Sometimes you have to be careful what you ask for

Thanks to my wonderful daughter, I have a dining room table. I'm very excited. When we moved into the new apartment, I had to give up my big kitchen table. There just wasn't room for it, after I put the floor loom and my daughter's desk in the dining nook. And originally I thought I wouldn't miss having the table, since we did have a breakfast bar.

But I've found that I really do need a dining room table. It's very difficult to use my sewing machine sitting on the floor. Standing up at the kitchen counters makes rubber stamping cards and letters uncomfortable, and takes the fun out of it. Most of all, I miss sitting down to eat dinner with my daughter across from me. Balancing our plates on our laps in the living room in front of the (until recently, blank) television was awkward and uncomfortable.

So for the past month or so, my constant whine has been that I want a dining room table. Just a little one, nothing fancy or expensive. I'm not sure whether my daughter agreed with me or if she just wanted to shut me up, or perhaps (most likely) she really loves me and wanted to make me happy - but she bought us a dining room table. A friend  was getting new furniture, and Becka arranged to buy the table from her.

I love it! It's old. Really old. And it's been well loved, which makes it all the more special in my mind. It's very obvious to me that this table holds a lot of memories in it's bumps and scratches. It's just big enough for the two of us, and it fits perfectly into the little bit of space left over in the dining room nook. There is even a leaf, just in case I talk someone into coming over for dinner. (I'm making lasagna, any takers?)

There's only one, tiny little problem. She didn't get any chairs with the table. "But mom, you said you wanted a table. You never mentioned anything about chairs."

I told my mom this story, that my daughter bought me a table but no chairs. Before I could get any further, mom interrupted me with, "But Sandi, did you ever say you wanted chairs? All you've been saying is that you wanted a table." And this is why my daughter and my mother are best friends.

(Just to clarify --  my mother knew that, just like any sane adult, I wanted chairs to go with the table. Her response was an acknowledgement of the way my daughter thinks, and surprise at the fact that I didn't take that into consideration. If someone my daughter loves asks for something, she'll get it for them. And she'll get them exactly what they ask for.)