Acting Out Stories Can Be Painful

Our family has started something new.  Denver and I decided that we needed to be more intentional about reading the Bible to our boys, so every night after dinner we've decided to read a story to them out of Egermeiers Bible Story Book. 

So far we've read three stories.  Nights number one and number two went perfectly.  The boys were really interested in creation.  They got involved and we went over and over what things were made on certain days.  Ben thinks it's pretty cool that God made Adam out of dust and "blew into him to make him come alive."  (He's right.  It is pretty cool.) 

The next night we read about Adam and Eve being tempted by the serpent and eating the forbidden fruit.  Denver asked the boys if they knew what a serpent was...Caleb answered, "Someone who does things for someone else".  Servant...serpent....hmmmm.  Not quite, but thanks buddy.  They can be so cute.

And then there was last night.  The story was "The First Children".  We started out ok.  Denver read the first part of the story about how Adam and Eve had two boys, Cain and Abel.  Then we got to the part where they built an alter and Denver decided it would be good to act out the story.  He sent the boys to their rooms to get their pillows.  Ben and Caleb brought back two, but Eli brought out one pillow and Bullseye from Toy Story. 

Denver and the boys piled up the pillows to make their alter.  Denver told Ben that he could be Cain and told Caleb that he would be Abel.  Then we went on to read that Abel brought the fattest lamb to put on the alter.  Poor Bullseye became the lamb.  (I know, I cringed and "awwwww"ed too.)  Then Ben, or Cain, got to put his vegetables (or the leaf of a house plant) on the alter.  Of course God was not happy with Cain's offering.  This made Cain angry.



Poor Bullseye looks much happier here
than he did on the pillow alter last night!

We then read the that Cain and Abel were later working in the field.  Cain is so angry with Abel that they fight and Cain kills Abel.  (As you can probably guess, this is where our little story time turns painful.)  Denver tells the two boys to act like they are fighting and then to act like Cain (Ben) kills Abel (Caleb). 

The boys started by growling at each other.  Then their claw like hands came out.  Before we knew it they were wrestling.  This wasn't too big of a surprise since it is an everyday occurrence in our house.  Next Caleb falls to his hands and knees with Ben on top of him.  By this time Denver and I are both telling them to stop; however before Ben can get off, Caleb's arms collapse and his forehead hits the hard floor.  Ouch!  Caleb started crying and our story time ended with Daddy holding Caleb and Ben saying "I didn't mean to!  I was being Cain!"

As Ben, Eli and I were cleaning up the pillows and poor Bullseye, I heard Denver say to Caleb, "Just wait until we get to David and Goliath, Caleb.  You can be David." 

And there you have it.  Good old family time at our house.  ha!