Today was my first venture out with all three boys alone and I have to say it wasn’t at all as difficult as I had expected: someone must have been praying! Our first stop was to the doctor’s office for Joel and Elijah’s first well-checkup with a new doctor . Thanks to Handy Manny and a sleeping baby the waiting was a breeze and before they knew it the boys were marching bravely behind mommy into the doctors’ office, like ducklings heading to the pond for a first swim. In came the nurse; she had a soft voice, wide-rimmed glasses and fluffy hair and the boys hopped willingly onto the table to get their temp taken and blood pressure checked, all the while the nurse telling how proud she was of them for sitting “so still”. The next 15 minutes of waiting on the doctor was not quite as breezy as before, yet even after a few episodes of he-snatched-my-toy, he-interrupted-my-story, he-looked-at-me-on-purpose, we managed (somehow) to evade volcanic eruptions and wolf-sounding meltdowns (you parents know what I’m talking about). I suspect the wait wasn’t nearly as long as it seemed but the doctor finally came in, checked the boys, tickled them, gave them high fives and stickers and then – praise the Lord – it was time to go. I finished feeding Izaac in the waiting room while Handy Manny resumed his helpful entertaining and then we were off to get some lunch (seeing how Elijah was “just SO hungry” and Joel equally as thirsty). After a very peaceful, quite enjoyable lunch at Panera Bread we headed to the place I nearly dread going to – you know the big tan building with the letters w-a-l-m-a-r-t across the front, where the people who enter it pass under a sign that reads: “DO NOT SMILE OR YOU WILL BE KILLED” and yet another that says: “PLEASE BLOCK THE ISLES, GET IN SOMEONE’S WAY, WALK SLOWLY, AND RAM THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU WITH YOUR CART. THANKS – MGMT.” But this time it wasn’t so bad. Besides the fact that I had to carry the baby with one arm and with the other pull a demonized shopping cart with 100 pounds of kid in it, it wasn’t bad at all. Actually, the only stressful moment occured in the restroom. Elijah and I and a squirmy Izaac were waiting on Joel and there was another lady in a stall. All was well until I accidentally poked Elijah above the eye with my nail while trying to keep his hands out of the trash can. Although I felt sorry for the little guy, I felt even worse for myself: you see, even after apologizing, there’s no way to convince a five year old that mommy’s don’t just poke their little boys in the eye on purpose. I thought for sure that the woman in the other stall was going to call family services with as many times as Elijah went on and on theatrically, “you POKED me in the EYE! OH, my EYE!”. He might as well have said, “My mom beats me up everyday and never lets me have food or water!!!!!!!!!” I practically ran out of the bathroom my face was so red! But 5 minutes later, Elijah still had an eye and all was well. The check-out line went smoothly; and, to anyone willing to watch, the boys showed off their muscles by pulling the loaded bags off the rack and dumping them into the cart. When we got home, I unloaded the bags onto the porch and the boys carried them inside; after they’d carried in a few “heavy” bags in “this hot weather” they decided they needed their shirts off in order to complete the job – it amazed me what those thin little arms could lift!
Even if there may have been a few momentary relapses in their resolve to be “big helpers”, Elijah and Joel were exceptionally well-behaved and sweet and made our first trip out as easy as it could be. One thing’s for sure though, the next time I must venture out with all three by myself I’ll be certain to clip my nails.
Aubrey's Journal & Stories 
Thank you for sharing. I certainly feel your pain, but laughed so hard it brought tears to my eyes.