My Garage is Not Full of Toilet Paper

                 This week, we had to do groceries from Target, as our usual store has a minimum for curbside pickup, and there was no way we would be able to come up with that much stuff.  It's a week to work down the backlog of food in the fridge and cupboards and especially the freezer. 

                Back during the early days of the shutdown, we would bypass the minimum by ordering something that would bring the total to the store's requirement, but would be unlikely to be in stock.  It's always a gamble to do that, so we always selected something we would use eventually, like toilet paper, puzzles, or paper towels.  Almost always, those items would be marked as out of stock, and we would get the rest of the order at the curb.  I can't decide if this was dishonest or brilliant.

                I am working on using up our supplies, and I'm very grateful that my anxiety didn't manifest in hoarding.  Every time I get tempted to pile up things like paper goods, I remind myself of a system that has served us well for the last few years:  we buy the next one when we open the last one.  I start scanning the sales flyers for the next pack of diapers when I open the previous box.  It means I only have one backlog box, but I also have a couple weeks to locate my next box.  Same with all the other paper goods--if I still have one on the shelf, I will only consider buying another if the sale is an amazing deal.

                This totally works if I don't forget what I already have at home and if I don't get ensnared by the "spend $50, get a $5 gift card!" specials.  Suffice it to say that we will run out of baby wipes around Tiny's fifth birthday, and my husband gave me a long look as he loaded them all into a dresser drawer.  Awkward.

                Yesterday, I went into San Francisco for the first time in over a year.  We went out to lunch with Fuzzy's brother, then went to see the Frida Kahlo exhibit at the DeYoung.  It felt good to fulfill our promise to Kiddo from last year to go see it.  The museum did a wonderful job of keeping the crowds small, and the patrons were by and large respectful of the regulations.  I was surprised by how few kids were around, considering it was spring break for many local schools this week, but Kiddo and Tiny were decently behaved, though Tiny was wiggly about wearing her mask.  I'll keep experimenting with styles to stay on her face.  Her ears are so little, her hair is so slippery, and her nose is so tiny, though.  It may turn out easier to just put her in some kind of face-covering hat with eye slits until herd immunity is achieved.  She will be the cutest bank robber in the land.

                In-person school starts Monday.  I am reminding myself that Kiddo's teacher is very respectful of the precautions and that her school is likely to be one of the best-prepared in the district.  Kiddo has been reminded that the time in school is limited, so focus is tantamount.  Something tells me that the kids will be so busy looking at each other that not much will get done.  We'll see.