Why I Don't Have More Coffee Dates

My husband is sweet. He fully advocates me not working and living the bon-bon eating life of a stay-at-home mom. In fact, he worries about me when he thinks I'm not "getting out" enough. We were recently talking about how things have really come together nicely now that we have lived here for over two years now. I think that because Terry feels responsible for our move here (since it was related to his job), and because we did leave dear friends and family back in Texas, he is extra vigilant in making sure that I am happy. I am. I really am. But sometimes he doesn't believe me. I think it's because he's equating my friendships here with the friendships that I left behind in Texas. He thinks that a woman of leisure, such as myself, should be having lunch dates, meeting for coffee, and going shopping. He's right in recalling that I did a lot more of that a few years ago back in Houston. Is it because I liked my friends more and they liked me more? No, I like my friends just fine, and I think that they are thrilled to have added me to their ranks as well.

It's a life thing. When we left Houston, I had a newborn baby and a 5 1/2 year old. The last year I lived there, I had one older preschooler, who was in preschool all day twice a week, which in mom language translates to, "Coffee, anyone?" In addition to that, if a friend and I wanted to head out for lunch after Bible study, with the preschoolers in tow, we could hope to have a semi-adult conversation while the four-year-olds played on the Chick-Fil-A playset or engaged in four-year-old silliness.

Fast forward to the present. I now have a two-and-a-half year old son. One of my good friends works pretty-much full time. Another homeschools, so she has three kids at home all the time. Lunch dates or shopping excursions with either of them is a rarity. Another is home with a soon-to-be two-year-old son. Today after Bible study, throwing caution to the wind, I asked this friend, "Wanna have coffee?" "Sure," she innocently replied.

You will have to take my word that the following events really happened, since I couldn't hack into the security camera feed:

11:07 Pull into the Duncan Donuts (this is New England after all).
11:08 Corral the laughing boys inside the store.
11:09 Wait in line while chasing my son. The good mother reminds her son that he can't be as wild as my son.
11:10 Wait in line some more while resigning myself to the fact that Kyle is going to either run around the room or flail and scream as I try to hold him.
11:12 Place order. Since I can't hold a flailing, screaming child while paying, I let him run.
11:14 Squeeze into a table for two using the single high chair for the younger child and letting the older and wilder child sit in occasionally visit a regular chair.
11:15 Discuss quantum physics children's chore charts.
11:18 Convince younger child that even though Kyle is still not sitting in his chair, he must adhere to the rules of etiquette anyway and stay in his high chair.
11:19 With the help of sugared-up toddlers, decide that we've had as much fun as we can take.
11:20 Watch as Kyle finally causes his younger "brother" to stumble by leading him, full run, to the back of the store.

My friend and I made another coffee date when we left. We'll meet up in September 2009 when Kyle starts Kindergarten.