Legacy of the Dreams

Chapter 26 - Olivia

Susan and the children took their time visiting the San Francisco Peninsula after dropping Mr. Simms off at the retirement home in Menlo Park. For her and Zack, who used to live nearby, visiting the area was always a little bit like coming home.

"Except it's getting harder to remember," Zack remarked as they looked about.

"That's because things have changed," Susan told him. "It looks like our favorite Mexican restaurant has closed."

"And didn't there used to be a gas station on that corner?" Zack asked when they came to what once was a familiar intersection.

"Yes. Now they're building apartment buildings here," Susan said.

"Is Willy's Barbeque still there? We liked that place," Zack said.

"We can look," Susan suggested.

They quickly discovered Willy's Barbeque Restaurant was just the way they remembered it, and still open. That made the decision for them; Susan, Zack, Jessie, and Melody all had dinner there. It was delicious. They had such a good time exploring their old neighborhood afterward that it was close to eight in the evening before they rejoined Greg at Alan's house in Oakland.

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"How did it go?" Greg asked when they pulled up in Alan's driveway.

"Fine. No problems at all," Susan said. "Did you have dinner?"

"Hours ago; did you?" Greg asked as he walked up the steps with them, after greeting them on Alan's driveway.

"Yes. We stopped at a barbeque place in Mountain View that Zack and I remembered," Susan said as Greg escorted them back inside.

"It was good, Papa," Jessie said.

"It was," Susan agreed. "How are things going here?"

"We're just visiting, Susan," Greg said, and they rejoined Alan and Cindy in the living room. "We finished in the nursery hours ago."

"It's really starting to look like a baby's room in there," Cindy told her.

"Can I see?" Susan asked as she set Melody on her feet in the living room.

"Yes," Cindy said with a grin.

Susan, Jessie and Melody followed her down the hall to the nursery. The new furniture was now arranged in a more pleasing manner. The new lamp was on the chest and it turned on when Cindy flicked the light switch on the wall. The bumpers were in place on the crib, along with the comforter and a bed skirt, making the crib look more finished too. There were stacks of diapers readily available on a shelf beneath the changing table, and even a few toys occupying the low shelves beneath the window. Melody spotted the toys on the shelf and headed towards them immediately.

"I'm going to wash the sheets before I put them on the crib," Cindy commented as they watched her. "I also realized I don't have a diaper pail in here. I suppose I'm going to need one."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be a diaper pail, but some sort of covered bin to dispose of the diapers in is a necessity," Susan said as she tried to divert Melody's attention away from the new baby's toys. "A foot activated lid works best ... at least for me."

Cindy nodded. "What about a rocking chair? I remember you have one in Melody's room."

Susan smiled. "I got that chair when I was expecting Matt ... and yes, I have used it with every one of my children, except for Jessie."

"I was too big," Jessie said.

"You weren't too big when you first started living with us ... but we didn't have it then," Susan said. "And I did miss it."