Jason went to the grocery store for me again the other day.  He does this a lot.  I don't like shopping in general and although he can do many things to help me with Cole, he can't lift him in and out of his crib or up off the ground or make his bottle or change his diaper or get him dressed...all the things that require use of your hands.But he can go shopping for me.So, now that he has his new van (finally!) Jason has become the errand-runner in our family again.  I think that is what I missed most when he was vanless - his ability to go places independently.  But going to the grocery store is different for him than it is for the rest of us.  He can't grab things off the shelf and so he has to ask other customers or employees to help him load his basket or grab his credit card from his wallet or take his bags to the car.  Armed with the list I have given him Jason conquers his task with the help of half a dozen people along the way.He often will have me on the phone, asking me questions over his bluetooth headset.  Not only does this ensure he is getting the right items but it is a bonus for me as well.  I get to hear the conversation of each person who helps him get a particular item in that aisle.

"Excuse me - can you help me grab this?" "Oh!  Sure!  Which one?  Oh, ok.  Here you go.  Anything else I can get for you?" "No that's all.  Thanks."

Then more often than not, I'll hear some sort of motherly love from the helper as they tell him how impressed they are that he is going shopping on his own.  It's usually a tender little moment for them - I can tell.  As women, we just can't help ourselves.Of course, there is the random person who when asked to help just look at him like he is a crazy quadriplegic stalker and hurry away - but those are few and far between and make us laugh in the process so it's ok.So, Jason went to the grocery store and this time he hadn't called me to ask many questions.  He was confident with his own knowledge of the list and buzzed through the store taking one employee with him through the baby aisle and another one to round up all the rest of items in the store.  When he got home I unloaded all of the grocery bags and saw that he had gotten bananas, just like the list said.  There were three sets - all in varying shades of ripeness.

I hadn't told him to do this.  Jason knows, after all of his shopping expeditions, that I like to get bananas this way.  Some for now, some for a few days from now, and some for after that, each set turning ripe when we are ready to eat them.  Along with the fact that he was being a huge help to me by going to the grocery store, that day I was grateful for so much more than just an errand run.Jason knows me.  He knows me and cares enough about me to do this task in the way that I would have done it because he understands that it makes me happy.  These are my favorite bananas simply because of how they came to be sitting on my counter - chosen with care, hard work and thoughts of me in mind.This week I'm grateful for bananas and all they represent - and along with those bananas, I'm grateful for you, errand boy.  We make a good team.