Labor Day Weekend Review

Labor Day weekend was just that – a lot of labor. Not of the birthing kind, thank goodness. But had it been, at least someone else would have been making my meals and cleaning the bathrooms.

No, this was the kind of labor where The Hubs and I took The Babes out in the world together as a family. We bonded at IKEA because all kids love to look at furniture show rooms in a store with a crowd that resembles that of Black Friday (or so I hear since I refuse to participate in that kind of madness). We went to IKEA in attempt to get some ideas for organizing Thomas’s closet contents that seem to have migrated all over the floor. No luck in that department but we did score some new plates (service for 12 retailing at $50 – WIN)! And you know how we celebrated? Taking them to our favorite Polish restaurant, The Polish Village, that just happened to be as crowded as IKEA and a quarter of the size. The upside (beside the awesome homemade food) is that it’s so loud in there no one noticed when Thomas decided to act like a caged animal. (And in his defense, he kind of was seeing that he was in a stroller, car seat, and a high chair all day).

Thomas's 1st time at Polish Village. He was more interested in flinging his toys than keilbasa.

Marie and Aunt Becky have something in common: their love of encased meats!

And because The Babes didn’t get enough inspiration from looking at home décor at IKEA, we took the appliance shopping on Monday. To back it up a bit, on Friday, I paid a service man $70 to tell me that the compressor on our fridge is dying. He also noted that it was $600 to fix it. So we decided to get a new one. Guess what? They don’t make that ugly almond color anymore. They changed the color to bisque, which it TOTALLY not the same. So to get a new fridge in a new color that would match NOTHING in our kitchen, it will cost about $1000. However, most appliance companies offer a fridge, dishwasher, microwave, and stove in matching stainless steel color for $2000. I think it sounds like a friggin conspiracy theory: let’s not make that color, make them an offer they can’t refuse, and practically force them to buy all new appliances. Surprisingly, The Babes were not as intrigued with my theory. They just wanted to get the hell out of the stroller and run around.

In between all this fun, I took Marie to the mall to return a few things and compensate her for her troubles with a trip to the Disney Store. Now, earlier that morning, I saw on The Today Show that people were not having BBQs because they were going to the malls to shop. Turned out that was true. And for all of Labor Day, my only thought was this: “People can suck it!” I really can’t relive all the details here (like the lady who peed with the door open as she talked to her son about Jesus and when I glanced up in the mirror claimed she couldn’t concentrate on going to the bathroom) (or the lady at Gymboree who sent her husband to pick through a pile of little girl panties so she can get to $250 for her Gym Bucks, and heaven forbid if she had more than one of the same pair) because it will stir up all those deep feelings of discontent for the general public.


Oh, and we snuck in a quick haircut. My brother came over and snipped a bit off (not too much since I think the bowl cut is unattractive no matter how young you are).

What's worse?  A new haircut or shoping at IKEA?  It's a toss up.

You know what I need right before I look at fridges AGAIN? A new haircut.

So I am ready for school to start tomorrow. I want to get back into a routine. I also need a break from watching Mama Mia and listening to Abba. But I have to say, I have that sinking feeling that I am sending my little girl out into the world and hoping that the world treats her well. If not? Well, at least we’ll have a new freezer to keep our ice cream therapy super cold, right?

So how was your Labor Day weekend? Laborious? Fun? Do tell.

PS - I hope that the audio works on this clip.  If not, just imagine a lot of screaming and yelling MAMAMAMAMA over and over again.