Daughter’s First Heels

I bought my daughter’s first pair of heels yesterday. She’s excited. I’m having a stroke. She’s only 11!! Yes, we attend many events throughout the year where a little dressier shoe would be appropriate rather than her forever flats. And yes, I could have said ‘no,’ but she’s worked on me. My dear daughter is very subtle in her manipulation. It’s never whining. She understands that there are times when the budget is limited, and that she can’t have everything that she wants. She’s just as content curled up on the couch with me watching a movie as she is going to the cinema. She’d rather go to Borders and read the magazines for free and simply enjoy a small dessert coffee than to come home with an arm full of teen gossip rags. She’s a good kid. She’s a patient kid. She does the laundry for both of us, takes care of her rabbit and helps clean the house. And she questions. Her manipulation for the shoes consisted of once a week stating (within the context of a discussion we were having, of course…. she’s really slick), ‘but I can’t wear heels until I’m 13, right?’ ‘Right,’ would be my reply. Until yesterday at the store. There was a BOGO for 50% off and we couldn’t find another pair of shoes that would work for ANYTHING. It just wasn’t happening no matter what we looked at, and I already have too many pairs. I walked around the corner and there they were…. a 2 1/2″ black patent pump. I brought them over to her, hoping and praying that she’d say they were too impractical for school (she’s actually very practical for the most part). Yeah, no such luck.

The heels weren’t in my hands for 3 seconds. She grabbed them, put them on and her legs instantly rose to her neck. Hurt me. She said, ‘you know you can’t take these back now.’ Yes, I knew that, so I rewarded her with the heels. I just hate that they are a venue that allows her to walk a little further toward her independence from me.

Oh, and did I mention this is her first year of middle school? Wake me up when she’s ready to graduate please…..