A Date Downtown

I have so loved having Caleb home on Spring Break this past week.  It seems like these days I don't often get him all to myself.  This year, he has two weeks of Spring Break (Yay!!) and during the first week, Seth was in school, so Caleb and I had a few extra hours in the morning for just the two of us to hang out.

One of our favorite things to do is walk around downtown Franklin.  We like to look for the dates on the old buildings and determine which ones are the oldest.  It is always a lot of fun for us, especially when we discover a date in a not-so-obvious place to spot.  We make it into a little adventure. 

The cannons on either side of the strip downtown only add to the fun.  Caleb can never resist taking a few minutes to pretend he is in a battle and saving the day.

I relish the fact that Caleb still reaches for my hand when we are strolling up and down the streets together. I do not take these walks hand-in-hand for granted, because I know there may come a time that he does not reach for my hand.  Hopefully, that will not be anytime soon.

We usually stop at some point and grab a treat from one of the ice cream shops or Meridees.  Of course, this is a favorite part of our date.  Caleb always leads me out of the shop, holds the door for me, and finds a bench for us to sit together and enjoy our treat.  He is quite the gentleman.


It is rarely quiet with Caleb on our dates (or any time, really).  He always has something to say or a story to share. His brain is like mine...it never stops and he is not shy about expressing what is going on inside of it.  On this walk, I noticed Caleb was not talking at his normal rapid rate.  As we were walking, he was just humming away.  I asked him what the tune was, and his response was priceless.  "Oh, mom, it's nothing.  I was just doodling with noise."

Oh, how I love that kid!  And oh, how I love our precious dates and adventures!