Yeah Costco

So we all know that I love Costco (just like I love Pete Rose) and it's always nice when places (or people) are as great in person as you have perceived them to be all along. (one quick note here, any derogatory comments directed towards Pete Rose will get you eternally banned from this blog!) Now, we had been looking at sectionals since we bought this house 2 1/2 yrs ago. Our over sized furniture from our over sized house did not work well in this cozier home. But we made due. The idea basically got tossed out the window when I got laid off as it wasn't a real necessity. Anyway, my boisterous friend Lindsey was in Costco shopping, always thinking of someone else, and saw a sectional that she thought Andy and I might like. We went to go check it out the next day, loved it, and the price, and thought it might be worth saving for. Well, fast forward 2 weeks, Lindsey reminded me that those things don't last long at Costco, so I decided to go check to see if it was still there. And, you guessed it, sold out. So we drove out to the Hillsboro Costco which is the "Home" one, and they were sold out too. She checked every store in Oregon and Washington, all sold out. So, in our sadness, we decided to get pizza and a churro (not that we needed an excuse). While we were eating it there, the manager came up and asked if I was the one looking at the sectional. He said that a lady from Vancouver had bought one and was driving to come pick it up but had just called to say she couldn't make it and needed to return it. So, I asked it he could hold it until the next day (he reluctantly said yes as he had already turned 2 other people away that were interested). Then I talked to Andy and we decided that if we could sell our 3 piece monster (the furniture, not the kids) then we would go for it. Well, within an hour of listing it on Craigslist, it was sold. And, the guy ended up living right by the Hillsboro Costco, so the plan was for us to bring a load of our stuff he just bought out to him, he unloads it, packs up 1 out of the 3 boxes of our sectional in his van, drives it out to us, and then gets the last load of his stuff from our house and takes it home. I asked Andy once, do you think this is a hairbrained idea? I know that I tend to fly with ideas, like him taking off in one direction with part of our sectional and me chasing him in the Civic with all 3 kids strapped in like sardines in the back (it's another story how we got there), but I decided to let all of that go. Andy seemed confident so I rode on that. Well, in getting the furniture ready to load up once Andy got home, I decided to check all of the crevices of the couch. Not just taking the cushions off, but feeling down in the sides where nothing could possible fit. Right? Wrong. I felt something small and round. Andy's wedding ring! It was amazing. He had lost it about 4 weeks prior. I was convinced it was gone (the series of events pointed towards him losing it at the grocery store) but he felt like it was going to pop up. Well it did!! It was awesome. The kids and I did a little treasure hunt for him when he got home which led him to a paper bag with his ring in it. It was funny. It was all the kids could do to keep the secret until the end! And, needless to say, everything else in the plan went seamless. I had said to Andy as the plan was unrolling "if we end up tonight with cash from this guy in our pocket and the sectional sitting in this living room, I will be amazed." I shouldn't have been, but I was. Here is a picture of what we got.

All that to say, the BEST part of this purchase (so far) has been - the box. The box has been turned into a clubhouse, and has provided HOURS of entertainment each day. I am already mourning the loss of this clubhouse once it gets destroyed (or we get tired of it taking up the entire playroom). The fun started with Ashley and Abby inventing a cute little game (at the expense of their brother). They were in the clubhouse playing, and would call Charlie in there, tape a sign to his back, and send him off to find me. Here is round one. The note said "may we please have a treat".

And here is the treat making it's way back to the clubhouse on Charlie's back:

He did not seem to tire of this game. He got side-tracked every so often, but eventually made it to his destination.

A few days later (when Ashley went back to school), Abby had the clubhouse to herself which she loved. Seems as though the clubhouse needed some repair because she called in a contractor to do some work.

I work alone, please.

Next thing I knew, they were husband and wife and that was their house. Here is what the conversation entailed:

Jackson: Abby, what are you doing? (coloring on the inside)

Abby: Hanging curtains. What are you doing?

Jackson: Oh, I'm hammering. Let's go have a baby.

Abby: OK! I know where one is.

Both leave and return moments later happy as can be with a baby.

Jackson: I'm hungry, let's go get something to eat.

Abby: OH YEA! Let's go to McDonalds!

Jackson: Ok, but let's leave the baby here.

If only life were that simple!

A few more clubhouse details. The name of the clubhouse: family and friends clubhouse.

Clubhouse rules:

No dirt.

No crying.

No being mean.

I think I'm going to adopt these rules for our house and see how it goes!