Backsies Is What There Is Not: Christine

If there were ever a Ten Things of Thankful that was easy to write, it would be this one, because I GOT TO MEET CHRISTINE FROM IN THE COOP! So many, many things about this made my list of Ten Things of Thankful:

1. I was delighted when Christine messaged me that her daughter's soccer team made it to regional competition and would be in Kansas City for a few days, which is only a two and a half hour drive from Joplin. The only reason she was excited to drive 8 hours each way and stay in a hotel for three days was because she was going to get to see me.

Getting closer!

2. It felt a little bit as though I were going on a blind date, especially when I shopped at Kohl's for a new shirt to wear when I met her. How dorky is that? I finally picked one out (in olive green, which matches my eyes), but Friday morning, I changed my mind at the last possible minute about wearing it and put on something else. I did take the shirt along with me in case I changed my mind yet again, because, yeah. I went to my monthly oncologist appointment, and as soon as it was over, I was off.

3. My car is having some digestive issues, so my parents let me drive one of their cars to see Christine. As if that weren't sweet enough, they gave me the one with Sirius radio in it, and I jammed all the way there.

4. It is a straight shot from here to Kansas City; the car could practically drive itself, if necessary. I did take one detour in the little town of Butler to visit the Mennonite bakery there. I needed to pick up a package of their fabulous sour cream sugar cookies to make up for the usually delicious but this time crappy caramel popcorn that I made for Christine that morning. I knew it was a mistake to try to make it in humid weather, and I was not disappointed; as soon as it cooled off, it became sticky. I should have just mailed her some at Christmas, but at the time, I was afraid it would be bounced around so much traveling to Indiana that it would arrive as little caramel-covered crumbs. In hindsight, that would have been better than the sticky pieces I gave her on Friday.

5. We met at the zoo, because Cuckoo (who is four AND A HALF) had been a good sport since they got there and needed a break. This also was a safe and public place in case either of us had used an elaborate scheme to convince everyone we were a woman/mom blogger, when in reality we were an ax murdering man.

6. We texted each other with countdowns and updates all morning, right up until we met up inside the zoo. I spied Cuckoo first, in the distance, sticking his head in the mouth of a lion statue. As I drew closer, I heard my name called, and there she was! We hugged and hugged and hugged (but did not cause a scene). Then I stepped back and looked at her and said, "I have that exact same shirt!" Yes, folks, she was wearing the shirt I had bought to wear for our "date" and that was currently in my car. She had just purchased the shirt, in blue, that matched her eyes, a week or two earlier. HOW WEIRD IS THAT? GREAT SCOTTS THINK ALIKE, DON'T THEY, CLARK?

Matching shirts. On accident.

7. We walked through the zoo and talked and talked and talked. Our two years of blog friendship meant we already knew quite a bit about each other, saving us from wasting our precious time together laying a foundation of information. We just visited as though we did this every day. (How I wish we could!) We trailed along wherever Cuckoo wanted to go, looking at animals. Best quote of the day from Cuckoo (who was everything I expected him to be and more):

Two new friends.

"Hey, the gorilla is picking his nose and eating it just like I do!"

8.The Kansas City Zoo is very spread out. When we were in the Africa section, it pretty much felt like we had hiked all the way to the actual continent. That's where we were when the zoo closed at 4:00, and we got to see the zookeepers letting the animals into their nighttime quarters. And the fact that the zookeepers were around leads to this big thing of thankful: Christine didn't get thrown into zoo jail when she reached over the edge of a bridge and said she was going to touch the antler of some antelope-type creature (he was sticking it up there, taunting her), and out of nowhere, one of the zookeepers said, very snippily, "Don't touch the antlers!"

Then they should have made
the fence higher

9. I tripped over my shoe three different times and didn't fall down. That's another big thankful.

10. We trudged to the parking lot after our long trek from Africa to head to Christine's hotel on the other side of town. She left shortly before I did, we took slightly different routes out of the area, and pulled into the hotel parking lot at the exact same moment thirty minutes later. Another Scott thing, I'm sure.

11. We picked up Christine's daughter from the hotel, got in Christine's car, and headed out for dinner. The only one who had any real preference about where we went was Cuckoo, who wanted pasta. He would also settle for eating at Chuck E. Cheez-its. We meandered around for about twenty minutes before we (in truth, Buttercup spied it and laid out all the reasons why it would be the best choice for dinner) found an outstanding Italian restaurant that was a buffet. The pasta dishes and salads were made fresh in front of you, and it was all delightfully garlicky. The hostess gave us a tour of the buffet area before she seated us, which we needed, since there were many yummy items from which to choose, and they were about as spread out as the animals at the Kansas City Zoo. Cuckoo ate pizza instead of pasta. Buttercup proved again and again what a peach she is.

12. Back to the hotel, and after getting Cuckoo into his pajamas and settled into bed, watching tv, I put on my Bobbsey Twins shirt and we fired up my laptop in order to join the Friday Video Chat, joining Lizzi, Clark, Denise, Zoe and a few others. There was much laughter and taking of screen shots (something neither of us knew you could do in the first place). Because of the goofy way we were sharing a pair of earphones, Lizzi started referring to us as Siamese twins.

Video chat. Joined at the headphone.

13 (because it was Friday the 13th, even though I'm not superstitious). Too soon, it was time for me to hit the road for home. We stood at the car, once again hugging and hugging and hugging. Laid the groundwork for spending an entire weekend together, hopefully SOON.

As Christine declared on numerous occasions throughout the day, we were definitely separated at birth. And I'm thankful that we were reunited IN REAL LIFE. Finally!

Join me in being thankful this week by linking up YOUR Ten Things of Thankful post.