Page 36 of Single Dad's Christmas Cookie
Nova shrugged. “I’m just getting everything started. It all depends on whether Amelia finds exactly what she wants at the first stop. Maybe we could go after dinner?”
“But you said we could work on the gingerbread house,” Amelia whined.
“I’m sorry, sweetie,” Nova started.
“Why don’t we plan on going in the morning?” I suggested. “We can get any shopping that needs to be done before lunch. Then I know I have the afternoon for working, and you can get whatever cooking you need done.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” Nova said.
“And we can do the gingerbread house tonight,” Amelia said enthusiastically.
I looked at my daughter. Guilt over my earlier reaction of being annoyed by her enthusiasm clenched my chest. “Yes, we canwork on your gingerbread house tonight. I need to get some work done. You’ll let me know when dinner’s ready?”
The next morning, as I drank my coffee and waited for Nova to arrive and for Amelia to finish getting dressed and come downstairs, my phone buzzed.
Why don’t I meet you at the store?Nova texted.That way, when we are done, I can go to the grocery store while you take Amelia home.
I knew it made me sound like an old man, but I really didn’t understand why she couldn’t have just called.
That’s fine, I texted back.Meet you out front at ten thirty.
We were early. Amelia didn’t want to wait. She wanted to go into the store and begin her present hunt.
“I thought you needed to shop with Nova?” I asked.
I should have waited inside. My daughter was getting cold, but I wanted to be certain that Nova saw us and that Amelia didn’t get distracted by everything once we were inside.
“You weren’t waiting out here the whole time, were you?” Nova asked as she jogged up to greet us. “It’s cold out here. Let’s go in.”
Once inside, Nova helped Amelia off with her jacket but left her hat on top of her head.
“It won’t get lost that way,” Nova said when Amelia tried to take her hat off.
“What are we shopping for?” I asked.
“It’s a surprise,” Amelia said.
“We need to get you a Christmas present,” Nova pointed out. “But she would also like to buy something for your mother. And we need to find the pet department, if they have one.”
“Humphrey needs a new collar,” Amelia announced.
“You’re getting a collar for the stuffed animal?”
“It’s for Humphrey, Daddy,” Amelia emphasized.
There were times I didn’t understand her obsession with that toy. This was definitely one of those times. “Why don’t we try to find something for your grandmother all together?” Nova started. “And if you see something you might like for your father, we can come back for it.”
Nova was very careful with her words, and her eyes were very expressive as she spoke. She moved her eyebrows up and wiggled them a bit before lowering them, but then lifting just one.
I interpreted her hidden eye brow message as ‘Please tell us if you see something that would be appropriate for Amelia to buy as a gift.’ I also took it as a plea for help in finding something that my mother would approve of receiving from a six-year-old.
Mother wasn’t particularly receptive when it came to gifts. She tended to announce what she expected, and if she did not receive precisely that, she would let everyone know the gift did not meet her expectations.
I didn’t want her potential brutal comments to dampen Amelia’s enthusiasm for Christmas any further than I had already done over the past few years. She was a child. She did not need to be jaded over the holidays the way some of us adults were.
Amelia stopped at a display dripping with silk scarves.
“These look pretty. Would something like this be appropriate for your grandmother?” Nova asked Amelia, but I knew the words were directed at me.
