Family Church, Christmas Sunday, no evening service, short service and out earlier than usual. Kids have absolutely lost their minds. It was a beautiful afternoon and the kids insisted on tearing the house up, running, around like crazy, but when we asked them to go outside they said no. Then they started picking and fighting with each other, started to actually try and hurt each other, and had to try and put a stop to that. Lesa suggested we go to Milwaukee Trail. Nothing but bitching and moaning and complaining the entire way there. Then we got there, not even ten feet in, and there was a chorus of kid voices protesting. Wound up at Parkview Elementary playground where we stayed, and then the bitching was so bad we just went home and chased them outside but not before I let them know that I was done. Told them instead of yelling at them, instead of spanking them, instead of punishing them, I was just going to pick a gift from under the tree with their name on it and give it to a child in need. Don’t care what’s in it, don’t care how big, don’t care if it’s the best one and something they wanted, don’t care how much it cost me – I was just going to pick one and give it to a child in need if they continued to act up. Wish I had that kind of leverage for after Christmas because that settled them down. Out they went and burned energy. Lesa helped the kids make gingerbread houses, part of the gingerbread village she found somewhere. Watched a little TV after dinner until bedtime.
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