$3 Purchases and Spring Recitals

Although I do everything in my power to avoid going to the most dreaded store in the world, sometimes it must happen, and it must happen with children.  This store which shall remain unnamed but rhymes with fart, is only conquerable with children if they have their own wad of cash.  Not one to be unprepared on a Sunday afternoon, I asked the boys how much they wanted to withdraw from their piggy banks.  They both answered simultaneously with three dollars.  This was to be the last joint decision for a long time.

Their thought processes and buying attitudes leading up to their purchases tell volumes about their personalities.  Miles had his item picked out within minutes.  Once his gaze fell upon the Marvel Superhero plastic flip-phone, it was a done deal.  An easy $3 impulse purchase.  No weighing the options, no thought process, just a final decision.  He didn't try to stretch his money or get a better deal, he went after what he wanted and was done.

Carter on the other hand.  .  .  I think we went through at least 25 different ways in which his three dollars could have been spent.  We deliberated on the quality of items versus the price.  We placed things in the cart and then retreated back to find yet a different item.  Everything from flashlights to something edible.  Finally, he was happy with a pack of coloring markers, a bottle of white glue, and a VERY cheap pair of blunt-edged scissors.  All for $3.  Making a final decision was a difficult task for this little man.  He covered every angle of his buying process.  Quality was measured, decisions were analyzed, and only through comparison was he able to come out ahead.

Was one buyer's method better than the other's?  No.  They were just different, and they spoke volumes about our boys' personalities.  Carter looks at the whole picture from every different scenario and worries, but Miles lives in the moment and goes for it.

This last month both boys were in the Spring Dance Concert.  Instead of taking a dance class, they take an acro class once a week.  This class performs at the dance recital.   About a week before the show Carter started getting really nervous about who might come to the show and what they might think of Carter up on the stage.  Would they think he was a grown up boy?

Would they laugh at him?  As this was his third show, his comments began to concern me.  However it all goes back to his thought process.  He covers every angle.  When we would ask the boys to practice Carter knew the routine down pat, but Miles would pretend not to know anything.  Sadly, as this video will clearly show - even the night of the show he just did what he wanted to do.  Sure, he was cute and it was funny, but it wasn't the plan.  He was living in the moment, and he had a blast.

As I embark on my new career as an elementary school principal, does anyone want to place any bets on which child might visit my office more often?  All kidding aside, I hope they're both in at least once a day for a hug and a huge smile.  Carter's visit planned to the minute and Miles' a random pop-in.