I can’t remember where we got the idea, but it has turned into a tradition that I love — every so often, once a month or so, we make a point of setting aside some time for just B & I to spend some time together (and for Dan & Liam, at the same time).  I get to spend a lot of time one-on-one with Liam these days, while B is in school, but time with B has become a lot more rare.

We pick a time for us to go out for an hour or so, and B gets to decide, entirely, what we do and where we go.  We’ve gone for walks, gone to McDonald’s, gone out for ice cream, played at the playground.  This time, which was this past Friday, he mostly wanted to go for a ride on the bus that comes past our house, so that’s what we did.  After a few stops, B asked me to push the stop button, and we got out . . . and went to Starbucks.  (I think he’s learning from what I do during my own free time!)

He was in charge of our evening, so I let him choose whatever he wanted for a snack.  He chose a fruit salad plus a lollipop for each of us (lemon).  He also got to choose our table.  We sat, we enjoyed, we talked.  When we finished our first lollipops, we went back for a second one (orange this time).  We hung out, chatted with a friend, and then got ready to head home.

No kidding, this was where we waited for the bus to take us home.

When we left, I was planning to walk home, but B insisted on taking the bus.  Because of where we were on the bus route, we had to ride out of our way . . . quite a ways . . . in order to turn around and get back home again.  But, it was his evening, so we went home his way.  It turned out to be a lovely surprise.  Vienna’s Christmas lights were all on, and our bus ride took us right through and past some of the best ones.  We had such a lovely evening — our ride together, our talk, our lollipops (although I’m not sure when I last consumed so much sugar in one sitting).  It is so nice to get to spend a little time with just B — he’s a great kid and a cool guy and I love him so very much.