Delaware visit

Steve had a business trip to Delaware last week, so Olivia and I tagged along.  I kept Olivia up from her morning nap so she'd sleep well in the car, but she talked to herself the whole way to Baltimore.  Steve spent a few hours at his main office, so I drove around hoping Olivia would fall asleep, and then I gave up and went shopping.  First I plugged "consignment" into the GPS and a mile away from the office we found a great little shop.  Except it was, in traditional consignment shop fashion, crammed with inventory so I couldn't bring the stroller in.  About a minute after coming inside I realized it was going to be a short visit if I had to hold a squirmy baby who was trying to grab everything.  Within 3 minutes I located the last of their Halloween inventory (50% off) and bought the only thing in OJ's size, which turned out to be pretty cute for $4.75.  Here she is with Misty Mouse at the Halloween party.  After the consignment shop we hit Target for a Pumpkin Spice Latte and some candy corn baby socks.

Then Livi crawled around Steve's office until he was finished, and finally napped a little on the way to Delaware.  We had a yummy dinner with Cheryl & Jeff at Cheeseburger in Paradise.  I would post a picture of them, but it didn't come out great so I'll post a picture of the mural in the bathroom instead.  It was so good to see Cheryl, short but sweet.  I missed our annual Caribbean trip this year; I had a baby and she went to Prague.

We stayed at the Courtyard on campus because they have an awesome breakfast (oatmeal bar, made-to-order eggs, etc.) and the hotel is run by UD students in the Hotel & Restaurant Management program, so they operate like their grades depend on it.  By the way, you don't have to stay at a Courtyard to eat there for breakfast.  Waffle maker, crispy bacon, and did I mention the omelet chef?

After breakfast we dropped Steve off and hit Goodwill on Main Street for stocking sweaters and baby clothes.  I think I bought 10 things for $28.  That's zero change because there is no sales tax in Delaware. Sigh.  Too bad I forgot about Total Wine, and it was too early for cupcakes.

Next we went to Sparkles Bead Shop where I used to teach jewelry classes and ended up leaving part of my heart when I moved to Virginia.  Olivia sat in the stroller and was SO good while I shopped and visited with Connie and Charlene.  Some jewelry people (like these guys and Cheryl) have become dear friends and it's so nice to catch up with them. 

After that I drove around for a while to let Olivia get a catnap and then we went to see Bertie at her handbags & baby stuff shop in Old New Castle.  She even had toys for Olivia to play with while we visited.  I absolutely loved living in Old New Castle, and I miss the walks through town and along the river.  I was admiring Bertie's bittersweet hanging on the door and she reminded me that I could walk down the river trail a bit and get my own.  I thought about it, but my tummy was rumbling.  (Bittersweet photo by Bradley Wright)

I fed Olivia in the car (no small feat in itself considering it was runny and orange) and drove to my favorite burger place, Jake's.  It's the best burger under the bun.  Then we went to our friends Stephanie & Nick's house so we could meet their adorable and sweet Sully!  He was born a month after Olivia but we haven't seen each other all year. 

Too soon it was time to pick Steve up and head home.  I realized a few things after our trip...

1. Livi pretty much went two days without good naps and there were no meltdowns. She rubbed her eyes a lot, but she was sweet until the very end. I'm going to try not to abuse that knowledge in the future. 
2. OJ ate solids somewhere other than her high chair, something I am usually too lazy to initiate.  I'll probably still be climbing in the back seat to give her a bottle during a road trip when she's 4.  I sat her forward in her carseat, pulled a bib out of the diaper bag, and spoon fed her cold purees from the jar. 
3. I actually miss Delaware.  While living there I made the best of it although it was busy and didn't feel like home, and it grew on me more than I realized.  And not just because there was a Trader Joe's.  Some of our closest friends there have moved away, but I'm glad to have seen some of the ones who are still there.  And we can always go back to visit and shop!