About once a month, my mom and I go shopping. But our shopping trips are not a couple hours. No, they are all day affairs that usually consist of having breakfast, lunch and then stopping somewhere for tea. They are usually spur of the moment, nothing planned, but it’s still wonderful to spend time with her.
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| My Beautiful Mom |
I guess we don’t shop together the way others do. I didn’t realize this until recently, when I went shopping with a friend and she made the comment that we only needed one shopping cart. Ummm…I don’t think so. I need my own cart. I say this, because when my mom and I shop, we go to a store and go off in different directions, so we each have to have our own carts. And then, after we’ve finished shopping, we get together to ooh and aah over the treasures each of us has found.
Last Friday, we went on one of these spur of the moment shopping trips and had a great time. We went to one of our favorite places to shop, TJ Maxx. Although, we think they must have gotten a new buyer there, because lately we have not been as impressed with their stuff.
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| Treasures from shopping with Mom |
The plates are the only treasure in this picture that I found on my most recent shopping adventure with Mom. But, I did find the place mats, the napkins and the napkin rings before when I’ve gone shopping with her. (Please excuse the 9V battery in the picture…it’s there to remind us we need to get a new one for our smoke detector.) I found the plates at TJ Maxx, and I fell in love with them. They were only $4 a piece, and I think they will really dress up our every day dishes.
The other treasures I found were a black turtle neck sweater and grey wool blazer with black trim and elbow pads. I was pretty excited about the blazer, because it can be dressed up or dressed down. I’m wearing it today with jeans, but it could just as easily be worn with a slacks or a skirt. Remember my word for the year is Simplify? Well, this blazer is one of those ways to simplify my wardrobe with multi-functional pieces. When I tried it on for mom, she thought it looked great.
After TJ Maxx, we went to Barnes & Noble for some lunch. They have a Starbucks in their bookstore, and we enjoy going there for a sandwich or a cup of soup. It’s quiet, and we don’t have to worry about rushing. We’re able to sit and visit for as long as we like without a waitress hovering. We also both love books, so it’s a perfect place for us to stop.
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| From our Shipshewana shopping trip in 2011 |
I had to share the above picture. It was taken a couple years ago when Mom and I went to Shipshewana for a weekend together. I always enjoy the time I spend with her. It really isn’t about the treasures we find. It’s really about the time we get to spend together. I know we go off in our own directions when we go out together, but we always come back together to share our adventures. These are times I know I’m going to treasure and look back on and probably wish that I had done more often with my mom.