Ethan is in every way a little boy; he climbs on things, can't sit still very long, and most of all, loves video games. He is particularly fond of the Lego games that combine his favorite toy, Legos, with his favorite stories: Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Batman. We own all three for the Xbox.
Brian and I originally thought that this would be a fun thing for him since they are not terribly violent as the worst that happens is the Lego characters break into pieces which is actually pretty funny and the games are also good for his fine motor coordination. While he is able to play by himself somewhat, he would much rather play with someone since he is the most social child I have ever met. In fact, the most horrific punishment for him is being removed from everyone else and sitting by himself and even the threat of said punishment is enough to make him instantaneously shape up. So, during the day, I have the choice to either play with him or be called to come help him every five minutes so I usually try to play with him.
My confession is that this week has not been a good one for our video game consumption. With my fibro flaring up, I don't have much in me in way of energy after dealing with all the pain to do a whole lot so sitting down and playing with the kids is a good fit. Until we play way too much.
I started to realize it a couple of days ago when I tried to go to sleep and when I closed my eyes, I kept seeing the blue coins (or lego studs, as they are called in the game) in my dreams and feeling the urgent need to collect them. Yesterday, we were having problems finding all of the minikits which are pieces to a set that build a Lego "artifact" that gets displayed in a special room at Barnett College in Lego Indiana Jones. My solution, "Let's look it up on the internet so we can get all of them! We need to get all of them!" I said. Even then, I didn't think this was a big deal; I mean, I only ever play with Ethan and he was just as excited about it as me. We saved up enough to buy the Grail Knight character and I think that is one of the first things I told Brian when he got home.
I finally admitted tonight that we have been playing waaaay too much and that we need to take a hiatus much to Ethan's chagrin. We were running errands and I noticed some shiny metal pylons in front of the door to an office supply store, presumably there to keep people from driving in the door. The first thought in my mind was, "Oh! We need to get the bazooka trooper to blow those up! Maybe we'll get a minikit!"
Pause... Ummmm... Wow... I have gone way too far and not modeled moderation to my son. We'll be taking a break for the next few days or until I stop dreaming about Legos. We will be getting out much more. Ironically, what started for my son will be stopping for his sake too. Now to find Ethan a new hobby that doesn't involve a screen...
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