Shop till you drop?

Yesterday, I was leaving Toys R Us. (Yes, I hate to admit it, but on such a beautiful, crisp autumn day, I took advantage of a few by-myself hours to visit four stores where I needed to return stuff. I hated every minute of it.) Anyway, I'm leaving Toys R Us and see this boy walking in with his dad. He wasn't walking. He was bouncing. He was skipping and hopping and nearly floating. I could just imagine the visions running through his head. I wonder if he had a specific purchase in mind or if he was just going to spend what seemed like hours wandering around the aisles not being able to decide between Star Wars or Spiderman (forgive me, as the mom of two girls, I have no idea what toys strike a boy's fancy). But, a toy store is probably the only place in the world you will see a child looking happy. Fast forward 10 minutes and I see three children heading into Kohl's with both of their parents. (Yes, I went to Kohl's on a Saturday. Yet another return!) Those three kids had no bounce in their steps. There was no gleam in their eyes - just a dull sheen. I could almost picture what they really wanted to be doing - screaming "no" and pulling on their mom's cardigan, pleading with their father to save them from the misery. Now, I realize that they were probably going to buy school clothes. I realize that the week prior to the outing, they were probably complaining that they have "nothing to wear". But, this wonderful fall afternoon was just not the time for shopping! This is probably why I have to return so many things - I rarely take my kids shopping for clothes. Have you ever seen a child being dragged around Macy's? Have you ever seen a child whining about how hot/bored/tired they are in JC Penney? Have you ever seen a mom getting impatient with the child laying on the floor or hiding in the middle of the clothing rack? Why would you want to be that mom? Better yet, why would you expect a child to enjoy walking through a cramped space where they can't see anything except a bunch of material in their face. This may seem silly, but remember what is at their eye level - they can't see anything! Go stand in your closet staring at the shirts for a few minutes and see how much fun you're having!