oh commissary, oh commissary

so i must say i want to retract my previous comment on jessi's 'military mom' blog (you must check it out sometime). *side note: i love that all of us, the blogs i follow, are at different parts of our lives, part of different branches (or none at all) of the military, are husbands are at different points in their career and yet i find such comfort and guidance and support in each of your blogs. this is the great thing about the sisterhood of being a woman, a wife, a mother, the biggest cheerleader and bestest care package packer for your soldier.* okay, back to my commissary story. i posted the other day that shopping at the commissary, just cayman and i, has been a breeze. in part because i basically do all my shopping for us: cayman, myself and mum and dad (we've been staying with them while aaron's been deployed), what little i do buy, at the local publix (shot out to the plantation publix and their kick-butt bakery!) and save the commissary for aaron's groceries (yes, i do grocery shopping for my deployed husband. he is the best-fed soldier in iraq between my weekly packages and the bi-weekly packages his mother sends him packed with korean food). so, no big deal, right?

not today! grant it, we had a busy day, between my zumba class this morning (i'm determined to lose my baby belly. i've lost the weight and then some, now to lose the flab) and then our playgroup's halloween party, we had been on the go all day. but that has never caused the utter chaos and tiring workout we had today as we 'quickly' ransacked the commissary. by the time we left, i wanted to make a pa announcement and apologize for the experience.

cayman was great until he wanted out of the shopping cart, which was at the toothpaste (about three aisles in). so, i gave in. took him out and let him toddle down the aisle with me. you had to see it... cayman in his superman shirt, complete with cape and his jeans and all stars picking up random things and putting them down four aisles over (i'm so sorry commissary workers). so, it was cute, adorable, cayman made friends with every retiree in the store. well, until we got to the snack aisle, the mecca of all of aaron's care packages. and because i was raised clipping coupons, i had to check them and make sure we got the right brands and number.

and that's when chaos hit. between my checking of coupons and cayman rearranging snack boxes and hard candy and dodging shopping carts as he took on each with his 'i'm the baby of steel' pose, the phone rang! oh no! it's nearly 5pm, that means only one person could be calling! aaron was calling and we were answering and then there was nothing... the call connected and then nothing... the phone rang again and again and again and again i opened it, shouted 'i love you' (the first thing i say when answering his call, i know the number) and yet, nothing.

i had texted aaron's computer earlier to let him know we were at the commissary. and i can only imagine the frustration setting in for him... two days in a row that we weren't able to see him, but i know he also understands that the laptop is bulky and a pain to carry everywhere. nah. he understands that we are keeping busy and not always at home. but still... not to be able to even talk on the phone... stupid iraqi internet. okay, wait, i take that back. i appreciate the internet and access aaron has to it, i don't like the fact that it's not very reilbe.

so with a screaming superbaby tucked under my arm, a shopping cart full of goodies to be mailed to my hero, and a cellphone that kept ringing with no voice on the other end, i had a total workout. and so, i look forward to taking on the commissary next month again when we make our return to ft. polk. until then, it's to publix we go.

side note: it's these challenges that test us, but also make us who we are. funny how God uses tests to give us great testimonies. case and point, if i can go to the commissary with a wiggly and giggly superbaby and save over $20 thanks to our coupons, you can do it too... why, because you need a great testimony too.