“ Downstairs ” referred to the playground behind their apartment building . One of the things that she liked about military housing was that , from her experience , there was always a playground somewhere close by .
This was her second Army base with her husband , and even before Davie was born , she had noticed the number and proximity of playgrounds to the base housing , as well as , that the Morale , Welfare and Recreation building or MWR , as is was called , was usually conveniently located in the middle of the housing area .
“ Not today , Davie . Remember , we have to go to the MWR and help decorate for Armed Forces Week ,“ she answered back , hearing a sigh coming from the dining room table .
“ It ’ ll be fun ! Brandon and Jonathan will be there and maybe some other kids from your class . Now , what do you want for breakfast ?” she said cheerily .
That was actually a pretty pointless question because , for the past year , all Davie wanted was a bowl of Rice Krispies for breakfast no matter what she offered . Maddie , on the other hand , changed daily , what she wanted to eat for breakfast . “ Maddie ?” “ Cheese , toast !” her daughter squealed and banged her hands on the table .
Jill turned on the oven and pulled cheese , milk and butter out of the fridge . She opened the breadbox and pulled out the loaf of Wonderbread , noting that there was only half left . She needed to go to the commissary . The 15th , when they would get paid , couldn ’ t come quick enough .
Most people thought that you had it made if you were in the Army , but military families struggled to make ends meet , sometimes , just as much as civilians did . Her husband ’ s pay was based on his rank , and he had just made his sergeant stripe , which they hadn ’ t received the pay upgrade for yet .
She was hoping his hazard pay for his recent deployment to Iraq would also be there on the 15th . It would help them pay down some debt that
Most people thought that you had it made if you were in the Army , but military families struggled to make ends meet , sometimes , just as much as civilians did .
they had accrued before he joined the Army and her goal was to also pay off their car with the extra money .
She sliced off some of the cheddar cheese and placed it on the two slices of buttered bread she had laid out on a baking sheet , then she put it in the oven . She hit the button on the coffeemaker and walked over to the pantry to get the box of Rice Krispies .
She took a bowl from the cupboard , fixed Davie his bowl of cereal and took it to the table , after pulling a spoon from a drawer .
“ Yours is coming , Mouse ,” she said using her husband ’ s name for her daughter .
The nickname had come from her ability to be “ as quiet as a mouse ” when she snuck into bed with them in the middle of the night . They never heard her or knew when she climbed in , she would just be there sleeping between them in the morning . Maddy smiled at her mother , wrinkling her little nose .
“ Mommy , when is Daddy coming home ?” Davie asked her .
This had been his standard question at the breakfast table every few days since her husband , David , had left last month . She frowned then caught herself and beamed a fake smile at her children .
“ Daddy will come home for Christmas but that ’ s going to be a little while .”
“ How long is ‘ a little while ’?” he asked looking at her with those serious blue eyes that he got from his father .
“ It will be after the summer and after you go to first grade ,” she said , giving him the same answer she always did .
She wondered if he kept asking to see if she would give a different answer or if the circumstances had changed since the last time he asked .
“ And Maddie Mouse will go to kindergarten ,” she said tweaking her daughter ’ s nose , getting a giggle out of her .
Jill went back into the kitchen and pulled the cheese toast out of the oven . She took two plates
MAY 2024 MoultrieScene 71