Hello everyone! I hope all is well with you. I’m back today and I’d like talk about a little something on the personal side. This weekend I took my boys shopping for their Halloween costumes. This is always an adventure!
My oldest found his immediately and they had his size, so he was satisfied very quickly. However, my youngest is a tiny little guy, and we always have trouble finding something that will fit.
This shopping trip was no exception. You see he wanted a “creepy” costume just like his brother’s. Unfortunately, they didn’t have his size. He didn’t panic, yet. He scrutinized the costumes that would fit him, but didn’t like any of them.
By this time, I was anticipating a battle, or a crying fit in the store, so my anxiety level had turned up a notch. He went back to the costume that he liked, but wasn’t his size and started whimpering.
“I want this one.”
I reined in my frustration and said, “Well. That one’s too big.” I pulled it off the rack and inspected the hem. “Maybe, Grandma can hem it so it fits you better.”
“No.”
Why don’t we go to a different store and see what they have.”
“NO.” He shook his head stubbornly.
“Well, little man. I’m out of options. You need to decide what you want to do.”
By this time, I expected a meltdown. I prepared myself for the dreaded tantrum and envisioned a scenario where I’d have to drag him out of the store, kicking and screaming. Instead, what happened was he again inspected the costumes that were his size and chose one.
Of course, it was the most expensive one on the rack. Groan. Nevertheless, I bought it because that was the one he wanted.
We made it out of the store but on the ride home, he started to cry, claiming he didn’t get the costume he wanted. My heart went out to him; it’s so disappointing when we don’t get exactly what we want.
So, I said to him. “I know, honey. But you didn’t like any of the alternatives that I came up with either.”
It was as if a light bulb went off. He stopped his crying and sniffed. Then when we got home, he enjoyed his costume just as much as his older brother did.
This is one of those “life lesson” moments that we as parents get every once in a while. It’s about making choices and I feel that all kids need to learn this.
Sometimes we don’t get to have the choice we want for whatever reason. So, we have to make the best choice from the options that are available to us and live with it.
My son learned that lesson this weekend and it made me realize that I have to remember that too. I’ve got to make the best decisions I can with the options that are available to me. And not get caught up in the negativity of not having the perfect option. This just makes sense. I say my son learned this lesson this weekend, but I relearned it as well. What a bonus! Two life lessons for the price of one! 😉
Thanks for stopping by and reading my post today! I appreciate your time and if you have any life lessons that you’ve learned from your kids, or vice versa, please share them! I’d love to read about them. 🙂
Sometimes we just get what we need instead of what we want. Kudos to your son! I miss this part of parenting! Enjoy it (tears and all)! Hope you have a great Halloween with your family! Bahaha!
Thanks for stopping by Sharon! Even though this event was a little frustrating it was so awesome when he understood what I was saying! It was like we connected on a different level. 🙂 It was a good feeling and I’m so happy he’s finally satisfied with his choice. 🙂
sounds like you handed it quite well. It’s difficult for parents to standby as their children experience disappointments. But, as you clearly know already, we have to let them have some of those experiences.
Thanks Jeff! I appreciate you stopping by and sharing your thoughts. I agree, kids need to learn how to handle disappointment, but it’s hard on us parents because we don’t want to see our little ones unhappy. I appreciate you’re giving me a thumbs up! 🙂
Any responsible & loving parent would rather take-on the pain (of disappointment) herself/himself … than to have to witness the child experience it. But without going through such experiences, the child will not be able to fully mature. I heard a terrific sermon illustration which referred to the larvae of a butterfly which struggles to get out of the cocoon. It seems like an agonizing process, but if you were to cut open the cocoon and ‘free’ that creature, it could not survive. It needed that exertion / experience in order to build up its strength and finish its maturation.
Thank you Jeff for giving me that analogy! I’ll remember that the next time another one of those life lessons presents itself! 🙂
Great story, Lisa. And great outcome. After all. He was the one that made the final decision…of the choices he had.
Thanks for stopping by Rita! I think kids need to practice making decisions so that when it comes to the really big decisions in life, they’ll know how to do it. 🙂