Sunday, June 1, 2008

Advice Needed...

I really do not know what to do, this might be a bit long but please read and let me know if you can help me.

Y'all know J had her Popsicle And Pool PARTAAY! yesterday. Well she ended up having one of the girls stay after the party and she ended up sleeping over. The girls had a great time, lots of giggles and late night antics. This particular friend use to go to school with Jordan but once we got Jordan in her new school, last year, they only ever see each other if Jordan has a gathering and sends her an invite. ANYWAY...something kinda horrible happened, something unexpected and really uncomfortable and i have no idea how to deal with it....

i was helping "Friend" gather her stuff because her mom would be by shortly to pick her up and i wanted to make sure she was ready. i noticed that she had all of her things (wet swim suit, with dry pj's etc) shoved into a torn grocery sack. So i grabbed a bag and said, "Friend, you go get your towel off the fence by the pool and i will get your wet stuff and dry stuff separated". Friend came running past me in Jordan's room and planted herself atop the bag. She said, "no that's OK i will do it". And a baaaaad feeling filled the room. So i said, "Oh i don't mind helping you, it's OK" and as i said that... one of Jordan's belongings fell from her sack. She looked up at me and i calmly said, "oh well, that's not suppose to be in there, is it?" Friend stared me down, her face said it all, there was more in the bag. So i asked, "are there more things in the sack that should not be in there?" Friend said, "No, we were playing with those last night and it must have got in there by accident." So i said, "OK then, just let me just separate the wet stuff from the dry stuff and you can go get your towel." She tried really hard to continue pulling wet stuff from the bag without anything else falling out. She was unsuccessful. 2 more of Jordan's belongings fell out. She was caught. Jordan walked in then and saw her stuff on the floor and the look of confusion and sadness on my little girl's face broke my heart. Paul came around the corner as Friend walked out of the room to get her towel. I waited until the back door alert sounded, knowing she was out of earshot, before i said, "Friend was trying to steal this stuff." Paul was shocked, Jordan was shocked and i had no words. Friend brought her towel in and we added it to her bag. She sat in silence in our front room waiting for her mom. Jordan tried several times to just chatter on and make conversation as they waited. Friend sat stone cold, angry expression looking out the window, no words. I finally went in and asked, "Friend are you embarrassed that i found Jordan's things in your bag? Are you mad now? Do you want to talk about it? Are you worried i am going to try and get you into trouble with your mom?" nothing, no answer, no change of expression...silence. A few minutes later Friends mom pulled up, Jordan rose to give Friend a hug goodbye, Friend pushed past J and ran to the car. I waved to her mom and they drove off.

After she left Paul and Jordan asked for more details. i explained everything to them. Paul asked Jordan what she thought. She said, "I don't know how to be friends with a thief". We had a long talk about what happened and how we felt sad about it, because they had such a fun time together. Jordan expressed concerns about trust if she ever had Friend over again and how she felt sad that Friend left without hugging her goodbye and that she was worried that Friend was mad at her. Tonight when Jordan said her prayers she asked that Heavenly Father "help Friend not to steal things anymore, from anyone, ever."

I don't know what to do. Do i call her mom? Do i just let the friendship go? They only ever see each other if Jordan invites her to a party, they don't even live in the same town. So now what? i am torn because i know i would WANT to be told if my child ever pulled anything like that. But i am not so certain this mom would care, she is kind of a hot mess herself, it's actually kind of sad.

So now what? What would you do in this situation?

30 Dandelion Wishes Made:

Crystal said...

I have some Bloggy Love for you over at Memoirs of a Mommy

Crystal said...

This is such a sad situation. But I think you know the right thing to do. Follow Jordan's example and pray about it. The Lord will tell you what to do.

Crystal said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
emilieie said...

I would not bother telling the mother of the "friend". I think the girl may have learned her lesson when she got caught by you.

As far as the friendship between the "friend" and Jordan it may be over. The "friend" just might be too embarrassed to talk to Jordan again. I would tell Jordan that she may be better off not trying to be friends with the girl. It shouldn't be too hard since they don't have regular contact. Anways Jordan seems to have plenty of friends and she dosen't need to deal with ones that aren't nice.

Crazymamaof6 said...

this is a hard one. maybe the friend is feeling like Jordan has so much great stuff she wouldn't miss anything. and is jealous. it's a hard situation. and space might be good.
you could weigh the issue over telling the mother. but if she is a nut it will likely not help. bummer. for everyone. i wouldn't pursue the friendship further.

SuperCoolMom said...

That stinks! I'd definitely dump the friendship. But as far as telling Mom? ... If you don't think she'd receive it well, I'm not sure if it's worth the confrontation. You'll have to follow the Spirit on that one. Poor Jordan. What a sad taste of reality for her. I bet she felt so betrayed.

Jen said...

Oh, this is such a tough situation and I feel SO BAD for Jordan. I'm glad you posted about this because it's things like this I want to have advice about as well as my kids get older. I went and talked to my hubby about it. This is what we decided. When it comes to calling the mom, I wouldn't in this situation especially if you think she may not receive it well or get defensive!. There may be times where it would be appropriate to talk with the mother, but with this particular mom, I'd probably let it go. As for the friendship with the girl, as sad as it may be, I'd probably end things there as well. It makes it a bit easier seeing that you don't see her often unless Jordan did the inviting anyways. My hubby made a great point. He said, I wouldn't want to have someone in my house that had the gall to steal from their friend (my daughter). I would be fearful of what she may decide to take of mine. Anyways, this is difficult and my heart goes out to poor Jordan! Such betrayal! I had a couple friends that stole from me in high school and it just seriously made me so sad. They both came from homes with TONS of money, whereas I did not, so I just couldn't understand why they needed to steal from me. It made me sad. Good luck. Hopefully Jordans prayers WILL be answered and this girl will not steal anymore. Hopefully, she was embarrassed enough that you called her out on it. Good for you!! :)

Shar said...

Ooh. Tough. The hardest thing I have to deal with is sharing toys and not hitting.

It seems that those who steal, usually lie. I don't know that I would continue the friendship. That's a tough one!

Debbie Yost said...

Well, it appears I am in the minority here, but I think you should tell the mom. I would call her and explain what happened. Then I would drop it. You have given her the information and it is now up to her to act on it or not. As I see it, the friendship, sadly, is over. Even if Jordan wanted to continue, I doubt Friend does. I don't think you should allow the friendship because this girl may have bigger problems than your realize. Maybe she does it for attention or maybe she does it for money. If you care about Friend, I think you need to hold her accountable for her actions or it is only going to get worse. Hopefully the mom will take action. This is how I feel about it. I'll ask my hubby his opinion later (he used to be an assistant prosecuting attorney) and I'll let you know if he has a different idea.

On a separate note, I noticed on my blog this a.m. that my name on the reader says "no-reply blogger" but I don't know why. Can you still respond directly back to me from my comments?

Anonymous said...

The mom has a right to know. Sure the kid MAY have learned her lesson (at least at your house), but her mom still has a right to know so she can deal with her own child in a way no one else can.

Leeann said...

I would want to know if it were my child, but I think you are right to consider the type of home she comes from.
I don't think the friendship will continue, as her friend will never want to look you in the face again. It sounds like Jordan has plenty of friends and hopefully won't miss out on the one that tried to steal from her.

Pam said...

Wow! First let me say that your daughter- she is amazing! She didn't get angry, she didn't yell, but she felt sorry for the person who just tried to steal from her. What am amazing example of love! Not that she is saying it is okay and should be ignored, but she is praying and asking for help for her friend! How mature!

If it were me- I would want to know. But as you said- you have to consider the home. If it won't change anything....I don't know. If J wants to still be friends and invite her to things, I think that is okay, but it needs to be in controlled settings where she can't take thing (no alone in bedroom times, etc) or explain to the girl that you will check her bag or something. That she is welcome in your home, but she has to earn that trust back.

This is a hard situation! I hope you find answers!

Kelly said...

Wow, that's a tough one. I gave it a lot of thought and this is what I came up with. If 'friends' mom would have came to the door to get her I would have told 'friend' to tell her mom what happened and then if she didn't talk, I would have explained to mom what had happened. But if it didn't get to happen then, then I would probably not call to bring it up. I do agree with most people that I would not pursue this friendship anymore. Jordan deserves better. You can tell she is an amazing young person when her solution was to pray about it! She deserves friends who are as amazing as she is. It is very sad for this friend. She probably is jelous of J and is trying to compensate for her stinky life. (Since you said mom isn't necessarily a gem either) As a teacher I see so many great kids get hurt by the 'troubled' kids because they keep trying to be there friend. Until 'friend' is willing to change, J will just be colateral damage to her. Good luck. I hope your family's generosity and kindness can be felt by people who truely appreciate it!

Cecily R said...

I'm with everyone else. What a hard situation and a crappy way to end such a fun couple of days! I don't know that I'd blatently avoid the friendship (I hate the idea of assuming the girl is unredeemable at this point in her life), but I don't think I'd actively pursue it either. The space of summer might decide for you...

As for telling the mom, I see wisdom in both letting it go and telling her. I have no clue wat I'd do! Sorry I am ZERO help.

Good luck!

Kellan said...

I worry about the girl. I know she is the one that is stealing, but if it goes unaddressed then she will not only probably do it again (for what reasons?), but she is also carrying that guilt, pain, disgust - with her until someone addresses the situation. I don't think it matters if her and Jordyn are necessarily friends anymore, but I do think her mother needs to know what happened - if for no other reason than she can help her daughter - try to fix the problem. This other girl has unknown reasons why she is doing this and while it is hurtful if you are the one being stolen, it indicates that there are some issues going on with the other child - and, she is still a child. I think I would tell her mother as diplomatically as I could.

Good luck - poor Jordyn - I hate that this happened - hate it!!

Have a good day - Kellan

Tiff said...

WOW HolleeAnn what an amazing young lady you and Paul are raising! She handled that withso much love and concern for her "Friend". You should be a proud momma.

Given what you said about "friend's" mom I'm apt not to say anything. and Just keep praying for her. And if this happened to Baby Girl, I would not encourage her to pursue a continued friendship with her. It's so sad what happeend. And I feel so bad for Jordan to be betrayed like that. But she handled it so graciously. And so did you!!! At least "Friend" saw the grace of Mercy Of God when you handled it the way you did!. What a great witness. You never know but "friend's" heart may have been opened just by that experience.

Lisa said...

I agree with the above about how well Jordan handled the situation. Kudos to you for raising such a nice girl.

If it was my daughter, I would want to know. BUT...in this situation I would do whatever you think would be best for THIS child. Is her mother going to handle it appropriately or not? As tough as it is, I'd say this friendship is probably over for Jordan.

Man, I'm glad my oldest is 4.

Andrea said...

Okay, after reading everybody else's comments, here is my response to this.

First of all -- JORDAN...YOU ARE INCREDIBLE!! Seriously, HolleeAnn, you must be so amazingly proud of your precious daughter. She wanted to HUG her friend as she left, even after discovering that she was trying to steal from her. Absolutely incredible.

Secondly -- I think the mother needs to know. Regardless of what she will do with the information. If nobody is going to keep Friend accountable, she will just keep doing it.

And thirdly -- I don't think the friendship needs to be over. Unless of course Jordan feels too uncomfortable. But if she feels led to try and continue the friendship, I think it would be super. If everybody started abandoning Friend when she did something wrong -- how is she ever going to redeem herself? It seems like she isn't getting proper love and attention at home, and maybe -- just maybe -- if she feels it from someone else, there is hope for her. I think that if visits are supervised -- where you are there the whole time -- things can still progress. Have Jordan invite her over for a movie night -- a movie that you would enjoy too -- and have a fun time watching, snacking on popcorn and laughing. Or have her over for dinner and one of your games nights.

However, if Jordan is not comfortable with it, then I think it is okay to let it all go. But if she feels it impressed upon her heart to reach out to this Friend -- I think it could work.

Pink Lemonade Liz said...

I agree with you, telling the Mom will probably do no good whatsoever. It's too bad that Jordan had to be hurt like that. It is a good lesson though, that people do change and not always for the better. I think I would just let the whole matter go and not invite Friend over ever again.

It's very sweet that Jordan said a prayer for her friend - it shows she's a really good person. It'll be okay in the end.

sheri said...

I don't really have anything new to add that hasn't already been said. Jordan is AMAZING. YOU are AMAZING. The friendship is, sadly, over. I'd want to know if it were MY kid, but like you said...her specific situation makes it a little trickier. I keep going back and forth on this one, but I'm currently at "tell the mom". Only because it might be good for the mom and Friend to know why Jordan isn't inviting her over anymore AND just in case the mom does handle it responsibly. For all we know, the only thing Friend learned was to bring 2 bags...one for wet, one for dry ;) I don't envy you in this situation! Good luck

common mom said...

Oh my - that's difficult. And oh so sad for Jordan :-(

I would tell the mom - I would want to be told if it were my kid that did that. Even if the mom doesn't care or do anything about it, I'd definitely let her know. Stealing from a FRIEND is huge . . . and if she felt comfy stealing from a friend, you can only imagine where it could lead.

What a tough situation to be in . . . I'm sorry you have to deal with it :-(

And what a wonderfu little girl you're raising . . . to care so deeply about a friend.

No Cool Story said...

Yikes.

Are you awesome or what? Not only was your Super Awesome Mom Radar finely tuned but you handled it perfectly AND Jordan reacted like a classy/polite little lady :) You should be very proud as I know you are.

Anyway, I agree with my fellow commenters, at this point there will be no trust in that friendship whatsoever, while the girl is not uncapable of change, it's really not your or Jordan's responsibility to keep her coming to your house. Praying for her and being kind are always the best policy.

If my child had done something like that I'd like to know.
I know some parents prefer to be blind and make excuses for their kids' behavior, but most would like to know and correct it :)

You did awesome!!

Keli said...

Oh my gosh! I can't believe it! But then again, I kind of can. My daughter was friends with a girl that definitely had this potential. We always had to be very careful about making sure the boundaries were clear on what stayed where. Maybe it's just best for Jordan to know that she is better off for knowing what kind of person Friend is. Still, so upsetting to know this goes on at such a young age. I guess you could always call the mom and just mention something. I'm so sorry, this puts you in a difficult situation. Best of luck!

Kelli said...

Poor Jordan. I hate that her friend has betrayed her. It is such a hard lesson to learn. I wish she didn't have to learn this lesson so young. I hope she never has to feel this way again, but fear this is not the last time she will ever be betrayed. I know you and Jordan talk a lot, but I think you need to be sure she gets her feelings out about this. I am sure she is hurting and mourning the friendship.

As for telling the girl's mother, I think you need to. I would want to be told if it was my child. What could this turn into if this little girl thinks that there are no consequences when you steal something. I agree with everyone else that being caught was very embarrassing for her, but if you don't say anything to her mom she will assume that you didn't think it was a big deal. You are doing her and her mother a big favor by just letting her mom know what happened. This could turn into shoplifting (or maybe she already does), if I were her parent I would want to nip this problem now! When you talk to her mom I wouldn't make a huge deal about it, I would just say this is what happened, friend seemed really upset and I thought you ought to know.

Merrianne & Spencer said...

i would TOTALLY tell the Mom & Dad!

shoot...i'd be mad....this little girl ain't 2 years old..she KNOWS better.


Hope This Helps :)
(ha ha)

Merrianne

An Ordinary Mom said...

My goodness, what a terrible situation to be in! However, it sounds like you handled the heat of the moment beautifully.

I don't have anything else to add other than what has already been said.

Janna said...

I would not tell Jordan "invite"
her over again. Sad but that's what I'd do. And I'd call the mother if you know her well. The only way she will learn to not steal is by facing the consequences.

Sorry!!!

(What was the stuff? Just curious?)

Peapodsquadmom said...

I'm so sad for Jordan. Finding out something like this about a friend is a bit of an eye-opening, loss-of-idealism experience. I'm sorry she had to go through that. I think you handled it beautifully. About talking to the mom...tough one. I would definitely want to know if my child was doing something like that...mostly because I would want to intervene before the behavior escalated into other negatives (high probability). If you don't think this particular mom would be receptive, you have to use your judgment on that one. I would not have the girl over again. I know that sounds harsh. I believe in grace and forgiveness and all...but as Jordan's mommy, your first priority is protecting her and guiding her character. It doesn't sound like this girl would be a good influence on Jordan at all...though Jordan could certainly be a good one on her. ;-)

kellyo75 said...

Oh, poor Jordan. Being betrayed by a "friend" is so awful. it cuts deep into your heart, and no 12 year old should have to endure that pain. You are awesome for being so understanding and she is awesome for being such a forgiving little friend. The friendship has to be over at this point, and I would probably just let it go, too. It's over. Jordan knows it and it's not like she will run into her on a regular basis. Hugs to Jordan! and you, mama!

"FINE"al thoughts... said...

Yikes. And I thought The Boy Next Door was a doosey! Since this happened forever ago (in toddler time!) how did you end up handling it?

 
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