A few days ago, Matilda and I went on a date together. In telling her all about my birthday dinner, it was discovered that she had never had creme brulee! Gasp! And she's already five - time to start living.
At her request the two of us got all dressed up (she loves it when I wear a dress and practically jumps up and down every time I put on a pair of heels) and went out to a little bistro near by. Okay, okay, it's a wine bar, but it's not like they served her wine, and they have really great creme brulee.
We had a lovely evening, the two of us. We talked about the impending transition to kindergarten and how much she loves to play with her friend Aurora. I told her about some of the things I did in LA and how much I missed her and Freya and Steve. We ate creme brulee with tiny little spoons and drank ice water from what Matilda deemed very fancy glasses, since, you know, they were different than the ones we had at home.
It was so much fun to take her out and do something completely different, something totally grown up and sophisticated. And she was so polite, she said please and thank you to our waitress and put her napkin in her lap, lifting it daintily to wipe the corners of her mouth as necessary.
The calm atmosphere and total absence of family pressures were like an elaborate game set up, one in which both she and I could pretend to be our best possible selves and just relax and enjoy the company of the other. I plan to keep this kind of evening in my stash of parenting tools and with a little luck it will still work when she's fourteen.
2 comments:
Aw. That's so sweet. I can hardly wait until Elliot is old enough to take on dates. You know, when she stops yelling out things like, "Mommy farted!" or "Daddy wears panties" in public.
Once she masters her inside voice, I'm all over the Creme Brulee.
One of the things I miss most about my teenager is being able to just do a "girls day out" and hang out at the little outdoor cafe' and go shopping afterwards. Now, she's too cool to be seen ANYWHERE with me.
Fortunately, my six year old is now begging for more "girls out" time, so I can still get my fix...at least for a few more years!
Post a Comment