When Children Are Left to Dress Themselves

July 4th presented me with a bit of a challenge this year. I had to work. Which is pretty normal for me. But this July 4th, I had no babysitter for Michael. Luckily... this doesn't happen too often. It is not an easy or fun experience to bring Michael to work with me.

Problem A? I work in a casino.
Problem B? Well, Michael is hyper most of the time. Especially with the sensory overload that occurs from a giant casino full of noisy, video game like slot machines.
Problem C? Cocktail waitresses. Michael literally trips over himself when they run over to greet him. He gets nervous, sweaty and suddenly can't complete a sentence.
Typically when I have to take him to work with me... we bee line it to my office and I set him up with lots of paper and highlighters to keep him occupied while I finish whatever it is that brought me in.
So, I told Michael on Friday night that he'd have to come into work with me for a little while the next day. Out of nowhere, he asked me what he was going to wear. This is a strange question for him. He could typically care less what he's dressed in and manages to ruin more clothes in a few hours than I could ruin in a few years. I told him that I had no idea what he would wear. He then asked, "can I pick my own clothes for tomorrow?" Desperately wanting to avoid an argument, I told him sure.
So the next morning we get up and Michael reminds me right away that he is picking out his own outfit for today. I get to getting ready and leave Michael to find this perfect outfit. I was worried. I figured he was going to come out of his room in his Star Wars costume with the giant Star Trooper mask. Or maybe he'd found his Halloween costume from the previous year, and planned on going to work with me dressed like a zombie.

So I was shocked and surprised and absolutely relieved when he came down the stairs looking like this:


My own little businessman.