Friday, August 3, 2012

#KGReadiness Day 44: Develop a departure ritual with your child

"Have a great day at school!"
How many times have you said this and heard this? How many other children hear these exact same words when they get out of the car? And does this admonition really work?
It reminds me of a conversation I overheard on our family vacation to the beach this summer.  As my brother (who is over 30, by the way) packed his car to make the drive back to Nashville he got the classic mom comment "Drive safely!"
To which he replied, "Thank you for reminding me! I was planning to drive like a bat out of hell."
Snarky, yes.  But my family has a wicked sense of humor.
And it reminded me of how much fun my daughter and I had when we choreographed our own unique departure ritual that we do whenver I am dropping her off somewhere for more than an hour. The rules were that it be sweet, fast, and not too embarassing to do in front of other people.
After much experimentation we settled on this: we kiss our hands like we're going to blow a kiss, but instead we give each other a high-five. 
Smooch and smack.  Kiss and clap. 
Keeps my lipstick from getting on her face (which is a kissing hazard, you know).
It is uniquely ours, and says so much--I love you, I hope you have a great day even though we don't have control over that, and I can't wait to see you later.
What's your departure ritual?

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