Groceries

It's amazing how two 2-year-olds can turn a simple trip to the grocery store into an adventure fraught with unpredictability.

Let me say first that we're incredibly lucky to have Peapod grocery delivery by the Giant grocery stores in our area. I don't know what we would have done without it in the last couple of years. We're able to shop online and get all our groceries delivered within a two-hour window for a nominal charge. It's pure luxury. I honestly don't know how parents who have to take two or more little ones to the store simultaneously do it without going nuts. When we need to make an emergency run to the store, my husband or I have always done it while the other watches the girls. A couple of times we have taken Catherine, but not often.

But today we were out of milk, Steve wasn't here, and I was forced to take both girls with me to the store. Together. For the first time in their little lives both together, believe it or not!

Catherine threw a tantrum first getting into the minivan because she apparently thought we were going for a walk instead of driving somewhere. Wrong. But she settled down when we were underway.

At the store parking lot I got a cart and I strapped Catherine in the seat and put Elisabeth in the basket. Elisabeth remained seated quietly the whole time in the bottom of the basket like a little angel, just taking it all in silently! What a good girl!

As I was going in, I passed a woman exiting with a cart overflowing with 87 bags of groceries, two tiny girls traipsing alongside, and a baby in the cart seat. It put things in perspective for me really quickly.

Inside the store the girls seemed overwhelmed and were as good as gold! I was not expecting that! I asked Catherine if she wanted one of her favorites, watermelon, or "wa-muh", and she was happy to help me pick out a slice.

We went through the aisles and I piled up the groceries around Elisabeth in the cart. The only little problem was when she tried to open the little carton of fresh mozzarella swimming in water. I didn't think that was a good idea, but some rearranging solved it.

Otherwise they were quiet and happy the whole time! *shocked disbelief*

The only time Catherine was unhappy was when I took the watermelon out of the cart and put it on the checkout stand. I think that she thought I was giving HER watermelon away to the cashier.

One of the older checkout ladies started asking Elisabeth, "Will you give me your curls?" I thought that was a little creepy. But fortunately we were all done shopping without incident and I was able to pack up my groceries and hustle my girls out and take everything back home again.

This was definitely a lucky break today. I know I'll have to pay double for this one some time in the future. Just wait until they learn to wheedle for me to buy them things....