Late night trips to the store have become a part of my life now that I’m a parent. It seems like at least once a week I am making a trip for diapers, wipes, toilet paper, or baby formula because we just realized we’re not going to have enough for tomorrow. Sometimes I purposely wait to go to the store at night because it’s just easier to pick up a few groceries when the aisles – and the parking lot – are quiet and most people are home.
My latest late-night adventure was last night at Target. Both my son and daughter needed to bring Valentines to their preschool and daycare for their Valentine’s Day parties today. A few weeks ago, my wife bought a small container of bubbles for each kiddo in my son’s preschool class and each toddler in my daughter’s daycare room.
I was at a local coffee shop doing blog work and received a text from my wife asking me to stop by Target and pick up new Valentines: “The bubbles are leaking everywhere. Grrr . . . “ She has had the bubbles for the kids for weeks now and had gone to several stores to find them. After labeling all the valentines and having the bags ready to go, she noticed that the bubbles were leaking and all over the bags creating a big mess. Cue the late night trip to Target for me.
I almost went to two different Targets trying to find a last minute replacement for the bubbles. Maybe you’ve been there, too: the first Target didn’t have the heart-shaped Valentine’s glasses that my wife sent me there for and after a call to the neighboring Target store in the next town over, we found out that they were sold-out of the heart-shaped Valentine’s glasses, too. I ended up finding these bad boys after some aisle roaming and what felt like 20 calls to my wife with minutes to spare before Target closed.
Late night trips out aren’t all that bad – some alone time, quiet streets – but at a certain point even this night owl just wants to go home.
Who knows what these Valentine’s Day preparations will look like in a few years when my kids actually care what we bring to school for their friends. One thing is for sure, though: we will not be doing bubbles or anything that has potential for leaking.
Do you have a last minute Valentine story? If so, leave it in the comments below.
P.S. Happy Valentine’s Day!
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