Katie and I took the morning easy, as I slept rather poorly last night. We colored a little, and she astounds me with how she is already starting to pay attention to coloring in the lines. We also pratice writing with pens and pencils, and her details are so precise. Her nimble fingers help me cross-stitch and she also has a new set of lacing boards on which to practice her own sewing, which she does well. She is quite dextrous and has such excellent fine motor skill. She walked at 9.5 months, so I know that she has always had pretty great control of her body---in both fine and gross motor skill---but still, it is amazing to see.
After a relaxing morning, we got dressed and met a group of awesome friends at Sweet Lumpy's in Old Town (they moved to a new location on 3rd Street). I had such a great time with Meline, Lauren, and Sameera. I am so lucky to have such intelligent, passionate, thoughtful people as friends. Really. I loved the ease of conversing with all of them, and I wish we could get together more often.
Katie had an awesome time in the relaxed atmosphere of Sweet Lumpy's. We ate outside, and Katie explored the hay bales, said hello to some dogs, and danced on the little wooden outdoor stage and loved the pumpkins out and about. Madeleine was, as always, an angel. She smiles all the time and is beginning to do the cutest wave EVER! Lauren is such a great mommy, and she impresses me to no end by making all of Madeleine's baby food herself. Meline is working hard as usual to make life a better place for everyone, and part of our lunch was discussing the business of promoting a fundraiser she is coordinating as a philanthropy for local soup kitchens. Sameera is doing well at Berkeley, and is taking the time to explore the beauty of that campus and its environs.
I love Old Town Temecula. I often forget how much I really love it. It has an easy atmosphere, and I need to make it a point to go down there to people-watch more often. It bustles with a relaxed activity, if that makes sense. No one seems in a particular hurry, yet there is such energy there.
After our hours-long lunch, I came home and make a quick visit with Katie to Mom and Dad's. It was getting really dark by then, but we played in their backyard and replenished bird feeders, fed the fish, and observed a stunning magenta and light pink sunset. The simple beauties of life...
