I haven’t shopped like Bean and I shopped on Saturday in a long time. We left the house at 12 and didn’t get home until 7:30. We made a pact before we ever left the house that this shopping trip was not going to end in tears, temper tantrums, or grumpy moods. There were a few times that I thought we might be at risk for breaking our promise but we came out of each shop just fine and pretty happy despite our disappointments.
Our first stop of the day was DSW. Bean is looking for a pair of sling-back sandals. I am too and I need to find a better pair of tennis shoes. A pair that isn’t as raised in the heel as the current pair of Asics that I wear. Well, we searched all the aisles and the clearance racks without luck and since we couldn’t find what we were looking for we decided to make a game out of it and so we went to the high heel section to find the most obnoxious pair of heels. Bean agreed to try them on since I haven’t been able to wear heels since my knee surgery. We found some doozies. I took pictures with my awesome new phone, however, I can’t figure out how to get them saved to my computer and so…Until I do, I can’t share them with you.
Our next stop was lunch. We ate at a Mongolian BBQ place. You get a bowl and fill it with meat, the veggies of your choice, and then they put on sauce, top it with a ton of noodles and then this guy working a flat top grill takes it and cooks it. After it’s made it around the grill to its starting place they take it off and give it back to you. YUM!!!
Bra shopping for me was next. I HATE bra shopping. However, it was good to go and get remeasured. I bought two bras, spent a fortune, but the girls are back where they should be and that is great for my self-confidence. Droopy boobs are horrible! We went to Macy’s to return some Clinic and got gift cards as the refund. I forgot that I actually needed to get eyebrow powder and could have just done an exchange but I got to thinking that maybe I just don’t care about my eyebrows. Deciding that the mall we were at didn’t have any of the good stores we headed out for the other mall. We started at one end and did the tour. I can’t tell you how many stores we went into. I can’t tell you how many things Bean tried on. I couldn’t find anything worthy of trying on. Bean found a couple of shirts. We had to wait in a line for the dressing rooms and I’m telling you that women here in L.A., and probably there are pockets of them all over the US, but these women have no shame. One woman took off her top, put a dress on and dropped her pants to try on clothes in front of a mirror in the middle of the store because she didn’t want to wait the 45 minutes in line for a dressing room. Bean tried on several tops and eliminated several while we waited in line. She ended up with two. One is a sleeveless white button up and the other is a tie front black shirt covered in cherries, it is also sleeveless.
Then we went to the Gap and I found a perfect red happy sweater for 17.50. It was 75% off the original price!!! That made my shopping day! Urban Outfitters was next on our list. Bean found a great pair of sunglasses, two t-shirts, a pair of jeans, and a pair of kissing bunnies whose ears are a ring holder. So with that we were supposed to be done but I decided to go to the store we always skip, Old Navy. There is one time per year when they have clothes that I like. That time is now. SPRING!! I purchased three lined skirts, three tops, and Bean found a pair of earrings.
We have never walked into so many stores and walked right out. I’m irritated by the fact that you go to the mall and they are playing loud music in the hallways and then you go to the store and they are playing even louder, different music. Despite this annoyance we had a great time. We even had a great time despite the fact that it was packed tight in there. I have no idea why so many people were at the mall but parking was difficult and so was the shopping. We laughed, joked, teased. It was a great day spent with my new 16-year-old and I am so glad that we had the time to do it. We didn’t even go over our budgeted amount for clothes. 
That made Matthew happy!
