Sooooo 50% off $120.00 is how much?

It's the end of January.  Even though the weather is still chilly and there's plenty of freezing nights ahead of us still, in the stores, it's time to prepare for the next season.  Simply put, if you're needing gear for next winter, now is the time to buy.

I called my mom, invited her along and off we went, stopping at Fred Meyer first.  Now Fred Meyer can have great sale prices when clearing stuff out but you have to keep in mind that items can start much pricier to start with.  Something of good quality though, just might be worth the higher price, even on sale. 

We came across a lovely coat perfect for Kate.  It was in the woman's section, so no girly pink or purple.  More like a ski jacket, very compact, not bulky in the least with an edgier purple, black and grey plaid fits Kate's maturing style.  The coat hung from a clearly marked rack of 50% off but the original price of $120.00 still kept me grabbing the perfect coat and marching straight to the registers.  My mother being the kind and generous woman she is, offered to put her spare cash in making a payment of $40.00 plus tax more doable for us.

Since there wasn't anything suitable for Ean in the store, off to the checkout we went.  There wasn't a line and we didn't have to wait.  I was fussing with my purse while the coat was rung up and my mom leaned forward and whispered I needed to check the price.  Glancing up to a number rounded up to $78 gave me pause.  I mentioned to the checker that I thought there was a mistake, the coat was clearly on a rack marked 50% off.  She must have been tired because she glanced at the price tag and said "Well it was $120.00."

I stopped a moment.

It's a been a long time since I was in school but I'm pretty sure I can halve $120 and add $4.00 tax and still have less then $78.00

I calmly pointed out the math and the waiting began.  First for a call back from ladies clothes.  Then a gal came up from the back because she had no idea what coat the checker was talking about.  Then she went back again to try to find where it was found. 

In the meantime, the line behind us started stacking up.  A few employees came by to find out why our line was stalled.

I joked at least we hadn't gotten in the express line.

Finally a call to say that the clothing department employee couldn't find where the coat was found, so my mother and I took the coat back to the racks and had to hunt down the woman helping us.  It took maybe five minutes to locate her.

Then there was a call to someone that could look up stock on the computer.  Then a call to someone else and finally a call to the service desk so we could check out with the right price.  In the end, I think mostly to another coat on the rack that was the same brand, same style, we got the 50% off. 

I must say, even with the confusion, I appreciate the obvious effort from the store employees to figure out what was actually going.  It would have been easier to say the price that was rung up, was the proper price.

Kate appreciates her new coat. 

I love when my children show gratitude. 

Dental Drama

Jane gets her braces on February fifth.  So it's coming up.  I had scheduled this cleaning very carefully, a week in advance so we could fit in another appointment if a filling was needed but still really close to the actual application of the braces, so her teeth will be sparkly and ready.

Jane's going for bling and doing gold braces.  She should be absolutely adorable!

I was also able to schedule today's appointment so the teenager wouldn't miss school.  No small feat for the kid that doesn't get out until almost four, Tuesday through Friday but Monday, with it's mandatory early release was the one time we could guarantee getting there on time after school.

Today's Four O'clock appointment was a real score.  This of course made my dismay, not to mention my stress level elevate pretty quickly when the gal behind the desk looked me puzzled and said my daughters appointment was cancelled. 

Uh no.

It wasn't.

I had not received a call about any scheduling problems nor had I called earlier to cancel the appointment.  The last time I heard from that office was a call Friday to remind me about Monday's appointment. 

I almost instantly started to panic.  Normally such a thing just might be an inconvenience but today's appointment wasn't the only one on the line.  I had already rescheduled Jane's band appointment from mid-January and dang it, we needed to get her taken care of.  I'm embarrassed to say I did get a bit snippy, although I did apologize when it was all said and done.

To the receptionist's credit, she squeezed us right in and Jane was taken care of.  She has one cavity and that will be taken care of before the bands are put on.  

All in all, it was more excitement then I needed!  

Sometimes, I'm so DANG Sentimental

I cry. 

I cry easily.

I cry when upset.

I cry when moved.

I cry when amazed.

I'm just a dang, emotional being and there's no shame in that but I do wish I could handle myself without falling to pieces just a bit more.

Today my eyes welled up because of speakers!   In all fairness, not just any speakers.   These babies are special. 

About 17 years ago, after marriage, before children, I was talking to my dad on the phone.  If you haven't figured it out, my dad was a tech junkie.  He loved, and I do mean loved technology.  He loved music, from Mozart to Madonna, loved movies, from Alfred Hitchcock, to Top Gun and pretty much everything in between.  It's not a stretch to see his love of technology filling our home with music and movies.

He had a stereo, hooked to multiple speakers, wired throughout the house.  We could play music, or the movie on TV in the living room, dining room or the kitchen and usually it was all three at once. 

He liked his music loud.  It's no wonder my hearing is bad. 

There was a set of speakers, huge, brown, kick-butt in their day.  I remember them from when I was bitty.  They're heavy too. 

One day my dad decided after years of his old system that it was time to upgrade.  While on the phone, I mentioned in jest that he should send me his old system and he laughed and we said goodbye.  A few days later, he called and told me to keep my eye out for five really boxes from UPS. 

Seriously, I was floored.  I mean, who mails that kind of stuff on a whim??????   Obviously my dad did.

I mentioned to Kent, he might want to refrain from hooking up his stereo in our apartment because my dad was sending his old one and Kent, with a little trepidation, said he'd wait and see before deciding.  When I came home from work a few days after that and it looked like Christmas morning with boxes everywhere and the front room torn apart as Kent excitedly was hooking everything up, I asked the obvious "So I guess there wasn't a choice to make?!"    *laugh*

Kent cheerfully let me know that this was the best UPS delivery of his life!  My dad mailed the old stereo, the two huge speakers, a new CD player, because he figured we probably could use it and a VCR player.  Yup, five huge and heavy boxes. 

My dad was one of the most generous people I've ever known.

Well a few days ago, my husband pulled out a thrift store find, a decent, working stereo that he excitedly hooked up in our front room.  He said he wanted the windows to rattle.

Oh my gosh, he's channeling dad.

He pulled the old speakers, dad's old speakers from the basement and as I turned on music about an hour ago, I felt my eyes fill up as I thought of him and his speakers. 

I miss him. 

Seven Year Old Boys

I was informed by David this afternoon, that I wasn't performing up to expected specs in the mothering department.  Not only was I failing to bake my children cookies, but the cake that was suppose to go with them, didn't exist either.

Had I mentioned cookies or cake.  Was I exuding some weird motherly vibe that made my children instantly believe that baked goods were in their future?  I don't believe so, but I've been wrong before.  Seriously?  This child argued with me for fifteen minutes to let me know that I needed to get a move on the baking!

Then of course, there was the blizzard.  I picked up the boys right after school.  They were already checked into the after school program but there was a bonafide blizzard here in Pocatello and the roads were nasty.  I got off work about a half hour early to pick up kids.  Well Greg, the child that cried for me the first couple of days of  the after school program, cried today because I wasn't letting him stay.

It's nice to know he now likes it.

Maybe today was the day to argue?  When Greg discovered there was no hot chocolate in the cupboard, he debated me for twenty minutes on whether or not I should go to the store.  When I told him I wasn't going, the streets were very slippery, he got a concerned look and asked if the stores were all out of hot chocolate.

Greg often misses the point.  It was still pretty amusing.

Then there was two seven year olds tromping in the house, with snow falling everywhere, my mom is telling them, go stamp your feet outside.  They hear stamp and instantly there's snow flying all over the front room.

And finally there was the two upset boys because one wants school canceled tomorrow and the other doesn't.  Truly life or death debating!

Ah, my boys.  They keep me young.