A pleasant trip to the fabric store

Yesterday I thought I'd take the kids with me to the fabric store so I could pick up a couple of supplies for a new project. Simple enough, right? Well, here's how the visit went.

We pull into the parking lot, and as I'm getting BJ out of the car, Ammon says, "Mom, I forgot my shoes." What? How do you forget shoes? Oh well, we're here now and I'm not going back home just for shoes. We'll be in and out quickly anyway. In the store we go, get the baby into the cart, and head straight for the fleece. It only takes me a minute to pick out the colors I want, amidst a few protests of, "No, get the orange!" So far so good. Head over to the thread. Pass the Fall decorations and pick up 3 things my kids knock over. Pick some thread out quickly and put it in the cart. BJ starts fussing, so I hand him the thread to hold. Sissy finds something she wants and starts begging. I tell her "NO" and hit the zipper aisle. Meanwhile, Sissy, although she put it back under threat of leaving the store, keeps whining and getting louder and louder. Where did the thread go? I hand BJ the zippers and start looking for the thread. Nowhere. Oh well, better get the fabric cut. Head to the cutting counter and Sissy sees the item again and starts throwing a full-blown screaming fit (screaming, "I want a package!" she didn't even know what the item was). By this time one of my pieces is cut and so I can't leave it. I also notice a horrid stench that I suspect is coming from one of my children. The store is busy and people are starting to stare. Ammon finds a large rubber band on the ground and starts using it as a slingshot. The baby has chewed off the end of the zipper package and the zipper falls out. Sissy flops and starts kicking and screaming. I tuck her under my arm, go quickly to get more thread, and head for the checkout. Luckily there is no line. But somehow when we are getting rung up, a line of about 5 people forms behind us. The cashier throws away my cut slip (that has the fabric info on it) instead of charging it (perhaps he was distracted by the slimy, chewed-up zipper package,) so has to fish thru the trash for it and ring me up a second time. We head out the door. Phew! I made it.
It's the first time I've been there that they didn't bug me about being on their mailing list. :)