Melt Down

It was bound to happen.

This weekend it did.

Spunky Baby was due to eat at 5:00. We went to a store and there were VERY long check-out lines. Thinking we were still safe, we entered the check-out line at 5:15 with a very happy baby.

Queue the theme from Jaws.

Du-duh...

Fast-forward to 5:40. We are JUST checking out now, with a not-so-happy-but-still-okay baby who is pulling at his Mom's hair and trying to grab everything in site like a 17-lb octopus (how many hands does this kid have?!?). I am juggling Spunky Baby with one arm and trying to sign the sales slip with the other. After the cashier hands me the sales slip I take a close look at it.

"Did you take off the 10% from my coupon?"

"Uh....."

Oh, no.

"I'm sorry but you'll have to go to customer service and they'll immediately credit it back - it's a two-second fix. I am unable to do it at this register."

Du-duh....

Grumble grumble grumble.

So, we trek up to floor #2 and find the customer service desk. I send Spunky Daddy out to get the car because it's in the next zip code and the wind is howling. I figure we'll be out in 5 minutes and we can get into a nice warm car.

Fast-forward another 20 minutes. It's 6:00 and Spunky Baby is STARVING and BORED. He is also overtired and the more tired he gets the cuter and louder he talks until BANG he's throwing a tantrum. He's shrieking like a banshee and I'm trying desperately to calm the natives. We are quickly entering tantrum territory - one I have only seen a handful of times and I know it can be avoided so I am doing everything in my power to head this off. No such luck with the customer service reps. Can they not SEE the melt-down in progress?

"I need your frequent buyer card."

Huh? I don't think we used it....

"It says on the sales receipt there is a credit from your frequent buyer card and we cannot fix this until we have the card."

Well, it must be with Spunky Daddy who is out getting the car. I'm on the cell with Spunky Daddy trying to keep my language PG as I'm in public: "GET IN HERE. NOW...." Spunky Daddy comes in. He says he didn't use the frequent buyer card. ?????

Du-duh...

So I say, "Listen, I need to leave. Now. I'll just take the stuff and call customer service tonight from home and we'll take care of this later on."

"We can't let you leave the store - we canceled the original receipt/transaction and have to ring you up again before you can leave with your things. In order to do that we need your frequent buyer card."

(through clenched teeth) "BUT I DIDN'T USE A FREQUENT BUYER CARD...."

So the customer service rep hands me a sales slip for $75 MORE than I paid originally which now includes the 10% off but charged me $100 more because she can't find said frequent buyer card. WHAAAAAAAAATTTTTT?

Du-duh...

Du-duh...

It took at least another 15 minutes to realize that the first cashier rung up the sale under frequent buyer card when he should have rung it up under trade-in (long story short). If they had simply asked the right questions I would have been on my merry way!

Now Spunky Baby has lost it. Arched back, big tears, wails that could only mean that monkeys are pulling out his fingernails. Kicking. Hitting. Me.

Spunky Mommy wasn't far behind - I had tears welled up in my eyes and I was D-O-N-E.

Here's your receipt, have a nice day.

Yeah, nice day. Have a nice day.

Did you every try putting a screaming six-month-old in a five-point harness car seat while he's having a tantrum because he's hungry and tired and wet and you should have been HOME by now? Nice day.

Du-duh....