Gemma recently turned seven years old. She loves playing with me. We make up all kinds of games to play. However, she had to have something tangible as a gift, but not something that would add to her excesses.
I got really lucky when I found some magic dimes in my change jar. I took all I could find, and headed off to wish her a happy birthday. She had some friends over for the night. They were all excited to show off her gifts, and to show me what they were doing. Children really like it when an adult is interested in what they are doing, so the first half-hour or so was spent like that.
When I felt I had Gemma's attention, I pulled out the magic dimes. She took them and thanked me for the gift. She admitted, though, that she did not feel the magic. I told her that the magic is each one will turn into a trip to Connie's Donuts for her. Her eyes lit up! I told her to keep them separate from other coins so they stay magic. She knew just where she would put them!
She counted them. There were seven of them! I asked her if she knew why there were that many. She said it was because she is seven now! I told her there were seven because that is all I could find, but that her turning seven might be the reason there were only seven magic dimes!She called me yesterday to cash in her first magic dime. We set our date for this morning.
Gemma decided that she would be a reindeer for our date. Some people may think she was pretending to be a reindeer, but, when she becomes a reindeer, she assumes the role and acts as a reindeer.
This created an opportunity for us to produce a series of pictures that will show anyone wanting to act as a reindeer at a donut shop how to do so properly. Because reindeer have hooves rather than hands, they also don't have opposable thumbs. That makes it impossible for reindeer to hold donuts.
To compensate for the lack of hands, reindeer must bite away pieces of donuts. In this case, the reindeer is biting pieces of a chocolate covered cinnamon roll. Reindeer should always take a papa with them to donut shops because otherwise they end up with chocolate on their faces. They also don't have hands to hold napkins.Back to our date: we eventually packed up the leftover piece of donut and headed home. She had several toys to show me. She showed me that we could take a puzzle apart and put it back together. She showed me the frame she designed into a Christmas decoration.
When it was time for me to go, I asked her if she still had today's magic dime. She showed it to me. I told her that it is now just a normal dime. She put it into her bank.
All tolled, it cost about seven dollars for her to cash in her magic dime. That wasn't the magic part, though. The magic part was my granddaughter calling me so I could spend time with her. She would never remember it if I gave her a toy. I think she will always remember our trips to Connie's Donuts and the time we spend playing. I know I will.
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Bonding With Gemma
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