The Post Office

I had such a lovely experience at the post office yesterday that I thought I'd share it.

I needed to send back an order from Land's End, which was the wrong one, and in order to send it back without paying shipping, I could not go to the kiosk, as is my usual, quick, method. I also had to send another small package. With two boxes in my hands and and not wanting to waste the 2 minutes it would take to set up the stroller, I told the kids that we would not be bringing it in; mistake number 1. As I was struggling to carry Austin in his car seat with one box (I gave the other to Victoria), Karissa started to get all worked up about me not carrying her. After thinking I would leave her at the car (of course I would never!), she grudgingly followed us inside. As soon as I set Austin down in the line, he started howling, but I was already holding Karissa.



I asked her, "Do you think we should let Austin cry like that in here?" She nodded her head.



"How about I pick him up and put you down?" She didn't like it, but then she lay down in his car seat and was happier.



The line wasn't too horribly long. We only waited about 8 minutes and I was able to bounce Austin and pull Karissa along in the car seat. When it was our turn, I brought my packages up and asked if they could tape them for me, as we had run out of packing tape at home; mistake number 2.



The lady looked at me and said, "You can do it yourself in the back corner, then come to the front of the line when you're done. Next!"



I glanced at the packing tape right in front of her, then told Karissa to get out of the seat so I could carry it across the room. As soon as I put Austin in it, he was wailing. Karissa started crying, on the verge of a meltdown. I lugged the car seat, Karissa screaming in tow, to the back, where I proceeded in the battle with the tape. It was the stickiest tape ever known to man! Every time I pulled a piece off, it would stick to my coat. After I pulled it off, it would stick together. After about 3 pieces of tape, for every piece I needed, I just put it on the box, sides stuck together and all. The bigger box was quite a sight! Throughout the taping ordeal, Karissa was now having a full-blown tantrum with her face on the salty, slush-covered floor, while Victoria rocked a screaming Austin in his car seat.

After completing my transaction in the front, with two crying children, I made my way out carrying Austin on my hip and Karissa in the baby car seat (luckily she's in the 10-25th percentile for height and weight, so she's not much heavier than Austin!), a total of around 46 pounds, plus whatever the car seat weighs, which is almost half as much as my own weight, no joke!

The strange part about it was that no one in the whole post office, not even the employees, showed the slightest indication that there were two screaming kids in the building. It was also strange that I wasn't even really phased by the ordeal. It was so outrageously crazy, that it didn't even affect me like I would have thought it would. That was a blessing! It also reminded me of why I was a UPS costumer before I discovered the kiosks at the post office. At least they tape your packages for you!