Liz’s rant: Shop ’til you wonder why you’re there

I love my daughter. Really I do. She has a few quirks, though.

She can’t make a decision to save her life. (Fact – deal with it.)

Today was no exception.

“Let’s go to the mall,” she said… On a Sunday afternoon, less than two weeks before Christmas. Had she lost her mind?

“Don’t you have friends to submit to this torture without taking your mother?” I asked.

And she did. Except that she’d just gotten back from a round-the-clock softball tourney in Indianapolis. And since her last game was at 5:30 Sunday morning, and she didn’t get home until about 1 p.m., her friends had conveniently made other plans. So had her brother and I.

In fact, we’d been at another store when she’d called to say she was home, and made that dreaded mall request. Quite frankly, I’d planned to be home making home-made tootsie rolls by 3:30 or so.  But who can resist the request of a child? (Apparently, I need to…)

Needless to say, I found myself at the mall with two of my children. Colton was begging for a Build-A-Bear Wolf, pointing out that everyone else was in there building a bear but him. Hannah was searching to no a avail for gifts for her boyfriend.

But she was hungry.

So we took out time to eat. Dippin’ Dots and Aunt Annie’s pretzels. What I really wanted to do was leave.

And about three hours later, we did. Empty-handed.

Because we’d gone to all the stores Hannah deemed suitable for gifts, and yet she questioned her own abilities to make a decision.

“What if he doesn’t like it?” she said, in reference to her boyfriend.

“I think he’ll love it.”

“I don’t know, Mom.”

“You’ve still got time,” I said.

With that statement, we’d headed to the other end of the mall, where we’d parked.

“Mom, I think maybe I should’ve gotten that one shirt,” she said, about half-way back through the mall.

At that point, exasperation had taken over.

“Fine, go get it. But your brother and I are going back to the house. Do what you need to do and we’ll see you there.”

Although I was a bit irritated and overwrought with the whole shopping ordeal, I figured if nothing else, we were a couple of steps closer to bringing her shopping to completion.

Until she came home.

“Where’s the shirt?” I asked.

“I didn’t get it. Not sure he can wear that size.”

~Liz

Enjoy your Coffee Break!
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