Feeling Blue

Last Friday Kaitlyn was having some trouble with one of her siblings upstairs and they came to "tell" on her.  By the time I got upstairs to check out the situation Kaitlyn had put her own self to bed.  When I inquired she admitted guilt and just lay there.  We didn't have to hold "Judge Mom's Court" or anything to figure out the real story or to come up with a fair punishment.  It was fairly uncharacteristic of her to act like this so I asked "why did you do it"?   She told me she was having a hard day because her best friend was gone now forever and she would never see her again.  So she just wanted to lay there.  I thought that was pretty insightful of a four year old to realize why she was feeling upset AND that it was making her mis-behave.  I let her rest and in a few minutes she was cheerfully up and active again.  Then on Tuesday she was riding in the car when we passed by her friend's old house on the way home.  She said to me "there is Penelope's old house and now someone else is in it. (Pause.  We turned the corner)  I don't have a best friend anymore.  I just have an "old" friend.  Just an "old" friend and no best friend."  She was sad.  I told her it was better to have an old friend than no friend at all.  Then she brightened up and said "but Mom.  You'll ALWAYS be my friend even when I'm all grown up" and she promised to live in the house right next door to me!  When I asked about the current owner she told me they were going to die anyway.  I promised that we would indeed always be friends... but I gave her permission to go a little further than the house next door.