The guilt of parenting

We were supposed to be taking Katie to the cinema for the very first time today. I didn't think she was ready for it until now. Our local cinema does a kids club on Saturday and Sunday mornings where the child gets in for quite a cheap fee and the adult goes free. It is all we have talked about for 2 weeks, she has been so excited. All of her acting up has been squashed with "remember... if you want to go to the pictures, you need to be good".

We very rarely get one on one time with each child. The car was due for its service so the plan was to take Jack and Ben to my mam's, drop the car off, then take Katie to the movies while it was getting done (just down the road from the garage). We dropped the car off at 9.30, the film wasn't on until 11.00 - Horton Hears a Who - but it wasn't open to buy the tickets early. We killed some time shopping, headed to the cinema, get around 6 kids from the front - SOLD OUT!

OMG, I thought my heart would break for her, I felt awful. It was her first time, we'd talked about the huge tv in the dark, with popcorn, I was expecting tears. I pulled her to one side and told her there were no tickets left for today, but you know, *tomorrow* is Saturday!!! (she knew we were going on Saturday) and we were going to come back tomorrow and see the movie, hurray. She bought it. I still felt just awful.

I'd been buying some running gear in the last shop we had been in and on a rare occasion, tried the stuff on before I bought. I never do that! I detest shopping...well, except for my new-found addiction to running clothes, but I still avoid the changing room like the plague. Chances are, it would have been sold out anyway, but I still felt like it was my fault. Anyway, Tony and I took her to McDonald's instead, she's only been around 3 times in her life and the ice cream was enough to keep her happy :)

So, tomorrow! We will make sure we buy the tickets as soon as it opens before we kill time. I can't wait to do this with her.