Extortion at the Disney Store

My awesome sister offered to buy Savannah a Disney store princess dress for Halloween because she was so excited that Savannah wanted to be something girly this year (last year we were lucky to find a spider princess costume so she wasn't a weird looking spider).  Have you seen these dresses? They are GORGEOUS and I was so excited! At first she wanted to be Ariel, but then I had the brilliant idea that we could go to the Disney store together to pick any costume she wanted. It would be like Prom dress shopping, but for 3-year-olds. 

So, a few days later, the entire family went to the Disney store. Guess what? I was so focused on the dresses, that I'd sort of forgotten that the Disney store sells toys. Lots and lots of toys.  And Savannah doesn't actually care about dresses at all. It was truly a recipe for disaster.

We walk in.

Savannah: "Mom, look at all these Ariel toys! I want a toy! I want a toy!" 

Me: "We're buying a dress today; you can ask for a toy for your birthday or Christmas."

Savannah: "I know, a new toy AND a dress!"

Me: "No, Sweetie, just a dress."

Savannah: "I WANT A TOY!!!!!!"

Me: "Savannah, we are picking a dress today. If you don't get a costume, you won't get to go Trick-or-Treating and you'll be so sad."

Savannah: "I don't care, I WANT A TOY!"

Me: "Let's just try on a dress, okay?"

She put on a dress. A stranger looks over and says, "You look so pretty!"

Savannah: "I WANT A TOY!"

I took her over to the mirror and she burst into toys because a dress isn't a toy.

We tried on a few more dresses to figure out what size she needed as she bawled and begged for a toy and then we left.

She screamed to entire way to the car that she would never ever pick a dress unless we bought her a toy first.

In the car, Corey and I explained that toys cost money and that we can't buy new ones all the time because we need to use our money for things like the house, clothes that fit, food, and preschool.

Savannah: "I know! We'll buy a toy today, and tomorrow Dad will go to Chase Bank extra to make even more money for preschool!"

Corey: "it doesn't work that way, I only get paid every 13 days."

Me: "If you want to earn money, we can make a chart and you can work really hard and after a lot of days, you'll have enough to buy a new toy."

Savannah: "I DONT WANT TO WORK HARD!"

Savannah (calmed down a bit): "Dad, remember we found a lot of money at the gas station yesterday!"

Corey: "Well, honey, we only found 5 cents."

Savannah: "Once we found money on the bridge!"

Corey: "That was a dollar.  We'd have to find 20 of them to buy you a toy.  You know, some kids have hardly any toys.  You have so many.  You'll get more for your birthday and Christmas."

Tears for a while.

Savannah: "I know!  Soon it will be 'Free Toy Day!'  Remember how there was 'Free Slurpee Day'? Slurpees usually cost moneys, but they don't on 'Free Slurpee Day'!  They're free! That means it's almost 'Free Toy Day!'".

Me: "I don't think there is a 'Free Toy Day' honey."

Commence hysterics.