Little Boys and Libraries

Rose called me around 10AM and said she was ready for me to come over. It was still cloudy at that point, and very warm and humid. I grabbed my purse and a rain coat, just in case, and strolled over to their new house on Kendall. There was no car in the driveway, and I thought at first that they weren't there yet. I called Rose, who told me that Craig was inside with Khai, working on fitting their new blinds to the downstairs windows.

Khai is three years old, and, as his mother points out, a bit of handful. He was especially problematic earlier in the day, when everyone was hauling stuff in and out of the house and not paying much attention to him, and when his mother had to go run some errands and pick up hoagies from WaWa for lunch. First of all, he wasn't happy that I wouldn't let him climb around in his father and uncle's vans. Even after both cars were gone (Craig's brother helped out early on, but had to go to work), he ran down the block and tried to climb into the wide red strollers pushed by the day care ladies taking their charges out to the park! When he started roaming around in other people's front yards, I finally got fed up. I lifted him up and under my arm and hauled him back to his house and his father.

Thankfully, his mother got home shortly after, and Dad and Jodie arrived around the same time. We had those hoagies for lunch (mine was roast beef and provolone) and tortilla chips. Khai was a bit easier to handle with more people around. We went outside and blew bubbles. Khai pulled out his ride-on truck, and we went down the block together, looking at leaves and "helicopters" (seeds that can be tossed in the air to look like flying machines). We drew on their brand-new sidewalk with chalk.

By that point, the sun had come out, and it had gotten very humid, hot, and bright. Khai was as red as the Phillies outfit he wore, despite his mother coating him with sunblock while he was on his car. We went inside for a little while and played Hungry Hungry Herd (a Farmville version of Hungry Hungry Hippos), and Khai showed me his huge collection of Hot Wheels and Disney Cars.

When 3PM rolled around, I was worn out, and Khai was getting cranky. I decided it was time to head out. I had other things I wanted to get done today, anyway. I left Rose and Craig trying to put their son down for a nap while they waited for their new refrigerator to be delivered. Made a quick stop at Doria's Deli on the way back to say "hi" to Mrs. Doria and buy a much-needed bottle of Diet Pepsi. I was only at home long enough to change into shoes and socks and grab most of the books that needed to go back to the library before heading out again.

I made my way to the Haddon Township Library via Newton River Park. It was nearly 4 by then. Despite the heat, there were lots of people out and about. In addition to the usual joggers and dog walkers, I saw lots of families on bikes and running around the playground and high schoolers and college students sunning on the grass.

The library was quite busy when I arrived. It was well after school let out, and there were lots of kids studying and using the computers. The kids were distracted long enough for me to organize the children's DVD section as well as I could. There was already a volunteer putting the adult titles away, so I shelved non-fiction titles and kids' books instead. Took out two more books on money and saving it, 573 Ways to Save Money and Personal Finance For Dummies.

My original dinner plan for tonight was leftovers...but I was dead tired when I finally got out of the library. I decided I deserved a treat. I had a nice little dinner at a very busy Friendly's. Their Chicken Ginger Stir Fry was delicious, steaming hot chicken in a mildly spicy teryiaki sauce, with peppers, spring peas, carrots, and snap peas on a bed of white rice.

Stopped briefly at Rite Aid on the way home. Unfortunately  they were out of that inexpensive half-gallon of skim milk. I just ended up stopping at WaWa instead.

The apartment was hot as heck when I got home. I've been trying to put off turning on the air conditioner. I really don't like running that thing. It uses so much electricity and makes a lot of noise. I couldn't really put it off anymore. It was past 80 degrees in the living room!

As soon as the air conditioner was on and the trash was out, I went in a much cooler bath than I've been taking these past few months. It felt so very, very nice after a long, hot day. I leaned back, read 573 Ways to Save Money, and soaked. Some of the ideas in the book didn't apply to me (anything related to cars or kids, for instance), and some I already do (carry cloth bags, eat more beans, make holiday gifts, put sugar in cheaper sugar-less or low-sugar cereals). Others are genuinely useful (plan your weekly menus, only buy from the sides of the grocery store and not the middle aisles) or interesting (peanut butter does sound good on shredded wheat).