A Morning Out

We had story hour at the local library this morning and afterwards I decided to go on and run errands in a nearby town.

Our first stop was a fantastic store owned by our dear friends Dean and Lora Jean.  If you remember, Lora Jean was our Godsend that cared for Natalee and Xavier when Mike and I were working full time at the public school.  It's a blessing to me to open the door to her store and have the children give a little shriek of joy upon seeing her face and go running into her open arms.  They love her so, even after almost two years of not going to her house daily.

I had a mini list of things i needed from the Mercantile today and had prepped the children that we weren't buying toys (of which she has so many awesome ones!).  I left with all I was after - a clothespin bag, a soft brush for Mia's hair (she has a little flaky cradle cap and I couldn't find one of those soft baby brushes to get it out), and bonnets to keep the sun out of her eyes this summer.  

I'd looked at bonnets similar to these on Etsy and sure didn't want to give up $20+ a piece on them.  $8/each means Miss Priss got 2...a size small (pictured) and a size medium in a lovely shade of purple!

After our shopping and visiting we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch.  What a treat when at the end of the meal the waitress came over and said our sweet friend Lora Jean had called and covered our lunch charge!  If you ever get a chance to surprise someone like that I sure encourage you too...as the recipient the feeling warms you clear to your toes!

While at the restaurant I heard a man at a nearby table whisper to the woman sitting beside him, "Shouldn't they be in school??" Then he went on to say "I suppose she's one of those homeschoolers that doesn't school and just keeps having kids." 

Funnily enough my kids actually SHOULDN'T be in school.  Natalee wouldn't enter public kindergarten until this fall.  I bit my tongue, though I suppose I should have replied (I was the only one dining with kids...pretty sure he was definitely talking about me!).  While we are pretty diligent about schooling during morning hours, sometimes we're going to go out.  Period.  Sometimes we may also school at 6:00 at night.  We are making the best choice for our children that we feel like we can and today that involved a treat out.  {reminder to self- don't judge others!}

We finished out our morning by dropping off a casserole dish to my friend, Lori, and saying hello to a couple of former co-workers that I used to teach with.  It's always a little melancholy to pull up to my former place of employment - for the most part I enjoyed my job - but snuggled up on a windy and cold day with my little people...I sure wouldn't have traded my afternoon for anything else!