Tears

Ok. It's been a couple of weeks since posting something for Jonathan's BlogFriday. I really really like the idea of BlogFriday. Since going back to work, I've been having troubles making all the rounds, doing all the postings, and keeping up with the pile of laundry at home.

BUT, Johnathan has posted a word I know a lot about - tears.

So, here's the latest tears story. Last weekend we got access to the Mothership's car while she and Grandpa D head to warmer places. With the car, we have our regular obligations - go to their place pick up the mail, water the cat and pick them up at the end of their trip.

Having a car at our disposal is very different. It means that we're running longer-distance errands, and doing some fun stuff that we only do when the Grands go on their yearly trip. So, last week we went to a special toy store. This is the brain-version of toy stores, the good-for-you-educational-toy style of stores. I love it. It sure beats the one trip (ever) I did to Toys 'R' Us, oh, about 12 years back.

I took the two older CU-s there as they have a better selection of mother-approved toys. CU-3 found her area of expertise pretty quickly. Narrowing the decision took longer, a lot longer. But, there I left her to battle it out and discuss the benefits of each with one of the helpful mom-substitutes they have wandering the store.

CU-4 had a harder mission. He wanted a laser.

As a side bar story - DH is the Health and Safety officer for a well known employer in our community. He'd just spent the previous weekend drafting safety policy for the use of lasers as his work ... can you see a conflict building here?

CU-1 found another mother-substitute and started talking to her about this particular laser he'd seen the previous year that I'd brought him to the store (note: it's only when the Grandparents are out of town do we make this trip. It's that special.)

The mother-substitute was very helpful and even ignored my regular eye-rolling and attempts to insert myself into the conversation.

Eventually she figured out that the laser kit that he was looking for was all sold out and a hot item for the winter of 2006.

I packed up the unhappy CU-1 and the ecstatic CU-2 who finally made her choices and made my way through the next errands. CU-1 kept nagging me about going to the fancy-pants toy store more in our neighborhood. By this point in time we were driving home, so it was like, ok. We'll go. I dropped him off at the corner and parked the car.

By the time CU-2 and I made it into the house, he'd grown confident in his quest, found a clerk and made his request known. While they didn't have it in that store, they had it in a sister store. (It being freezing rain that day, I asked if they could transfer it to this store.)

In the car, I turned around to see this pre-adolescent CU-1 crying. "What's up?" I asked, thinking I'd done something horribly wrong.

"Rein, Maman." he responded.

They were tears of joy ...