Thanks, I needed that!

I went to Nebraska last week and boy, was it great! It had been a year since I had seen my parents and since that time they had sold the home they had lived in for the past 14 years at the lake and moved into town - something I was really happy about. They lost power for multiple days at least three times last winter and all their immediate neighbors move into town for the winter so there wasn't anyone close by. The new place is a nice three bedroom close to all sorts of stuff and hurray, they got rid of the twin beds that had been parked in the guest bedroom forever and bought a lovely new queen size that is just heavenly! I always approach visits with my parents with both a sense of excitement and dread...I get along famously with my mother, but my dad is something else. We are just too alike to do well together over long periods of time. Stubborn, a bit mouthy...my poor mother has spent the last 40 years as a buffer between us! Anyway, this time it was different. I'm not saying I didn't mutter some choice things under my breath, but I was happy to be there and enjoyed their company. Plus, I got to spend lots and lots of time with Angela doing...well...just stuff. We went out to eat, went shopping, observed an interesting open mic night at the used bookstore...just stuff. I came home relaxed and happy!

Actually, I LEFT relaxed and happy, too! The day before I left for Nebraska I spent the day in Atlanta with my friend Carol who was there for a trade show and she invited me to join her for the various events and an awesome evening at The Four Seasons. Oh yes, I could get used to high-quality hotel life! The beds were heavenly and the shower - oh that gorgeous shower...with amazing French bath products. Whoever invented the in-room mini bar...my hat is off to you! Oh and room service...eggs benedict tastes ever-so-much better when it's enjoyed in a fluffy Four Seasons bathrobe,followed by coffee on the terrace! Yep - I'm thinking the Holiday Inn Express is most assuredly going to seem a bit too pedestrian for me now!

David and Kyle survived my absence just fine. The house was probably a little tidier than when I left it and they did a lot of fun stuff...in fact even now Kyle still pipes up with little tidbits about the stuff he and daddy did while I was gone.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, the tooth fairy's going rate is $2 per tooth now. Kyle lost his first tooth on Monday night (thanks for waiting until I got home!) and was ecstatic to learn that this little venture was going to make him rich, rich, rich. He was asking me to count all his teeth and multiply it by $2...my little entrepreneuer!