Perspective

By being just about the last couple in our social and family circles to have children, we already "knew" a lot about the process of becoming and being parents, from having watched, listened to, and occasionally lent a hand to many of you. But so far, every day, there's been at least one little reminder of how having a child changes your view of the world. Tonight for example, when it came time for dinner, we wound up at TGI Friday's, just two blocks from our hotel. Before we left, on one of the many adoption discussion boards out there on the "innernets", I read about people staying at our hotel after their adoptions, and claiming it had the advantage of TGI Friday's and other American restaurants nearby). I scoffed then, thinking it odd that on a once-in-a-lifetime trip halfway around the world to one of the world's most fascinating cultures, one would choose food that could be had around the corner. Well, guess what. With a stroller, a tiiiiiiiired baby, and an unexpected (and not packed-for!) heat wave in Moscow, TGIF was, if not a godsend, at least an easy and welcome solution.