Gratitude Month, Day 5

Yesterday was a day off school. Shall we discuss how much I love days off school? Oh, yes. Let’s. I love them. I stayed in bed until after seven. Then I did some junk, then I got back into bed. With Harry Potter. You know what I mean. Then I hung out while Kid 1 chattered to me all about what the silly plots in classic Twilight Zones might say about Americans’ fear of aliens, terrestrial and otherwise.

In the afternoon, Kids 1 and 2 and I went dress shopping. Kid 1 wanted an orange dress for preference. Her group is going “short formal” (whatever that means — knee length and unwashable, I believe). We found the most perfect tea-length orange formal. No kidding. Also, it was in the first store we shopped into. Also, it was gorgeous. And modest. With sleeves, I mean. Also, it was on clearance — very clearance. Also, it was a size zero. Um. So we made Kid 2 try it on and then we bought it for her. It will live in the closet until she is old enough to date. She promises she will still fit in it. She has sworn to never eat again, just in case. She was lying, by the way.

We went to many stores. For a while, it appeared that we were stalking a cute bride and her mom and sister, because we kept going into the same bridal stores she went into. She was lovely. And I hope she found the One True Dress, without ever needing to look at the price tags. (It’s a fantasy I have. There may be a story there.)

After many, many tries, Kid 1 found a great dress of bright pink and scalloped tulip-edging. It needs a shrug over it. Kid 1 shrugged in agreement. She also bought the cutest white polka-dot number that is 100% cotton and might dye orange perfectly. She was willing to take a $14 bet on it. (Can I get a YAWP for 80% off summer clearance?)

Then we were hankering for some fried foods. So we went to Red Robin and shared an order of chicken strips and fries. Lots and lots of fries. (Side note: My Kids like “fry sauce” which, if you are a non-initiate, is an orangey concoction of ketchup and mayo and makes me gag. But they like it. And at Red Robin, the fry sauce is made with barbecue sauce instead of ketchup, and is marginally less offensive.) There was a busboy working very hard that made my girls blush with giddiness every time he wandered past our table. Also, a boy who was a cross between Justin Bieber and Kid 1’s friend Jaxon, who we saw repeatedly as we waited nearly an hour for a table, and then once we were seated he came around a few times. Jaxon Bieber, we called him. Also very cute.

And so today, I’m grateful for the combination of days off, fried foods, and giggles with my Kids 1 and 2.