Thursday, January 24, 2013

The lunch dilemma.


Winnie is the "Star of the week" at school this week - which means that she gets to do something special every day. Today is "The special lunch" - she gets to have a special lunch (brought in by a parent) with a special person or parent. Originally, she wanted to have lunch with me, and I said okay. Today though, she remembered something...

Every time I go to school with her, she wants to come home with me. Even though she knows she can't, its like a compulsion that she can't control, and it upsets her so much she starts to cry.

Its why, when there is something special that parents usually go to (aside from Christmas concert, because she doesn't get to interact with me, just wave as the class goes by), I don't attend. Skating? No. Field trips? No. Swimming at the pool? No. I *want* to be there, but we've discovered that its just better for her if I don't go.

So today, her face went white as she remembered the likelihood of an uncontrollable meltdown. Her solution, because she still wanted McDonald's, was for me just to give in and take her home. My solution did not involve that. Instead I'm sending her two Happy Meals, dropping them off at the office and she can pick a special classmate to have lunch with instead. When I asked her if she liked that plan, she calmly and quietly agreed. Then looked me in the eyes and said "But Momma, I still love you, okay?"

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was huge. And that's enough for me.