Roy had a rough week last week.  He had to go into DC three days in a row. Okay, he had to go to work, but I think the rough part was Thursday night.  Tuesday and Wednesday we had lovely weather, and Roy was fine on his motorcycle, but Thursday coming home the rain came, and along with the rain came a significant drop in temperature with some strong winds. It’s quite a long commute, so the weather didn’t help.

My poor honey.  I knew he would be frozen when he got home because he didn’t take his bigger bike jacket, but rather his thin rain suit.  I put some clothes and a towel in the dryer for him in the hopes that the warmth would be appreciated.  And though they were, he was still pretty frozen and corpse-like when he sat down for dinner.  But a hot meal and some rest perked him up a bit.

So on Friday, I figured I would let him sleep as late as he could since it was his ‘off day.’ Then when he woke up he would be refreshed, and I could talk him into hitting Costco with the younger boys and I.

I spent the morning shushing the boys and the dogs, so that Roy could sleep.  He was coughing for much of the night, and I was pretty sure he was coming down with something.  But surprisingly, he awoke early and came outside with me to put Hayden on the bus!

So, we spent the morning cuddled on the sofa, watching silly shows.  (Christina Applegate and Will Arnett’s new comedy, Up All Night, is pretty funny!) Around 11:45 we left to go get Hayden at school, and  I got to ride in the new car.  Ahh!  I love the feel and the smell of the leather!

So, we hit Costco around 12:45, but not before we had some lunch.  We decided to try a new place, Cheeburger!  Cheeburger!  The combinations you can create with their many toppings are amazing, but sadly the burger just wasn’t all that.  I’ll take a Five Guys burger any day.  My milkshake, White Chocolate Rush, was pretty great though!

So, after our rather overpriced, mediocre lunch, we looked around the mall a bit (getting a three and seven year old to try on jeans - SO much fun!) and then did our thing in Costco.  Dean had about had it at this point, and he was ready to go to bed.  So, we packed up the Stealth Mobile (the Challenger) and headed home. 

“Why aren’t you pulling into the garage?” I asked Roy as he stopped in the driveway.

“Cause, I’m gonna take you out on a date.”

Ohh… Really!  Hmm… I had a new blouse and some new boots that I was wanting to rock!   

“Sooo… where are we going?” I ran after Roy as he trudged up the stairs…

He just smiled at me.

“I know where you want to go.  You want to try Mie N Yu don’t you?”

Mie N Yu is a restaurant in Georgetown that we have walked by a few times, and always wanted to try, but never have.  But tonight, I thought… why not?

“Let me see if I can get a reservation.”

I called, and I did.  We were booked for 8:30 that night, so we had just over 2 hours to get up to Georgetown and find a place to park.  I wasn’t too worried about parking as I wanted to just pay for parking.   We made it up there and drove around for about 10 minutes before we found a spot in a well lit garage, which is exactly what I wanted.

We got there a bit early, so we checked out a shop or two, and then walked to the restaurant, and we were immediately shown to our table.  It was a very intimate setting.  Small tables and brightly cushioned benches meant Roy and I could sit close together.  We ordered a carafe with a drink called the “Kraken” for the two of us.  I don’t know what was in it, but it was blue and very sweet.  Roy liked it, but I could only drink half.  We ordered some Crab Hush Puppies for an appetizer, and they were good, but very filling!

So, when my Pan Seared Sea Scallops with mini onions, apples, pears, some sort of wasabi sauce, and a few other things arrived (It was very good, but I had no clue what I was eating), I was almost full!  Roy got a Pan Seared Filet, which was also very tasty - tender, moist, and swimming in some decadent sauce.  We enjoyed the atmosphere, did some people watching (joking and laughing at other guests), but then the lounge opened and cigarette smoke started to drift in.

“I smell smoke.” Roy acknowledged.

“I know. I’m getting a headache.”

“Why don’t we get the check and go?  We can walk around a bit.”

So, we paid our check and wandered next door to Urban OUtfitters.  It’s funny - I have lost enough weight so that now I can wear anything in the store, and yet… nothing jumped out at me.  Left empty handed.

We wandered around a bit, and sadly everything was closed - Rag and Bone, All Saints, Pottery Barn, all of it. BUT a little joint called Serendipity was open!

I have heard of this place in New York, famous for their Frozen Hot Chocolate.  It’s one of those places that you hear about all the time, and you just want to go once so you can say you’ve been there.

“Ohh… let’s go in here!” I pulled Roy in.

“Why?  What is this place?”

“They have frozen hot chocolate!  Let’s try some for dessert.”

We ambled up to the bar and took our seats.  The menu was huge, and so cute!  Sundaes, pies, cakes - full of yummy goodness, but I just wanted to try the Frozen Hot Chocolate.

“You’ll share it with me, right?” I asked Roy.

“Honey, do your thing.  I’ll have some.”

So, I ordered the Double Chocolate Frozen Hot Chocolate for two.  And when it came out, it was sooo yummy!  Chocolate, and whipped cream, with some chocolate shavings on it.  SO GOOD!  I would drive up to Georgetown just for that again.  And the place was so cute, the kids would love it.

After our treat, we walked back to the car.  Or rather I tiptoed… slowly.  My new boots are gorgeous, but the little heels are NOT made for cobble stone streets. 

I enjoyed the ride home. We listened to music and talked.  I laughed at Roy’s silly comments and was just generally thrilled to be me at this point.

And later that night as we were laying in bed, Roy said something to me, and I mumbled back some inane answer.

“Are you asleep?” He asked me.

“No!” I lied as I struggled to keep my eyes open, “It was just a long day.”

“Oh please, Miss Daisy. I did all the driving!”  

“Did you just call me Miss Daisy?” 

“I did.  Old fart, can’t hang.”

I laughed, “Ok, Hoke.  You better get up before my husband gets home.”

Roy laughed and gave me a kiss as I drifted off to sleep… happy and full.

Whew!  Glad I survived the weekend!  Granted our weekends are usually crazy, but this one seemed like it was nonstop for Roy and I. 

This past Friday we drove down to Charlottesville for Doctor’s appointments.  We left the boys at home, so we took Roy’s motorcycle.  And it was a wonderful trip, for me that is.  I obviously don’t do much but hold on and try not to move around too much and disturb Roy; Roy has the hard job.  But I love riding around on his bike with him.  And then it started to rain.  I imagine for some people that is annoying. And again not sure how Roy feels about riding in the rain, but I love it!  As long as it isn’t too chilly, and it isn’t a torrential downpour!  A slight rain feels wonderful!  And the smell!  Ok, sometimes we get stuck behind a smelly car, but every once in awhile you catch a whiff of that fresh rain smell.

So, Roy went to the dermatologist, and he is ok!  Words can’t even express how happy I was, as the idea of something being wrong with my husband is tough for me.  I will say the doctor was a little rough removing a mole though - my poor husband has a lovely hole in his back now!  Of course the real pain came from the chairs in the waiting room!  Not sure who picked them out, but a more uncomfortable chair I have yet to find!  Roy sat down wrong, and I swear he screwed up his back!  He might have to go to a doctor just for going to a doctor.

I went to the OB/GYN and without giving out too many details, I have to go back next month for more tests.  Fun!  Ok, not fun, but I really liked the doctor, and she seemed willing to help me find out what is going on so that we could come up with a plan to provide some relief.  Thank you!  So, even though I don’t like all the poking and prodding (ha ha, I know!), I am happy that perhaps I can get some answers.

Lunch was great!  We went to a little joint called “The Mellow Mushroom.”  I imagine it is popular with the UVa students.  Great pizza, and I am not really a pizza person.  We did a little shopping (mainly window shopping), then rode home.  It was nice to spend the day with my husband, even if we did both have to visit the doctors.

Saturday continued our run of doctor appointments with Roy going in for an eye exam.  His prescription isn’t nearly as strong as mine (and mine is pretty strong!), but it was suggested to him that he get glasses for work and reading.  Ok! But they didn’t have any that stood out there. So we decided to look elsewhere at a later time.

At home we started talking about cars.  Not sure how we got around to that, but after some research we found a car that we both liked.  (Well, Roy loved it; I wasn’t sure, but…) I told him if the payments were under X amount of dollars, I was cool with it, so go get it.

“Chris, I wouldn’t go without you.” He says.

“WHY?!  I told you my bottom line, keep the payments under this amount and I don’t care! I trust you to get a good car.”

“I know, but I wouldn’t do it without you.”

I won’t lie… this bugged me!  While I know he was just implying that he didn’t want to choose a car that I would not be happy with, I know he also hates dealing with paperwork. I didn’t want to drive all the way up to Northern Virginia, but I KNOW my husband wanted this car.  I know he would make some comment in the future if we missed this deal. (Though to be fair to Roy, he wouldn’t hold a grudge; I would just take it that way.)  So, I fussed at him, told him fine! Let’s do it!  Then he ran out to clean the Prius top to bottom, and I called to arrange an appointment and obtain financing.  We were approved quickly, and I scheduled a time for us so that we wouldn’t have to wait to have our Prius appraised.  Roy finished cleaning and I browsed online to find a few more cars I was interested in and off we went.  

We got up to Carmax with little hassle, and to Roy’s credit, he more than gave the cars I was interested in a chance. We browsed the lot and looked at quite a few brands and models that caught our eye. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Jeep, Land Rover, Hummer, SUVs, trucks, cars. We really liked this burnt orange Land Rover, but someone bought it just before we were ready to test drive. There was a white one, but we didn’t want a white car. So we decided to test drive two cars that we really liked and then we would go from there. First up was the Porsche Cayenne (I call it a fake Porsche, and yes I know it is an actual Porsche - but it’s so big). We test drove it, and it was a great car.  Handled wonderfully, turned on a dime (got that from Pretty Woman!), and it looked good (damn good). Full featured and super clean. As far as I was concerned, it was a contender. And then it was on to the next car. Time to drive Roy’s pick-a 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8.  I didn’t think I would like it, but Roy was drooling on it.  Yes, he was actually drooling as was every other guy on the lot, including the sales people!  The car is hot. But it is more of a sports car, so two door only. But I actually didn’t mind the back seat! The back seat actually has more room than our Prius unless the front row is all the way back. The seats are leather, and so soft and comfortable.  I didn’t particularly care if I drove it. I knew Roy wanted this car, and I loved seeing him happy, but he pushed me to drive it to see if I liked it.  Driving it was fine.  It handled very nicely, I didn’t sit too low (which is good since the front end is long).  I know Roy was sold as soon as he touched the gas pedal, and I wanted him to be happy - he works so hard and rarely asks for anything, even though he makes all the money!  So we glanced over the lot one last (but quick) time, and finally decided… Let’s do it!

Carmax gave us a great offer on our Prius.  This is the third car we have bought from them, and they have always treated us great.  As far as I was concerned, the Challenger was my husband’s!  We did our thing with the paperwork and got out of there about 9 that evening.  We drove to get a bite to eat and then started home.  About halfway there, Roy asked if I wanted to drive home. I did, and we switched.  I got in and drove home and liked the car a little more.  I felt safe. I was confident in the car’s ability. OK… cool!  We got home, and I fell into bed. I was so tired!

We got up early on Sunday.  Roy couldn’t sleep because of his allergies, and I’m just an early riser.  We decided to head back up north to a mall to find Roy some glasses, and I wanted to check out the Michael Kors store (I wish there was one closer).

And this is where I fell in love with our new car.  I usually like to drive, but I didn’t even mind just riding shotgun in this thing!  Roy opened it up a bit on the interstate.  Won’t tell you our speed, but it felt like… well, I don’t know how to describe it!  It didn’t feel like we were going as fast as we were; the acceleration is so smooth.

“Well?  We going to trade it in?” I teased, as we had five days to change our mind.

“Still have four days!” Roy joked back.

“Yeah, not happening.” I told him.

He laughed, “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I think I love this car.” I told him as I stroked the leather seats.

He commented on this being the nicest car he’s ever owned… and driven. I think he loves it too.

So, we get to the mall.  Roy heads to LensCrafters to order his glasses (awesome looking pair of Ray Bans… very sexy!) and then we head to the toy store.  The kids were being good, so we let them pick out little treats - more lego sets for Addi and Hayden, and Ben 10 toys for Dean.  I know I spoil them, but it is the end of summer… and the older boys got their treats too!  I spoil all the boys, if nothing else!  And then… Michael Kors. To spoil me.  I went in pretty sure of what I was going to get, this beautiful red leather tote and a watch.  I left with something very different.  Well, the bag is actually the same style, but it is a new distressed leather.  Wasn’t sure I liked it on the website and when I first saw it, but the more I looked at it, the more I dug it.  I also got a pair of boots.  High heels, same distressed leather, can’t wait to wear them when the weather gets a little cooler.

And the young lady and young man that helped us out in the store were great!  Answered all my questions, very happy to pull shoes out for me, etc.  They might work on commission, I don’t know, but they provided truly great customer service.

Which leads me to my disappointments…  Dean’s sneakers broke.  Well, not broke, but the velcro was having issues, and since I have already tried to repair them twice, I threw up my hands and decided to just get him a new pair.  We went into Stride Rite.  These shoes are not cheap, or rather I don’t think they are.  Fifty dollars for a pair of little kids shoes isn’t cheap in my book, but Roy and Dean found a pair of Star Wars sneakers.  Fifty five dollars.  Ok, they looked well made at least.  And we could NOT get any help.  We couldn’t even get anyone to acknowledge us.  Sure, it was a weekend, but it wasn’t that crowded!  Finally Roy goes up to the counter, and the young lady looks at a clip board and calls a name.  The customer is there, so she walks right over to him… completely ignoring Roy.  Ok, guess you have to sign in, but we didn’t know that. And no one said to do so.

No one offered a “sign right here sir and we will be right with you.”  Nothing.  Not even a “sign here dude, and wait your turn.”  NOTHING.

So, we still kept on, because Dean seemed to really like the shoes.  Then we noticed another shoe with Boba Fett… Dean’s favorite Star Wars character.  It didn’t look like they were in yet, since it said coming soon next to them.

So I walked to the register, where EVERY single sales associate was standing around trying to ring up their customer.  Really?  One person can’t do it and then just ask who helped?  So, I asked the young lady closest to me.

“Excuse me, can you just tell me when the other Star Wars shoes will come in?”  I was polite.

“I don’t know.” A short, blunt answer.  Ok, seems to me I am a customer, could you MAYBE make an effort to find out?  Maybe even a lame effort? 

The other associate did speak up at that point, but I was already annoyed.  We sat around for 20 minutes, and no, I am not making that up, and nothing.

I went up to remove Roy’s name from the list.

“Not good customer service here.” Was my comment.  No, I wasn’t trying to be a witch, but this was ridiculous.

Again, NOTHING.  Not one word, they looked up at me and then went right back to standing around.  Sorry, but Stride Rite has lost my business from here on out. All it took was a few words to let us know we were recognized, but that’s too difficult.

So we looked around the mall a bit more, and I found a sweater in the window of Express that would have looked great on Roy.  He said he liked it, so in I went to see what I could find.  Now, here at least they attempted to provide some customer service, though it was less than stellar.  They couldn’t find the sweater and couldn’t tell me much, but at least they made an effort.

“Oh well” I shrugged, “We’re two for two here.”

Roy just walked away… no sweater today!  We picked up his glasses, got some lunch, then it was on to Costco to stock up on snacks for school.

I did my thing in Costco, and Roy looked like he was about to collapse from exhaustion, so I tried to hurry up.  We payed, and left.

And then I got to enjoy another ride home in our new car.  Glad the weekend is over… oh wait, school starts on Wednesday… GREAT!

(remembered from August 2009)

Finally, it was Hayden’s turn. Corey was a sophomore in high school, and Joey was finishing up his last year of middle school. I was just happy that Hayden would have Addi on the bus with him for at least this first year. Just like Corey was with Addi, Addi is in fifth grade and his little brother was starting school.

Our little town finally got a Target (and I admit I am in there at least twice a week, but that is a whole other story), and Hayden loves this store. It’s funny actually, but he was so excited to get to pick out his school outfit. It was a Friday, Roy’s “off day,” (our shopping day?) and Hayden came into our room at about 7am. The summer sun was just starting to peek into the room.

“Can we go to Target and Costco now?” I heard this, while being tapped gently on the cheek.

“Hayden, really? Honey, it’s like… 7 in the morning. Let mommy sleep for a little bit longer.” I pleaded with him, knowing it would do no good.

“Mommy! What if my shirt is gone?” Now keep in mind, Hayden had no idea what his shirt would be, but he knew it might be gone. I sighed and got out of bed.

“Shhh…” I held my finger to my lips, “Let’s let Daddy sleep for a little bit longer, k? And then we can go to IHOP for breakfast.”

“Yes!” Hayden gave me a high five and ran out of the room, slamming the door, which of course woke up Roy.

“What’s going on?” He asked me while trying to pull the covers back up.

I leaned over to give him a kiss and told him to go back to sleep. He grunted at me and rolled back over. I got up, put my nightgown on, and went downstairs to find something to tide over the younger boys. Dean was crying, so I grabbed him out of his crib on my way down. Hayden and Addi were already awake and sitting expectantly on the couch.

“Addi, are you going with mommy and daddy to run our errands?” I asked him, knowing that more than likely he would want to stay home with his older brothers.

“Do I have to?” He asked, and I could see the wheels turning. If he stays home, then he might get to play a game or watch a movie he wants, but if he comes with us, he gets breakfast out and maybe a little treat.

I shook my head, and put Dean in his booster seat, “No, you can stay with your brothers, but you have to be good and listen to Corey. Are you going to do that?”

“Of course!” He looked at me like I was an idiot for even questioning him and asked if he could have cereal.

I got Addi his cereal and gave Dean a little waffle to tide him over. Hayden asked for a poptart, so I opened a pack and shared it with him.

“Do you know what you want to wear on your first day?” I asked Hayden smoothing his sweaty bangs off his forehead.

“No, but can I get a Bakugan?” He asked.

I sighed. Bakugan are little balls that pop open to reveal little dragons or animals when they touch metal.

“We’ll see. But remember we need to get you something cool to wear on your first day of school.”

“Ok, but I really want a Bakugan.” Rather than get sucked into this back and forth with Hayden, I gave him a kiss and walked back into the kitchen to see what Dean was doing.

Around 8:30am, Corey stumbled down the stairs and grunted at us. I told him to get something to eat and to keep an eye on the little boys, so I could run and get cleaned up.

“Do you want to go with us?” I asked Corey as he rummaged around in the pantry.

“Where?” He muttered at me.

“I need to run to Costco and then Target.” Of course, Costco is about 35 minutes away, and like Addi, I saw the wheels turning.

“Do you need my help with anything?” He asked finally coming out of the pantry with a box of Frosted Flakes.

“No, your dad is coming with me. If you want to stay home, you know the deal.”

He nodded and I ran up the stairs to get cleaned up. I walked into our room, and Roy was just starting to get up. I ran into the bathroom and heard him curse at me.

“HEY! You’ve been up here all morning, don’t blame me!” I yelled at him through the door knowing he was upset that I snagged the bathroom first.

“Yeah, open the door, or I won’t go with you.” Boy, did he know me or what?

I unlocked the door, and smiled at him while he grunted at me and pushed past me. MEN! I turned on the shower, and put my glasses up.

“Where do you need to go today?” Roy asked, and I heard the sleepiness in his voice.

“Just Costco and Target. We can go to Maru if you want.” I knew dangling the fish store in front of him would work to my advantage.

“Cool.” And he turned on the bathtub. Just then I heard our bedroom door crash open.

“Mommy!” The whine was starting to creep into Hayden’s voice, so I quickly jumped in the shower, leaving Roy to deal with him. Cowardly, I know.

“What, Hayden?”

“Can we go yet? I put my clothes on.”

Roy told him to be patient and that we would leave as soon as we were ready.

“Well, are you ready yet?” Hayden persisted.

“No, Hayden. Mommy has no clothes on, and Daddy is in his underwear. Relax, we won’t be long.” Roy responded.

Hayden nodded at Roy and ran out of the room. I finished up in the shower and tried to hurry Roy along in the bathtub. I wanted to get to Costco, get the shopping down, and start heading home before Friday traffic clogged up the road. I dried off, and Roy and I ran around getting dressed… me fixing my hair and him annoying me with his cologne. I asked him to get Dean some clothes, while I finished up with my makeup. I brushed my hair and looked around the room. Satisfied that I had everything I needed, I ran downstairs to meet the guys.

“Hey, Mom.” Joey called to me from the sofa.

“Hey, Joey. You coming with us?” I already knew the answer, but we always ask.

“Nah, can I just stay home?” I said sure and walked into Roy’s office to get my purse. “Where’s, Hayden?” I asked coming out of the office into the family room.

“Here I am!” He came downstairs. Now, I will say… at home, I don’t mind if he runs around in his pajamas all day. He plays outside in his GI Joe costume and his dad and I are cool with that, but when we go out, I like the boys to look nice. Today Hayden came downstairs in red knit shorts… still in good shape, but faded as all get out. He was wearing a bright yellow shirt… still ok, but over his shirt he had put this little hoodie he loves. It is a sort of teal blue with no arms, but it was tight. His shirt is all bunched up undearneath it, but the real star of the show here were his socks.

“What are you wearing?” Corey asked him, not even bothering to hide the smirk in his voice. Of all the boys, Corey is the one that likes clothes. I looked at him, and saw he was looking at Hayden’s black socks… and on closer inspection I saw one sock had Darth Vadar on it and the other had a robot monkey on it.

“Clothes.” Hayden answered proudly. Roy laughed and turned to look at me, knowing exactly what I would say, but he cut me off.

“Hayden, come on, buddy. Why don’t you just wear your Crocs?” I assumed Roy figured we could at least get rid of the mismatched socks.

“I will.” And he ran off to get them, “Ok, I’m ready! Can we go now?”

I turned around at Hayden’s voice, only to smile, because, sure enough, he had his Crocs on - the wrong feet of course - but he was still wearing his socks.

I asked, “Hayden can we please take the socks off? And the vest too?”

“Ok, can I get a Bakugan if I do?” The boy is crafty. I’ll give him that.

“We’ll see.” And I admit to holding my breath, hoping that answer would at least get us out the door and into the car.

“Fine.” And with that he took off his blue vest and his mismatched socks and ran out the door, leaving them in a small pile on the floor in the foyer.

“I got ‘em.” I said to Roy as he stepped over them with Dean in his arms and walked out to join Hayden.

I threw the clothes into the laundry room and shouted instructions to the older boys, “Be Good! Corey don’t be a bossy jerk, k? Be nice to your younger brothers. Joey, help out Corey and keep an eye on Addi too. Addison! You listen to your older brothers. No fighting! And please don’t just play the computers all day, get some lunch at lunch time.” At this point I could see their eyes glazing over.

Corey smiled at me, “Mom, it’s cool. We know the drill. See you later.”

“Ok, ok. Love you guys!” I called as I was shutting the door.

I pulled up short to see Roy in the passenger seat of our Prius. Figures! I think I do about 70% of our driving, which doesn’t bother me for the most part, though the smirk on Roy’s face did.

“I was going to drive anyways.” I told him as I got into the car.

“Sure you were.” He couldn’t keep the baiting tone out of his voice.

“Bite me.” I threw at him and started to laugh when Hayden giggled in the backseat. “Ok, off we go!”

We drove the 45 minutes to Costco, which I bypassed and turned into the parking lot of IHOP instead. I was so looking forward to some warm pancakes and hot coffee. We went in, were seated, and placed our order a few minutes later.

“Are you excited to pick out your new outfit for school?” Roy asked Hayden as our food was set in front of us.

“Yeah, but Mommy said I could have a Bakugan!”

“Oh really?” Roy asked. He says I spoil Hayden, and I admit it… I do. When he looks at me with those big liquid eyes, and says “Please Mommy.” I don’t like to say no.

“Yeah, I need a new one. But I will get a new outfit for school too. Maybe at Target.” He had it all worked out.

We paid for our meal and hopped back in the car, got buckled up, and headed over to Costco.

“This isn’t Target.” I could hear the whine creeping back into his voice, and knowing that if it continues, it would grate on my last nerve.

“Hayden, be good, buddy, k?” Roy asked him, though Hayden, even at five, knew Daddy wasn’t asking him to be good. He was telling him or else.

“Ok. Can we go to the Bear Store?” He asked me coming to take my hand, as we got out of the parked car.

“We’ll see.” I told him and tucked his small hand in mine. I know he likes Build-a-Bear Workshop. Even I like it, but we have SO many stuffed animals in the house.

We walked around the mall for a bit. I probably wandered into Hot Topic looking at things for the older boys. I might have even bought them a few shirts. We hit American Eagle, New York and Company, probably Game Stop, and then finally we wandered into Costco. Costco is my friend… one of my best friends. With a large family, especially one with growing boys and a husband that loves meat, a warehouse store is the way to go, and in my book, Costco is the best. But, it isn’t pretty when we go there - sure every once in awhile we get out with only dropping $150, but it’s usually more like $300 or more. If you pay attention, you will notice Roy wander away when the last item is rung up. He just wants the check to clear. He doesn’t want to know the details.

We finally packed up and headed to Target. But I decided to steer towards Old Navy, just in case.

“I don’t like this store.” Hayden wasn’t even in the door before he started complaining. I mean, let’s just put it out there, nothing will ever beat Target for him.

“Well, Mommy just wants to look, ok? I just want to see if we can get you some shorts.”

“Fine,” he sighed and followed me around, his face lighting up when he saw a large vending machine with bouncy balls in them. I left Roy to rummage around in his shorts to come up with some quarters, while I tried to find shorts in Addi and Hayden’s sizes. Hayden finally got a ball, and he and Dean bounced it around the store, while I tried not to give Roy the evil eye for letting them do that.

“Ok, let’s go.” I took the shorts and a few things I got for Dean and attempted to hurry them along… anxious to pay and get to Target, so we could get home.

Target… I love it! It’s one stop shopping as far as I am concerned. The clothes are of better quality than other stores like it, and they have some big name designers do limited edition lines for them. I mean, let’s face it, a piece from his Target line is the only way I can afford Gaultier. We walked into the store and grabbed a cart. I steered everyone straight ahead, down the aisle with women’s clothing. Hayden opened his mouth, and I just knew what was coming out.

“Give me a minute, ok, Hayden? Mommy just wants to see if they have anything on sale.”

“Ok, maybe Daddy can take me to the toys?” He looked at Roy with hope in his eyes.

I nodded at him and told him I would meet them over there in a minute. I probably found something to add to my closet and wandered over to find the boys. I reached the toy section and slowed my strides, I could hear Roy telling Hayden he could get ONE Bakugan and that he needed to hurry because we had meat in the car. Before I reached the aisle, my three guys came out and started toward me. Hayden was holding a Bakugan, his little face happy and relaxed. Dean had an Elmo in his arms and a smile on his little cherubic face.

“Ready to pick out an outfit?” I asked Hayden as he reached me and gave me a hug.

“Yep!” And he took off in front of us, already familiar with the layout of the store.

We reached the boys’ section, only to see Hayden already holding a black polo shirt with little white skulls on them.

“I found my shirt! Can we go pay now?” Hayden’s desire to play with his new toy was clearly evident.

“Hayden, this shirt is way too big for you, honey. Just relax, ok?” I put the extra large polo shirt back on the rack and picked out his size. For some reason, I too am a fan of skulls, and I was digging this shirt. He had the shorts we found at Old Navy, but Roy was browsing through the basketball shorts, probably looking for something for Joe. Finally, we made our selections and headed to the register to pay. After we paid and loaded up everything in what little room we had left in the Prius, we headed back towards home.

“Did you want to go to the fish store?” I asked Roy, who was now driving.

“No, I’m good. I think we spent enough money today.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. Roy knows fish stores bore the crap out of me on a good day. I settled in for the ride home, laughing with Roy and signing along to the radio with Hayden. About 45 minutes later, we pulled into our driveway and beeped the horn, which is the signal for the older boys to come out and help unload the car. After things were put up and dinner eaten, Roy and I relaxed on the couch. I have no doubt that he said something to me regarding Hayden going to school, and pretty soon, Dean would follow. But I wasn’t listening. Hayden is my baby, my fourth baby, and the idea of putting him on the bus and watching him wave to me from the window made my heart hurt.

Roy always asks why it doesn’t get any easier to send the kids off to school, and the simple answer is… I don’t know. But honestly, I do know part of the reason - it’s a reminder to me that time is going by too quickly. That each day the boys need me less and less. That Corey turning 18, Joey getting his driver’s license, and Addi going to high school are milestones that are just around the corner. And one day, I will wake up, turn over to see my beautiful husband lying next to me, and I will know that I won’t hear any little feet running down the hall. I won’t have a little boy seeking out the warmth of my arms. Roy and I will be alone. And at times we will celebrate, but I know the day will come when I will be alone, and the quiet will get to me. I will miss the chaos and the screaming. I will long for the wails of “Mommy!” and the sweet, wet kisses of my little boys. I just hope that no matter how big they get, no matter how old they are, they will always have some time for their good ol’ mom.

And in the meantime, I will try to remember that day is just around the corner and not lock myself in the bathroom to hide from them.

(remembered from January 2006)

Taking the boys out these days requires a 13 passenger van. I know. I know. Huge, right? We previously had an Expedition. I LOVED my truck. Called her Kong (as in King Kong).

We try to hit Costco once a month. We spend anywhere between 200-600 dollars (of course, once we spent 3500, but that was buying my husband’s dream TV). I like to stock up on meat and quick dinners for those nights when mom has just had enough.

In any event, one day back when we had Kong, we went to Costco and took all the kids with us (there were only four at the time). We are at the register, Roy is putting things up on the belt and I am herding the kids.

“That will be $329, Ma’am.”

I say what I always say to Roy and the kids after a Costco visit. “Wow, you guys are so expensive!”

“Are they all yours?” The cashier is a young woman… maybe 22, 25 tops.

“Yep, all ours! Five boys.” I say this with pride.

“Oh. You poor thing! Are you going to try for a girl?”

See, the first few hundred times I heard this, I just said… No, I’m good. Then Roy or I would joke that our youngest, either Hayden or now Dean, was the try. Now, I just smile and say, “Nope, we’re done.”

Oh. You are wondering why we need such a huge car… okay, so we pay and are walking out. The cart is full, and each of the three older boys has their arms full. I am carrying bags from other stores. We get to the car… the kids all pile in and put their seatbelts on while Roy and I start putting things away. We finally get things put up, and he and I get in. As he is pulling out of the parking lot, I turn around to look at the boys. With the exception of Hayden, who was still in a car seat at the time, each of the boys is holding something in their lap or desperately looking for someplace to place their burden. Addi in his booster seat has the bag from the bookstore. Joey has a box of frozen goods that he is trying to make room for on the floor at his feet. And Corey is looking around in vain for someplace to put a box with snacks and juice from Costco.

“Hey, Roy?”

“Yeah.”

“We need a bigger car.”

A few weeks later we started looking. We did some research, and Roy laid out my options for me.

“You can get an Excursion, a Suburban, or a big passenger van.”

“That’s it? Those are my options?”

“Yep, that’s it!”

Well, I didn’t want an Excursion because Ford was not going to be making them anymore, and everyone has a Suburban around here, so that left only one option… the passenger van it was. We didn’t have to look far, at the time gas was expensive - about $3.50 a gallon - and people didn’t want big cars. We found a Ford E350 at one of the local dealers. They gave us a better deal on a trade-in for the Expedition than we thought they would, so we did our thing and bought Godzilla. That is what I call my big green van of course.

Giant as it is, the van has served our family well. It isn’t the most plush thing out there, but there is plenty of room. For such a big van, it is a relatively smooth ride, and we have yet to run out of room during a Costco trip!

I thought that I would do this every Friday.  Cooking for a large family is fun, if not challenging, messy and expensive at times!  Sometimes, things are a big, old failure, and other times I really hit it out of the ball park.  Some days, I am just too lazy to do much, so we have ‘free for all days!’ And that is just as it sounds, whatever you can find is yours!  And once in awhile, we just pile everyone in the car, and head out to find something to eat.

Yesterday, Friday, we had errands to run, so we made plans to take Corey, Addi, Hayden and Dean to Pei Wei Asian Diner.  Roy has taken me there a few times, and I just love it!  It’s good, fresh tasting, reasonably priced Asian fast food.  It isn’t like your standard Chinese buffet (though we have one of those we really like as well!)-this is food made to order.  Generous portions, and good prices make this a new family favorite!  Roy got the same thing he always gets-Honey Seared Chicken.  I went for something new-Mongolian Beef (Really tasty!  The sauce had the right amount of sweetness, and there was a lot of beef!).  Corey was a bit adventurous and got the Japanese Chile Ramen (a little spicy, but he wolfed the entire bowl down!) and for the little guys we got the kid’s honey seared chicken, and Addi got the Chicken Lo Mein.  Along with drinks and a side of Edamame, we spent less than $45 dollars!  The food was filling, had generous amounts of veggies, and we got our choice of white or brown rice.  I highly recommend this place if you have one near you.

After lunch, we ran to Costco and don’t even get me started on how much we spend in that place!  We didn’t even get any electronics… just food!  (ok, I did get two magazines and some books for the younger boys) I won’t say how much we dropped, but let’s just say my car payment for the Prius is less….

Well, we picked up Joe, and the kids were getting hungry… again!  I won’t lie.  After running errands all day (finding Crocs for Dean was tough!), I didn’t feel like cooking.  I didn’t even feel like heating anything up… so we headed to Qdoba.  I love their Guacamole!  I got my usual Poblano Pesto Naked Burrito, with a side of Guac and chips.  Addi and Joe actually shared one of their new Nacho platters, and let me tell you… PLENTIFUL!  Even for the both of them!  Corey and Roy got the Signature Queso burritos, though Roy’s had chicken and Corey’s had beef.  Hayden had a taco kid’s meal and Dean had the chicken nachos kid’s meals.  Both the kid’s meals were very nice size portions, and I always leave their full.  We have their loyalty card, and that saved us about $7, or a free burrito!  We didn’t leave hungry and for a family of seven we spent less than $40… works for me!

I will be the first to admit that I am trying to save money these days, but once in awhile, I just don’t feel like cooking, so the kids get a treat.  Both of the places we visited yesterday are family friendly and very reasonable. 

Seven Thumbs Up!