While Daddy spent the day at Grandpa's watching the Super Bowl, Mommy took Todd out to the mall in Valencia.
We left after lunch, where Todd eagerly wolfed down his lasagna and chicken soup in preparation for going out. It was a gorgeous day, so I packed the stroller in the car so we could wander around outside.
Upon arriving at the mall, we made a beeline for the little playground at the other end of where we parked (once we were able to find an elevator to take us downstairs, that is!). Todd was his usual shy self and hung back whenever other kids ran near him, and of course, always grabbed my hand to drag me to whatever part of the playground he was interested in investigating.
The weather was so beautiful (sunny and warm with temps in the lower 80s) that we walked outside for a little while-- along the small streets adjacent to the mall-- tree-lined, clean, and beautiful, they looked like something straight out of a picture book featuring Main Street in your typical Small Town, USA.
Afterward, we made our way back to the mall and spied a huge merry-go-round, which Todd immediately started clamoring to go on. The nice thing about this carousel was that it was large enough to accommodate two levels. I asked Todd if he wanted to ride at ground level or ride "up there", pointing to the second level. Without hesitation, he declared "Up there!".
A $2 token and a few minutes in line later, Todd was enjoying riding up and down on his elephant while I stood next to him holding him and sharing in his delight.
Afterward, we visited a place called "The Toy Dep't", which featured all sorts of classic games and toys from not only my childhood, but my parents' generation's childhood as well. I ended up buying a couple of "Little Golden Book"s, which I remember fondly from my own childhood. I got "Mother Goose" rhymes and my favorite: "The Monster at the end of the book", featuring my favorite Sesame Street character: Grover!
We stopped for some ice cream at Orange Julius/DQ before getting ready to head home. As we sat on the bench sharing a chocolate ice cream bar, another woman and her daughter (a year or two older than Todd) sat next to us while they waited for the rest of their family to finish shopping. The little girl sat right next to Todd, turned to him, and said 'Hi!"
I nudged Todd to say "Hi" back, and he complied!
Then the little girl piped up with "My name is Lydia"
I whispered in Todd's ear, and he repeated himself out loud in response to the little girl: "My name is Todd!"
So, despite his shyness around the other rambunctious kids on the playground, he was brave enough to talk with a new kid in Mom's presence... and with a bit of prompting :-)
All in all, it was a fun, if exhausting day at the mall. After some settling down back at home, we enjoyed some much-needed naps together to recharge ourselves for the evening.
