My daughter is fondly referred to as 'princess'. And luckily made to feel like one by everyone she shares her genes with. I try not to take it too seriously as I'd rather have her known as a child but it's just not flattering enough to say "aaaawwwww my child" as compared to "aaaawwwwww my princess".
So child aka princess was visiting her grandparents who literally could even dance on their one foot for her. They choose to conveniently ignore me when I say it's unnecessary and they should treat her like they treated their own kids. But grandparents I guess, are made of something, parents of children don't understand!
So as a ritual, even during this visit, she got her say in what to eat, when to eat, where to go and most of all what goodies to buy. Normally known as an extremely well behaved child, suddenly I saw my delusion crumble under the unconditional love from grandparents in the form of "you can buy anything you want" in a toy heaven! My heart almost sank but I kept telling myself, this is temporary and she'll snap out of it in an hour or so. Plus I remebered the Big "Promise" I had made about not enforcing my decisions or opinions on her and this was my chance to prove I could stick to it (although I was cursing myself already to have over committed).
She obviously ran to the corner where big toy cars were kept. The ones you can drive around in. By far the most expensive toy options in the store to my dismay. She set her eyes on a flashy red German one and with her eyes and smile, she almost convinced the grandparents how she totally needed it. I ran to their rescue but the damage was already done. They had committed to her and she had already performed a little dance right there. Normally I wouldn't have had an issue with this gift, but at that point I did. Because she already had one in white which was driven thrice in three years and she was going to outgrow them both in a year or so. Besides, the gift which was going to bring them to the top of her list of favorites was going to cost them a huge amount.
So for the first time in years I decided to stand between them and their love. Reminding myself of the damn "Promise", I swept her away to another corner and stood face to face with her. I looked her in the eye, and asked her to think if she really needed the car. After a brief silent eye to eye communication, I spotted a boomerang on display there, picked it up and flung it to show her how it worked. That distracted her. I told her, see this is something new. She instantly took a liking to it and started giving it a try. I also flung a ball at her and challenged her to catch it. She managed to do so and I knew I had the situation in control.
Gladly with her boomerang (Pink colour) and a ball in tow, she held my hand and we walked proudly towards the billing counter. I dont know what her grandparents thought but I hope they will understand that a Gift is a Gift. It's not about how much it costs but about what value it will add.
And just like that, with a 500/- bill, a shopping bag and four smiling faces we walked out of toy heaven.