[Home being Concord, California.]
My brother, Todd and his wife, Jen were expecting a baby girl sometime
in mid-April and extended an invitation to come stay with them for a visit.
So I started looking up flights to the Bay Area
to see if there were any good deals to be had.
I found a deal I just couldn't pass up!
I found a round trip flight that ended up being less
than the cost of a one-way trip that most of
the other airlines were offering!
And the timing of the flights were perfect, too!
I was able to fly out in the evening right after work
and then fly back late at night to arrive in the morning
before having to be at work a few hours later.
I would have loved to plan for a longer visit
but instead I planned it around my work schedule,
so I would only miss two days of work.
My flight was to arrive late on May 8th and my flight back
was scheduled to arrive in the early morning hours on May 14th.
My brother picked me up from the Oakland Airport
and as we were driving towards Concord,
it was as if the past two years were all just a dream, a blur.
It just felt like this was the way things are supposed to be
and like I had never left. I was "home".
When we arrived at my brother's place,
I got to hold my baby niece, Kara for a little bit
before I went to bed. [And before she went back to be fed!]
I slept on an air mattress, just inches from the ground,
in my nephew, Kaden's playroom.
[Ahh, that air mattress brought back a lot of old, uncomfortable memories!]
The closet in the playroom is the cat area,
so it was really great waking up in the middle of the night
to the sound of a cat scratching in the litter box! [Not!]
Then sometime around 7:00am, I heard my little nephew
talking to my brother about me.
So needless to say, I got very little sleep my first night there!
But how can you sleep when you hear this cute little guy asking,
"Auntie Tammy, Auntie Tammy! Are you awake?"
while I was there and when I wanted to do them,
but that all went out the window the first day!
My tentative plan for my first day was to go
visit the school I worked at for over 6 years
and say "Hi!" to everyone there and see if there
are actually any kids left that would remember me.
Then I wanted to go here and there
to shops and places to eat that I used to frequent
or that were new to me. [Like the In-N-Out in Pleasant Hill]
And if time permitted, visit a friend or two.
The morning got off to a later start, which meant going to
the school wouldn't work out, since it would be almost
nap time by the time I got there. So that was out!
I pulled out the gifts I brought for Kara and Kaden.
Kaden really liked his new Lightning McQueen quilt
and a car that changed color when it got hot or cold.
I found out that my brother Kris, who I wasn't expecting to see
while I was there, [because he's difficult to get a hold of]
was coming over that evening for dinner.
We decided to have a barbecue for dinner,
so I went along with Todd & Kaden to Safeway.
I was walking around with Kaden when I heard a voice say my name.
I turned around and there was Sharon Jacobson!
We chatted for a bit and ran into each other a few more times while we shopped.
My first day back and I've already run into someone who knows me!
That is one of the things I miss so, so very much!
Just the little mundane things we do on a daily or weekly basis
made that much nicer by bumping into a friend.
[And Safeway always was one of the best places to bump into someone!]
Since I had to be back by a certain time, there wasn't too much
I could squeeze into my schedule for the day, but I knew there was one
thing I really wanted to do and hoped it would work out!
I took a quick walk down the street and around the corner
and knocked on a door, hoping someone was home to answer.
SURPRISE!!!
There at the door was my friend, Betty.
She was surprised because she didn't know I was coming to visit
but at the same time she wasn't surprised, because it just seemed
so normal for me to be standing there on her doorstep.
[Although usually it was with a plate full of goodies in hand!]
She told me that she still finds herself looking for me and my sister
walking up and down Clayton Road.
We visited for a while and she showed me the latest school photo
of her grandson, Riley. I used to watch him when he was little and
now he's eleven! Where does the time go?!?!
We were hoping to be able to get together again before I left,
but we both had a lot going on during the time I was there,
so we didn't have the opportunity to see each other again,
which made me very glad that I went to surprise her when I did!
I had a little bit more time left before I had to be back,
so I ran into Food Maxx, for old times sake,
as well as to get a couple things.
Was hoping I'd bump into someone I knew there,
but the only familiar faces I saw were a few of the cashiers.
My brother Kris arrived just a couple minutes before I got there.
Dinner ended up being a bit later because there wasn't any more
propane for the grill, so my brother had to go to the store to get more.
Most of the evening was spent watching Uncle Kris and Nephew Kaden
play and interact with one another. It was cute.
I'm kicking myself for not taking any pictures of them together!
Kaden loves his toys....especially CARS!!!
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