<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We make it to the door as a sweet, little OLD lady comes hobbling inside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tell my children to move to the side and Ann Cherie freezes in the middle of the doorway, as if she cannot decide how to move her body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I physically grab her out of the way to allow the lady to pass, quietly reminding Ann Cherie of her manners and apologizing to the woman all in the same breath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We exit through the door to find a large truck is parked directly in front of the steps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people are getting out of the truck as Maggie yells, “Mom, who in the world would park right here in front of the door?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s crazy! They know we can’t get by!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(OMG, please don’t have a gun, folks, even if we do deserve it!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both faces in the truck look out at us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tell the kids to follow me as I pull Ann Cherie to the side that is most open just as the little girls squeeze through the other side!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went running around the back of the truck to get to the other side to catch Laura as she hauls out into the road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to go check to make sure they did not scratch the truck front!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I had to apologize to the people in the truck for the comment and the squeeze!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have apologized to EVERY PERSON we have encountered in public.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this is the FIRST STOP!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get in the car, check buckles, and hear, “Mom, Laura is kicking me!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Momma, she is looking at me mean, so I kicked her!” etc!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I scream like a crazy person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They get silent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dare them to make ONE PEEP the rest of the ride to Vivian!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we pull up to Wal-Mart, I remind Laura to stay right beside me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We get to the entrance, and of course, she takes off!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were hollering, “Laura, come back!” over and over and I ran after her!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I finally catch her and grab her hand and walk her back outside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I reminded her that I had to return our Redbox movies first and that she should never run off from me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She could be stolen or fall and hurt herself or others, etc. I tell her that if she runs off again she will lose her “walking” privilege and have to ride in the buggy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Meanwhile, I am returning each movie (today I have four, and you have to push all the different buttons for each one).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She stayed beside me for the first two returns, before spying the toy shoved in the corner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She runs off again, and Ann Cherie starts making chase. I tell Maggie to grab a buggy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ann Cherie catches her, and I lift her screaming and kicking into the buggy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did pop her behind then after one swift kick lands on me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I know, CPS, calm down!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have the video, and you know she needed it!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So she gives up the fight but brings on the loud sobbing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I finish returning the redbox movies, and we head into the store.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Luckily we only need like four things, so that should be a quick trip, right?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Except that on the shampoo isle, Laura held her arm out and knocked about 15 bottles down off the shelf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While we were picking up the bottles, because of course I couldn’t let her down out of the buggy, she kicks her flip-flops off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maggie, being helpful, picks them up and hands them back to her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She puts them right back on and kicks them right back off again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I hear, “Laura, I just picked those up for you!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Yeah! So! (Loud laugh)”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Mom, I tried to help Laura and she kicked her shoes at me and used a sassy mouth!” followed by louder laughing by Laura.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The evil devil,” I think to myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thanked Maggie for trying to help and picked up the shoes and put them in the back of the buggy, for which Laura commences sobbing again!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>OMW!!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the while Ann Cherie is telling me all about all the great different shampoo and conditioners and asking me to look at this and at that, etc. and who is cool that uses this and that, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I turned around and quietly asked her to please hush just for a second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I take a giant breath and close my eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just get this done, I think.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I grab our regular shampoo and head off the isle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lord, please help me, just three more things!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We make it to the Advil isle, of which I am an addict, another thing explained by this article.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The girls start grabbing different ones, chewables, swallow pills, meltaways, etc. and hurriedly explaining their wants and needs regarding the different ones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I take them all and put them back as I repeat the “whole look with your eyes and not with your hands” speech that is obviously meaningless but reinforces my need for a lecture on their behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am too frazzled to deal with it all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I explain to them that when it comes to medicines, Mommy always gets to make the decision.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went with the chewables, to the major lamentations of the other two children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thinking this was settled, we turn around and