Monday was Martin Luther King Day, so the girls didn’t have school.  As was arranged the previous week, Audio had a play date with a classmate.  We’d decided to run the morning like a regular day and my wife woke the girls up before she left for work.  The biggest difference between this day and a school day was that instead of microwaveable pancakes the girls had Cocoa Pebbles for breakfast since we had time to deal with the inevitable spills that go along with cold cereal.  Dee Dee and I planned to go to the store after we dropped off Audio.  So, we drove to the classmate’s house.  It took around a minute and a half to get there. 

Dee Dee and I walked Audio to the door.  We all went inside and I talked with the parents for a bit.  They both seem like nice, tuned-in people.  I felt safe about leaving Audio there.  We probably stood and talked for about 15 or 20 minutes.  It looked like Audio and her classmate were getting off to a good start.  So, I told Dee Dee it was time for us to get going.  I don’t think that Audio noticed when we left. 

I took Dee Dee to the grocery store to get some things for lunch.  While planning what we would do while Audio was out, Dee Dee decided that she’d like to have a Rueben sandwich for lunch.  There wasn’t any rye bread on the shelf at the store.  It appeared that our plan was stopped before it started.  But I asked a lady working behind the counter in the bakery about the bread, and she let us know that she had just sliced the rye and was getting ready to shelf it.  She asked what type we wanted and soon there was a loaf of soft marble rye sitting on the countertop, smiling at us. 

Working behind the deli counter was a woman who Dee Dee gave a drawing to once, about five years ago. She’s just a nice lady who always said “Hi” to Dee Dee when I took her shopping with me, before the pandemic.  The woman chatted with Dee Dee a bit and then wrapped up some corned beef for us.  We had Baby Swiss and sauerkraut at home.  So, we just had to get some Thousand Island dressing and a few other items.  Once we had paid up and bagged everything, we hustled home.   

Dee Dee recently let me know that she’s been feeling bad about turning invisible at school.  It’s a great trick and can be quite useful.  Unfortunately, she doesn’t know how to control it and sometimes feels like she’s being left out because the other kids don’t know she’s there.  I’ve let her know that it happens to everyone and some people never learn how to control it.   

Dee Dee also felt bad that Audio got to go to a friend’s house for the day.  I know that having fun with your parents is different from having fun with your peers.  But I was hoping that Dee Dee would have a good enough day at home with me to cheer her up a bit.  We rarely have opportunities to do things alone together.  When Dee Dee is home, Audio is also home. And when she’s not at work, the girls’ mom is home, too.  It would be nice to have more time to do things alone with Dee Dee.  Even though I’m a stay-at-home dad, I feel like I’m losing track of what’s going on with her. 

Dee Dee and I played Battleship.  She won.  I didn’t let her win, but I didn’t try very hard to win, myself.  Afterwards, Dee Dee stood and talked with me in the kitchen while I got our lunch together.  We sat and watched the show, Hilda while eating our Reubens and onion rings.  Dee Dee ate her whole sandwich!  I ate half of mine, and that was enough for me.  While we were eating, I got a text saying that Audio was doing fine, she and her friend were getting along, and since they hadn’t had lunch yet, suggested that Audio be picked up an hour later.  

Dee Dee and I watched a couple more episodes of Hilda and then sat and talked for a bit before going to pick up Audio. I talked with Audio’s classmate’s mother for a while while Dee Dee looked around at the girl’s toys. I was happy to gossip about school and the neighborhood with the mom. Both of my girls were having fun and had no interest in leaving. Eventually, after around 45 minutes, we finally left. I was happy that Audio had a good time on her first play date, and I’m happier that it went as well as it sounds like it did. By the end of the day, Dee Dee had developed a full-volume, phlegmy cough.