Last weekend was a busy one even though it followed the first week of school, which is always exhausting. Fortunately, Saturday was somewhat relaxing. I read and blogged then went for a seven mile run. There was a little grocery shopping and brownie baking, but otherwise, not much was happening. The next day though, I drove to Madison to take a desk to my son. I got to see the new house that he and his roommates moved into a few weeks ago. We also got to have lunch together, see a movie and walk to Taste of Madison for dinner later with one of his roommates. Spending time with my adult son is a gift.
The following morning my youngest and I drove in the opposite direction to the Twin Cities. We met an online friend at the Mall of America and then they stayed to shop while I got to go visit the Minnesota History Center. I finally got to see the "We are Hmong Minnesota" exhibit. I also had a wonderful lunch out in front of the museum while reading. That was the most relaxing part of the day. After that, I went to the Hmong Village and found a fantastic shirt. It shows the Hmong number words counting to 10. I also found out that Hmong ABC (a Hmong bookstore) is no longer there. The woman at the t-shirt booth told me about their other location at Hmongtown Marketplace and I headed there next. I was able to get a few more Hmong/English books for our library and headed back to the mall to meet up with my shopper. We had dinner together at IHOP and in the car to and from the cities, we had more than 5 hours of talking, singing, and some time listening to a digital book.
These moments sharing, laughing, and just being together are truly special. It was a treat to have the weekend with both of my children.
Lovely time with family is always so important. So wonderful that you got this time.
ReplyDeleteSpending time with your grown up children is very precious. Glad you had these wonderful opportunities. Funny, I was just thinking about the Hmong people because of all the problems with the refugees in Europe. It brought to mind the U.S. not being overjoyed about taking in the Hmong.
ReplyDeleteSounds wonderful, Crystal all the way through. I love being with my children, all grown up! I first learned some things about the Hmong community when I read The Spirit Catches you and All Fall Down, by Anne Fadiman, a heart-breaking story of two cultures' great misunderstandings. I hope you'll share some Hmong books on your blog sometime.
ReplyDeleteI will definitely put together a post with Hmong books soon. Thanks for the suggestion. :)
DeleteHappy to read your celebration of time spent with your adult children. It's the best!
ReplyDeleteCrystal, weekends with adult children are well spent. It sounds like yours was special.
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