Shoe have got to be kidding me....

So last night was the worst errand-running-night EVER.

I needed to run out and, quickly, exchange a pair of shoes at Rack Room (I'd ordered the right size, but they didn't fit), pick up my hub's bday present (which I'd already called about), grab a couple of things from the grocery store (like- literally 4 things), and pick up pizza for dinner (on a credit from the last order, which they'd been over an hour late with).

"What ha' happened wuz..."

First- bday present.  I got there, got through everything and went to pay for the item that was already picked out and they didn't have it in the right color....black. The basic of all colors.  I was like- seriously?  They said that I could drive 30 minutes to go to another store to pick it up.  I explained that I couldn't go right then and that it was the only time I'd have for sneaky errand running without my 10 week old and I really didn't want to drag him out for shopping again this week.  I asked if I could buy it in the red, give the gift, and he could return it unopened for an exchange.  They said it would be a $35 restocking fee to do so.  I asked if I got that as a discount off an order since they hadn't stocked it in the first place.  They didn't get it.  So.... I ordered it and it won't be here in time for his bday.... tomorrow.  I'm wrapping up an IOU.  Wife of the year award goes to.....

Next was the shoe errand.  This is where the night went from annoying to .... something beyond horrible.  The first thing you need to know is I'm 5' 11" tall.  That's pretty tall for a girl.  I wore size 10 shoes until just after college when I started wearing sizes 10 and 11.  I had to have bunionectomies (no idea how to spell that) on both of my feet one summer.  (Super fun 6 weeks of no walking.)  After that, though they'd assured me it wouldn't happen, my feet could no longer comfortably fit into all of my beautiful heels.  They hurt to wear them too long and only size 11 shoes really fit properly.  So there went a good chunk of my shoe collection (which was fabulous, by the way, as you can tell from the pictures of my former favorites).  

Ah, sparkled perfection....

Cute, but not fabulous...

I rarely wear heels anymore, especially since getting pregnant.  No one wants to see a giant rolly-polly-preggo fall because of her heels, so I contented myself with wearing some super cute flops and sandals for fun and some reasonably cute, flat, sensible work shoes.  I went last night to exchange some shoes I'd ordered for the winter work season.

I proceeded to try on, seriously not exaggerating, almost every single size 11 shoe in the store that wasn't a tennis shoe... and a couple that were.  They didn't fit.  Not one.  I tried on flats....I tried on trendy heels..... I tried on boring grandma shoes....I tried on backless clog types....I tried on the stupid furry-looking cloth ones.... I even tried on Crocs (the antithesis of a cute shoe)....nada.  The only ones that fit, and were actually too big, were a pair of $80 shoes meant for wear in a restaurant kitchen.  (As in- the box said that's what they were for.)  I finally tried on a couple of pairs of Bobs, also NOT a cute shoe. and found a pair in black that fit well enough. They have little silver threads running through the fabric so they're slightly cuter than the flat colored ones that neighbored them.  

Not.  A.  Fan.

This took AN HOUR!  Seriously.  I was almost in tears.  I got out those old school metal foot sizers and measured my feet.  It was as I'd feared.... 11.5.  My feet apparently grew while I was pregnant and I couldn't tell because I was wearing almost all backless shoes.  I totally teared up in Rack Room as I exchanged my cute flats for the I-can't-believe-I'm-getting-these flats.  I left hating shoe shopping for the first time in 30 years.

Now it's a miserable night.  One should not shop for food when one is miserable.  Taking away the love of shoe shopping from a girl who is trying to lose weight is a good way to make sure she eats terribly.  Which I did.  I bought a cherry pie to eat after our pizza.  (I never bring home desserts.... that's my hubby who does that.)  I bought Pringles, a package of hard salami (delish with cheddar), and all sorts of other random, highly fattening foods.  (The pie was so not worth it, by the way.... but I ate a giant piece even though it wasn't that good.)  $100 in groceries later, I left the store.  Remember how many items I'd been going for??  Yeah- 4 would have cost me less than $20.  Whoops.

Last but not least - picking up the pizza.  As I waited in line, I texted my husband that I was sorry it'd now been TWO HOURS since I'd left him with the baby, but that I was almost ready to head home.  I realized I was next, so I put my phone away.  I wish I hadn't because what happened next would have made a great picture for FB.  The lady in front of me was probably close to 70 and thus her order took for-ev-er.  Apparently she was a frequent shopper at this particular pizza place, because she kept saying things about "you know how I am" and the like.  Finally, she said, "and here are my toppings.... you know me!"  She pulled out two baggies from her purse... one full of chopped onions and one full of pepperoni slices.  She apparently brings her own toppings for her pizzas.  I just stood there and laughed.  Thankfully she didn't realize what I was laughing at, but I thought that was the funniest, weirdest thing I'd ever seen.

That didn't make up for my feet now being so big that I'll have to order shoes from specialty websites, but it sure did give me a good laugh.

If you have recommendations for where to find shoes that aren't red and honk when you walk, I welcome them!

Party City is not a shoe store!