Since Jonah started school a few weeks ago, I've adjusted my work schedule a bit so that I spend more time with him. Both of our kids go to bed pretty early each night, so I had to make some changes to my calendar in order to see him in the afternoons.

With my new schedule, I drop Jonah off at school and then head straight to work. (I'm normally a roll-in-at-9:30 type of guy....) I work through lunch and then leave at around 2:30 to meet up with Kristen and Finley to pick Jonah up. There are, of course, exceptions and the occasional late-night trips to the office, although I try to limit those.

Today was great. We picked up Jonah and while I was waiting to get him, our realtor called Krist and said they wanted to show our house at 4. We ran home, cleaned up the kitchen a bit and then headed to the mall. Yes, the Lufkin Mall. We got a pretzel, looked around the video game store, hit up the Great American cookie company, then browsed around the bookstore. I loved it - just me and my family, spending an afternoon doing stuff that seems unimportant but matters in ways I can't even express.

The Lufkin Mall is awesome.

I'm not kidding. I love our mall and here's why...
1. It's just big enough. (If I want to buy trendy shoes or some girl pants at the Gap or a movie or chicken sandwich, I can. The mall's got almost everything a family like man needs.)
2. It's just small enough. (I hate big-city malls. I cannot stand fighting my way through mooks and midriffs, dashing for a table at the FoodCourt where I have to yell across the table to my family just to be heard over the din that can only occur in a spacious, tile-floored mall. I don't like what my kids hear and see in big city malls...profanity, sex, disrespect, etc. I'm not saying Lufkin doesn't have those things...just that they're not usually on display at our beloved shopping center.)
3. It's mine. (When I met Kristen, she worked at our mall. I would spend every single lunch-break racing over to see her, just to sit beside her, just to hear her talk about her day. My mall may not have much, but it's got that memory, and that's enough for me.)

So, the next time you're in the Lufkin Mall, take a second and appreciate the perfect blend of mid-size shopping options, small-town quiet and the amazing historical significance it holds in the life of your most beloved blogger, Brandon Todd Wright.