I was looking forward to having a young mother and her two sons come over.
We had the date on the calendar for a while.
I remember when she had her second son year ago.
It was hard to believe that an entire year had passed.

I got out the toys I thought her boys would like to play with while we had tea in the kitchen.
It is easy to think about what a three-year-old and a one-year-old would like.
I once had two boys that age.
Anything with wheels is usually a big hit.

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This is the time of year I usually get my cholesterol numbers checked.
It means an annual visit to the facility that draws blood.
It means remembering the script that was given to me months in advance.
It is routine and enables me take proactive care of my health.

I made the appointment and put it on my calendar.
I knew that I would have to fast from eating or drinking at least twelve hours before.
I actually fasted fourteen hours before.
It just worked out that way from the time we finished dinner until the time of my appointment.

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I saw her name on a friend’s post.
She had just reacted to the same thing that caught my eye as well.
I had not thought about her in years.
Yet she was very special to our family.

I was not sure if it was her.
People can have the same name.
I clicked on her name.
I saw her profile picture.

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I wasn’t quite sure about what I thought I saw.
I looked further down the road.
Snow was on both sides of me as I walked.
The street had been plowed but was sprinkled with rock salt.

It was the color I saw first.
The bright color was a contrast against the white snow.
The red I saw when I was down the road was even redder as I got closer.
There was a line of red across the street.

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I had a hair cut appointment.
I realized that I was a bit early as I pulled into the parking space.
I got a text message that I was able to leisurely read and answer as I sat there.
I took off my sunglasses and exchanged them for my regular glasses and went inside.

I was still a bit early so I sat for a few minutes.
The stylist that has been cutting my hair for years called me back to the sink area.
This is my routine every four weeks so I know the drill.
She put a cape around me to protect my clothes from hair clippings.

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I am using the leaf blower on the driveway every day.
I usually use the leaf blower when I come back from my walk.
The walnut tree has dropped all of its walnuts.
However, leaves and twigs are still there.

There has not been a really windy day yet this fall.
I always appreciate a good fall wind to move some of the leaves.
Until the wind picks up and the weather gets colder, the leaf blower will have to do.
I realize the futility of this particular job.

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I saw the woman crouching down.
I heard her talking but no one was in sight.
She was walking very low as if she was looking for something.
There was absolutely nothing anywhere near her.

Her voice was very quiet as if she did not want anyone to hear her.
I wondered if she needed help.
As I walked closer to her, she was looking under the clothing displays.
Whoever she was talking to was nowhere to be found.

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There reaches a point when people tend to say, it’s just a number, concerning their age.
I have not quite figured out at what age people begin to say those words.
I guess it depends on the person’s perspective of aging.
Did you ever think about the effects of numbers on our lives?

We speak in terms of numbers.
We say how old we are.
We say how many years we have been married.
We tell the number of children we have.

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Even though our son comes home, this is the time of year we go to visit him.
He is a lawyer in Washington, D.C.
I enjoy seeing him, where he lives and works.
I enjoy seeing his friends.

My husband and I planned the weekend, which worked with our son’s schedule.
The only thing I wanted to do, besides seeing him, was to visit all of the monuments.
I had seen them years before but I had not seen a few of the newer ones.
It was up to our son to make reservations at various restaurants and plan our touring day.

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I heard the beeping.
I was talking to my youngest daughter who came home to spend the day together.
I was looking past her as she was talking to me.
It’s just the oven timer, Mom, she said.

No, it’s not, I answered, I never set the timer.
We were having roast beef that night since two of my daughters would be home for dinner.
I jumped up and ran into the kitchen.
There was a code on the oven display, which I had seen once before.

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