Obligatory weekend post

I was going to write this really great post with the title "Thank God for Parents" which tied together several threads of my life right now, but after the day I've had today, I'm just too damn exhausted to put forth the effort. So you're just going to have to settle for this blathering crap instead. Sorry.

So today Jonas felt like it was Christmas all over again. Between a couple of goodies that Granny and Daddy Dave picked up for him over the past week, and the Christmas presents that finally arrived from our Memphis trip, he was in heaven, playing with each one of them, and then neatly putting most of them back away again. So cute. I hope that's a habit that sticks with him.

So, the coolest thing in his possession right now is the new toy Granny picked up for him. You see, my son likes things with, for lack of a better term, mechanisms. He likes tedious little things that occupy him, and he likes manipulating them. This new toy is a two foot or so tall tower that looks sort of like a little bird house. It's all wood, with rounded edges to avoid the inevitable bonks to the forehead, and it has many little doors on three of it's four sides. The odd side has shapes cut out. Each door has a different type of lock on it. Some of them are like buckles, one is a slide bolt, another is a clasp like you'd see on a purse. Inside each door is a hollowed out shape. And inside the house there are 24 little wooden carved blocks in various shapes to fit into those hollowed out spots. It's the coolest damn shape sorter I've ever seen, and it's just so sturdy and neat. This is one of those toys that will be around for a very long time.

Can you tell that I'm impressed? Perhaps even more than the kiddo.

This afternoon we went by the jewelry store and dropped off my wedding ring to get resized. It's been nearly two years since I've been able to wear it. First because of the swelling in my hands during pregnancy, and then because of all of my weight loss. I'm having to size it down three sizes! It's pretty amazing, really. But I think it'll feel good to have it back again. I'm not a big jewelry person, but I often feel naked without my ring. I mean, everyone who matters anyway knows that I'm married, but still, you get those looks from some people... that "young unwed mother" look. Whatever. It's really not that big of a deal, I suppose.

Jonas napped in the car, so Wil ran into the electronics megastore, and I sat with J and worked on my knitting. You know, I'm probably about 1/3 of the way through the shawl, and I sort of took a step back from it today and realized that I don't much care for the yarn I'm using. You'd think I'd have figured that out before now, right? So Wil, being the ever-supportive husband and all, suggested that I take a break from it, and stop by the store to see if I could find something else I'd prefer. Good man.

When J woke up we stopped at Olive Garden for lunch. We had a gift certificate to use up, so we ate more than we usually would, even ordering Jonas his very own dinner. Usually we don't bother with that since he's such a fussy eater, but we knew from past experience that he really loves their spaghetti sauce. He nearly cleaned his plate, which is much more than I can say for myself. But that's ok, I have mine for lunch tomorrow. :)

Just a side-note. Have you ever left your waiter a pity tip? Tried to make up for the fact that you can tell he's trying his hardest, even though he totally sucks? The poor kid that waited on us today must have been incredibly new to the whole world of serving. For starters, he barely knew the menu, he was totally disorganized and had trouble keeping his three tables straight, and to top it off, he dumped an entire tray of drinks in the lap of the unsuspecting lady behind us. I honestly thought he was going to cry.

But he was pleasant, even if nervous, and he really was trying, and he got our orders right, even if the wait was a little longer than usual. So we gave him a little extra. I hope it made his day a little easier. Sometimes we all need a little understanding, ya know?

After lunch we went by the craft store so I could look at yarn. A good friend of ours works as a manager there, so we hung around and visited for a while, and she fed Jonas nearly an entire bag full of cookies. For some reason he really took to her, even though he hasn't seen her since he was just a tiny infant. I guess it's the grandmother in her.

She used to work with us at Best Buy all those years ago, and for the longest time she was like a mother to Wil. Sweet old Cuban lady. We've sort of drifted apart over the years, but manage to pop back in every now and then to sort of reconnect. She was closer to Daril than Wil and I were, too. Today she revealed to us that what actually killed Daril was an infection from a wound on his chest. Everyone thinks his boyfriend did it.

I know that they had arguments a lot- sometimes heated arguments, but I had no idea that he was physically abusive towards him. According to her, Daril was covered in bruises, and this big open wound, which he claimed he got in a bar fight. Daril was the last person that would have ever been involved in any sort of fight. It just wasn't his nature. The first sign of trouble and he turned into a total girl. There's just no way that adds up. So now, not only am I sad over the loss of a friend, guilty because I didn't spend as much time with him as I could have/should have, but I'm also angry as hell at the idea that 1. he was being abused and 2. in essence, he was murdered.

But that's enough of that, I suppose.

So I found some yarn that I think I like better, and I'm going to start on a brand spankin new shawl tonight. Of course, I'm not going to go ripping out the old one just yet. I'm sure that I can finish it and find it a home, even if it's not with the mom in-law.

And with this post reaching garganutan length, I suppose I'll stop here and leave you with a couple of pictures from today.

Here's the kiddo with his new toy



And this is him "sharing" MY haagen-daz java icecream with the dog. Hard to be mad at them when they're using good manners, I suppose.