Disney World!

We sprung a lovely surprise on Rachel tonight...we're taking her to Florida tomorrow morning and staying until Thursday, seeing Disney World and other interesting sights. Because we had so much to do before we left (I ran around like a crazy woman today to try to smoosh it all in before we leave), we went out to eat at a diner near our house.

Unfortunately there were TVs everywhere, which distracted Rachel (we won't be going there again), so the real import of what we said didn't quite sink in until we got home and started packing. Every once in a while Rachel would say, "Yeayy! I'm going to Disney World!" in that squeaky little voice of hers when she gets excited.

She couldn't fall asleep, so she asked me, "Mom, how did you make friends? You have SO MANY friends!"

"Well," I answered, sitting on her bed (she had asked me to fold up her blanket because, she says, I do it really well), "I've lived a lot of places and I've been open to a lot of opportunities and different people."

"Some people you meet are right for you at that particular time and place," I said.

She asked me how I met my friend Pam (in high school) and Auntie Rachel (at my first newspaper job), etc., and I knew she was stalling. So, at her request, I tried to give her a math problem but it didn't work. Finally, I told her to plan a vacation for us in Hawaii next year (I told her that we will likely never go to Hawaii, which is true; it's too expensive) and she had five things to work with: a waterfall, a volcano (not active), an ocean, interesting wildlife...she interrupted me and asked to write it down and I said no, she needed to be lights off and asleep.

When Drew got home (he had run to Target to pick up a few last-minute things), Rachel came out of her room and announced she had planned our vacation. And then she looked at Drew and I and said, "Thanks, guys, for taking me to Florida. You really didn't have to." And she buried her face in our legs, and I bent down and kissed her and said, "We like doing nice things for you." Because, we do.