SHOPPING, PART II

My shopping mission with Boomer was to buy three pumpkins--one for him and one each for his sibs Maddie and Baby Sweet William. We hit up Ron’s IGA, where we were both excited to see a kid’s section of shopping carts when we walked in. Among all the mini-baskets was one big-ass contraption that was half-cart/half-racing car. Boomer and I latched on to it like leeches. “Back off everybody! This is ours!”

“We don’t have neato shopping carts like this in my little town,” I told Boomer while clicking the seat belt around him.

Away we went in search of pumpkins in our fancy wheels. But, what?! Why, as soon as we motored through the entry to the store, there was the pumpkin display! Boomer rolled down his car window to point out his selections: a big one for him, medium for Maddie, and itty bitty one for William. I loaded 'em up, but I’ll be darned if we were going to head straight for the check-out stand. No way! Not when I was pushing around the baddest shopping cart I’d ever seen. Boomer and I were going to pretend we were super shoppers who had other items to purchase.

We put our Cart-mobile in 3rd gear and went the perimeter of the store, past the deli, produce, meat, dairy, you name it.

“Left!” Boomer commanded, and he’d turn his steering wheel and great auntie to the left.

“Right!” “Straight ahead!” “Back to the left!” He made little car noises. It was a blast.

Finally, though, it was time to direct him to the check-out stand before the Ron’s IGA police ticketed us for joyriding.

We paid for our pumpkins and parked the cart, leaving it for the next pair of kids. You know, I don’t think I’d mind grocery shopping so much if, every time I went, I could play Road Warrior in the aisles with Boomer.