Guest blogging today over at Life Rearranged. Jeanette has a great blog where she features guest bloggers every couple weeks to raise money for various charities. Our post is raising money for the National Down Syndrome Society which helps fund fantastic opportunities for individuals with that magic chromosome. Please stop over if you get a chance. I share about one of our family’s favorite past times…grocery shopping.
A Grocery Store Vacation
Before I became a mother, my husband and I were no strangers to a good impromptu getaway. It wasn’t uncommon come 5:00 on a Friday afternoon to suddenly pack up the car, skip across Alligator Alley and find ourselves huddled up at the Beacon in Miami’s art deco district, ready for some tan-perfecting and mojito-sipping.
Sounds like our long ago grocery shopping trips!!! My kids being 8 and 7 still don’t like to come along they’d rather stay home LOL so like you the family grocery shopping trips are few and far in between!!! Oh yes those lovely wobbly cart wheels I always get those to they drive me nuts!!!!! Take care!!!!!!
I must admit, I havn’t taken our whole tribe shopping in a while…..but I most certainly treasure, like I never have before, taking my two boys to the supermarket. I leave Daddy at home with Miss Evie(she can’t come to crowded shops most of the time) and off we go. Most mothers would cringe at the thought of taking 3&5 year old boys grocery shopping…but sometimes things change and life makes you realise how precious every minute is and you don’t worry so much about whining and tantrums and the nutritional value of every packet you place in the cart. Sometimes bigger things weigh on your mind so you embrace the little things whenever you can! By the way kelle, I havn’t forgotten about my promise to knit Nella some pants. I will get there eventually! xx
Thanks for linking back Kelle! Here’s to hoping we raise some moola for your charity! 🙂
As happens very very often, I read your blog saying to myself, that is us, that is me! 😉 My husband and I were always ready for an impromptu trip pre-kids too. We even did an impromptu trip to Maui over my winter break once when I was teaching…and let me tell you, an “impromptu” trip from Chicago to Hawaii is no small feat. lol
However our trips now also consist of the rare family of 4 outing to a store. Since we had our second baby it’s just not as quick and easy as before. So when we do all get out now, we arrive home feeling happy and like, wow that was fun! 😉 Funny how perspectives change so much once you become parents. It’s something you cannot even explain to someone who doesn’t yet have kids…though I try sometimes, and I think they secretly “pity” us who can’t get out for weekends away and who have “fun” by grocery shopping. If they only knew… =)
http://romantic9x.blogspot.com/
http://romantic9x.blogspot.com/
I LOVE LOVE LOVE having my husband Nick help me out with our toddler son and grocery shopping. It makes me fall in love with him all over again! Though I might fall in love with anyone who’s willing to help me out….just kidding. 🙂 It’s a great bonding experience!
This is great Kelle!!! You are raising such positive awareness and you are literally spreading love around the world!! You rock! And that pic of you is FABULOUS! Hot momma! 🙂
Love,
Tara
Made me think of my grocery shopping trip a week ago- quick morning trip before an early day at work with my boy. And I thought of you- our “bagger” was a wonderful woman named Michelle, she has Downs. She made my day. I was stressed but she took her time because she was playing with Rowan. And I didn’t even care anymore. As we left she waved to my boy and said, “Bye! I love you!”
LOVE those grocery store vacations! We do the same thing in our house… did it yesterday in fact!
We love to do grocery store vacations! Especially to stores far away that have stuff we cannot get at our local markets.
We get happy too when we see how much we save and score big on good buys!
:o)
This post made me laugh. My husband and I are the same way. If we go to the store separately, we tried to “outsave” each other’s last trip. If we go together, I usually defer to him because he’s a lot quicker with the math. I spend my time keeping Vera happy by letting her lick every product I’m about to put in the cart (except the meat).
We also like to play “Price is Right” at the register. Nerdy, but fun. (Tip: if you average $3.00 an item, then adjust a little based on observation, you’ll usually win)!
Yes! A grocery trip is an adventure…
Kelle, thank you so much for raising awareness, for revealing the beauty of our children and for sharing the magic of their (:extra:) chromosome!
“The child must know that he is a miracle, that since the beginning of the world there hasn’t been, and until the end of the world there will not be, another child like him.” -Pablo Casals
LOVE it!! It’s hard to find another person who enjoys grocery shopping like I do! It also helps that my son is a grocery shopping rock star! 🙂
Kelle, I LOVED this! My hubby is deployed and grocery shopping was something that we, too, always did as a family. I think after a year of being the only one to take little junior grocery shopping, I will want a FEW trips to the store alone — awww, alone — but do anxiously await the day where our family errands can resume! Thank You for reminding me of the beauty of this! 🙂
Although I would donate to the down syndrome fund…I’d rather donate to your blog. Reading this blog makes my day. It makes my life better. It makes me better. I want to thank you for that. Is there a way we can pay for your service to us?
Love your guest post! It seems as if I always get that cart at the store with the bad wheel, too! I have just fallen in love with your family. Thanks for sharing your guest post and I will be making a donation.
I loved this post!! I can honestly say I don’t think my husband and I have gone together with all three kids to a grocery store – EVER! maybe costco… once. typically he waits in the car with the girls & I run in to get just the essentials (meaning whatever I need to make dinner that night)…
although I have to admit my favorite part of this was how happy your husband is when he sees the “savings”… that’s totally me! I bee-line right for the bottom of that receipt & feel like I’m playing the lottery!
love how you take everything in stride…
Did you see that Origins is doing a concert with Macy Grey and it’s going to be broadcast online??? She’s doing her Beauty song as it’s a concert for natural beauty (origins)….let me know if you can’t find out more details….Loving the facial expressions of your bunny. She’s just too precious…all of her and that extra chromosome magic. Hugs and blessings.
I love this post 🙂
Normally when I go grocery shopping I am the harrassed Mummy running around as quick as I can whilst my Son screams his head off. Infact I have to go shopping this morning and you have put a whole new light on it for me.. Thank you xx
I love this post 🙂
Normally when I go grocery shopping I am the harrassed Mummy running around as quick as I can whilst my Son screams his head off. Infact I have to go shopping this morning and you have put a whole new light on it for me.. Thank you xx
Thank you, thank you for advocating for our children!!
If you ever need another wonderful charity to help, please consider Reese’s Rainbow. They are an adoption advocacy group which focusus on adopting children with Down syndrome from nations around the world. These children sit in orphanages until age 4 at which time they will be moved to an institution where most will die within one year from neglect or starvation.
My husband and I have a 1 year old son with Down syndrome and have been inspired to adopt through Reece’s Rainbow ourselves. It is unbelieveable to me that in this day and time that precious children who have so much extra to offer are discarded in these countries. I had no idea until our own baby was born with Ds and I found Reese’s Rainbow while surfing the net for information on Ds.
Please check out their site. Here is their link:
http://www.reecesrainbow.com/newsite/index.php
Thanks, Kelle, for all you do!
Debbie in TX
Funny how grocery shopping turns into a luxury of sorts, once you have children. I use it as my “me” time – a date night with myself on a Friday night – LOL!
I was browsing this post with the adorable tutu tagline:
http://etsystalker.com/?p=8863
and it totally made me think of your fairy party duds! So amazingly cute.
Thanks for sharing all your joys with your beautiful daughters with the rest of us!
We too like to grocery shop together as a family, making decisions that provide for our newly added to family of 6. Thanks for your post.
lol we family grocery shop too! my mom thinks i’m insane (and well, i probably am…)
it usually involves getting a “car cart” and then reminding, ne’ yelling at jonah to stay in the car. lol and then resorting to bribery. at the deli counter he gets cheese and a chocolate mousse sample. target starts with a juice box and popcorn which inevitably gets spilled throughout the store.
kells!
loved it! the story and the pics! it’s so you…
i need to work on finding the joy in grocery shopping, i’m going to work on that:)
xoxo
I don’t mean to be rude, but does anyone here do anything besides run around and play with babies all day?
I have spent several hours reading your blog today, and I have to admit, I have completely fallen in love with you, your friends and your family:) You are beautiful!
Lots of love from Oslo, Norway
Kelle, I have been a lurker for some time. A friend of mine recommended this blog a couple months ago and I was instantly in love.
I don’t (yet) have my own children, but I have worked for years with children that have special needs. Those kids have taught me more about life than I ever thought possible. Your blog makes me smile everyday because it always reminds me of a fond memory I have with one of my students and their family. Thank you for spreading your joy. (And your pictures. I cannot get enough of your pictures!)
love it kelle! we do family shopping trips too. and it’s so exciting some days… cuz yes, vacation life is kinda on hold these days!
Wow, you make even grocery shopping so glamorous with those juicy pictures.
Awesome post, I can totally relate to the wonky wheel on the cart.
I get to read your blog for free but the value I get out of it is so priceless because it inspires me be a better mom. So thank you, thank you, and here’s a donation to your charity in Nella’s name, cuz without Nella’s birth story, I would have never found your blog!
Never stop blogging!
– iColossus