My Little Run-Away

Today we had some drama...

We were sitting around, just enjoying a lazy afternoon, folding some laundry, when Hayley asked if we would come downstairs and watch her ride Zach's ripstick. I did not want to interrupt my laundry and Kris was in the middle of something also. We told her we would come watch her later. This was not the right answer. She continued to whine and beg, which made us more irked by her persistence. Finally, she gave up and stomped off to her room. Several minutes later, we asked Tyler to go see what Hayley was doing, and he reported back that she was running away!

Well, I happen to remember doing the same sort of thing when I was her age. Always empty threats, trying to get sympathy. I would usually head around to the side of the house and hang out there until I would give up and head back in.

I went to check on her a few minutes later, and she was in the process of filling up two large duffel bags with clothes, and packing her blanket and pillow. A few minutes later, she appeared with her load and got her coat on. Being the sarcastic parents we are, we decided to play along. Kris asked her if she had charged her cell phone, and I asked her if Tyler could come along! We also reminded her that it was a bad time of year to run away (too cold and her birthday is coming up!), then we asked her if she had anywhere in mind to go to. She thought for a minute, then replied that she would probably go to the clubhouse (on our swingset out back). I thought that was a good idea, since it was already equipped with a folding chair. As she was trying to manage her load and get out the door, I asked her to wait, I wanted a picture of her to remember her by. She graciously complied, then proceeded out the front door, dropping blankets and pillows along the way. We watched as she rounded the back of the house and trudged through the crunchy hard snow. She reached the clubhouse and flung her luggage up, then climbed up after.

Meanwhile, all of us inside are laughing our heads off and watching the drama. After about 20 minutes, the phone rings and Justin answers. He then brings it to me and it is Hayley (I guess she did charge her phone). She asks me if I can bring her a warmer blanket. I reply by saying that she's the one that ran away and if she wants a blanket, she needs to come get it. Kris, overhearing this whole conversation, starts making "room service" jokes! I then remind her that we are eating in about 5 minutes and she asks me to call her when it's ready. A minute later, I receive a text that reads "hot dinner and a blanket". I guess she thinks we are the Marriott! Right after that, she comes running in and says she needs to go to the bathroom. We end up asking her if she is ready to come back home, and she agrees that she is done "running away."

Our daughter provides us with drama on a daily basis, and it is one of the things that makes her who she is. We're just glad she found her way home (not that we were worried)!