#1,677 Around Town.

After a morning spent getting the old Pontiac ready for a wedding:

Sam, Lyn, Jared, and Ellie and their friends Sally, Stewart, Jack, and Maribel came to town for a one night stay to see downtown and learn about our history. Lyn’s been struggling with gastroparesis since last September, which made their annual summer beach trip a bit more daunting than they wanted to take on. I’m tickled that this was the alternative easier vacation plan. It was so much fun because for the first time ever, there were little ones to share our book with on a tour!

I brought a copy of I Live in Laurel, and would show the kids the places in the book when we got to them. They even got to meet THE Anne and Mr. George.

But little 2 year-old Maribel just completely stole my heart. I hadn’t ever met her until today, and we were fast friends. A girl with a cool short haircut and a serious love for books is a girl after my own heart. When she wasn’t holding the book out to me and asking sweetly, “will you read this to me?” She carried the book and hugged it tight all day, cooing over the pictures, and seeing the pictures in real life:

 She would see something from the book in person and whisper happily, “Anne! Anne!”

We posed for pictures in the very place from the cover, then we went to the art museum to see the world’s second smallest basket (which you can only see with a magnifying glass), and the original WWII and vintage travel poster exhibit that’s visiting now.

How cool is it that these things, Andy Warhol, Dale Chihuly, Winslow Homer, and Rembrandt, are about 20 steps from my front porch? That will never stop amazing this county-raised kid.

For dinner, Josh and Emily came along and we introduced our visitors to the culinary delights of David’s Grocery before a quick tour of Homewood.

Spending time with so many smart and sweet and GOOD kids today was a ministry to my heart that their parents probably can’t understand. Seeing loving parents and good kids makes me think… I could definitely do this. One day!