There comes a time in every couple’s relationship when they stand in the throw pillow aisle of IKEA and argue over what color to get. There is a standstill as grey gingham and floral are neck and neck in contention. The store holds its breath as one last go round of the area reveals another option—navy pillows with a white beetle contrasted on the front. The couple calls it good, grabs two white pillows to go with the others, and continue on their way.

The Captain and I knew we had to make an IKEA trip this month to fill our house with new belongings and replace what B is taking with him to Las Vegas. We were going to do it Thursday, but—for some reason—we woke up one morning, stared at the semi-gloomy sky, and said, “Let’s go.” The sky was clear for ten minutes before it started to rain and then it was spotty till about twenty miles from Auburn. I gripped the handle for a good portion of the drive and my anxiety was terrible, but we made good time, didn’t crash, and pulled into IKEA right around lunchtime.

We ate in the restaurant and I was able to taste those fabled meatballs for the first time. They weren’t quite as mind-blowing as I was led to believe, but with delicious gravy and mashed potatoes they made a filling and well-deserved lunch. The Captain had overcooked pasta and his own meatballs, and it wasn’t too long before we were putting away our trays and walking through the showroom.

Due to the fact that I’ve been obsessively investigating IKEA on their website and in their magazine, there wasn’t much that I hadn’t already seen. We made quick time, found some of the things that we wanted, and changed our minds on some small details. Our white BRUSALI became brown and we traded in a small cart for the bigger ALEX. Once we made it to the marketplace, we loaded a bunch of things into our cart and it filled up pretty quick. We grabbed: dinnerware, tall glasses, short glasses, cutting boards, spatulas, measuring cups and spoons, a cute floral art piece, the throw pillows mentioned above, a mail organizer, and some artificial flowers. We also grabbed a couple of things for The Captain’s mom and grandma while we were there, and it only took us two and a half hours to eat, shop, and buy—a new record.

Don’t worry, because we checked all of our boxes and made sure that we grabbed the right stuff and all of the stuff we wanted was in stock. No need for more than one trip!

We stopped at Ikeda’s in Auburn on the way home for some yummy treats. We grabbed some curry sauces, a cobbler for us, a pie for my mom, and lots of fruit and veggies. Then we had a rainy, clenched-jaw drive back to Reno before unloading all of our goodies and running some more errands. This probably won’t be the last chapter of The Ikea Chronicles but, for now, we have everything we could need and we’re happy. And isn’t that enough?