Friend Time
Louisa and Crew made the very long drive to visit last week, and we all had such a fantastic time. The timing was perfect because with Buds and Buster out of town, we loved the extra company, plus we had an extra bed upstairs so it was one big slumber party.
Besides being comfortable house guests, they have a similar balance with ours to together time and time to go out for adventures. We had lots of visiting at home, but headed out to explore and enjoy our new town each day.
Adventures in pictures:
Friend “P” came over for some play time in the morning, and she fit right in with the rest of the crew. Big girls headed off to the skate park, and you can learn about that awesomeness here.
Younger girls and I headed to the playground to enjoy the crisp Fall day.
Classic moment in the car, hearing “P” ask the other girls for their music preferences. P’s parents are musicians, and love ’80s rock. I had a huge smile when P asked the girls with great excitement in her voice, “Do you know Cyndi Lauper? She’s great.” It was such a lovely reminder to me of the many things we teach our children by how we act and what we love. And the other girls DID like Cyndi Lauper, after they heard her…as do I.
On one of our days together, we headed to the Adventure Science Center, which has brought our family so many hours of pleasure. We even discovered a whole new area of the museum that we had never checked out before. It was so fun to explore it with friends.
Bless Louisa’s heart, she loves coffee, too. A stop at Crema was required before “adventuring.”
Interesting note about the puke-a-lator above. The ASC was not very busy, and our big girls were able to ride two times in a row since no one was waiting. The machine operator gave them the chance for a “secret” ride for their second trip since they had already done the roller coaster. She said she wasn’t supposed to use that one (Louisa guessed because it seemed longer.), but she wanted them to enjoy doing something different.
It was a little thing, but kind and thoughtful for her to do. I continue to find many moments of this sort in Nashville. It’s one of the many reasons it has come to feel so much like home so quickly.
After the ASC, and a couple hours hanging out at home, we headed to Loveless for dinner.
We took along a basket of markers and pens and pictures and paper for coloring in case we had to wait at Loveless, which we did. We had a 30-minute wait, and the girls all handled themselves beautifully. When we were leaving, one of the hostesses held me back to compliment me on how lovely all the girls had been. It was so kind of her to take the time to say that, and also a reminder to me that for most adults, children who are quiet and not a nuisance are generally seen as “good.” God save me from that short-sighted a perspective.
Another day we trekked over to the house Louisa would come stay in when she’d visit her grandparents. That was really cool.
She remembers a picture of her little self and her dad sitting on this very wall. I love those sorts of connections. I was also glad her aunt and uncle, who live down here, were away the weekend they visited so we didn’t have to share them. Selfish, but honest.
More to come in the next post.
