Lights Out

So our family did the usual grocery-shopping trip. We went around bedtime, since I planned on letting the kids stay up late in the hopes that they would sleep in. Hey, it’s summer, what could being out a little late hurt?

I tackled my list and matched coupons to it. I never realized how many moms have mastered the art of barely ever paying full price for things. I had the cart full of food to last us for two weeks maybe three if we were lucky, and checked out. I handed over my coupons and was happy to have saved our family some money.

During the shopping expedition the boys ran around like wild animals with their dad following them. Then it would switch and the boys would follow their dad around an aisle or two. They pretty much forgot about me while I shopped. While I put the items up at the register the kids hovered and worried about their things. My husband was buying them one hot wheel car each and a lollipop. Their stuff was jumbled in with all of the groceries and house stuff. What a crisis it was in their little minds. Big Brother tried to get his stuff scanned right away so he could hang on to it, but he got distracted with all the last minute treasures they put at eye level with kids.

Those checkout lanes that say no candy or whatever just lie because I am still waiting to find one that doesn’t have candy or toys in reach while I wait there. So there was Big Brother, playing with some camera toy when all of a sudden he says, “Oh, Mom, where’s my car & sucker?”

I tell him it’s bagged up already and he looked over to the cart now refilled with bagged merchandise and his lips come out about a mile.

The boys fell asleep on the drive home, so I was hoping we could just put them to bed once we got home. Little Brother woke up as soon as we got him out of his car seat. We get into the house and the power was off. Oh, No! We just bought a truckload of groceries with half of it for the freezer!

I put everything away worried that the power wouldn’t come back on. It was hard to stay awake with no TV to watch or light to read with. It didn’t take long for us to go to bed. Little Brother didn’t give any fight about bedtime. Perhaps I will pretend the power is out conveniently at tough bedtimes. The trick could come in handy when the boys really need to go to bed. They won’t stand a chance with the lights out!