Girls Day Out

My friend E used to live across the street and we saw each other daily. If one of us went to the store we called the other to see if she wanted to go, or just needed something picked up. We didn't have to plan ahead.

Then E and her other half moved about twenty miles away. We still talk on the phone at least weekly, e-mail each other and if we can get ourselves together, we'll start videoconferencing this weekend thru our Macs.

We make a point once a month to get together and have lunch, then go shopping or some other fun activity. Sometimes our friend Les goes along if she has the day off. Hubbies stay home and dog sit. Yesterday was our day out.

After settling the dogs, I grabbed a cup of coffee with Rob while he had breakfast. I skipped breakfast in anticipation of a special lunch. The tulips that Rob brought home have opened.



Tulips are so fragile. Once the flowers drop we need to keep the leaves going to build up the bulbs for next year. I'll keep them in the garage until fall, then set them outside for the winter.



With any luck they'll come back next year and give us some hope of spring again.



We have a problem with moles around here, so the bulbs have a chance of becoming mole food over the winter. We'll hope for the best and tell Tsar to watch for moles. That's his favorite activity and he's good at catching them.



My elderly Christmas cactus is still flowering. it starts in October and usually flowers till May. The plant is about 35 years old and looks a little beat up. In it's prime it was over four feet wide and resembled a small tree. Over the years we've had to amputate limbs when they started to die off, so now it's oddly shaped and not as full as it once was, but it flowers faithfully every year and it's traveled around the country with me, so it will always have a home here no matter how ugly it gets.

After breakfast amid the flowers, I gathered phone, camera and jacket and E and I took off. First stop was All Creatures to say hi to Les. After being there daily in December, we've all stayed pretty healthy and haven't needed to make an appointment recently. We usually stop by once a
week anyway to check in with everyone.



Lots of interesting stuff in the waiting room.



This is the display my dogs are most interested in. Samba can show you where the treats are hidden in each room of the place. If someone doesn't offer her one fast enough, she'll hop onto the counter and help herself. I know, her manners leave something to be desired.



There's a pretty display of collars and leashes. Thanks to Nichole, we're good in that area.



There's fun stuff, too. Squeaky toys and soft fleecy blankets that Dr. Nicki makes up.

When we couldn't convince any of the girls to play hooky and leave with us, we continued on to a cute little tea room that we discovered last winter.



This place is cozy and comfortable, but the best part is the food. It's sooo good.



It was a beautiful sunny day so we sat on the enclosed porch. I had a generous scoop of chicken salad with big chunks of chicken, cranberries and bits of mandarin orange and apple. Surrounding it were strawberries, melon chunks, grapes and blueberries. It came with a mini loaf of homemade bread. It was wonderful. E ordered crab salad and I tasted it. Next time I may order that. It's one of those places where I want to try everything on the menu.

After lunch it was on to the yarn shop. Our timing wasn't good today. There was a class in session and a lot of people were there. The shop is in an old house and the rooms are small. Each room is filled floor to ceiling with knitting supplies and there are big chairs and tables all over so one can sit and knit in comfort. I suffer from claustrophobia in some situations and this was one of them. Too many people in too tight a space. We did our business and left quickly.

Next stop, Hobby Lobby. E has recently finished a couple projects and was looking for inspiration for her next ones. She found just what she was looking for and we discussed her plans and what supplies she'd need. She picked up what she needed to get started and then we wandered around looking at all the stuff.



I bought a couple Christmas gifts. Yes, I'm Christmas shopping already. Actually, I'm about a month late this year. I also found this paw print ribbon to use as trim on a pillow. The stamp is for a big project I have planned for this summer. When I get to it, I'll do photos as I go along. It should be fun.

I returned home to a big crazy welcome. The dogs were happy to see me, but they were also a little anxious. It was 4:00, time for doggy dinner. I'm sure they felt great relief when they saw me walk in.