This was going to be a long shopping trip. First she grumbled about having to carry a tote bag. She finished the grumbling by saying she wasn’t interested in buying any school clothes.
Five years from now she would begin to enjoy a trip to the shopping mall. She would want to go through every single store. She would almost be ready for a charge card of her own.
This was not a day when a fashionista of the future would enjoy shopping. She’d rather play in her sandbox at home. She didn’t want school clothes. She even refused to carry any packages.
I reminded the little tyke that we were buying her school clothes after all. Why shouldn’t she help carry some of them? She was about to say that unacceptable phrase, whatever, but stopped herself in time.
I told her we could go for an ice cream treat when we were done. She brightened up immediately. Then she said one of those odd things that little kids sometimes come up with. She said she was going to let her ice cream drip on her left foot and get all over her brown boot.
What is she thinking, I wondered as I giggled a little. I asked what she wanted to do that for. What an imagination she has I mused. I asked why just one foot and why the left one. She seriously informed me that she hated her left foot.
She had a mad look on her face and told me she only liked her right foot. She was mad at her left foot. Then she said she actually hated her left foot.
I didn’t know how to answer, so I didn’t respond. I handed her a bag and off we went. The mall was air conditioned. We bought three pair of jeans and an outfit with a tunic and leggings. Then we walked over to sweaters.
She liked the jeans. She didn’t want to buy a sweater on such a hot day though. I agreed it was too hot to wear one, but not too hot to buy one. The temperature was up to 85 that day.
We did find some sweaters, one red, one blue and a yellow one. We also found tights and new socks. Then we were on our way to look at shoes.
She loved a pair of boots in the display. She asked if she could have them. She smiled for the first time since we arrived at the mall. She wanted the boots but they were women’s brown boots, not girls. She informed me they were the only snow boots she wanted. I told her we would find similar boots in her size.
I waited for the argument to come. It didn’t. She was ready for ice cream and done with complaining. As I waited she thought about what flavor of ice cream would taste best.
Expecting her to gripe about it, I was happily surprised when she smiled up at me and asked if it was time to go get the ice cream I had promised her. She informed me she liked her new clothes. She even told me she was willing to help me carry them home. Shopping trip over, we headed for the ice cream shop.