Will he ever know that it was harder for me than it was for him??
Let me start from the beginning...At the start of this past week Garyn received the new Fisher Price mail flyer. It has all of the new toys available, including some great seasonal toys, and yes, it was pretty exciting to look at, even for me! Garyn took the flyer to bed with him during his naptime and the excitement of this catalog prevented Garyn from napping for two straight days. He studied this catalog inside and out. After a few days of constant review, he decided his favorite toy was, well.....ALL of them. Ha ha ha, so, we discussed the possibility of Santa bringing some toys and gifts he could receive for his birthday. However, he informed me that he "neeeeeeded" a specific toy immediately. The toy he so desperately wanted was the A to Z animal zoo (this is the same toy he wanted last year.)
So, I just didn't feel like buying Garyn a toy because he "neeeeeeeded" it. Therefore, I took this opportunity to teach Garyn the importance of a dollar. He had to earn the toy....so, after about the 10 millionth time I heard about this toy, I took Garyn into the kitchen and we made a quarter jar. I explained to Garyn that he needed to earn 10 quarters before he could get the A to Z animal zoo. He would earn quarters with good behavior and kind acts. He completely understood the purpose of the jar, and also understood that if he misbehaved, he could have quarters taken away.
Ha, well, we have had a very well behaved little man, (he usually is anyways...but...the jar is making it very easy...) As of Thursday night Garyn had earned 4 quarters, so I figured I better order the animal zoo so that when we reached the 10 quarters I would have the reward.
So, I ordered the toy....
Friday morning, I took Garyn and Gianna to a huge children's consignment sale. It included clothes and toys...lots of toys. Well, as I was talking with a lady about her display, Garyn was searching the toy table...and, all of a sudden, Garyn runs over to me smiling with excitement and encouraging me to come and see what he has found ( I need to mention that his excitement was beautiful to watch...so innocent, sooo very real!) Well, you of course know what he found....the A to Z animal zoo ( it was for sale for $28 less than what I had just paid the night before.) He instantly assumed that we would purchase the toy and bring it home with us.
As I stood there watching the most contagious excitement seep out of my son's heart, I quickly reviewed the situation in my head. Do I buy the toy so he doesn't make a scene? Do I buy the toy because this would completely make his day? Do I just buy the toy because, well, I love to make my kids smile and happy? Or, do I try to explain to him that I just bought the toy and it's coming in the mail,and that he must still EARN the toy?? Do I go for the easy way out or do I stick to my intent of making him earn the toy. And probably within 30 seconds of contemplating, I decided, he still needed to earn the toy.
Well, try explaining that to a 3 year old when the toy is in his hand....UGH! Needless to say, he left the sale crying and crying because "mama, I love that toy, I neeeeed that toy, mama." We made quite the scene as we were leaving. He was so upset that I walked to a bench outside and held him tight, hugged him softly, and try over and over to make him understand. I was somewhat successful getting him to calm down and even got a laugh or two, however, the toy was not far from his mind.
As we drove home, our ENTIRE conversation was about the toy and how badly he wants the toy. I was crushed!!!! I silently cried the entire way home. I was sad because I had to disappoint my son....and I never want that to happen...even if it is over the purchase of a toy. He was earning the toy so quickly with such good behavior, I was afraid my good intention of making him learn the value of a dollar was distroyed.
BUT, as I already know, kids bounce back quickly. When we got home, we talked about the toy for a while and then moved on to something else....and even earned another quarter that evening.
Garyn is half way to receiving his toy, and I CAN"T WAIT!!!! It will be a proud moment for both of us!
