I took my elderly mother-in-law shopping last Friday. Since my step-daughter has been taking care of her, she’s enjoyed much better health. She had trouble regulating her diet and remembering to take her medication when she lived alone, so my step-daughter offered to help.
It’s made a huge difference in her quality of life. One of the results of my baby girl’s tender care is my mother-in-law has lost around twenty pounds. That tends to happen when one stops eating a quart of ice cream for dinner and partakes in balanced, nutritious food.
Due to her weight loss, she needed new pants. I volunteered to take her to the mall, one of the only places in our area that still carries Alfred Dunner slacks. My mother-in-law is from the dress pants generation. I’ve known her for twenty-one years, and I’ve never seen her in jeans, shorts, or capri pants.
I picked her up shortly before my appointed time and we were off. We chatted on the way, and she told me she’d like new shoes, too. Telling me how much money she had to spend, she said she was worried she didn’t bring enough. I assured her that we would get some nice things and have money left over. She didn’t know she was shopping with a bargain hunter.
Before anyone freaks out, yes, we practiced social distancing and took precautions. I would never take chances with my mother-in-law’s health.
The first place I hit was the clearance rack. I was able to locate her brand quickly, but her size was a different matter. The fitting rooms are closed, so she couldn’t try anything on. I questioned her on what size she was wearing at the minute and how they fit. Then I did what I do best. I eye-balled her size.
After much deliberation, we decided on a size and I found two pair of slacks in that size on clearance for under $10.00 each, regular $48.00. She looked at me with stars in her eyes. I guess she’s never shopped the bargain section before.
Cheap britches in hand, we made our way to the regular section and discovered her pants on sale for $25.00 a pair. Then I really rocked her world when I whipped out my phone and pulled up a 30% off coupon that worked for part of her purchase, saving her an extra $15.00.
We didn’t find any shoes she liked there, so I took her to a shoe store I like. They had shoes on sale Buy One Get One 50%. Of course, she bought two pair. The nice thing is that she paid about the same amount of money for two pair of Sketchers as she would have spent on one pair at the mall.
I had one place I wanted I to stop. It’s a place she rarely visits. The bookstore. I still had a couple of gift cards left from Christmas and wanted some new reading material. To my surprise, she found a book she was excited to buy.
We had a good day together. We talked about kids, grandkids, and life. She asked me to tell her the story of how I met my husband, her son. Best of all, I’m happy to report her new pants fit, and she’s halfway through her new book. Sometimes it’s the simple things in life that make all the difference. Thank you for reading Ozarks Maven! If you’ve enjoyed my little seeds of wisdom and joy, please subscribe to Ozarks Maven, Like Ozarks Maven on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter @OzarksMaven.
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