Two Experiences....One Day

Today I got to experience back to school shopping as a parent. Payton is so excited to go to Kindergarten this year (and so is his mom). We went with Tiffani and her two boys to get a few school clothes for the big new school year. Payton was ok to shop with....if you don't look at him dancing around to every kind of music the store is playing, trying on a new hat at every store thinking his mom is going to buy it at the check out stand, and I think he thought I was going to cave on the goulashes he tried on at every store. Other than that, we had a great time! I'm really going to have to ask the Children's Place if they have a copy of their music because it really got Payton moving to the beat! I was so glad my mom was willing to keep the other two kids so I could have this time with Payton. Todd won't like how much I spent but I figure that's part of going back to school...and it's "just money", right?
After a full day of shopping we came home and brought my niece Morgan with us. She's staying in Utah for a week to have a break from her mom in Henderson...at least that's what I tell Morgan. It was after we got home that I got a lesson in "tough love". I've never felt sooo bad for punishing one of my kids as I did tonight.
Just a bit of background; we decided to go for a bike ride/walk to some bike jumps a few blocks away. Payton decided he could just take off before we were all ready to go. STRIKE ONE. Then when he was heading back to find us I yelled at him to come over by me so i could talk to him. I knew he could hear me but he just turned around went back the way he had come. STRIKE TWO! Then when we got home I asked him to finish his dinner before he had any cake g-ma Turek had shared with us earlier that day. He decided he knew better and deliberately chose to eat the cake right in front of me. STRIKE THREE!! That should mean he's out, right? Well, I gave him one more chance to prove himself--which was a mistake. He wanted some apple juice (this is the worst part because it was over something so dumb). I told him he had enough and could have some water instead. Did he listen?? NOPE! I heard the fridge open and told him NO AGAIN. That's when he broke down crying and I sent him to his room. He had to open and slam the door about three times to let me know he was ticked off. I gave him five minutes to get in and out of the shower and then it was bed time for him. The other kids got to stay up and watch a movie. (Yeah for Swiss Family Robinson!)
That was the hardest thing I have had to do to Payton. He Love LOVE LOVES movies and to ban him from watching a movie with the rest of the kids was TORTURE--not just for Payton. I want him to spend time with his cousins and I love to see him happy but I'm tired of being walked all over by him. He assured me he would listen to me know if I would just let him watch the movie. I laid by him in bed thinking to myself, "I wonder how many times Heavenly Father feels this way? He really wants to reward us but once he's laid out the consequence he can't really change his mind, right? That's what makes him such a great Father. But it's got to be really hard to see his son's and daughter's so sad because they can't have what they really want because of choices they have made earlier."
Needless to say I cried with him while we were in his bed tonight. It's hard to see one of my kids really unhappy because of something I had to take away from him. I just hope it makes a difference in future choices. I'm not likely to forget it soon and I hope neither is Payton. (Bet you weren't expecting that novel, eh? Welcome to my REAL journal entries)