mom time~

On Tuesday night my two sisters and I decided to go out spur of the moment for dinner. We had such a great time! My sisters are my best friends, we're blessed like that (although once upon a time we were mortal enemies didn't get along so great. But that was in our childhood, and we're past that now :o)

The was the first time we've been out where my sister was the one with the infant and not me!

We went to Outback (filet with mushrooms and onions...yum!), walked around and did some outdoor shopping (I got a super cute apron from Antrhopologie! I'd been wanting to get one since last September, it's the only thing I've ever bought from Anthropologie, just so you know...), and had dessert at the Cheesecake Factory. Yes, after six weeks I broke my low carb thing, but it was pre-planned and I'm back on track. A girl's gotta splurge every once in awhile.

My youngest sister (you know, the 22 year old, unmarried, carefree one), left us around 10 to go to a show, and my other sister and I sat in the Outback parking lot until 11 just talking. By that time, the Target employees were long gone, and as I'm sure they didn't want to open the store just so I could get Caleb a skateboard helmet and knee pads (that young sister of mine, have I mentioned she's an awesome aunt? He spent the night with her last night and today they're going to eat sushi and go to the skate park).

So I went to Walmart. Now, I'm not snotty or anything, but I don't shop at Walmart. Usually once or twice a year. I have issues with how they've overrun the little guy (see The High Cost of Low Price), but I get that many people depend on them to get by, a good part of my extended family included, gee...my uncle even works for them), so I'm not "no Walmart, ever", but I very rarely shop there.

Anyway, back to the story. It actually happend like this. I left my sister around 11pm and just didn't want to head home yet. I had this irresistible urge to just go shopping, walk around a store, anything really. (I've gotten into the habit of staying up pretty late recently). I just couldn't justify walking around for no good reason, and then, a ha!, I remembered the helmet. Now I had a reason! So, I walked around Walmart for a good hour or so and did a fair amount of people watching (why do so many people drag their kids to Walmart in the middle of the night? Some of these were larger groups that seriously looked like they were having parties. They didn't have the "busy mom this is the only time I can get out look". Interesting.

Then I headed home.

And you know what the best part of all this is? Ethan was supposed to go to a Chuck E Cheese party today, and as I won't leave him there alone and it's pretty much torture to drag a bunch of other kids there that aren't invited to the party, I had made arrangements with my aunt to come over. Well, the party got postponed, but my aunt was still game for keeping the kids. So... I made a little deal with Glen that if he kept the kids so I could go out with my sisters, I would do my grocery shopping during the day on Thursday so I wouldn't have to leave him again tonight. All my kids want to stay here to play with Coocal (my aunt/pseudo-mom/pseudo-sister/friend, I'll have to write about her sometime), I get the whole day out by myself!!! Whoo hoo!

Don't get me wrong, I love my kids and all and put a high value and priority on spending lots of time with them, but I sure am looking forward to a day alone :o)

Now I've got to get my roast going for tonight so I won't have to cook dinner and bring in piles of groceries!