Grace the barber!

Who knew that Grace, amongst all her other interests, was also a closet hairstylist wannabe? Well, I had an inkling when she asked to braid my hair the first time on Friday. Then she dropped a hint by asking if she could trim my hair. Never being one to say no if it is in my power to say yes (without causing me pain), I said heck, why not. So, early yesterday morning, I lost a few inches of hair. Eeek! But it will grow back. Hopefully healthier and happier.

Somehow, in this house currently, it is something of a challenge to do much before noon. Well, that isn't strictly true. Lots gets done, just not "out of the house" stuff. Mom, for one, doesn't seem to be at her best before she has woken up naturally, and had some food (and for her, some coffee). I too like to awaken naturally like I did this morning. At 6. Ok, maybe a smidge earlier. I will probably take a nap at some point this morning. (I did. Yay!) Anyway, Grace pointed out that lots gets done before noon. And she is correct - we just don't get out of the house until after noon. This morning was no exception. I try to include my mom wherever and whenever I can. In outings, in innings, in conversations, in decisions. Yesterday was no exception. I tried to get her interested or excited in any sort of excursion. I had thought that Sonnenberg Gardens or the Corning Glass museum would tempt her to venture out into the great outdoors. Alas, they were not large enough draws. She opted to remain at home, recumbent. Which did mean that Grace and I were at liberty to do anything our little brains could conceive!

Amongst our options was a trip to Watkins Glen to visit Watkins Glen (State Park). I know I have done this before, but the last time was a loooooong time ago - at least 40 years. God, that always freaks me out a little when I write that sort of thing. Grace likes to exercise, so that seemed like the most bestest choice. After mom was fed and watered, Grace and I took to the road. The trip to Watkins Glen isn't that long. I am glad we went, as I wanted a refresher on just how many wineries there were along the road. The answer - lots. We saw one that Grace was interested in, so we made note of it for a possible visit on our return trip.

There was a line to get into the parking lot for the Glen. There did turn out to be enough parking - plenty actually - mostly nearest to the Glen entrance. Weird. Grace and I put on our sneakers and started our adventure. It really is a lovely place with nice trails and pretty views. We ended up going up one way and down another - up the Indian Trail - exploring our native American roots - and down the Gorge Trail (because we were full?). Lots of little twists and turns exposing different bits of nature. And it was heavily attended by people of all ages, sizes and shapes. We did our fair share of taking pictures of other people and had our picture taken once or twice. And no, we weren't on our honeymoon! All in all, a great hike - despite the heights that Grace whipped me into scaling!

But time was evaporating. I needed to get back to the Smith to run a movie. We did, though, make time to stop at a winery - an organic winery, that Grace had noticed. Nice enough little place, but I don't know that I will stop in at the Four Chimneys Winery again anytime soon.

The movie, From Up On Poppy Hill, was a Japanese animated feature about a young woman who falls in love. Nice story, decent animation - though the Japanese didn't, for the most part, look very Japanese. Not sure what that is about. Mom got confused (which isn't surprising because a) well, you know and b) it was a little confusing even to me) and Grace enjoyed it. If you like Japanese animation or pleasant romantic stories, this is a decent movie, for mostly younger audiences, I would think.

Dinner was a walk across the street into Pure, our only Indian restaurant here in Geneva. The faces there change, so I wasn't surprised to have a new-to-me server show up at the table. Kip was very personable and put up well with my "humor." We ordered two entrees, an appetizer, and naan. Everything was great. We all ate a lot and were quite content. Yay!

After dinner, we drove to Rose Hill for a quick look-see. Not all that much to see since it was closed, but still happy we went. It was, though, sad to see the state the building was in - needs a lot of paint, soon!

What a nice day!