Things can be either really, really good – or really, really bad when a mom goes shopping with five kids. Kid #1 got to escape for the day by going to work. So that left five little indians to go to town with mom. Actually, it wasn’t just our little town . . it was an adventure to the big city an hour and a half away.
All ready to go somewhere different. Somewhere big. Somewhere exciting.
A coffee shop is one of the first stops we make.
I’d say this is the after-effects of that coffee.
And the fact that some kids got hold of my camera.
Whenever we go somewhere for long distances, we dig out the handheld electronic games to help pass the time. We have reserved a few of these for road trips – or trips down to the big city.
Some beautiful scenery.
Lake Pend O’Rielle
When you have 1 1/2 hours of driving time (one-way), it makes for some interesting conversations with adolescents. I came back knowing more than I did when I left that morning.
Things like:
- There are two Great Depressions – the era and also there is a sandpit, dune . . . or generally something sandy called that.
- We should be like Norway. They don’t have the pollution we do because they have hydroelectricity or hydro something.
- It would be best to have Jesus come before we die. Then maybe we will see the world get blown up while we are in the sky.
Costco was our first stop in the big city. I’ve been trying contact lenses and have had to vary my prescription to get one that fits. And Costco is where I’ve been going for the eye visits.
Before we entered the store, I told the kids to pick out one person to smile at. And maybe even say hi to them.
“But Mom! We are not supposed to talk to strangers!”
Oops. I had forgotten about that rule. So I said for them to please just be generally happy. That should work.
Minutes into the store, Logan comes up to me with a concerned look on his face. “Mom, I smiled at that old lady. And she frowned. That wasn’t good!”
I should have taken the time to explain how our actions to people are not based upon how they may react to us . . . but I probably had my head in the deep-freeze section, trying to dig out bags of frozen strawberries. It’s rather hard to have philosophical conversations with your head in the freezer.
After Costco, we hit Home Depot for a couple flower pots and Burger King for a few cheeseburgers.
Then it was Walmart.
To the toy section. Where I had promised them they could use some of their spending money. Let me just tell you – the toy section at any department store is no fun with five kids. Five huge waterguns got stuffed in my cart – all ready for summer. But somehow we managed to make it out of the toy section relatively sane.
Until we got to the food section.
By then, Dallas was on the front of the cart for a ride. And managed to fall off and almost get run over. One moment, there was a little guy hanging onto the front of the cart . . . . the next moment, he’d gone missing.
There were some tears. But love can handle a multitude of tears.
After a couple more stops, we were finally on the way home. And the little guy simply would not take a nap. Instead, he drank Coke.
Some days, I’m not a healthy mom. I’m just a mom who gets by.
By the time we got home, the big kids took off for a mega waterfight. The littlest man laid down for a nap . . . among tears.
And Mom went out to mow grass. All. By. Herself.
It was bliss.
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angela miller says
you are such a great mom with lots of patience~
Kendra says
Not always. But I try! Some days, that is all we can do.
Jeanie says
Ha-ha! Love it! Especially the mowing grass part. The other night Daryn came home from work and said he wanted to mow grass that evening. With 2 little girls hanging and crying on me I said, “actually i was really hoping to go mow the grass for u tonight!” I thought I was a very virtuous wife to offer my services like that. He goes, “o, u want me to take care of the kids?” Whatever gave him that idea?
Kendra says
Yep! They catch on to us quicker than we’d like them to. 🙂
mloublogger says
Moms are such troopers!! 🙂
Kim W says
And that is why I shop when my little is in school! A quick few questions about the veils in the store: Are they one size fits all? Do they come with hair clips or darts to show where to put the hair clips?
Kendra says
It does not come with hair clips, but there is a place at the top where the two ends of the trim meet – this indicates the top of the veil. It is not one size fits all, but I have a good amount of hair, so it fits probably those with a medium size head/bun. You would need to try it on, or you could also measure across your bun, from ear to ear and see if it would fit the majority of your head. Hope this helps!