How a Trip to Walmart to Buy Milk Turned Into a Hanes Extravaganza

I had to buy three things when I went into Walmart the other night, so I thought it would be safe to bring the girls. Seems to me it was milk, cheese, and bread. I don't know. Something simple and cheap. Everything in the grocery department, so we wouldn't find things to buy at the opposite end of the store. You know. Easy.

So, because it was so easy, and I had a couple of extra bucks, we walked through the girls clothes section. Just to see if there was anything NEEDED that I hadn't thought of. (I'm smirking to myself as I type that.) As we were headed back to the clearance section, (because yes, I am so cheap, I shop the clearance section of Walmart) my Indian Princess finds...wait for it...TINKERBELL JAMMIES! And not the flannel ones for winter, but the sleeveless, shiny nightgown that can only be made from 100% pure polyester! She gasped in delight, then promptly told me she HAD to have it, please?? Please, Mom, Please?? I checked the price tag. $7. A little high for me, but what the heck. It makes her happy. And maybe I can get her to wear pjs to bed if she picks them out. No. She usually doesn't. Especially in the summer.

So, Tinkerbell in the cart, my Littlest Girl asks for a nightgown, too. I would usually be fine with it, but she has M.A.N.Y. nightgowns at home. Including Tinkerbell. I had to say no.

But, next to the jammies, on an end aisle, was a clearance section of tights and panties. The big sign said $1. That is my magic number, so I took a look. The tights were all picked over and Christmassy. I wasn't in the mood for snowflake tights. The panties, however, looked promising. On the shelf, the tag says Hanes 12 pack panties for $5. Not bad. And as much as I like hand-me-downs, my girls do NOT share panties. So I picked up a package for my Littlest Girl.

And because my Littlest Girl had new panties, my Indian Princess needed panties, too. But not the clearance kind. They have to match her new Tinkerbell nightgown. So we head to the underwear section. And of course, they have...wait for it...TINKERBELL PANTIES!! A 6 pack for $7. Why not.

I feel bad. As much as the Littlest Girl liked her panties, the purchases were hardly equal. So we find our way back to the little girl section to go shopping. After much ooohhing and aahhing over Dora swimsuits and Tiana ballet dresses, we find an outfit for her that she loves, and my guilt is eased.

I hurriedly grabbed the milk, cheese and bread before they found something else they liked. As I head to the checkout lane I text my husband. "The Shopping Gene Just Kicked In." We are both worried as to the implications of that. The girls STILL don't know how to use coupons.

I get to the register, dump our purchases on the belt, and pay quickly. As we are walking towards the door, the Indian Princess says she has to go to the bathroom. We change directions and head to the restrooms. As I am pushing the cart, I check my receipt. Everything looks good. But lo, and behold---the 12 pack of Hanes panties rang up for a dollar!! I have won the panties lottery!!!!

I decide we have to go back. After the girls get out of the bathroom, I tell them we need more panties. I want to hurry before the stampede. Or Walmart decides to change the price. So we zoom back there and I pick up a package in every size. When I check out, I have spent $5 on 60 pairs of underwear!! And $7 on 6 pairs of Tinkerbell underwear. (sigh)

As I head home, I second guess myself. Should I have gotten 2 sets of panties in the larger sizes? One for each girl? I will NEVER get a deal like that again. Then I realize I would be storing the largest size panties for my Littlest Girl for at least 8 years. And I let it go. Wistfully.