As the name of my blog indicates, I spend a lot of time thinking about home. Of course, my Heavenly Home is the one that is eternal, so that’s where I need to lay up my treasures, and that’s the one I’m striving for. But in the meantime, I have been given this tiny piece of the here-and-now—this home on the edge of town, this family, this neighborhood—in which to serve Him. And, though this is in the earthly realm, I want the things that happen here to be investments in the Heavenly realm.




Monday, February 25, 2013

A Special Day {In Which Gavin and Owen Visit the Lego Store}



Part 1:  "Special Days" With Papa and Gran


Part 3 



On our mother/daughter shopping trip last fall, Kati and I went into the Lego store.  Knowing that her nephews would be impressed, she called them to tell them where she was.  They were impressed, and Kati spent some time on the phone answering questions about what displays she could see.  She took a few pictures of the back wall of the store, a wall of bins and more bins of loose Lego bricks.  When the boys saw these pictures, they were further impressed.

In December, Ron and I decided that we'd take Gavin and Owen to the big city to visit the Lego store.  We normally reserve a Special Day for one child only, but this Special Day would require a road trip, and both Gavin (10) and Owen (6) love Legos.  So on Christmas day, I whispered our plan to each of them, and they both agreed!

On a bright, cold Saturday morning, Kristin brought the boys to our meeting place, they climbed into the van, and we were off on our Special Day adventure.



Gavin came equipped with his "car notebook" that he uses to draw pictures and comics when he's riding.  He also likes to talk when he's riding. ~wink~   Owen, on the other hand, was content to take in the scenery and join in the conversation now and then.  

At one point, Gavin said, "I know Owen must be bored.  He isn't doing anything."  
Me: Owen, are you bored?
Owen: No.
Me:  Gavin, are you bored?
Gavin:  No way!!
Gavin (ten minutes later):  I'm bored to tears.

We told the boys that they could choose the place for lunch.  Can you guess where we ate?  

Yep. ☺




Soon after lunch, we arrived at the mall.  As we traipsed past store after store, they asked, "Are we almost there?"

And then when the store was in sight, they slowed their pace, almost as if they were in awe.  



They paused for a photo in front of the store...



...and then we all went in for a time of looking and looking and choosing and looking and looking some more.  We had given them each a small budget, and a lot of consideration went into making those selections. Plus, there was just so much to see!



Ron pointed out this set that he would choose if he were making a purchase.  ~smile~


At this point, my camera battery lost its charge.  (Palm to forehead.  Quiet sobbing.)

Sigh...

So I will tell you that we spent a rather long time in the Lego store, although Gavin later said that it seemed to go soooo fast.  Then we took a little walk to Starbucks so that Kati and I could get Fraps.  (Hey, why should the kids have all the fun?)  And right outside of Starbucks, a Boy Scout troop was having a pinewood derby, so the boys enjoyed watching some of the races.  (See...isn't it a good thing that we wanted those Fraps?)  On our way back through the mall, we passed an artist who was sketching some ocean landscapes and the kids stopped to watch him for a while.  

But the grand finale of our mall trip was yet to come!  

While Kati and Bekah went to the restroom, the boys saw an escalator across the food court and said that they wished that they could ride it.  Papa agreed to accompany them, and off they went.  

(Yes, we had SMALL TOWN emblazoned on our foreheads.)

Returning from the restroom, Bekah discovered that Gavin and Owen had ridden the escalator without her!  So we suggested that they all ride the escalator in the Forever 21 store through which we had entered the mall.  

All three rode the escalator up to the second floor and back down, waving at us as they descended, much as if they were on an amusement park ride.  (SMALL TOWN.)  And again, they rode up and down.  (Yep.)  It was a thrill for them...and it was a thrill for us, watching three children so delighted with such a simple thing.  We were smiling as much as they were. 

Back in the van, Legos were unwrapped and play commenced.  Then the scheming began.  Plans for the boys to spend the night at our house so that they could all play with their new Legos and with Bekah's old Legos (which are really her older brother Ryan's Legos, housed here until he wants them for his children).  We had not planned for an overnight, because Gavin usually prefers his own bed at night.  But his change of mind and a quick call to his parents for permission extended the Lego fun into the night and the next morning.




That particular week, we were spending Sunday afternoon at Kristin and Brian's house, so we loaded up all of the boys' treasures after church and drove them home.  When they arrived, they were excited to show all of their things to their family.  Little brother Ben (4) watched, and then whispered to his mama, "I want a bag of stuff."   

Stay tuned later in the week for Part 4 of my Special Day posts, in which Ben gets "a bag of stuff."  

7 comments:

  1. Oh sweet day! Sounds about perfect. We don't have a Lego store in the entire state...think Hicksville up heah. I can just see the grins on their faces as they rode up and down the escalator. ( Now those we do have and I enjoy a ride on them, too. I am not pleased when someone wishes to rush the experience by walking up or down a moving escalator.) Our grands were just started on Legos for Christmas. I believe I saw their mother roll her eyes. Ha!

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  2. One of my memories as a child (I am now a senior citizen) was riding the escalator at the Sears store. (I'm from a small town also). And I loved to look at the ladies' hats. When we went in a department store, I didn't care to look at toys--I wanted to look at purses and paper (little notebooks, etc). I still love paper and purses. Enjoyed your post and I know the boys enjoyed their outing.
    Blessings, Sharon D.

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  3. When I was a child, going shopping was such a huge event. Of course, there were still tea rooms at the department stores, hehehe. Could that have been part of my joy?

    I saw on your comment on Karen's blog that you use old calendars for studying great paintings. Why did I never think of that? Brilliant!

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  4. Such a sweet post, Cheryl. I was a little afraid of escalators, at least I am now!! xo

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  5. What a fun day to spend with two sweet grands. We don't have a Lego store anywhere near that I can think of. Riding the escalator - a simple pleasure we take for granted if we are on them all the time.
    We saved our son's Lego for our grandchildren. A couple of years ago, he came and went through the bins, choosing some of his special sets, and now he plays with them at home. By himself. Oddly, our son-in-law does the same thing. Both engineers. Lego is a toy that never gets old!

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  6. I love these posts! I got teary eyed at Ben's words "I want a bag of stuff." Sweet!

    You are the greatest grandma ever! What wonderful special memories!

    Kyle was very interested in these two boys at your house. He was asking who they were and how old they are. He, being stuck with we 5 women folk most of his days, loves when boys come over or we go to where other boys are going to be!

    Deanna

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  7. Another great day! I remember when I was small there was one store in the downtown that had an escalator, and how exciting it was to get to ride on it! And we used to run outside on the rare occasion a plane flew overhead and watch til it was out of sight:)

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