Traveling with the boys can be challenging at times. Their close proximity to one another while strapped in is a tempting opportunity for them to irritate and taunt each other. This almost always ends in some physical contact, screaming, crying and yelling. As torturous as it sounds for each of them, it’s really the driver who loses. Yet another case of their extreme competitiveness rearing its ugly head. Yes, there’s nothing quite like taking some good old fashioned sibling rivalry on the road.
To help alleviate some of this needless bickering, my wife created somewhat of a game. Each participant is to find as many yellow vehicles as they can (by the way, construction vehicles don’t count), each time indicating their success by yelling the word ‘SCORE!’ Although the game was intended to keep their eyes on the road and off of each other, the basis of racking up points naturally degraded this into another competition. Before we knew it, they took turns denying that one had actually seen a yellow car/truck/vehicle while the other loudly protested. When their diplomacy of screaming at each other failed they resumed pounding each other.
We’ve since modified this game to be a team effort only – with no individual scores – which has helped, but I still can’t help but cringe every time I spot a yellow vehicle while driving.