Chillin' with the rents...

So my parents came down this weekend - they got here on Thursday afternoon, and went back this morning.

They came down last year. That was kind of a big deal, because it was the first time they saw my house. This year they had already seen the house, so it wasn't as big a deal. It was the first time they met Nibbler the cat. My mom was eager to see her - she regularly watches the The NibblerCam from NJ. My dad, on the other hand, thinks animals belong outside. So of course, every time my mom tried to pet the cat, she would run way. On the other hand, she kept sniffing around my dad, perched on the arm of the sofa next to him, ect.

We didn't do a whole lot. We went out to eat at the Outback Thursday night, drove up and toured the Fiore Winery on Friday, then went to dinner at the Olive Garden. My parents liked Fiore - my dad's mother's maiden name was Fiore, so that was kind of cool, plus they made a bunch of the dry red wines my parents like - but luckily they also had some sweeter wines for wine pussies like me. We grabbed breakfast at a local diner this morning, and then they drove to NJ.

One thing this visit reminds me of is how old my parents are getting - they are both approaching their 70's, and my mom has been having a lot of problems with her knees, among other things. She had some trouble getting up the stairs in my townhouse - I live in a split-foyer - the poor man's version of a split-level house, so it's about a 2/3 of a flight up to my living room. When we went anywhere, I found myself having to wait for them to catch up. That was the reason our dinners were at chain restaurants near my house, instead of Little Italy where we would always go when they visited me when I was in college, and where we went last year - they didn't want to have to deal with walking several blocks from the parking garage to the restaurant. It's kind of scary and sad watching your parents get old. If I am to get married and have kids - and I hope to - I'd like to do it while they are still around, and the fact that they are getting old and I don't seem to be getting any less single is kind of worrysome.

Still, I'm glad they were able to make it, and it was nice to see them, and nice that they got out of NJ for a few days - and that I got out of work for a day and a half.