Shopping Frustration

Many of you know my love for online shopping. I love to buy and I love to sell. It has been so hard for me to not be able to do that anymore! I feel like one of my jobs as a stay-at-home mom is to help my family save money, and I have felt pretty helpless in this endeavor here in Costa Rica. There are no off-brands to buy or coupons to clip so our grocery bill is about 3 times more than it was in the States. And that pretty much just covers food. And by the way, America still has the cheapest gas in the world. Well, my kids started to need some clothes replaced...what to do?!?!

Will had gone out of town for his pastors conference in April so I went by myself to pick up Emma from school one day. This is a huge progressive step for me to drive across town by myself! I decided to forget my desire to shop online and attempt buying the kids some clothes in a store that I know. So I found a Walmart in the GPS close to Emma's school and decided to give it a try.

Looks like a pretty normal Walmart right?

A little busy, a little crazy, but do-able...or so I think

I just wanted to buy a few simple things for the kids in a store that I know. Little did I know how frustrating, difficult and overwhelming this situation would be for me. I wrote a friend from home about this situation and wanted to share it on my blog. Always remember that every prayer, every note, every encouragement, every visit, and every care package is so appreciated and could be a complete answer to prayer for someone else. I was truly humbled by God's love for me through this experience:

"The day before Melissa got here I had to run some errands. This has been a difficult task for me because of all the traffic all the time and the lack of street signs for directions. I just still don't like shopping. But both of the kids needed some stuff so I had to do it. Will was gone on his conference and since it was Wednesday I had to pick Emma up from school across town. We headed over to the closest Walmart to try to buy a few things. It ended up being a horrible experience for me. Everything was disorganized and I couldn't find the right sizes or the right styles or the correct price I wanted and I was completely overwhelmed and frustrated. Both the kids were mad and confused and I finally just said we had to leave. I was used to shopping online for their stuff at home or just heading to one place and getting everything I needed in an organized fashion (Target, Old Navy, etc.). Anyway, I was upset, gave up, and we went home. I cried realizing that I didn't know how I was going to easily get the kids stuff they need.

The next day Melissa arrived and said that you sent some stuff for us. I couldn't believe what I saw. Just one day before at the crazy Walmart I was needing to buy the kids pajamas, shorts, flip flops and sunscreen. And on top of that, Jack is obsessed with sports right now and Emma LOVES Barbies all of a sudden (I got rid of all of hers at home because she never played with them then). I couldn't believe it when I opened the bag and saw those exact items I was needing and a few more that the kids wanted. And so I cried again knowing that we have special friends at home who are thinking of us and remembering us. And thankful that we have a God who knows our needs, our wants and our frustrations and is our constant provider. Thank you for allowing the Lord to use you in my life that day. I will never forget it. Thank you thank you thank you."