Homeschoolers Unite!

Yesterday I took the birthday girl shopping for an outfit.  I've learned never to buy her anything without her present since her responses tend to range from comments like "You think I'm going to wear that?" to sticking her finger down her throat and making a lovely impression of puking her intestines out. 

We found ourselves in Old Navy at noonish time. I walked around a rack with my head turned backward, yelling at one of my spawn (as per usual) when I tripped over some kid.  A kid! In Old Navy! During school hours. Hunh. The kid, a cute little youngin of about five with her hair in ponytails and matching clothes - clean, even - darted away before I could stomp on her, and an older boy about 11 grabbed her arm and they scurried away like mice.  I was intrigued.  What are kids doing in Old Navy during school hours, I wanted to know.  Never you mind that three of mine were climbing the walls and hanging from the light fixtures; that's irrelevant to this story.

I found a woman that must have been the mother.  I deduced this because the kids were huddled behind her as she searched through a rack of shirts muttering about how they never had anything in her size.  Her children were both neatly dressed but she looked like she'd been run over by a street sweeper.  It was like looking in a mirror, except my kids were not neatly dressed.  They were street swept too. 

"Are you a homeschooler?"  I walked right up to her.

"Y-yes," she said.  "My son had a doctor's appointment today, so I just thought it would be okay if we did some shopping while we were out. We're going to finish their work when we get home.  They're on grade level in every subject, honest."

"What's your name?  Where do you live?  How long you been homeschooling? Will you be my friend?"  I'm shy usually, so this was hard for me, but I didn't want her to feel like I was snobby or anything.  I grabbed one of my urchins.  "This kid -"  I looked at the one I grabbed to see which one it was, "yeah, he's mine.  He's about your kid's age.  Maybe we can get them together for a playdate sometime.  Does your son like karate?"  I looked at the boy, shaking and sobbing in the corner.  "Well, do you?"  I turned to Pierson, "Pierson, go play with that boy, while I talk to my friend." 

I have no idea why that woman grabbed her kids and ran out of the store.  She must not have been from these parts.