We got to the theater, and Emma was so pumped when she realized we were seeing a play (If You Take A Mouse To School, based on the book). And she seemed to really enjoy the show. A little too much, actually. B/c after curtain call, things went horribly wrong.A woman came onstage after the actors left to explain that there would be an audience q&a soon, and we were invited to stay if we so chose. Many people started to leave, and I decided we should leave too b/c a) Sophie had really reached her limit and was pretty fussy, and b) I wanted to have time for our nice lunch. Emma wanted to stay, and didn't understand that the play was actually over. There was a long line of people behind us, waiting for us to make our way down this curving, rickety backstage staircase, so I told her quickly that the play was done and I'd explain in the lobby why we were leaving. When we reached the lobby, I sat a whining Em down and began to spell out for her what was next in our plan for the day. But Em, being someone who needs everything explained before it happens, decided that instead of listening to me she would lose her mind. Which she did. Loudly. In fact, she started screaming and crying so loudly that she scared her sister into wails as well. The concession guy literally jumped so high he spilled soda on the floor, every member of the lobby stopped what they were doing to stare at us, and I've no doubt they heard her from the stage. I was so stunned by her extreme and highly embarrassing outburst that I did the first thing that came to mind - I ran. I pulled a kicking and screaming Emma behind me to the car, threw both girls, coats, bags, etc. in, and announced we were going home and she was going straight to bed.
And that's what we did. Of course, Em cried and screamed the entire way home. I sat silently fuming the entire way home. And Sophie alternately laughed and whined the entire way home. (Soph often thinks Em is playing whenever she's having a tantrum, which I point out to Em is a clear example of just how silly she looks, although Emma doesn't seem to see it that way.)
I did relent and give Em an apple when we first got home b/c I have this ridiculous problem with guilt at depriving my child of a meal, as if she'll starve to death before afternoon snack time. But then it was straight to bed, and Emma must have (accurately) sensed how incredibly angry I was b/c she didn't even put up a fight.
I was furious for a long, long time at how badly our initially promising outing had ended, and I swore I would never do Surprise Day again. But after I calmed down, I realized that Em's awful behavior didn't cancel all the fun we had prior to "The Tantrum." The show was really cute, Sophie behaved really well, and Emma laughed at all the funny parts and seemed to really enjoy and understand the play. I loved seeing my daughter appreciating and relating to theater, since it is such a big part of my life, and I also got a kick out of just watching her watch the show. I saw how much of the plot she comprehended - even a lot of the subtleties. Maybe that's why I reacted especially strongly to her bizarre fit in the lobby - because just before that moment I'd been thinking how mature she's becoming. In the span of one hour she proved to me just how much she's growing up, and just how far she still has to go.
So, with a bit of distance on the incident, I now know I will continue Surprise Day. Hopefully next one will be more universally successful. But either way, they are important learning experiences for the girls...and for me.
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