Nailed to the Sidewall (Of My Tire)

Well, it seems that when you are having a really good day and have completed everything that you needed to and than done the impossible, which for me...take six kids grocery shopping while holding one of them in your arms because she has a broken leg and is too young for crutches and too stubborn to sit in the cart...You would think that your day is complete if you can come home in one piece. Oh boy, do I have illusions or what. To be honest, my kids were great. My older boys have created their own shopping lists and they carry those around with them and pick out the things they need and pay for it with their own money...NICE. I also have the luxury of not heading down any aisles anymore, as I have three enthusiastic kids who love running down a specific aisle to get whatever it is I asked them to get. They are budget savvy too, as they only ever get the stuff I ask for and they look for the least expensive one every time. So, what is it I am writing this whole blog about, well, I am writing because...I got out of Walmart in record time and I spent just over a hundred dollars which is good for grocery shopping for six kids and my kids had done great the whole time. We had enough time to get home and finish chores and have a nice dinner and a movie. We marched back to the car and loaded all the children in and before I had finished loading groceries, my astute 9 year old said,"Uh, mom, we have a problem." Which oddly enough entered my mind as "Mission Control, we have a problem." Honest. LOL...Well, I walked around to where my son was studying the tire and found a nice long nail sticking into my fully inflated tire. Perhaps it had not punctured the tube. Hopeful wishing here. So I pulled it out.....but it kept coming and coming and coming, till two inches later I had retrieved the dastardly piece of metal and air was hissing loudly out of the hole. So, what did I do? I shoved that nail back where I had found it. No hissing, no problem. Right?
Honestly, I hate spending money, so every conceivable thought went through my mind. HMMM. The air in my tire is staying inflated and I could make it home.....How long will it last? I wonder if a can of leakstop would work....I wonder how long I could drive on a donut if I had too. But in the end, logic ruled out and I drove around to the back of Walmart where the tire and lube station is and hopped out of the car and walked over to the many mechanics who had nothing else to do but stand in a corner and look under the hood of a sports car that someone had driven over. One popped his head out and asked if he could help me...I told him my problem and he laughed and said, sorry ma'am but we are closed. Yea right was my reply, so he directed me to the guy who would get me set up. It seems that all the guys were going to give me a hard time over the next 30 minutes. But in the end, I had a new tire, I had actually remembered my tire warranty from before and so saved a whole 114 dollars. So, despite the fact that our 1 hr trip turned into a 3 hr trip and 100 turned into 300 dollars spent....(I shopped a little more while they were taking care of the car and also filled up on gas......) I went away feeling happy but worn out and grateful that it did not turn into a four hour trip, as my kids were at the end of their rope too.