In a land of partical board...

Our family has been busy selling furniture, and making way for some family friendly new-to-us pieces. In our quest to find sustainable, quality and comfortable furniture, we could not help but come to a store that has won our hearts, Ikea.

The very first Ikea experience was when Tom and I first moved into the DC area. We were looking for bookcases and after many failed attempts at yard and estate sales, we gave in and came to the super store most recommended. We were overwhelmed, and in awe of their design and layout. It took us three hours to get through the store and ended our journey with a 99 cent cinnamon roll! Move over Cinnabon!That was six years ago and since then there have been several visits back involving several storage solution pieces and always a 99 cent treat (Tom cinnamon roll or hot dog, Me always soft serve ice cream).

Last night the whole family went in search of a couch and some chairs for our living room and it was an adventure. We thought evening hours would be less crowded. However, as often is our experience and one we've come to embrace, this was not the case. It started out smoothly with little traffic and a great meal (all four of us for under $12), but then we hit the "showcase" and they did not have our couch (out of stock) and the evening sales crew was not too quick on problem solving. The store closes at 9 and we were dangerously close to not making it, so Tom and I split up to retrieve the rest of our furniture and slip covers when I heard those constant words, "Momma, I need to use the potty." So, I found Tom, dropped off my cart, took Ellison to the ladies room and then proceeded to get locked out of the main store. After we found someone to let us back in, Tom had a look of total defeat and exhaustion. We were going to have to go to another store! Another store is so typical, so we pressed on.

As we were checking out, things were going rather smoothly - we had two carts fully loaded, Ellie was laying on the cart I had plus Ansley Mill's stroller was wedged between my hips so that my hands were free to push the out of control cart. Next stop was home delivery, and the fellas working there were great! We were almost done when I noticed they gave us the wrong cover for one of the couches we got, and then all hell broke loose.

In our heads we were thinking, just switch it out... But Tom had to take it to the returns department where a sweet lady punched at the computer for literally 20 minutes before saying, "I don't think I know what I am doing. I am new here. Hold on and let me get someone to walk me through it." The HUMANITY! Why could you have not just told me that 20 minutes ago!!!What about the girls you ask? They were busy sprinting back into the warehouse and going behind the counters - only in slight danger...

So it's now close to 10pm and Tom is finishing up as they are literally turning off the lights. Ellie is swinging from some chain connected to a door and Ansley Mills is laying on the concrete wharehouse floor sucking her thumb. Thirty more minutes pass and finally we are loading up the car with Ellie crying that she wanted to go home and saying, " I don't like Ikea anymore." Ansley Mills was latched onto her thumb as if it were her only hope. We were literally the last ones out of the lot and the employees were pulling away as we tied down a mirror to the roof of our car.

In bed by 11:30pm and up at 6 am. Seriously, I love our life!