On Lying

I CANNOT stand a lie. I especially CANNOT stand a blatant lie.

This morning my child cooked up a story that Hubby Guy and I almost fell for hook-line-and-sinker. She called Hubby Guy (after calling my phone and letting it ring only a couple times so I wouldn't have time to pick up) from school and told him the nurse said she had a fever and had to come home. I went to school to pick her up. The secretary talked to the lady (not actually the nurse) who spoke with the kid and asked her to tell me what the kid's temp was. Apparently there was no temp. I then asked if she was told she had to go home for the day. Nope. The kid lied about both things. When the kid walked into the office I looked at her and coldly said "You lied. Go back to class." The school is probably calling DSS on me. The kid walked out of the office crying. I think the secretary was traumatized.

The truth of the situation is this: The child knows that lying isn't tolerated. She also knows the family policy on missing school. In order for a child of ours to miss school they must meet one or more of the following criteria: 1) Puking their guts out, 2) Bleeding out, or 3) Delirious with fever.

The school policy is if a child has fever they send them home. The kid knows we have no choice but to come get her if the school says we have to. She isn't the more intelligent of our two children, but apparently she is smart enough to cook up a scheme and try to pull a fast one.

I also know the child doesn't feel especially well. Neither does her sister. All she had to do was call and tell the truth ("I really don't feel good. Can I please come home?"). She would have had a much more desirable outcome.