Who would have thought it would be so hard to buy a birthday gift for a five year old. My granddaughter Macy will be 5 on Monday, her big birthday party is on Saturday and although I ordered a whole wardrobe of clothes for her from Kohls and Gymboree, I still had to buy that special present. Rachel and I decided that I should buy her an easel, you know so she could paint and draw and keep all of her art supplies together in one place.

When I was in Idaho at Christmastime, I had looked at them in Toys R Us and they had a nice selection, so I thought this would be easy. apparently so did Rachel, apparently we were both very very wrong. We started looking online, so I could pick out what I wanted to buy and everything we wanted was out of stock or unavailable until further notice, so last night Rachel went into Toys R Us and picked out a nice one and was at the check-out on the phone with me and I had my credit card burning my little fingers when they checked "in back" and said that's out of stock and no longer available. What is everybody buying their kid an easel for Easter or what. so it's back to the drawing board and we are running out of time.

Rachel suggested I check Amazon and since it was after 11PM when we were on the phone, I told her I would do it first thing in the morning. So.....this morning, very early, I might add, I get up and boot up the trusty old shopping machine. There they are on Amazon, costing only about 20% more, but at this point, who cares, right? I have just go to get an easel delivered to Macy by Monday April 18th. Well after numerous attempts to purchase said easel, and me being ready to pitch the old shopping machine into the Caribbean (seriously I was and hour and a half at it) I finally got the easel of my dreams, and I hope Macy's too, paid extra for expedited shipping (it still might not make it by the 18th, but hey I tried) and I'm taking out my frustrations here.

And to think yesterday my biggest worry was being bummed about missing Macy's 5th birthday party. Rachel is promising to come down for a visit with the girls by June, so maybe we'll have another party then (yeah right, maybe!) in the meantime, I have made my contribution to the cultural arts in the making of another Monet (one could only hope, with my luck she will be more like a Picasso)! Whatever, I just want her to be happy.