The Case of the Light-Up Shoes

Katie has light up shoes. You're thinking right now, who's Katie and who cares about her shoes?

Silvia cares, that's who. Katie goes to her preschool and for MONTHS I have heard every day about the shoes. Not in a whiny, begging or complaining way, either. Silvia has been filled with wistful sighs and admiration.

"Mommy, Katie has light up shoes. They are soooo pretty. I love light up shoes. Maybe someday I can have light up shoes like Katie? They have lights on them when she walks. Katie loves them and I love them, too."

Since her feet are growing exponentially and her shoes from April no longer have a chance of fitting, I decided why not? I have to get her new shoes anyway, why not indulge her ultimate fantasy and go with fancy lights? I mean, come on. When else in her life will her dreams be so easily reached? It's not like she is bombarded with new clothes and shoes and toys and fabulous treats. Most of her things used to be Anna's (including shoes) and we're not really give-the-kids-tons-of-crap kind of people. It would be a real treat for her and she deserves it.

So, I went to Kohls (I had a coupon, yay!). Or to what I now call, Shoe Hell and Home of the Sales Dragon Lady.

The had the perfect shoes-- a pair of mary jane sneakers in bright pink with lights enough to satisfy without being obnoxious. Silvia wore them out of the store, happiness coming off her like rays of sunlight.

But then, after we were home, and Jack was fed and calmed (he hates the car), we both noticed that one of the shoes didn't light up. Oh, no! Oh, horrors! I still had my wits about me, though, and felt generally calm and up to the challenge of a shoe exchange. So we waited to pick up Anna from her bus stop and headed back over to Kohls.

Can you guess what happened? Is the rule of Murphy's Law clear in your gaze? That's right. They didn't have her size. Sighing, I headed to customer service with two increasingly rowdy and grumpy children and a (thankfully) sleeping baby. The lady called the other stores (no dice), stared me down silently with no other helpful suggestions and gave me my money back. Cue mayhem from the 3-year-old whose dreams had just been dashed.

I gathered up the troops, headed home, had a piece of chocolate (medicinal, you understand) and checked online for the right size. Jackpot! Turns out, though, I'd have to pay shipping. So I call the store and ask if I can have it shipped there and skip the shipping cost.

Guess what? Turns out that, IN THE STORE, there is a kiosk set up for just this circumstance with free shipping. The catch is that you have to order IN THE STORE.

Did I mention the IN THE STORE part? The part that would have been incredibly helpful to know before I dragged my three children OUT of the store? I explained this fact to the customer service lady (the same lady I spoke to when we were IN THE STORE) and she said, "Well, I'm sorry, I can't do anything for you. If you want the shoes without paying shipping, you'll have to come back."

I told her I hoped she'd be more useful with this helpful information with other customers and hung up. Only then did I use language inappropriate for a child's blog.

In case you're unclear on why I'm so frustrated, let me expound (because this post isn't long enough yet!). Getting in and out and in and out and about and corralled with all the kids is hard. It's annoying. It's frustrating. I mostly avoid going out these days if I have to take even two kids. Jack, as I've mentioned, hates driving and tends to scream for the majority of our trips. The girls are sweet and I love them, but their ability to tackle all my nerves at once is beyond impressive. It's an art. So going to the store, leaving, going back and being the opposite of helped so that I'll have to go back AGAIN... I'm pissed.

The question now stands. Return to Kohls (hopefully to see the same lady and make rude gestures at her while letting my kids scream in her ear and getting the baby to throw up on her) and order the shoes, sans shipping costs. Or order them online, pay the fee and be free from road trips and obnoxious sales staff. Or give up on Silvia's dream and get her some plain ol' shoes the next time I happen to be out in a place that sells them.

Thoughts?

(I have to say that I'm leaning towards ordering online and considering the $6 shipping a worthy fee for my sanity. I don't really want to disappoint Silvia when she has come so close to her dream. What would I say to Katie?)