Saturday Shopping Silliness

Ah, the Saturday before Christmas. Every year I think to myself that I’m going to spend the day cozily resting in my home imagining the insane running around that everyone else is doing. But then reality crashes in on my dream and I realize I’m one of the ninnies hunting for any parking space available or waiting in the terminally wrong check out line. Sigh.

Last night Nelson announced that we were going shopping today after he gets home from work. I cringed deep within but agreed to his plan. Bigger sigh. I used to love shopping, but that’s when I did it all. Now he does so much on line, typically from eBay, that I’ve gotten out of the habit. I’m not sure if it’s laziness or if I’ve lost my will to shop.

So today we have to get groceries in Mansfield and then make our way to Target, ToysRUs, Best Buy, and Old Navy. In addition to the last few items we need to get for family (a couple things for Ann and Beth) we adopted a family from church to buy for. It’s a single mom with four kids (7, 9, 12, and14; two younger girls and two older boys). The things Mom told us about the girls are easy: Barbies and little girl things. The boys are an enigma to me. Their favorite color is black and they’re into video games and hard rock music. Hopefully that explains the need to run to Best Buy and Old Navy (besides they’re in the same plaza--easier and only one parking spot to secure).

Now while I was sitting here thinking through my plan of attack I decided if I was going to brave that much insanity I’m going to get a good meal out of it. It only seems right and fair. I just have to decide where. Here’s my list of appropriate possibilities (this is way more than a fast food fix): Ruby Tuesday, Red Lobster, Outback, or Chipotle. We like Ruby’s. We love Lobster, but tend to save it for special occasions. We have always liked Chipotle, but have ended up getting free meals when we’ve gone in the past. I’m not sure if it would taste as good if we had to pay. (giggles) I’m really leaning toward Outback because we’ve never been there together. Time for something new. My luck though, he’ll decide he wants to Golden Corral. Sigh.

My throat is better. It’s not as sore. My cough however has increased. I couldn’t even finish a book I was trying to read to Asher. It may be time to break out the Musinex. I opted not to practice my duet yesterday…hopefully I’ll have my voice back.

I will say it has been a wonderful morning. I slept in until 7! That’s a great big wow and thank you to my bladder. And I’ve just been playing with Asher. Beth went and worked out this morning and brought me home an iced coffee from McDonald’s. If I’m not careful, I might actually find myself imagining ways to enjoy shopping with Nelson.

Hope there’s warmth, smiles, and meaning-full connections in your day. Blessings of the season to you!