Marble Madness.

I lured my children to the doctor's office with promises that we would hit up the toy store if everyone behaved. Someday ... I'm going to remove bribing from my list of "go to" parenting strategies ... but for now, it works GREAT!

So ... we crashed the world's best toy store ... only 2 minutes after it opened and were the only crew in there for a good thirty minutes. We played with tons of toys and I made a mental list of all the great things the little hands in my house would LOVE to take home with them.

The number one want ... MARBLES! Sure, they're a small, choke-able, household hazard ... but for some reason ... MY BOYS LOVE THEM!

Joshua repeatedly asked to take some to his house. I told him I'd get some at Walmart instead. (Why pay $4.99 when you can get them cheaper, right??) He was satisfied with the incredibly cool dog domino game and story game we bought, so marbles were a thing of the past. Um ... until he asked for them EVERY SINGLE TIME we pulled into a store parking lot.

First Walmart, NO MARBLES. They just sold the last package. Second Walmart, NO MARBLES. First Target ... I get my favorite response: "Can you tell me where you carry marbles?" "Marbles are a seasonal item. We don't have any in the summer." Marbles? A seasonal item? Really? And just what season would marbles be available in if they were to be best suited for a certain season?

In the words of J How ... I was DISAPPOINTED ...but ... as I walked out of the toy section this treasure caught my eye:
It was in the clearance section ... and my mom had sent me a Target credit ... so it only cost $2.85 AND ... it came with TWELVE marbles. JACKPOT! And even better ... it is currently the NUMBER ONE game in our house!! Hours and hours of marble fun ... oh ... and hours and hours of me on my hands and knees, picking marbles up from behind every piece of furniture imaginable ... and hours and hours of me telling Eli that his mouth is not a good home for a marble ... but still ... FUN, FUN, FUN!