Life Lessons: Disappointment

We, on occasion, shop at Trader Joe’s. I do like many of their products, but it’s a 25-mile drive one way to get there. So I try to plan on trips to TJ’s when we have other shopping to do in Palmdale.

On Sunday, the prospect on going to TJ’s came up and the Big One immediately perked up and announced that she liked going there because “they have myyyyy size carts.” True the last time we went to Trader Joe’s they had little-kid size carts that look just like the bigger version. They are not the plastic Little Tikes ones that we have in our playroom. No, they are miniature version of the real carts.

I convinced the Big One that it was too late in the day for the adventure on Sunday, but that we could go on Monday.  So for the rest of the day on Sunday all the Big one talked about were the carts at TJ’s. We really didn’t need anything so I was hoping that by Monday morning she would have forgotten about it and we wouldn’t have to trek down there.  No such luck.

As soon as her eyes opened yesterday, she announced that we were going to Trader Joe’s because they had small carts made just for the Big One, it seemed. {you moms know where we are going with this one, don’t you?}

We get all ready to go and head toward TJ’s. All the time the Big One is jibber-jabbing about how great the carts are; how big she is for being able to push the cart;  and how helpful she is to carry all the items for me in her very own cart.

We park, and she can barely contain her excitement as we walked through the parking lot to the store. Once we hit the sidewalk, she took off like a bullet into the store. She went in the door and immediately turned to the right, hands out ready to grab a cart and begin her shopping adventure.

There were no carts, so she walked in the store a little further and craned her neck around to the right thinking that maybe the small carts were somehow hiding behind the big carts. And then starts asking, “Mommy, where are de carts? Where are da carts? The carts? Carts?” With each question the desperation in her voice is becoming apparent.

I turned to the cashier who was right by the door and said, “No more carts?”

She shook her head and said “Too many people getting hurt so we had to get rid of ‘em.”

It was the saddest face I had ever seen the Big One make. Then the wailing began. She sobbed, cried and generally showed her angst with the situation. It was not her typical fake-whining cry. No these were real live tears and real disappointment on my poor baby’s face. I felt so helpless. There was no comforting her. It was honestly the most spirit-crushing experience of her life so far.

Everyone was looking sympathetically at her. Another cashier brought her a balloon hoping to make it better. I found some blue potato chips, hoping it might soothe the hurt just a little big. No such luck. It pretty much ruined her entire morning.

So to the asshats who let their kids run wild and crash into each other and the displays I just want to say, “Thank you for ruining all the fun for me and my kiddo. You suck!”