A Simple Trip to Target

Good morning, Barb,

How funny that you are wishing for a snow day, when here it is bright and sunny, not a chance of snow anywhere in our near future. Cold, yes, but not even cold enough to complain; I hardly need my gloves yet. I will say a little prayer for you that the temp drops like crazy tonight and some freaky storm stirs up out of the middle of nowhere! Your day sounds ideal, although I wouldn't have the faintest idea how to make any of what you're making. That part where you make the pizza and pour a glass of wine...I'm there.

Ahh...thank you so much for your two posts this morning (at least that's when I finally got to the computer). You're hilarious, requesting some kind of booze warning before I write! By the time I sat down and recounted all of it, it was no longer shocking or overwhelming or odd; it was just about par for these days. Homeless. Classic.

Yesterday was fantastic; I couldn't have asked or hoped for a better day. After some yardwork and dinking around the house, the whole family traipsed over to the mall. We shopped for a couple of hours, each of the boys getting new clothes. JJ bought himself an AC/DC t-shirt; that's my boy! :) M decided to get his ears pierced; I told J that I might be overindulging him, but to please allow me that. It's the only thing we will let him pierce and I thought, maybe that would be a good start to him trusting that we aren't control freaks...I don't know, I'll try anything right now. Funny moment: in the card store, M and I were looking for an anniversary card for R&K. We're handing them back and forth, and I pick one up that is hilarious, referencing breast implants. "This one is perfect!" I say to my 16-year old kid, as I hand it to him for approval, "K has fake boobs!" He stands there, the card hanging in mid-air, and looks at me, horrified. "Mom. Is there some reason I needed to know that?" God, it felt good to laugh.

It's funny to watch JJ, watching M; he knows M's really cool, and wants to emulate him, but it's just so not his style, he's not sure what to do. He stood there during the ear piercing, wincing, asking "Does it hurt?". You could see the little wheels turning in his head, if I get my ear pierced I'll be cool like M, but I really don't want to... Finally, J and I assured him that while it's cool, yes, it's also a certain style, and it's not his. He seemed relieved to discover he'll have his own way of being cool. It cracked me up.

I took a nap when we got home while everyone else disappeared outside. I woke up at 5:00 with a burning need to go to Target (???) so I called S and we decided to run over there before dinner. M wanted to go with us (???) so I let him drive. When we got into the store, I asked him if he were going to wander off, and he said no, he would just hang out with us. He followed us around the women's clothing section and ended up getting himself a t-shirt in the junior girls' section. What a riot, my kid. I've had this hankering for a fleece vest (don't ask) so I finally got one; it's bright turquoise, which is my new favorite color. We kicked around for an hour or so, S and I bought a couple clearance t-shirts, looked at makeup while M looked at hair products. Is it silly, Barb, to say that this was the highlight of my day? Browsing in Target, with my friend and my teenage son, no particular reason to be there. Just hangin. I am so grateful for the little things today.

We all met over at R&K's for dinner around 6:30; here in Podunk, Washington, we don't have much to offer in the way of restaurants, but we do have kickass Chinese takeout, I must say. My boys came with us willingly, but when JJ got there and realized that S&T had left their boys at home, he fell into a bit of a sulk, wanting to know why he couldn't go over there. S and I let T and J make the executive decision to trust three little boys in a dark house, unsupervised, and JJ was delighted to get out of there. Even though K lets him eat on the couch while watching TV, he wasn't up for a grown-up dinner party. I was a little hesitant, then, to let M go home, but J thought it was fine. The six of us sat around the dinner table, laughing and making fun of R, which is our usual source of entertainment, for an hour or so longer. K had picked up a German chocolate cake from a new bakery, and I managed to scarf a piece of that too, even though I was completely stuffed from dinner. Too much food, too much wine, perfect amount of fun.

I'm wondering about something you wrote last night: you said you weren't going to worry about losing 20lbs before you came to visit. Are you refering to the usual angst we experience when meeting new people? Yeah, relax about that. Honestly, we're a bunch of junk-food scarfing, beer swiggin', exercise-once-a-month couch potatoes over here. Sloppy joes and tater tots. Hot Tamales around the firepit. FYI; no one around here will even notice if you wear sweats the entire time you're here. :) Oh, and cheek kisses? Sorry. We're full on the mouth, this group. You won't be spared.

Today, J's out with half the rest of the neighborhood, getting a head start on the Christmas lights before the rain comes. M's still sleeping, JJ's out giving football-throwing lessons to the little kids, and I'd best get my act together if I'm going to get anything done myself. Enjoy your day of cooking and organizing and planning and wishing...sounds perfect. If we get home in time for a call this afternoon, I'll try you.

Love you,
A