The pumpkins outside the store would be fight number one- but we get to avoid this because we have already gone to the "pumpkin patch" in town and we don't need anymore. Last year I went to the patch for the pictures and then bought the pumpkins at the grocery store. Oh well, every now and then I do something the way other women would do it.
Even though we had a few days left, I decided to go ahead and get the candy during this trip. I know that buying candy early is going to force me to run six miles a day instead of three. I can also look at all the flyers and handouts on my desk and know that we have a very busy weekend ahead and finding time to brave a store might not be on the to do list.
Why oh why didn't I just grab whatever was on sale and bury it under the bread and frozen vegetables? Did I really have to take the time to engage the three of them in conversation? Think about the opportunities for speech the candy aisle provides a mother and her children.
This is a "good mommy" banter:
Look kids, what shapes do you see?
What are the different colors?
What flavors are in those?
How many lollipops do you see?
Ok my loves, can we pick out the best candy for all our special friends in the neighborhood? And we know we aren't opening the bag until Monday, right? Then we eat one piece a day until Christmas.
Then you watch this woman and her kids skip happily through the check out aisle.
OK, that was fun.
Now, here are MY THREE in the candy aisle:
F: "OK, I want this one for today, and we can eat this bag tomorrow....So we better get at least five bags...
L: "Candy Corn! Candy Corn! I want candy corn!"
K: "Oh come on, Lowell, if we pass out candy corn no one will ever speak to us again, you know how mom gets when no one will talk to her..."
F: Lollipops would work (whispering to Kenneth) we can hide these in my room and she won't know...
K: You hide the lollipops and I'll hide M&Ms-you are so right, she will never find them....
Why do they think I can't hear them?
OK ENOUGH! Each of you pick one bag and then we are shopping for real food....
The decoration aisle is not my thing. My mother sent them pumpkin place mats and we will paint and carve pumpkins this weekend. That is as far as I have time to take it. Everyone knows not to ask me for scarecrows and spiders that end up in the storage closet later.
We are shopping fine-like any other Shoreline mommy with nothing else to do on a weekday afternoon...
Until...
The witch!
There is this scary looking life sized witch that laughs an evil cackle when you walk by her. My three year old has perfected jumping out of the cart and climbing up my side and clutching to my hair for dear life when we get near that thing. I want to tell him that there are plenty of witches in the grocery store all year long, but lately I am keeping such opinions to myself.
Do his brother and sister comfort him and tell him it isn't real? Do they try to ease his pain? What do you think?
"Look Lowell, she is going to get you!" He climbs higher up my head.
"Hey Mom-we could by one for our living room." Then the baby really starts screaming...I wonder if my sister has these third child torture stories...
The check out is fine-five bags of candy (one of which they have already eaten), all the staples my children love, and no witch. Unless you count me....
Rock it out this Halloween....In preparation for my Advent tradition, four more "Halloween Quacks" are coming!
No comments:
Post a Comment