Vacation to the Midwest was successful. Of course, it was not long enough. I would have preferred another day to spend time with my niece, Emma or more time with my high school friends. I woke up on Thursday and headed east to Omaha. I have made driven this road, before, but I am not nearly as familiar with it as driving thru Kansas. I called my dad to let him know that I would be arriving in a few hours and that, yes, I had directions to his house compliments of gps. Ironically, I realized that I had put in Omaha as my location instead of his actual address. I texted him to ask him for the address about twenty minutes from Lincoln. I veered off to put gas in my car and potty and ended up in a 25 minute departure from my arrival plan. Next time, I know, to stop at main exits and not head into small towns that I am unfamiliar with, lol.
My dad's house is comfortable with a large backyard. I enjoyed spending time with him and his wife. They are well suited--similar outlooks on life and personality. We drank a few beers before meeting her daughter for dinner. They chose a cute Italian place nearby. It was nice and the best part of the restaurant were the half price bottles of wine deal offered on Thursdays. Of course, they let me choose the wine! I loved that part. We took dessert with us and had bailey's and coffee at home. All, in all, it was a quick lovely visit. I woke up, early, on Friday and headed south to Lawrence. I had two options to arrive in a timely fashion. I could take the interstate through K.C. or a highway to Topeka. My dad and Joyce both preferred the two lane highway. They claimed it was a straight shot and good road. Getting out of Omaha was a little challenging since I didn't have service at my dad's house. I didn't want to return to ask him how to get to the interstate so I drove around til I managed to find a gas station. I thought I would go old school. Armed with a map, I was prepared to ask an attendant the best way to 1-80. Thankfully, my service returned and I was able to be guided to the highway. There was some construction which was annoying. I followed 1-75 south and missed a turn, somehow. I found myself entering Iowa, lol. Thankfully, I knew that was incorrect and found my mistake quickly.
The road was fine for the most part. There was more traffic than I imagined and of course, people that were unwilling to follow the rules of the road. If you are not going the speed limit, do not drive in the left lane. Moreover, when you are gifted a truck lane *which opens up the road to two lanes and enables passing* please either get over if you have no intention of passing or drive with the flow of traffic. Do not continue to drive slow and follow the car in front of you. It was frustrating to only be able to pass in the right zone and drive behind people that are unfit to drive. I managed to make it to Lawrence with a few minutes to spare. I had a lunch date with a friend from college. Julie had not changed at all. I last saw her in 2009 on another visit to Lawrence. She now has two girls and we caught up on our families. I knew all of her brothers and she knows my sisters. We all attended her wedding in Lawrence. Always fun to see her and catch up! And dining at Free State is always a treat. I saw three people that I used to work with back when I was in college.
Afterwards, I drove to Manhattan. Quick drive and I made it to Jasmin's house fairly easily. I was surprised that her daughter was not there. I had hoped to spend the weekend with my niece. I had hoped that Jasmin would be able to convince her ex that Emma should spend the weekend with us. It was nice to see Mason, my nephew, and also spend a little extra time with Jasmin. We got pedicures and had lunch at a Mexican place in Manhattan. I wanted to try a new restaurant in the Little Apple and the only qualification was I wanted wine. Jasmin mentioned a Mexican restaurant a few times and so I knew she was interested in chips and salsa.
I forgot to mention my yoga class and the farmer's market I found on Saturday morning. I have been to the yoga studio on a prior visit and so I knew where it was and that it was a clean and welcoming space. Upon arrival, I checked in to my class and greeted who I thought was the instructor. This girl was fiddling with the music and so I approached her about props. She directed me to a very pregnant girl who would be leading the class. Initially, I was anxious that the class would suck (honestly) and then was pleasantly surprised when it was decent. Better than decent. Better than the majority of classes I have attended in Denver. It was challenging, mindful and had great music. I was happy.
I had driven by a farmer's market on the way to yoga and so I stopped before returning to Jasmin's house. I wanted to scope the produce and find coffee and maybe a breakfast burrito. That is one reason I enjoy perusing farmer's markets. This one was full of produce, some goods, but no coffee. I was surprised that there wasn't a pop up coffee stand. They did have beignets, though. I purchased some for Chris. I also found beets, tomatoes and sweet corn. I thought the corn would be a nice addition for our bbq that night. It was.
I will conclude this for now. I have a training session to mentally prepare for. Ahh...Fridays!
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