My Vote...

Yesterday, I was able to participate in the Arizona primaries and cast my vote for the candidate of my choice. With a baby on my hip and a toddler in tow we arrived at the polls relieved to find it relatively slow. One lady even kindly offered to hold Mr. B while I cast my vote. Thank you- the kid ways a ton and it's starting to cause serious back pain!

Hunter had more than enough questions about this little outing.
What is this place? (Lutheran Church)
Have we been here before? (no)
Is this going to long or short? (hopefully short)
What are you doing? (Voting)
What are you voting for? (Someone to run for president)
Like President Monson? (Kind of, but for the whole country, not just the church)
Is he going to be in there? (nope, we won't meet him here)
How do you vote? (By filling out a piece of paper)
Do I get one? (nope, you're not old enough to vote)
Is Hallie old enough? (nope.)
Is Knox? (Nope but Brimley is.)

And then the question that was most on his mind... Are there going to be treats or snacks in there? (Nope, but if you're good we can get a treat when we get home.)

We made it through the voting (a whole three minutes) without any meltdowns or crying. It was a success. Even better is the lady offered Hunter a sticker on the way out the door which is pretty much just as good as a treat in his mind. He wore it with pride. He kept asking me what it said.

I was overcome with gratitude as we walked out. I just performed an act that many would love to participate in but don't have the freedom to. We live in a good country. High gas prices aside we live in a country full of freedom and opportunity and it is grand. Sometimes we need to be reminded of that and voting does it for me every time.

My next thought as we exited - why in the world do I never remember to fill out the paperwork to vote early. Every time I drag kids in to vote I tell myself, "well that was silly, I could've done this ahead of time." But 11 years of voting and I've never remembered to do it!