Katharina Buczek
In order for the space to truly feel like Emily’s, though, she also believed that the six-year-old had to have some control over the tent– which is located in the corner of the living room. So, no one else is ever allowed inside without Emily’s permission.
“It’s one of the few places where she can’t lock a door, and we can see her in the tent from most placed in the house,” she added.
Anyway, she ended up hosting Christmas this year at her house. So, before all of the guests arrived, she and her husband told Emily to put away any toys that other people were not allowed to play with.
And Emily ended up putting some items in the tent and some in her room. The six-year-old also insisted on locking the door to her bedroom.
Then, once everyone showed up for the holiday, Emily ended up going to hide in the tent and play with some new toys.
She and her husband also took the time to explain to the other children that the tent was Emily’s special place. Moreover, no other kids were allowed to hang out inside or play with any of the toys.
Now, she does admit that some of the other children got upset. However, she and her husband had other toys for them to play with. Plus, her son Lucas was also willing to share his toys.
Throughout the Christmas get-together, though, it appears that her siblings were actually even more upset than the children themselves.
In fact, she apparently got approached by her siblings multiple times– asking why she would put something as tempting as a tent filled with toys right in front of the kids while banning them from using it.
So, she had to keep explaining how the tent was just a way to prevent Emily from endangering herself. She also pointed out how the tent could not be kept anywhere else because, then, Emily would not be visible from most places in the house.
Eventually, though, she did get Emily out of the tent to interact with everyone. But, at that point, a few of the other kids tried to make their way into the tent.
