1. Hope your name isn't Alex Elliot because in that case you've already failed
2. This is very important: bring a friend with you.
3. It's probably not a good idea to bring your kids with you.
4. Bringing your children with you will first become a bad idea when there is a major road block which doubles the amount of time the trip takes from a half hour to a full hour.
5. Be prepared that when your children make a beeline for the sea creatures stuffed animals, that you may have to purchase one. This is the second time you will realize it was a bad idea to bring your kids with you
6. After waiting for a good 10 minutes for the salesperson to help you, your children will probably have manhandled the stuffed animal of their choice leaving you to wonder if you're going to have to purchase said stuffed animals
7. When you go to try on the wetsuits in the bathroom since there's no changing room be grateful that the bathroom is very large. Then be prepared to sweat a little when you put on the wetsuit
8. Be grateful that putting the wetsuit on is much easier than you thought and that you were a smaller size than you thought. You will need this silver lining when you think back later upon this day
9. When you realize you can't zip up the back of the wetsuit by yourself ask your 4.5 year old oops, your friend the owner of the store zip you up while the top of your underwear and the back of your bra are exposed.
10. If you bring your friend have her take your kids for a walk while you finish trying on the wetsuits. If not, you may have to firmly tell your children that there's no way you would chase after them in a store full of people wearing a wetsuit. Then you can bribe them by telling them if they behave that you will buy them the stuffed animals.
11. Check out your reflection and realize that this is how you would look as a whale, kind of like how Elmo in Sesame Street sometimes pretends to be a rabbit.
12. Hope that the stuffed animals don't land in the toilet. An unexpected purchase is one thing. A new purchase that was soaked in toilet water before it was even bought is not ideal, particularly when the toilet is a public one.
13. Pay for the wetsuit, two stuffed animals, wetsuit shampoo and bury this event in your mind. Oh wait, you don't have to because you brought a friend along so the experience was really not as bad as it could have been; like if you went by yourself with your two kids for example.

Labels: Exercise and Fitness, Toys / Clothes / Gear