Guess what he got, shortly after this.

Yesterday we said a tearful goodbye to our friends Sarah and Tallulah. Or rather, I was tearful--it's sort of my resting state these days--and Henry was sulky. As we walked home he asked me why I looked sad.

"I'm going to miss our friends," I said. And Henry replied, "I'm not going to miss them."

"Really," I said.

He stopped walking and clenched his fists. "I'm not going to miss them," he wept, "Because I. AM NOT. MOVING."

I picked him up. He dampened my shirt with his tears. Then wiped his nose on me for good measure.

"I don't want to move," he said. "I want a cookie."

Comments

[Tiny Coconut]

My daughter cried and cried and cried when we moved from our old house to our new one. (She was 4.5 at the time.) Mostly, she cried about leaving the cat next door, who generally spent his days hissing at her and trying to bite her, but whom she loved desperately.

The day we moved in, a couple of girls from down the block brought over a plate of freshly baked chocolate-chip cookies to welcome us to the neighborhood.

"I like this house," Em said through chocolatey lips. "Even if I do still miss Dukie."

Cookies do cure a wide variety of ills. I recommend them for moms, too.

[margalit]

I moved my children from Boston to California when they were just 6, and then back again when they were 9. Both moves were incredibly painful for the kids and for me, but we did survive. I don't regret moving them, but it was hard from them to be the new kid, and to learn about all the new things in their new community. I tried to make it into an adventure, but there were days when I cried as much as they did.

We're not moving again, at least not until they go away to college. Then I'm thinking caribbean...warm...beaches....warm. Sigh

[Vida]

Aaaaw, Henry. I think that pretty much sums up what a lot of adults want when they're sad, too. We're just too cool to admit that we want cookies. Poor thing.

[AlissaE]

sometimes, when life throws me sadness and lemons, i just want someone to wipe my nose on too. (((HUGS HENRY! & Alice too!)))

[European]

I need a cookie now, too.

[TB]

I feel you sister, but at least you're only moving to New Jersey. I'm sure you can entice your friends away from the city for a visit. Tell them about the fresh air and the sunshine and the trees and the nice suburban folks and don't forget to get them drunk so they have to stay the night.

[anne nahm]

Cookies. Maybe a little milk too. A good move is better than a bad move, but it's still hard. So love that baby up :^)

[Planet Mom]

Cookie schmookie...give the boy a pony. :-)

Seriously though, it is written (somewhere, I assume) that cookies (no matter the variety) cure everything from hangnails to hemorrhoids). So, if you gave him the cookie (and you're no dummy...I know you gave him the cookie) the skies should be brightening soon...even in New Jersey. :-)

[kristen]

Oh, dear. Be good to yourselves.

[Julie]

For weeks - weeks that turned into months - I heard from Tacy about how she wanted to go back to New York. How she missed her old school and her old teachers. How she missed our old apartment. How she did NOT like it here. And oh, how hard it was not to reply, "Me too, little sweetie. Me too."

It gets better. I promise.

[kristin]

i love kira's post. and i'm adding my voice to the others who moved a million times as children. we were an IBM family, and every 2-1/2 years, off we went. horrible. BUT being reminded of the stuff that comes with you when you move is always good (as a child i always forgot that my stuff came with me), and we always had really good 'move presents' of a new toy or a fun thing to do. and cookies, lots of cookies.

he is just such a sweetie.

[Nicole Rosenleaf Ritter]

I've just linked to some of your moving posts from my blog because you just explain it waaaaaay better than I ever could.

We're too in the process of house-buying and moving, although not to a different town and state this time. We did the big international move before our little guy was old enough to know the difference two years ago, but I sure do and did feel the pain. This latest move feels like I'm mourning all over again for leaving Prague and moving back to the U.S., with the added fun of taking on a (naturally too big) mortgage for the first time in our lives.

Stabby stabbiness indeed.

I find myself wondering if alcohol will be enough to get me through. Cookies could be the next step.

[debby]

Oh that is too sad..

[Magrak]

We painted fish on the wall of our kids' (otherwise ugly) bathroom in the new house. I have no artistic talent but that didn't stop me. At the kids' request we painted a Nemo and a Marlin and a sandcastle and an octopus.

I did it the day before the move because I knew I would never have the time afterwards. It was a big hit. Especially when friends would come to visit, my son loved to tow them in by the hand to see "the fishy bathroom."

Good luck with the move --

[Velma]

We just celebrated the one-year anniversary of moving to our new house. I know some people advocate keeping things the same as much as possible, but we used a different strategy. It's called "No Rules!"

We gave the kids lots of surprise presents, ice cream, cartoons, let them sleep in their clothes, let them have breakfast for dinner, and it worked like a charm! (Plus, all the new stuff and cartoons allowed us to park them in one room and get the rest of the house organized.) Seriously, we only did fun stuff as much as possible during that several-week period.

Then we got them back to work at the rug factory ASAP.

[madge]

I'm so glad my daughter was only 18 months (and therefore not really sure what the hell was going on) when we left Brooklyn.

That said, I did enough crying for both of us. Hang in there...

[Dana]

Awwww! Henry is too adorable. I'm kind of teary myself!

[Sheryl]

Poor Henry. Moving sucks.

[julia]

oh, sweet, sweet boy. I hope you guys have a good move, and that H ends up more excited than sad. You, too ... I know it's hard to leave a life you're used to. I think if it were me I'd just swing wildly between the two extremes (adventurously giddy and desperately low). Equilibrium will come, right? It always has for me, no matter how long or hard I fought it, ha ha. Your new house sounds fantastic, and you'll have such great memories of your life in Brooklyn.

[Elizabeth]

Awwww, sad Henry, sad Mama. Hope the cookies helped.

[Aj]

:( Happy cookie thoughts sent your way.

[Kristen]

Let him eat cookies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jonniker]

Cookies to the entire Finslippy household wouldn't be a bad idea.

Poor little Henry.

[Annie]

Cookies are WAY better than moving. I recommend having a handy supply throughout the process.

[Schnozz]

It's going to be okay. It really is.