You know those people that you see out in public and you think, "Why, I would never....!" Yup, we are now those people you would say that about. Last night my friend Joia call to see if we'd like to join her and the kids at the mall for dinner. (Tuesday night is kids eat free at Chick-fil-a and they ride the carousel for free.) We'd never been before and keep meaning to go. We immediately jumped in the car and headed on over. Brandon was going to be a while and didn't mind us abandoning him for dinner. Now, picture what we look like... no makeup, old jeans, old sweatshirt, Sophie wearing one of Christopher truck shirts that's 2 sizes too big and her hair is everywhere... I was just glad I didn't have to fix dinner so I didn't care. (We fit right in at the mall at night.)

We get there and it's crazy! People everywhere. Thankfully the kids were a little intimidated and stuck to me like glue. We get in line for food and then find Joia and get a table. Once we are finished the kids can't wait to ride the carousel. Throw food away, get our stuff together and I turn around to see both of my children lying on the mall food court floor dragging themselves along it. I almost vomited right there!!! To say I was mortified is an understatement. Joia said, "Do you need a wipe?" I was thinking that a blowtorch was needed to kill all of those germs. I yell at them to get up and off the floor, to NOT touch anything and slather hand sanitizer all over them. How gross is that?

Then we head over to get in line for the ride. I've got my two kids and Keenan with me and they were perfect little angels and waited very patiently. (So proud!) We get all the way up to the gate and are first in line for the next ride. I start asking the kids what they would like to ride on and Christopher says, "I like the orange tiger!" I told him it was his. Keenan wanted a horse and thankfully that was right next to the tiger.

The sweet lady opens the gate and two little boys behind us dart in front. One to the left, the other to the right, the same direction the tiger is in. He tries to climb up. Now, normally I would stop and help him because he's too little to do it himself. BUT he's cut in front of us AND is getting the one thing my child wants and waited very patiently for. I sternly (and gently) told him that my child was waiting to ride on the tiger and that he had cut in front of us. He thought about it for a minute, got down and walked to try to find something just as exciting. No luck. I put the kids up on their rides and look up to see that the little boy is sobbing. SOBBING!!! I made a little boy cry. He sobbed throughout the entire ride!! His mom comes up and asks him what's wrong (while the carousel is going around) and he yells, "Somebody made me get down!!", he turns around to point to the tiger and I'm just praying he doesn't point to me for the long line of parents to see who had done this to him. I see Joia, next to the boy's mom, and she makes a sad face, until I mouth that I'm the one who did it. She dies out laughing and points at me. Thankfully the boy's mom was very sweet and told him he was fine and could ride it next time.

We didn't ride it anymore. We distracted the kids by getting a free ice cream (if you don't open your kids toy you can return it for a free ice cream-- ask for the cone, you get more ice cream!) and then we parted ways. It was time to go home. I'm not sure if I will go back. We might. I'm not a fan of the mall at night anyway, the crowd is, how to I put it, a little different than the day crowd. But we had a lot of fun and it was nice to get out and do something with a friend. Thanks Joia!!