The Day the Planets Aligned

The sun was shining and temperature was not too hot.

The two younger boys had taken good naps.

The baby had just eaten.

The oldest boy was in an agreeable mood.

I had been gearing myself up for it all day.

My list was complete and in order from the back of the store to the front.

My coupons were in my wallet.

Andrew had been bribed with a bowl of ice cream after dinner if he was good.

I even posted it on Facebook, which meant I was obligated to follow through.

I had the knowledge in the back of my mind that I lived less than five minutes away in case I needed to abandon ship.

So at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, I loaded the boys up in the van, and took them all to Walmart.

To buy a considerable amount of groceries.

I got them all loaded up in the cart.

I even managed to get a semi-smile from Andrew.

And I shopped. I was a mom on a mission. Usually these carts are hard to handle, but I just threw my weight into it (which is more than usual these days...) and it was a breeze.

Even with four boxes of Tide, three containers of Downy, and a 10-lb bag of rice under the cart.

I placed my order at the deli and came back for it when it was ready.

I dodged old women in their motorized carts and little kids who were wandering free.

All the while replacing Thomas's paci, distracting Benjamin from grabbing Andrew, and answering random questions from Andrew.

As I was paying for my groceries, all the boys were content.

The two older boys were actually playing together, a rarity for now, especially in such close corridors.

And the baby was sleeping peacefully.

And though the real tasks were still ahead of me (unloading the groceries, feeding the boys dinner, bathing them, and putting them to bed), as I looked at my cart and my happy children, the words "Mission Accomplished" came to mind.