More Missouri

First a confession; I have not carried the camera with us on all of our adventures this week. I regret that I have not documented some of the cute moments and various family members that have been enjoying Clare’s company.

As some of you know, Jeff’s favorite restaurant in the world is Fortune East here in Joplin; they have the best egg rolls outside of China (although I haven’t had any in China so maybe these are even better).  Every time we come to Joplin we visit James and the Fortune East staff at least twice, this trip has been no different.  Greg and Gail joined us for lunch the first time, however kindly passed on the second lunch, must be nice to have these heavenly egg rolls anytime you want.  Clare did enjoy Fortune East this summer when she visited, however wasn’t awake to take in the experience.  This visit Clare had some rice, and loved it.  Jeff makes rice maybe three times a week at home, now we’ll be saving some for Clare.  As you can see she enjoyed her visit.  

Jeff and I received a few gift cards this Christmas, so while Clare napped with Greg and Gail we went out on a bit of a shopping spree.  While shopping with gift cards was fun, I had more fun spending time with Jeff; it was as close to a date as we’ve had in a long time!  Jeff and I haven’t been out without Clare so when Gail volunteered to keep an eye on her we took her up on it.  It was nice to spend the afternoon together; we missed Clare but also had fun just being us. 

Clare in a sea of air mattress slumber.

Jeff got some pretty dope shoes, Clare also thought they were pretty fly. 

Tonight everyone gathered for BBQ at Steve and Sally’s house, luckily Jeff and I didn’t need to bring a dish to share, Clare was our contribution to the evening; I think she may have been the favorite part of the evening for many.  Coming from a relatively small family it’s nice to be a part of these gatherings, I enjoy talking to everyone and hearing stories about when Jeff was little or other family (all good things, don’t worry) that couldn’t join us for various reasons.  Another great thing about these gatherings is that Jeff and I can eat without having to tend to Clare; everyone else wants to hold her so we can eat with both hands and not worry about a little hand reaching for something it shouldn’t. 

Last night we visited with the Sweet side of the family, Dale and Jean hosted dinner for a handful of very sweet Sweets.  Jean used to host dinners for everyone but hasn’t in many years, it was nice to gather at their house and share conversation, lasagna, and pumpkin dip.  Clare wasn’t the only one experiencing things for the first time, I was too.  I haven’t had the pleasure of eating at Dale and Jean’s, nor had I ever had pumpkin dip; both were wonderful and I look forward to enjoying both again.

Clare has been a real trooper on our visit to Joplin.  She has continued to sleep well, smile at everyone and not fuss when someone new wants to hold her.  That all being said, I know she is looking forward to being back home and in her routine, she’s a lady that likes here routine.  Tomorrow we’ll begin our trek west, luckily we only have one day of work/daycare this week before the New Year’s holiday, it’s nice to know we have a break when we get back from vacation. 

Wish us luck on the airplane tomorrow, I’m hoping for a repeat A+ performance from Clare.