Guest Blogger: Fun Times with M + M (part 2 of 2)

The drive to Atascadero was blissfully uneventful. We had a quick stop in King City. Maggie and I split a sandwich at Subway and Maggie devoured a yogurt. Maya was tended to in the car, where Mom and Dad tag-teamed her bottle-feeding. Once we had all had snacks, we continued on to see Nana at the Ingleside. We had a great visit, which featured a bottle for Maya and a couple laps around the walking trails. After our visit, we headed on to Los Osos – picking up provisions at Ralph’s and Round Table on the way – and arrived in Morro Shores!
After pizza, Maggie and I went lemon picking. We quickly picked 10 perfect lemons in Nana’s yard. They smelled fantastic. The girls went to bed shortly thereafter – thanks, girls!! Mustafa, Rebecca and I relaxed and chatted until way too late. It was wonderful to be back in the place where we have so many happy childhood memories! The house was exactly as we remembered. Rebecca and I stayed up even later going through old books and reminiscing. [There is an entire other blog post I could insert here, but I digress.]
Monday morning – unfortunately – arrived earlier than anyone over the age of 2 would have wanted. Maya was up for a good stretch of the night, and Maggie was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 5 A.M.
At 7 A.M., Maggie and I headed over for a walk at Sweet Springs. We were the only people there! The entire walk smelled like eucalyptus - one of the best scents ever. Maggie spotted two green-headed mallard ducks and was chatting up a storm with them in the pond…until one duck decided to waddle out of the water and try to come over to give us a hearty hello. Then, Maggie said “No, thank you, duckies. No, thank you. Go back to the pond.”
We managed to get the car loaded – again – and headed back to see Nana again. Day 2 with Nana was even better. She loved seeing baby Maya and had a great chat (see photo below) with Maggie about Dora the Explorer. We took a stroll outside and chatted with several of her friends. Maggie did several more laps around the walking trails. It was great to see Nana, and we were sad that we couldn’t stay longer. We ate a quick lunch at In-n-Out, and then headed north…certain that we would have at least one stop en route to Fremont to placate Maya.
Best news ever: WE WERE WRONG!!!
Two hours and 35 minutes later, we rolled into Fremont Woods. NO STOPS. The girls both slept the whole drive home. For those of you who are regular readers of the blog, you will know that this is the polar opposite of the Yosemite trip. A moment of silence in honor of our little rock star, Maya Jamil!!
Are you tired yet? I am. But there was still one more activity to be had! My cousins Bruce and Alice came down from Millbrae and took Maggie and me to dinner at La Pinata. Maggie was slightly better behaved than the last time she went to the restaurant. Maya kept Mom and Dad at home and initiated a new favorite item - her new pacifier (which she needed, since I can no longer offer her the knuckle of my pinky on demand).
The visit is almost at an end. I have had the best time ever with my new cousin Maya and her happy (but sleepy) parents. Tomorrow, Maggie and I head home to Kansas City…