Honey, will you go up to the store and get me some ice cream?

You have no idea how long I have waited to hear those words!!

My love of ice cream is legendary. One of my earliest and fondest memories is sitting on my grandfather's lap while we both chowed down on a bowl of ice cream. I wish I had the picture because I know there is one. I never get tired of the stuff and will go out of my way to satisfy my cravings. In college I would down Blue Bell Mint Chocolate Chip by the pint, usually several in one sitting. It is amazing that I am not heavier than 195.

Fast forward to 2007 - I get married and my lovely wife is not a dessert person. Sugar makes her sick which is hard to believe from somebody who once ate sugar sandwiches as a kid. Now that this pregnancy thing is going on, I have had to make several runs to the store for either pickles, Kashi cookies, or now ice cream. What once may be construed as a complete beat down (driving up to the store), I now enjoy because JoAnna has suddenly got a craving for ice cream. I better enjoy while it lasts.

Tonight I was checking the Facebook account and happened to hit the page of a coworker. I normally only read current statuses, but today I read a few of the older ones. I don't know why I did. Maybe it was fate. Perhaps it was some higher power guiding my eyes down the page, but I came to something that made me tingle with excitement. It read "...can I jsut tell you all how excited I am to have 3 pints of Graeters Black Raspberry Chip ice cream in my freezer!!!! Horray Kroger for starting to sell it here in Dallas! Mmmmmm yum!"

What??!!?? Graeter's in the Metroplex? Can't be!

Whenever I go to Cincinnati I always stop off at Graeter's at least 2 times to feed my craving. Being a native Texan means that Blue Bell runs cold through my veins, but this stuff is somewhat magical. My day always goes better with Graeter's.

8:00pm means it is damn near my bed time, but I had to get some tonight. Problem is that since only Kroger carries it, I would have to haul it over to Keller which is about a 15 minute drive. Such a small price to pay for getting all that creamy goodness in me. Let's just hope that both Keller and Fort Worth's finest are on dinner breaks because I am putting all 250hp to work tonight!

I tell JoAnna what I am doing and of course I get the requisite cookie order too, so in my mind this is a legitimate run to the store for the pregnant chick. Money! No need to feel bad now!

When I get to the store I start mapping out my plan. Ice cream is frozen. Ambient temperature is about 75 which means ice cream will melt. Hmm...better to minimize the time the ice cream is out of the freezer, so let's get the cookies first.

Strikeout! No cookies here which has been a constant in about 5 other stores. And while only Kashi cookies will do, this will yet be another time I get the evil eye when I make it back home only to give bad news. But since this was really originally an ice cream run, I didn't dwell on it too much. She can suck it up.

I make my way to the freezer section and go up the row once without seeing anything. Deep inside I am thinking about where the next closest Kroger is, but I figured I must have missed it. As I am going back up the row I spot what I was looking for. It was so beautiful, almost glowing like there was this aura around it. Yeah this is just ice cream, but my brain just works this way. I pick up 3 pints: Black Raspberry Chip, Mint Chocolate Chip, and a Chocolate Chocolate Chip for JoAnna. Now the only thing I can think of is sitting on my couch to enjoy my find.

If you remember up in this story I said I had about a 15 minute drive. Under normal circumstances this is not a big deal, but tonight I had precious cargo. I needed to ensure that my precious cargo made it from point A to point B safe and intact which in this case means minimal meltage. Ice...I needed a bag of ice. Insulation...I needed insulation. All total at the checkout, $16.59 for 3 pints, a bag of ice, and a towel to wrap everything up. Oh yeah baby - you have to think outside the box to be a successful father. I'll fill up the grocery bag containing the ice cream with the ice, then wrap it up with the towel so the cold doesn't escape. Brilliant!

The ice cream made it home still perfectly frozen and JoAnna enjoyed the flavor I bought for her. Now all I can think about is that next ice cream run I will need to make!