A Day of Rest
Last Friday, I was a wimp. A little snow fell from the sky and, for the first time this year, I took a snow day off. It certainly wasn’t the blizzard of last week. There were no drifts of white to shovel but there I was, sitting at home wondering if I really should have went to work.
By noon, the had snow stopped falling and the roads outside my home were miraculously clear. The temperature had warmed up and there were no winds to speak of. Instead of hopping in the car and slogging through the commute to work, I decided to relieve my wife’s cabin fever.
We did so by running out to lunch at the local Mexican restaurant. I say “the” because we’ve been so happy with their service and food, there really doesn’t need to be another one in our area. Plaza Girabaldi suits us just fine.
The caveat of this trip is that we brought our two month old child along. Our fingers were crossed that he would behave and they were not crossed in vain. Perched upon the table, he slept comfortably within the safe confines of his baby carrier. For two parents that have spent the majority of two months inside their home, the freedom of a relaxed meal without the need for a sitter was richly rewarding. See? We can have our fried ice cream and eat it too.
Then, largely by my prompting, we ran off to Best Buy to purchase some CDs (namely Nut Sack by Rodney Carrington and Cocky by Kid Rock – trust us, we knew what we were doing). I don’t think I’ve had a more enjoyable visit to that wonderful store of technological glitz and glamour. The aisles were clear. We were free to browse this way and that without rubbing elbows with disgruntled customers or anxious kids. My wife tagged along as I showed her all the things that I absolutely had to have. Subtle smiles indicated that some things would eventually follow us home. Others would always remain on the shelf, just out of reach (like that plasma TV). My baby boy took his first trip to Best Buy well by taking another nap. I hope he likes it in here. He’ll undoubtably be back.
A trip to BabiesRUs was thrown in because of a couple of recent needs. Nipples were in short supply and our old baby monitor had its best days behind it. The wife and I were tired of banging the monitor on the wall to get it to work or finding the best spots in the house to make it screech with static. It was time for a replacement. Our trip to BabiesRUs very much mimicked our trip to Best Buy, only this time I trailed the wife rather than the other way around. We did just a little bit of shopping and a lot of browsing. Future needs and potential presents for some soon-to-be parents dotted the shelves.
The rest of the day just slid on by at a very easy pace. Neither of us were really hungry after a big lunch so dinner was small and pain-free to prepare. The baby duties were split up for the rest of the day, allowing my wife an extra bit of rest at the end of a work week. It was the kind of day we both needed to recharge our batteries. I’m not so sure I should have shirked my duties at work to stay at home with the wife but, to be honest, I was really glad I did.
Tina
March 5th, 2003 at 11:03 am #
If you think Plaza Garibaldi’s great, you’ve gotta let us take you up to El Salto’s. Both are good, but I think El Salto’s wins.
Mom
March 9th, 2003 at 7:55 pm #
Ken, I read your blogs and laugh and cry. However, they are happy tears — estatic tears of happiness and joy!!! I have watched the cell phnone commercial on TV whre Dolly Parton is singing “I will always love you” and I cry. But it’s always happy tears because they show a Mom and the joy of raising and loving a son and the son recipricating with love for his Mom. What more could a mother want, than to have a child love her and show that love. I know by reading what you have wrote that the time has come where you are seeing and feeling and experiencing all the love and joy that I have known and nothing could make a Mom happier. I’ve waited, I’ve prayed and God has answered my prayers. All of my grandchildren are a blessing, but Cam is a miracle who will be loved by all of us!