Friday.

I dropped the car off at the mechanics today to get its transmission oil changed. We had lunch dates with some moms and their kids at a local middle-eastern restaurant. Since we still had 30 mins to kill before our lunch date, I took Aria to the toy's department at T.J. Maxx. It's interesting to see what Aira heads for at the toy's dept. I thought she'll go right for the toys but she always go to the book racks. She'll grab a small hardcover book and find herself a seat on a low shelf and start flipping through the pages. Most of the time I hear "Mom, read this to me." I usually tell her to read it herself so I can hunt for a great toy. I would look over and see her happily sitting there, pretend reading. I wish I had taken a picture.
I found a couple of good buys then I presented them to Aria and let her pick one. I think that helps with the whole 'tantrum/I want it all' ordeal. She feels like a big girl because I let her decide what we will purchase. She usually makes good decisions. This time, she picked a Dora and Friend boxed book set. She was very good about bringing it to the front of the store and waiting throughout the ridiculously long lines. She so deserved those books.
We then walked (in mid 90's heat) to the restaurant which was a long block away. The lunch went well. We were the loudest table at the whole place with 4 screeching kids. Aria did very well at the table and only got rouldy at the very end of the meal when 2 of the other kids were running around. I can't blame the kid for wanting to join in the fun but we sure got a lot of dirty looks from the other patrons. I will definitely take A. there though because the food was great and the prices were even better. Gotta love lunch specials.
We also checked out the middle-eastern market next door and got some cookies. We stopped at Blockbuster and picked up a movie. Got the car and headed home. I'm pooped and it's only 3:00 PM.