April Showers

Maybe I’m missing something.

Last night I decided to take Peanut out to buy a new raincoat. As typical with growing kids, she had outgrown her old raincoat after two spring seasons. I was actually thankful that it lasted that long.

Anyway, I was thinking this should be a pretty easy task. It is April after all and I’m thinking that if April showers bring May flowers it must surely also bring raincoats to retailers.

Boy was I mistaken, must be a dad thing.

We headed out of our Ellicott City house to the Long Gate Shopping Center. My plan of attack was to hit Kohl’s first, then Old Navy and if neither of them panned out we’d go to Target.

The lady at Kohls told me that they didn’t get many spring jackets for kids in this year. The salesclerk at Old Navy gave me a sympathetic look as she suggested I try Target. The red shirted Target employees looked at me like I had two heads. No, they didn’t have any kids raincoats but I might want to try the Women’s department.

“I’ve never gotten anything from the Women’s department before,” Peanut tells me as we trudge off again. No success there either.

Back in the car, we headed over to the Sears Grand store in the Chatham Station Shopping Center on Route 40. We found nothing at all grand about this Sears Grand.

“We only have these three,” the sales lady informs me pointing to a small rack in the middle of the aisle. They are all at least three sizes too small. “They are half off,” she adds. She suggests we try the Columbia Mall store.

Ironically, as we headed back down Route 29 towards Columbia, it started raining again.

Upon our arrival we parked under cover by Nordstrom which meant that we had to pass the LL Bean store on our way to Sears. We decided to get out of the rain and check there first. It was here that we finally spotted the elusive kids raincoats. She even had her choice of colors. She chose this lovely purple number.
Just out of curiousity, I decided to see what the Sears store had before we left. They had the same dismal collection as the Sears Grand store.

I’m beginning to think that the economy isn’t the retailer’s only problem these days.