We were down at Dad and Mom's yesterday for a visit -- and had a very important mission to accomplish on the way home.
Our 7th grader's electric scooter has gone ka-put.... as illustrated here on MattChat a couple days ago. Fortunately, at the time of purchase, we paid Wal-Mart $15 or whatever for the extended warranty.
And they made good on it.... sending us an e-certificate to refund the purchase price.
HENCE..... THE MISSION!!
There are many routes to get home from home, but I knew that if we took the Charleston - Mattoon - Mt. Zion route, we could hit 3 Wallyworlds in our search for the right scooter.
You see, she didn't want a grey one or a red one or a black one or a pink one.
(the common colors)
She wanted a blue one (rare color) to replace her first one.... a blue one (rare color) that she had found in the Wal-Mart up at Clinton.
First stop: Charleston Wal-Mart
2 pink scooters. No blue.
We did pick up some Peeps though.
And daughter #3 found a little plush Minecraft figure in the clearance section for $5. She was thrilled.
After driving down Lincoln Avenue and telling them stories of my days in "the castle" (EIU's Old Main), we departed Charleston.
Stop 2: Mattoon Wal-Mart
As we walked back to the bicycle/scooter area (with no cart), my 7th grader was walking just a little bit ahead of me.
As such, she got to the scooters first.
And I will not forget the big-eyed look of thrilling excitement that she got on her face.
No, they did not have a blue scooter.
But, they did have a GREEN scooter, which I was told is even RARER than the blue ones.
Oh, she was excited!
I carried the box (remember..... no cart) as the 3 of us headed for the Minecraft section, and again, there was excitement. Why? Mattoon Wal-Mart had a very good selection of Minecraft stuff.... way way more than what Charleston Wal-Mart had and way way more than the Wallyworlds here in Decatur.
Each girl had some money to spend, so they picked up a couple things and we headed for the registers.
Me carrying the bulky and somewhat heavy scooter box. No cart.
All the way from the toy section (back of store) to the check-outs (front of store).
Let me pause and catch my breath. Please.
;)
Since our mission was accomplished, we didn't need to mess with traveling up to Mt. Zion.
So..... we grabbed supper at Wendy's then headed north towards Arcola.
It was a great little adventure with my 2 youngest. Something that I don't get to do with them often (road trip, shopping) as just a daddy-daughter thing.
They are growing-up, and times like these are so precious to me.
Out for now.....
Matt
p.s. because of the scooter and the Minecraft section, they have declared the Mattoon Wallyworld to be "the best Wal-Mart ever"; so take that, Charleston