Today has meandered. It was defined by a shopping expedition, but beauty struck me mostly.
I realize how beautiful this land is. I’m in the South, but the vistas are wide. The sky seems more open. The winter landscape is stark and beautiful at once. The highway cut thru granite stone with ice falls frozen in time like an animal that crossed the Narnian White Witch.
I got a few moments to ride the bike and walk in the field with girls. We found our friendly cat again.
It’s funny what makes me feel at home. Not having skim milk seemed to bug me a bit. Now that we’ve had it for a day, I feel more comfortable. Laura had milk for her cereal. I drank it with snack. Sara had the same reaction to Nutella. Food can be very centering.
We got out around 11am. I also realize how far we are from places. We only went to Target and Costco, but didn’t get home till 4pm.
Target was pure Xmas shopping. It felt like an element of Xmas watching my girls look at every single toy. Grandma watched closely for suggestions as did parents. Sara had helped Laura write a list out in the car. At one point, Wayne took the girls aside and Shirley and I negotiated complementary toys. Obviously, Grandma got first pick.
We were all starting to wilt a bit. We found refuge in Logan’s Roadhouse, a streak place that encourages peanuts to be thrown on the ground. It’s interesting the different, yet joyful reaction from both my kids.
Sara walked in, smiled, and declared, “I’ve been here before!”. She, the vegetarian by taste preference, get protein mainly by nuts and dairy. She slurped up those nuts.
Laura turned her nose at them. At the end of the meal as she got restless, she discovered the joy of crushing discarded peanut shells. That was worth 20 min of entertainment.
The actual meal was satisfying. French fries came out lickety split. Popcorn shrimp. Salad. Steak sandwich. All good.
Costco took even longer to get to. I love how southern Nashville is a mix of rural barns, opulent mansions, and row brick apartments in uneven mixes.
We got Xmas dinner. The girls played on the toy standing horses for 30 min.
Home was rush hour traffic.
I rested after so long on my feet. The girls watched Stuart Little and the sequel. Hugh Laurie. Not a role I expected.
Hannah came over to spend the night. We had blueberry fights, read Winnie the Pooh on the iPad, and enjoyed a Nutella filled dinner.