Mill City Mama

This spring, Tom and I are headed to Mexico for a friend’s wedding, and Ada and Scout will be staying with my parents. Scout has stayed many times over at my parents’ house, and it’s like a vacation for him (big backyard to run around in and a big house to patrol and protect). However, Ada’s only slept overnight there with us. So this past Saturday, we decided to do a “trial run” and Ada slept over at Grandma and Grandpa’s for the first time!

It was actually perfect timing, since Tom and I were really getting to the point of needing a date. Since Ada’s been born, we’ve only been on one date for our wedding anniversary (when Ada was about 1.5 months old). We’ve snuck away during nap times at Grandma and Grandpa’s for walks and errands, and one evening went to a friend’s wedding, but we needed a night of no responsibility (and bonus — no dog to take outside at 6:30 am…”perk” of condo living).

February 5 marked 8 years since Tom and I met at the apartment of some friends of ours back at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Since the night we met we were pretty much together and head over heels for one another, so it’s a little date we always like to celebrate and Saturday provided the perfect opportunity. Here’s a photo of us back in the day just after we’d met, hanging at State Street Brats (for you Badger fans).

So, back to Saturday night. Ada took an afternoon nap at my parents’ house, and upon waking, I breastfed her once more. Then it was time for the lovefest between Ada, Scout, Grandma, and Grandpa (oh yeah, they’re crazytimes about Scout, too).

First stop for Tom and me:  Ikea (we really know how to keep the romance alive). I wanted to do some browsing and look for some rugs to keep up with my New Year’s resolutions, but the crowds drove me bonkers. (Is it just me? The older I get, the more PBS I watch and the less tolerance I have for crowds.) While waiting in line at Ikea, I resisted the urge to call my parents to check in.

We buzzed through, bought a rug, then headed over to the Mall of America (once again…not really a location that says “stoking the fires of passion”). I really just needed to make a couple of returns (much easier without a baby in tow) and then I was SOREADY for a drink.

Time for that drink! Off to Black Sheep for some coal-fired pizza. It’s a great place on the garden level of an old warehouse in the North Loop neighborhood –always a cozy crowd and great beer on tap. I forgot to actually snap any photos while we were actually eating pizza, but here’s Tom driving home with our leftovers.

We got home, and I pumped and dumped breastmilk while drinking some wine. I also gave my parents a call to check in, and Ada had completely zonked out after her nighttime bottle of breastmilk.

Having a full night’s sleep was AMAZING. Most of the time, Ada does sleep through the night, but it’s kind of like playing Russian Roulette. We never really know what we’re going to get or which night she’ll wake up.

The next morning, we went to one of our absolute favorite breakfast spots in Linden Hills, Zumbro. Zumbro did the Nordic look before it was trendy, and this place’s breakfast is always spot on and the coffee strong (best buttermilk pancakes in town, too). Tom and I were able to read the newspaper without little hands tearing it to shreds. Last time we were at Zumbro, Ada knocked an entire glass of water on the ground (and you practically sit on top of the table next to you here).

We were back to Grandma and Grandpa’s. Ada was up for about two hours in the middle of the night, but to be honest, I don’t think my parents cared because they love any moment they get to spend with her. We got to see her when she woke up from her morning nap, and she was definitely confused at first, but then quickly warmed up after some breastfeeding.

Reunited, and it feels so good!