A simple trip to the store...

When I woke up this morning, I knew it was going to be a busy day. But had I known how the day was going to turn out, I might have crawled back into bed & enjoyed a little more rest. Getting through my list of errands before 1:00 every day keeps proving to be a challenge. But, today I had to get through all of them -- bank, Walmart, OshKosh, daycare & then to work. I had to make it to OshKosh because my coupon expires today & Gabe needs new pants (since he has grown like 4 inches in the past 6 months). Maybe I shouldn't try to be a conscientious shopper. Then I wouldn't be concerned with having to fit in crazy trips 30 minutes away so I can save that 20%. Nonetheless, the trip began an hour later than planned & with a carpool that never should have taken place. Now at this point one would ask, why in the world would you take 7 (yes count them SEVEN) children ages 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 8 mos & 5 1/2 mos into a store without carts to contain them. Why? Because we are insanely optimistic that our children will actually behave. Unfortunately, the kids had a much different plan than that. While all the cousins love each other (depending on the day), taking them into a store together is definitely not the smartest plan we've ever had. An hour later, I was trying to race out to the car to save myself from being late to work. This fun hour was a battle of tantrums, hitting, kicking, crying, running & hiding. But I was leaving triumphant! I had saved $60 on my purchase (actually over $200 if you count in the Labor Day sale savings). Then reality kicked in...it was 12:23pm and I had exactly 37 minutes to make 2 stops (drop off my sister & her daughter, then drop the kids off at daycare) & get to work. It was so not going to happen. I call my office to tell them I might be a few minutes late & who answers? My boss. Lovely! I am loving today!! I was quite proud of myself. Including my 2 stops, I made it to work 8 minutes late. Miracle! So there is my fun shopping experience for the day (and that's not even including all of the other fun that happened to my poor sisters -- but that is gonna have to wait for another day!). Have I learned my lesson about shopping trips? Not so much. But maybe next time our game plan will be a little better. Go Team!