How lovely to be a woman..

Song Suggestion: How Lovely To be a Woman by Anne Margret

Grocery shopping can be intense. I usually prefer to go to Super Walmart. It's a busy mom's perfect one-stop-shop. You can get everything you need.. without having to unstrap your child from their car seat and hall them into fifteen different stores. Yes.. I realize I will probably walk out with a scented candle and a cute tank top for the summer... maybe an US magazine and a red bowl.. but you know what?? Sometimes that is OK.

So the other day my little Kendall and I went to Walmart. Kendall LOVES.. loves.. loves Walmart. She decided this last trip that she was old enough to walk in Walmart instead of sit in the cart.. I conceded, no big deal. She is getting older.. it's fun to see her explore her environment.

"Hi lady!!" I hear my daughter say.. she is by the bananas.. I am by the apples.. a good fifteen feet apart.

I stay within distance to watch, but I don't interfere.

"Hows your day today?" I hear Kendall continue..

The lady glances down.. stares at her and turns back around.

Kendall cocks her head.. sticks her finger in one of the bananas.. and smiles.. she tells the lady goodbye.

The lady says nothing.

I fight the urge to tell the lady that she is a rude bitch, and swoop over to give Kendall a big hug and I say.. "I am so proud of you for being so polite.. some people just don't know how to respond to that.." I don't make the lady make eye contact with me.. I am sure she feels silly enough.

"You wanna buy some shoes today Kendall?" I say

Kendall B-lines toward the shoes which both shocked and impressed me. I had no clue she knew where the shoes were.

I let her loose in that isle and watched my baby turn into a girl. A girl who has pretty intense taste. She flew from patent leather peep toes to jellies.. from jellies to flip flops and then to sling backs. I sat and watched.. and giggled and loved.. loved, loved it. She tried size eights on and insisted she was an eight.. when I know she's a size ten. She wanted the yellow peep toe sling backs with a little heel and she was ready to throw fists for them. She found a pair of cute bright pink corduroy baby doll slippers, tore the tag off of them and handed it to me. She then slipped them on, handed me her "old shoes" looked up at me with those big blue eyes and said.. "Mama.. we should get these."

oooooh... I gave her pointers for confidence, Sold.

I don't indulge my kids in this kind of thing often. I don't want them to assume that we can do this every time we go shopping, but every now and then you gotta just splurge.. and let them feel spoiled. It is OK. I hope she remembers that day we tore up the Walmart shoe isle. I spent $20.00 on a few pairs of shoes.. but to me, it was priceless.

Kendall and I ride home.. me with my red bowl and my cute new tank top and her with two fabulous pairs of shoes. We roll the windows down and laugh our buns off at our "crazy hair" that flies around in the wind. It's crazy how a 3 year old little girl makes you love being a woman.

Thank you blue eyes.. you rock my world.

Luuuuuuv Mama.