Millie woke up super excited to play with her new buddy Bertus, the kid of our Airbnb hosts next door. She waited patiently at our window until she saw him and then darted out to play. After just a few minutes their giant Great Dane puppy ran at her and sent her into a horror spiral of screaming. She is slowly getting over her fear of dogs, but this one playfully bit Nick’s arm last night and made her terrified once again. We decided to head out to a late breakfast to help her reset. There was rain in the forecast for the rest of the day so we felt confident there would be more opportunities to play.

We got coffee, croissants, and sandwiches at a coffee shop in a shopping container by the side of the river. As we ate we watched joggers and bikes pass us on the trail and talked about how we could see ourselves living here.

When we were done eating we walked the trail, which has various art pieces scatted along it and is branded as the “art walk”. It was chilly and wintery. I think it would be ideal to figure out a way to spend a couple of months here every year to escape Austin’s summer.

Millie stopped and I observed her putting her finger on a word and silently sounding it out, “calls”. Pronounced rhyming with pals, but still, I think the first word she has ever read on her own without prompting. I love that it was a line of Wild Geese, one of my favorites.

The rain started and we scurried back to our car and drove back to our Airbnb. Bertus was nowhere to be found and Millie was disappointed. At one point we went to find him and saw him inside with a group of people. We didn’t want to intrude and came back to play.

I didn’t feel great today (latest victim of the stomach issues, for the record still standing strong and have not shit myself) and took an afternoon nap while Nick and Millie played inside. They drew, made scavenger hunts, and read books. At about 5 we started getting ready to leave and she had a big meltdown with some bad behavior, which resulted in a time out. She slid a drawing of her crying under the door. When we later asked her about it she said it’s because she was sad and wanted to see Bertus, but it was easier to draw it than talk about it. Oh, my heart.

She recovered and we had a nice time at dinner. But after seeing how much she lit up with the playtime yesterday, we know she needs some more. And this will be our last time in an English-speaking country for a while, so we want to make it happen for her.

We had planned on driving east along the coast tomorrow, but have made a sudden pivot because being cooped up in a car or in smaller towns probably won’t be fun for Millie. Instead, we’re going to stay in the area and line up some kid-friendly activities for the next few days. After a week of gray and rain, it looks like the next week will be sunny. Nick and I are going to attempt to be extroverts and find some friends.