Monday, November 25, 2024

Week 43 - Hanging with Connie

Connie was due to arrive Monday and I was pretty much ready but had a full day ahead. Imagine my surprise when she called at 7:50 am to say she was already on her way and would be there mid-afternoon. Yikes! I had in my head that she'd be arriving in the evening and had even planned to go to knitting at 6:00. My morning immediately went crazy.

After dropping a carload of donations, I was taking my cousin out for lunch in Lincoln. Luckily I only had to frost the cake I'd made the night before and wrap her present but did the last minute cleaning I'd left for the morning, threw some pork in the crockpot and was out the door by 10:00. I was a sweaty mess after dropping the donations off at a house with 3 steps to the sidewalk and another 6 to the porch but made it to my cousin's at 11:30. We had a nice lunch at Piedmont Bistro (my fave restaurant in Lincoln that's literally a block from my cousin's) and then went back to her house for cake and presents. I had thought I'd stay all afternoon but left at 2:30 to pick up a few groceries and meet Connie. She had just arrived and unloaded her car when I got back. Nick of time!

We had never discussed how long she'd be staying and I assumed it would be a few days. But no. She told me she had arranged to pick up 2 cats she was adopting on Sunday morning so would be staying the whole week. Yikes again. We had talked about doing some touristy things in Omaha but since Connie is not good at just vegging, she was already antsy on Tuesday morning so there'd be no knitting in the sun for me each morning. We walked at the lake on Tuesday after lunch and then she left for Lincoln to meet a friend for coffee before having dinner with her daughter.

I had a work party - a bridal shower of sorts - on Wednesday at lunch so Connie had made plans to have lunch with a friend. She picked me up afterwards and we went to visit the 2 cats that she would be taking home on Sunday - Millie and Willa, who are gorgeous. Connie had very specifically said she had no interest in shopping so I was surprised when she suggested antiquing. We went to a shop she'd seen by where she had lunch and then we spent hours walking the entire antique mall off I-80 and finding nothing. When I commented that we could have gone thrifting instead, she agreed and didn't remember her shopping comment when I mentioned it. Sheesh!

Thursday was our day out in Omaha. We started at the Joslyn Museum, which had only recently reopened after a major remodel. It was wonderful and we had a nice lunch in the cafe before heading to the pedestrian bridge over the Missouri River between Omaha and Council Bluffs. It was windy but a nice walk and we went to Dundee to get a coffee to warm up before grabbing some groceries and heading back home. Connie's daughter Rachael was coming over for supper. It was nice to see her although we keep up via Facebook.

Friday was a more relaxing day. Connie went for a walk while I got some knitting time in, which you know I loved even if it was only 20 minutes. I brought a puzzle up from the basement and we worked on that in the front room between watching movies and had leftovers for supper. That's my kind of day.

Since I hadn't thought Connie would be staying so long, I had signed up for a retreat with my spinning group on Saturday. I skipped the morning so was home until Connie left to meet her grandson and his daughter at Omaha's zoo, which I've still never been to despite living her almost 30 years. I got to the retreat in time for lunch and had a nice afternoon working on my afghan while others were doing classes. Have I mentioned that I don't spin? I always said I'd learn after I stopped working but despite having retired, it hasn't made it to the top of my list yet. Maybe in 2025? Anyway, we watched more movies when I got home that evening.

Connie had arranged to pick the cats up at 7:30 Sunday morning so was out of the house at 6:45. It had been fun to see her but I felt pressure to keep her entertained so I felt some relief when she left. I had chores to catch up on - stripping beds, doing laundry, cooking, etc. - so had a nice day of getting things done and catching up.

It had been a busy week and I learned my lesson on not asking how long she'd stay. But then her coming to me is not the norm and was only a replacement for the week I was supposed to go to her in September but got the awful cold, which lasted weeks. I miss having Connie closer so these visits have to do. 

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