Living the JACK'd Life

Shopping with kids in tow can be an adventure, to say the least. There's the inevitable fight over who gets to push the cart, the tears that well up in your eyes after a child pushes said cart into the back of your heels. Don't forget the tricky public bathroom situation. One time I had to make a pit stop early in the morning at the local grocery store. My son tried to open the door on me, but being a veteran mommy, I was one step ahead of him and blocked him from opening the door. He gave me a sly look as he quickly dropped to the floor and army-crawled out of the stall. Peering through the door's crack, I tried to locate my son, but he was no where to be seen. Then I heard a woman's voice a few doors down say, "Why, hello there!"
Mortified I said, "Please tell me he's not in there with you."
The woman responded, "Yes, he is. Don't worry about it. I have three boys of my own."
Yes, excursions with children can be an adventure. Mad props to the parents that can pull if off gracefully. I'm not one of them. My children go especially berserk at a particular department store featuring a red bull's-eye. I remember running in to buy one item and this happened:

Yes, I do live a pretty JACK'd up life. My children can turn a mundane shopping trip into an event to remember.