Tyler and the One-Liner

We have medical syringes up to our ears, but things are going well with the antibiotics. He still doesn't feel great, but things are definitely better. I ended up taking another half day today for a few reasons... a) I'm exhausted and can't catch up, and b) I wanted to pick up Tyler from school, but that didn't work out, because he never made it there today. He struggled getting to sleep last night, and then woke up at 5:45 this morning, which unfortunately cramped my style as I was trying to get ready. He started his much needed two-hour nap this morning at 8:00... So, we were all a little off kilter today.

I took Tyler to his My Gym class this afternoon. We aren't actually regular attenders anymore, but once and awhile we hit a class when we can. The owners are kind enough to allow us to come and go when the moment strikes. Bottom line... Tyler has gone there since he was 9 months old and still LOVES it. Today, the class was almost over and the kids had "free time" to roam, climb, and play. Tyler was happily jumping on the trampoline and burst into tears. I thought maybe he had to go to the bathroom, or maybe there was an altercation I didn't see, but neither proved to be true. I am in no way saying he's perfect, but truthfully, that is not normal behavior for him... ever. I took him in the bathroom, calmed him down, and he took a deep breath and said, "I want to go home because I miss Daddy." And the crocodile tears started again. We went into the lobby area to put his shoes on and I tried the old, "You can't get a stamp or a cup of water, if you don't finish the class." He still wasn't interested and wanted to go home. The worst part, was that every time he stated his reasoning, his eyes welled up with tears.

I'll be honest and admit I wanted him to suck-it-up and finish the class. It's a challenge to decipher between Tyler just being three-years-old and Tyler missing his Dad being around. I could (and have) over-analyze(d) the issue and really do believe that children are FAR SMARTER than the credit they are given. I have always believed that children naturally "think outside the box" and sometimes it's the teachers who squash their creativity and abstract thinking... but I suppose that's the GATE teacher coming out... and that subject is a totally different post. I am well aware that Tyler knows something is happening and things are different in our house. The thing I am not sure about however, is his ability to comprehend the issue and then correctly utilize his assessment to his advantage... but again, I don't want to underestimate. I am not sure I will ever get an answer, but I think my Mother of the Year trophy may be resting on it.