Matt Christmas, Dad Stuff, Holidays, Mallwalking, Outings

A DUDE, A BABY, AND CHRISTMAS SHOPPING

Aya loves shopping. Whether she buys anything or not, it doesn’t matter, she loves going out and browsing and shopping. She loves an all-day shopping marathon that includes visiting a minimum of a thousand stores and stopping for her latte. And after all that “shopping”, she might come home with nothing and still be happy. I on the other hand, am not a huge fan, especially when we are out all day and I come home empty handed. It seems like such a waste. I’ll talk myself into buying things just to feel a sense of accomplishment. And with me doing the bulk of Christmas shopping this year, I was trying not to get overwhelmed. Not only was I going to one of the busiest malls a week before Christmas, but I was also bringing my baby.

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Matt Dad Stuff, Family, Mallwalking, Outings

STRANGERS, SNUGGIES, AND THE EZ CRACKER

When Aya’s mom is in town, there are always a few stops we have to make.  We always venture out to the Somerset mall, or as they call it, the Somerset “Collection.”  This place has all the exclusive stores like Tiffany’s, and Louis Vuitton so they can’t just call it a mall, even though they have a GAP and a Macy’s like every other mall does.  After the “Collection” we hit Target and Bed, Bath, & Beyond.  I don’t mind going shopping with them, and especially now with Ellie around, I have a buddy.  Also with shopping at a different mall, I can scope out the mallwalking situation for a possible mallwalking trip.  This mall is three times as big as my mall, AND it has three floors!  And a Starbucks!  However, the Somerset “Collection” does NOT have a Big Boy like my mall does.  Maybe if we’re all lucky, one day they’ll make that addition.  What better way to celebrate your purchase of a purse that costs more than my mortgage payment than by eating a Big Boy’s Slim Jim? 

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Matt Dad Stuff, Food, Friends, Mallwalking, Outings

FRIENDS WALK TOGETHER

It had been awhile since I had seen my friend Meghan.  We used to be coworkers and worked on a lot of projects together, so we got to be pretty good friends after awhile.  When we sat next to each other, every day she would ask me, “do you wanna be friends forever!?”  Yes Meghan, that sounds good.  Then she would specify, “not BFFs…  just FFs.  BFF’s would be too crazy.”  Right Meghan, that would be too crazy.  Meghan is my unique exotic friend.  She’s from an exotic country where they eat ketch-up chips, and things named “poutine.”  Yes, you guessed it, Meghan is from the Great White North.  She’s Canadian.  Eh.  Meghan was going to be in our friendly country and wanted to come by and visit me and Ellie.  We originally had planned on taking a walk down by the river but the weather was cold and rainy.  So we did the next best thing, we headed for the mall.  I was excited because this would be Meghan’s first mallwalking experience.

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Matt Adventures, Dad Stuff, Mallwalking, Outings

I WALK WITH PURPOSE

I didn’t think I’d find myself back at the mall.  But this time I had a purpose.  This time I had a destination.  And with this new sense of purpose, I felt ready to give walking another try.  Mallwalking.  Yes, it’s time again to put the rubber wheels to the terrazzo floor and start the odometer.  I wanted to do some mallwalking, but I needed to be covert.  I needed to be undercover. Continue reading “I WALK WITH PURPOSE” →

Matt Dad Stuff, Mallwalking, Outings

HAPPY MALL WALKERS

It’s been super hot and humid outside lately and I miss taking Ellie out on our walks down by the river. So today I’ve decided we are going mall walking. I didn’t know that mall walkers still walked in the afternoon, but I found out quickly when I was almost taken out 30 seconds after entering the mall. These women were serious, too. Two words: ankle weights. They were doing the turnaround too quickly and almost clocked into the stroller. Slow down Sally! So Ellie and I start strolling around with no destination.

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