One Stop Shopping

This weekend I took Tai to the local hardware store to buy batteries and an extension cord, for some Christmas decorations. While walking through the store he repeatedly asked me, "do they have presents here?"

He's eager to learn the Ways of Christmas, but doesn't quite understand it all -- I'm pretty sure he thought that Christmas gifts were purchased already wrapped,with bows on top. I tried to explain to him that anything in the store had the potential to be a Christmas present. Then he caught on and started scanning the aisles saying "Mama, we have to buy presents for our friends!"

Then we found a display of personalized ball point pens. They came in pink, red, blue, yellow, and green, with the usual array of names. As a "Kathy" I've always loved finding this type of display and have indeed owned personalized key chains, pens, stickers, etc. But I had to break it to my son that he would absolutely not find his name there in between and Stephen and Taylor. But we did manage to find the name of Tai's good friend, Natasha. I suggested we buy her a pen for Christmas and asked if he wanted to get her the green one or the yellow one.

T: "pink!"

K: "they don't have 'Natasha' in pink. green or yellow?"

T: "but Natasha's favorite color is pink!"

K: "I know that, but they just don't have it in pink."

T: (holding up a pink pen) "what's this one say?"

K: "Erica. But we don't know any Ericas."

T: (holding up another pink pen) "what's this one say?"

K: "Rebecca."

T: "I don't know any Rebeccas."

The poor kid really wanted to get his friend a pink pen and I thought it would be weird to give her a "Rebecca" pen so I looked for her mom's name. It was there, but not in pink. I looked for her dad's name. Not there. I looked for her middle name. Not there. I then got so wrapped up in my son's quest for a pink pen to give to Natasha that I started looking at the very end, where they have the pens that say things like "soccer rules" and "I love baseball." The only pink one in that section said WWJD. Seriously. I could not make this up if I tried. Luckily, not long after that, Tai declared, "These pens are for grown-ups, let's keep looking for something else."

Right up by the registers, where hardware stores tend to keep all the little useless trinkets (folding magnifying glass, anyone?) we found the perfect gift. And it came in an array of colors, including pink. Tai selected pink for Natasha, pink for S, blue for J, and purple for S. These just happen to be the 4 friends who will attend his birthday party in a couple weeks, so he can given them out then. I can't write specifically what the gift is because I don't want to ruin the surprise and you never know who reads this blog (I caught Tai handing out the URL on the playground the other day).

He carried the four items to the register, carefully placed them one-by-one on the counter and then had the nerve to tell me he had no money with which to purchase them. So, being the generous mother that I am, I fronted him the cash and promised not to charge any interest when I take it out of the allowance he'll likely start to receive in a year or two.