Everyone has days like these..... I think?

A few days ago I decided to take all the kids with me to get groceries and their school supplies - my first mistake.  I thought it was going to go so well.  The kids were in good moods and very excited to pick up all of their supplies.

We walked into the store and the chaos started - we had to go to the bathroom first, then Iz had to go, then O went into the boys bathroom, then they need a drink from the fountain, etc.  Once that was done, we finally started the shopping.  I got out my lists which I had highlighted because we only needed certain items as some things were still good from last year.  We started putting items into the cart and I let them put their items in themselves too.  O was putting everything she could grab into the cart.  So while I was trying to get E and A's stuff organized, I had to keep track of what O was putting in that she didn't need and put it back on the shelves - which ended in a crying meltdown because she thought she NEEDED all the items.  A had a great idea to get O's mind off the crying - she could pick out a new backpack!  O was thrilled! So we moved on to that aisle.  O picked one out in no time and we were all set with the supplies, whew!!  I was exhausted, hot and sweaty by this point.

Next were the groceries.  We didn't need much but we still had to go through almost every aisle, which left plenty of time for the 3 kids that were walking to pester each other.  And oh how they did!  I was constantly telling them to stop touching things, stop touching each other, etc.  It was exhausting.  And somewhere along the way O picked up a $4 notebook that she thought she had to have.  I let her carry it around hoping it would keep her happy and content the rest of the trip.  Well, she left it lay about 4 aisles before we were done, so another crying tantrum resulted.  This one lasted pretty much until we left though :-(  We continued to shop and get the items we needed with the kids still misbehaving.  I am not sure why they were in such a pestering mood.  I often take all 4 of them with me and it has never been THIS bad.

We were finally done. The kids went to the play area by the checkout and I began the checkout process.  I started stacking the bags back into the cart and Iz says she needs to go poopy.  I asked E to take her to the bathroom.  He takes her and comes back and they all go back and play.  The cashier finishes checking me out and I get my total. Then I hear Iz say, "I need to go poopy", so I asked E nicely to take her again and he refuses because he said that he just took her and she went. So I tell her to hold it and she starts crying because she has a tummy ache, so I hold her.  I reach into my purse, NO WALLET!  I can't believe it.  I was so frustrated with the kids, hot and sweaty from shopping all over the store and dealing with the kids and now I can't even pay for the items I wanted to buy. Ughhh.!  I put Iz down and begin looking for my wallet.  I can't find it anywhere. In the meantime, Iz pooped in her pants!  So, I then tell E to take her to the bathroom to see if she has to go more.  The customer service rep comes over and tells me that she will hold my groceries while I go and get my wallet.  I then went to check on E and Iz and he has her in the men's bathroom and their is poop EVERYWHERE on her legs, underwear, leggings and dress.  Luckily, I had wipes and an extra set of clothes with for her.  I took her and changed her in the women's bathroom while E watched the other kids outside the bathroom door.  Then we ALL go outside to the van to find my wallet, which was there thankfully, and head back into the store again.  I go up to customer service, pay, and then we all head back out to the van, this time with our school supplies and groceries.

Needless to say, they all got a nice talking to on the way home and a timeout when we got home.  This was the worst shopping experience I have EVER had with the kids.  I know it happens to everyone and that is why I am writing about it.  As mad and frustrated as I was, I knew that someone else had experienced something like it, or worse.  I know bringing all the kids at one time was kind of asking for it but I have done it so many times that I thought it would be fine.  It was just the accumulation of all the things that happened that put me over the edge.

After we ALL took some time away from each other, we had a nice calm talk about how we act in stores and in public and how we need to help Mom when she asks, etc.  I think we all learned a lesson from this one.

I guess my tip to you from this story is to know that all of us have our "Mommy Meltdown" moments.  Although is seems so bad at the moment, it passes and everything turns out just fine.  I have actually laughed about it now :-)