Lofton's Christmas Party

On Friday, I went to Lofton's Christmas party. His class sang some Christmas songs, and Lofton did a great job. It is amazing what a difference a year makes. He stood up there and sang every line and did everything he was supposed to do, which is a big improvement from his first class program a few years ago when he stood on stage and stomped his feet or last year when he kept pulling at his shirt. He did a great job, and he really sang out; he wasn't a bit shy.

After the program, we went to the cafeteria for breakfast. He fixed his own plate like such a big boy, and then he found us both a seat. I really enjoyed eating with him, and it made me so appreciative of the fact that he goes to daycare in the same building that I work in. I have had to work for almost every class party, but since I am down the hall, I have always had the good fortune of sneaking away for awhile to attend, and I have had the better fortune of having bosses who want me to spend special times with my children; Dr. Jones even offered to watch my students so I could go.

After breakfast, it was gift time. Each child was told to bring in a wrapped gift that he or she would want to receive themselves. Lofton chose a Bakugan, and when we were wrapping it, he was adamant that he would keep it. I explained the situation, and then we had a discussion on proper gift opening ettiquette. I walked away from the discussion confident that he would say thank you for whatever he opened. However, right before gift opening time, Lofton told me that he and his friend Jackson were going to trade gifts because both had brought a Bakugan. I realized that this could be bad, and I quickly told him that it didn't necessarily work that way, and that he might not get Jackson's gift. And, as fate would have it, he didn't. As the boy who did get Jackson's gift started to open it, the tears started to come. However, I was pleased to see him put his head down and fight hard to hold them back especially since another boy had just been taken out because he was displeased with the gift exchanging. I caught Lofton's eye and mouthed to him that I was proud of him and that he was doing great. Well, I guess since I was sympathizing with him, he broke down and started crying out loud; though, he was still trying really hard to control himself.

Then, his number was called, and Mrs. Terrie put a present down in front of him. He looked at her and said, "No, thank you!" Again, I was pleased with his manners but still a little embarrassed. However, I put myself in his shoes and walked over to him and explained again to him that he needed to open the gift that he received, put a smile on his face, and say thank you or we could give the gift to another child or Landon. Well, that did it; he opened it, and if I'd have had a video camera, I could be $10,000 richer. Lofton is always wanting to do something funny on camera so we can win America's Funniest Home Videos, and he had just done it, but I didn't have my camera. As he opened the gift, his demeanor totally changed, and he began jumping up and down when he opened a Transformer!

So, needless to say, we have had the discussion again about how to react when receiving gifts, and I can only hope that he does better the second time around!