My personal shopper

Mothers-in-law get a bad rap. I won't admit to complaining about mine since she reads this blog, but I hear plenty of stories from friends about their crazy, although generally well-intentioned MILs.

I actually get along pretty well with my husband's mom -- she's kind and smart (and allowed to be a little crazy from time to time, given that she had four children under the age of 7 by the time she was 25). But we spend a lot of time and energy dancing around in an effort to be overly agreeable with each other, which often makes mountains out of mole hills for no good reason. I'm not sure why we do it and we've even tried to joke about it, but somehow it's hard to let go and trust that we'll be fine by just being ourselves.

One of her favorite things to do is shop, especially for bargains. She'll often call from a great sale to ask if we need anything, and she rarely shows up for a visit without some gem for the kids from the dollar bin. So earlier this week, I took her up on her offer to pick up purchases for us at JC Penney, since she gets an extra discount there. I sent an email with detailed info about our purchase, being sure to be polite and not impose and all those things she and I do to make a small request longer than necessary.

A few hours later, her email reply arrived -- with just the laugh I needed to remember that she and I can both relax.

So thanks for the smile, personal shopper! And here's the response from my MIL:

Your order has been received. You shall hear from our local shopping center within the next 24 hours to see if either set is in stock. Thank you placing your order with us. You are a valued customer and we appreciate your business.

Your Winston-Salem personal shopper,
M.