Mom’s Visit

Two Tuesdays ago, my mama flew in from Alabama to visit us for a week. The weather was perfect and we loved havin her here. Here are a few highlights of her visit. I had to work on Wednesday, so Mom and Otis had the house to themselves. I arrvied home to find her swinging in the hammock chair on the deck, listening to a book on tape, so I don’t think she minded the day to herself. We got a little exercise by walking about two miles through the neighborhood and then Cumbie grilled us marinated chicken thighs and squash for dinner. On Thursday, while Cumbie worked, Mom and I shopped all morning, lunched at Rollin’ Oats, and then walked three miles on the beach. We had planned to get pedicures, but the sand pretty much took care of that, so we stopped at the Wharf to snack on steamed shrimp before heading home. Mom made us big salads topped with rotisserie chicken for dinner. On Friday, Cumbie worked again while Mom and I went to the Sunken Gardens, a gorgeous few acres in St. Pete filled with lush tropical plants, koi ponds, tropical birds, and meandering pathways. We walked every inch of the gardens, marveling at all the loveliness. We ate lunch downtown at Bella Brava and then spent the afternoon working on a little project I started for Otis Jr. (More to come on that once I’m finished!) For dinner, it was my turn to cook, so I made stuffed florentine pasta shells. On Saturday, the three of us rode our bikes to the Saturday Market. We ate tacos and BBQ, browsed all the homemade goods, and bought plenty of fresh produce. When we were ready to leave, we discovered that Mom’s bike had a flat front tire, so Cumbie rode his bike home and drove back with the bike rack on the car to rescue us. In the meantime, Mom and I walked over to the new Dali museum. The building itself is gorgeous! We spent Saturday afternoon lazily snacking on the deck, watering the backyard plants, and walking around the neighborhood for a little exercise. Cumbie cooked us a beer can chicken on the grill for dinner and Mom made a tomato and basil salad and cocoa-toasted cauliflower to go along with the chicken. On Sunday we drove about an hour north to Tarpon Springs where we enjoyed lunch on the water and walked around the touristy sponge docks area. Then we took a boat ride out to Anclote Key, where we walked on the beach and picked up a bunch of gorgeous shells. When we got home we had a buffet of all our leftovers for dinner. Monday morning I took Mom to the airport. It was a wonderful visit with just the right amount of sightseeing, exercising, and relaxing. How exciting that next time Mom visits it will be to see our new baby!

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