Wednesday, October 28, 2009

squid.

this one goes out to a certain special nursing mama. i hope it entertains you. and it has nothing to do with squid.



ben helped clear the table. when i went into the kitchen to finish cleaning up (hence all the crumbs) this fella greeted me. it made me smile.

today me and the boys went grocery shopping. i tend to avoid shopping for way too long, and then do a really big shop. it's not a good habit. i avoid shopping for a lot of reasons but today i was really motivated for some reason. we started at aldi (which i prefer to call aldis) and since we were out of pretty much everything, i didn't even bother to make a list. ben, being his charming self, always brings an added element to shopping. once, when he was close to max's age, a woman told him, "you are the ambassador of happiness!" because he would catch someone's eye and then smile his biggest, most cheerful smile until they smiled back.


max's added element is that he wants to eat. he's figured out how tasty chips are, thanks to daddy, and was determined to get the can of pringles. he would start begging and grabbing before he even finished the chip he had in hand. and yes, i feed my kids while we shop. by the time we checked out, bagged up, and loaded out, i felt like i had gone to an aerobics class.


on the way home we stopped at dillon's (which for a really long time i thought was dillions. i don't know why.) we got a coveted race car cart so ben was thrilled. i got really excited in an uber-nerdy way because kroger now has a white whole wheat flour for something like $2.45 instead of the king arthur which is almost twice that. i don't really understand this magic, but am looking forward to working with it. never did i think i would see the day when i got excited about flour. honestly, in the first year of our marriage, i don't think i went through a single bag of flour.


other than the flour, this is what really made my day: as i loaded my many bags of flour onto the check out belt i took note of the checker. i always analyse the checkers at stores. instead of the dillons polo, he had a white oxford on, black rimmed glasses, and some flair. nothing all that odd. he just didn't seem like the normal checker type. something about him struck me as different, like he really belonged at borders or starbucks or something. i noticed that one of his flairs was for air force one-available on videocassette today. or in 1996. so i mused that i liked his flair and he told me how he'd found it at an antique store. i told him it reminded me of how tim used to try to pack on as much flair to his walmart smock as possible. (smock-what a lame word.) then, i noticed, taped to the check writing stand, there was a piece of paper that read, "for what movie did joan crawford win her first oscar? flip over for answer." i asked if he wrote it, and he said he does them to get through the day. i, of course, had to check the answer-"mildred pierce" by the way, which he highly recommended. i told him that he had totally made my day with his quirky flair and trivia and he said i made his day, cause most people roll their eyes and give him weird looks. me and matthew the dillons checker built quite the relationship in our short interaction.


yah, it was a lot more amusing in person. written out, it's pretty weak. but i tried.


after dinner, ben pushed max around in this box for awhile. max loved it, although the pics really don't do it justice.




these pics reaffirm what all good parents already know-a good box is better than any toy you can buy. give your kids a sibling and a new box every once in a while, and you're set. it's the simple things.

6 comments:

  1. Laundry baskets too. I think that my laundry baskets have children in them more often then they have laundry in them. That is hyperbole. Sometimes.

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  2. I just love your posts Mary, they are so fun to read! I prefer to call Aldi "Aldi's" as well. It just doesn't sound right the other way. Kind of like when St. Anne's parishoners try to tell you it's not St. Anne's it "St. Anne" ... yeah... whatever...

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  3. I know I say this with nearly every post, but I really do love reading. :) And I call Aldi "Aldi's" too. It just sounds better. :) Aldi's is another reason why I dread a third child. I can barely handle the quarter cart (after a thorough antibacterial wipe-down), no list, two kids, people glaring at you that you're not unloading fast enough, flipping a cart (though you've already disinfected one and the checker glares when you ask if you can NOT switch) and self-bagging... IF I remember the bags kept in the trunk. It is truly an aerobics class and lesson in patience all in one. :)

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  4. I love you, Mary :) I enjoyed this very much while nursing! ;) The top picture made me laugh too. I like those boxes Max is in-I use them for books in the basement instead of bookshelves or other expensive baskets. But you know, they are good for entertaining kids with too!
    I love it when I am lucky enough to have a randomly interesting cashier like that. They really can make a day.
    Ok, I never actually stopped to realize the sign does say Aldi and not Aldis. And I'm pretty sure it says Dillon's...right? My dad used to call it Dillards, which was very confusing in my child mind..."why does mommy always need to go to Dillards??"

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  5. Okay I'll admit it, I do call it Aldi, maybe it because I went to St. Anne school ;) Mary I'm glad you had a random conversation with a cashier to add to your shopping experience. Love the pictures of the boys and the box, I agree boxes are great toys!

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  6. you guys make my day (even more than matthew the checker ;)

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