my younger brother when we were small on some interminable motorway journey. He chose something beginning with ‘D’ and we guessed everything under the sun ….many, many hours later we gave up and he said proudly, ‘djumper!’. I’m sure he still thinks it’s spelt that way ..
Well that showed the lot of you didn’t it? When mine were that little I used to do colours. Saved a lot of tears.
We play with colours instead of letters. But the middle boy (baby too young to play yet) often mixes up what he can actually see with what he’d like to see. So it’s not uncommon for us to try, and fail, to guess something like, ‘Lego pirate man with one arm’ or ‘Dinosaur that spits’. Kind of makes the journey go more quickly…
Being with my children in the car is a mixed blessing.
On the upside the children are strapped into a confined space, meaning I know where they are and the damage they can do is limited to the tools at hand.
On the downside they can reach each other easily for hairpulling/pinching/thumping sessions and the other one can’t run away. Also if I leave them in the car to pay for the fuel at the garage they get into the front within seconds and start pressing every button in sight. Grrrrr.
They are similarly keen on “I Spy” but I’m not. I’m the grumpiest Mummy-in-Car that there ever was. I just want to get there. In silence. Or at preference with Radio4 to entertain me.
No Children’s Games Please. I’ve become a park in Belgravia!
With sympathy. xx
Are you kidding me? I LOVE being in the car with the children.
First one to see is our game of choice.
“First one to see a man in red pyjamas” my 4 year old’s stock response …
That’s cute! FP isn’t quite old enough for I Spy but I do remember my sister insisting that ‘noodles’ began with ‘s’ when we were little.
Very cute – and yep we play this all the time with the 3 and 5 year olds! Three yr old always says the same thing for some reason – ‘I Spy with my little spy something beginning with pillow’ and then dissolves into fits of giggles. For some reason it always makes us laugh too!
Of course secret begins with C!
Did he tell at all? I would have imploded with frustration!
I have a love hate relationship with eye spy!!
I’m definitely going to remember that one for future use.
That’s brilliant! Might have to wind my own kids up that way ;o)
I hadn’t thought about it like that, will have to try it out.
Argh children in the car.
I hate ‘children in the car’ in most capacities … especially journeys of more than ten minutes and anything which requires waiting.
Ok – your 3 year old sounds a real tease.
But a very good keeper of secrets.
Bless them and their ‘at times’ very annoying ways!