Four and a half G...? Two and a half hours ...?

Ok .. It's almost over .. I am a year older and wiser today ... Never take your child shoe shopping on a weekend.

Decided to get Zoo a new pair of shoes so we got to Brent Cross very early, in time for the doors opening and then spent the next hour walking past shop windows full of assistants clearing up and sorting stock before letting any customers in. Cream spent a couple of minutes looking at some poor girl hoovering a shop display and then with a grin on his face, knocked on the glass and mouthed "You've missed a spot!"

Waited around outside Clarks, no other parents hanging around (although Russell & Bromley already had a queue leading outside the building by this point) so we decided to take a walk around and come back in 5 minutes when it opened. Big mistake ... came back to a hoard of parents and kids and when we took our ticket we realised that we had at least 13 parents in front of us in the queue and all of them seemed to have a least three kids each! I overheard the manager telling a staff member off ... "don't tell them half an hour ... no .. even if it is going to be an hour .. tell them 15 mins!" After a long (45 mins) and unproductive wait ("no, they're not in stock, no we can't order them, yes we get stock every day, no we don't know what stock"), we decided to go to Russell & Bromley instead.

Cream approached the manageress there and she passed him ticket number 00. I asked how long we were likely to wait seeing as they were on number 87! Only about 10 or 15 minutes she replied ... Yeah right I'm thinking ... But low and behold she was right ... "88" .. the staff assistant calls, no answer ... "89, 90, 91, 92" she yells in quick succession ... a mother raises her arm and the staff assistant totters off to attend to a screaming toddler. Next assistant calls "93", no answer, "94, 95, 96, 97" ... someone yells from a far corner.

At this point a tired looking father staggers into the shop and looks bemused at the computerised number staring back at him. "But I'm 81" ... Cream who has almost lost the will to live at this stage whispers "If he gets served before we do, I am gonna scream!"

"98, 99" ... I jump up with my 00 before anyone can respond to the first two numbers and within 15 minutes of entering the shop Zoo is the proud owner of a new pair of shoes and I feel like I have aged another 15 years!

Sisterly love x 2

Yes I survived Friday 13th... busy but just another normal day at the office to be honest. Now Saturday was the killer ... Got a wedding to go to in May and promised my sister I would go clothes shopping with her. Went down to Rayner's Lane, checked out one shop there and found a black salwaar chemise ... yes I know I already have enough black suits ... but I couldn't find anything else ... Vertigo managed to find two suits she liked and just as she was changing back into her own clothes I managed to find a beautiful mint embroidered langha ... and in a moment of madness I ran to the changing room and told her to try it on. It looked great so I persuaded her to buy it. At the till and despite a lot a head shaking, Auntie Fixed Price pointing at all the signs round the shop and cries of "My boss will kill me" we managed to get a discount.

Next stop Ealing Road and Vertigo managed to buy yet another suit without any discount this time and I began to get disheartened as I couldn't find anything I liked (and that fit me!) ... By this point Cream is on the phone asking us where we are and as the afternoon drags on I realise I'm not going to find anything. Bugger me for being so nice and giving that suit to Vertigo!

Vertigo promises not to buy any more suits as she now has three but still decided to try on another two for good measure. As she heads towards the cashtill I try to remind her but the eavesdropping shopowner dashes over before I can persuade her otherwise. Despite his previous good hearing he can't seem to hear us properly when we ask for a couple of quid off. It's late by now and having lost the will to live I call it quits.

Got a call from Vertigo today, who has decided that she don't like the minty number now, and offers to sell it to me ... "I suppose I get it at a discounted rate seeing as we are family and you've tried it on twice already!"

"No sorry" she replies "fixed price."

Are co-op encouraging cleptomania?

Took the little one for a walk to the shops today .. for some banana's. Took about ten minutes just to get to the top of the road but to be fair to him he does have little legs!

We eventually got to the local co-op and I introduced Zoo to the friendly shop manager. VJ shook his hand firmly and pointed him in the direction of the fruit. Zoo decided to help out by carrying one banana for me, (a bunch was too heavy) and we made our way to the checkout. I passed over our items for weighing and scanning and Zoo passed over his banana .. but VJ refused to accept it and insisted that he could keep it for free.

Just wish I had got him to pick up something a bit more expensive now!!

Scrooges Extreme Makeover

Decided to do a Trinny & Susannah on myself ... so left Zoo at the grandparents, dusted off my wallet and went to Brent Cross. Got there before the shops opened!! Walked around the mall for ten minutes, took a deep breath and dived in. They would have been proud of me ... stuck to the colours and shapes that suited me ... if they felt less than 150% perfect I put them back. After managing to buy two suits, two shirts, a coat and two camisoles I got brave and sauntered into one of those shops that I hadn't been to since I was a twenty something. And I was pleasantly surprised and left with a blouse and a dress.

I was so proud of my accomplicements that I boasted to Dad and Vertigo. Told them what I had bought and asked them how much I had spent. Dad came back with a ridiculous £75. Come on Dad .. this is Brent Cross not Oxfam!! Vertigo pipped in with £100. When I looked at her with amazement and told her the real price £230, which I was personally impressed with, (I mean Trinny & Susannah normally have £2k to spend on their victims!), she replied ... "yeah ... but you didn't ask me how much I thought they cost, you asked how much I think you spent!!" She does have a point .. my middle name could be Ebenezer!!

Anyhow ... fresh from my success with my wardrobe decided to give the old blog the works too. Now think I need to find a funky new title for my blog. Any ideas??