Cleveland- Saturday, October 31, 2026

      The valet brought us our car this morning and Julie commented that she had a very relaxing time last night.  As we drove under the big chandelier over Euclid Avenue, she said that she thinks that the Playhouse District is a fun area and she wouldn't mind coming back someday to stay a little longer and maybe see a show.  It was still dark as we drove through Cleveland.  Progressive Field and several other buildings were lit up in cyan, magenta and yellow.  We Googled it to find out why and it's part of a program called "Illuminate CLE."  

      We were heading to meet Scott's cousin for breakfast, but we were a little early and there was a Starbucks nearby, so naturally Julie wanted to stop.  We always joke about how they know her at our local Starbucks and the girls there are fans of Buttercup who is often with her when she goes through the drive through.  Today, Julie ordered her usual- a trenta strawberry refresher made with water, light ice and no infusions.  When we got to the drive through window, they handed her the drink and a "pup cup"!  How did they know her here in Cleveland and why were they expecting Buttercup?  We still haven't figured that one out.

     We went to Bob Evans for breakfast with Laurie.   We don't get to see her much and even though we saw her recently at Brian's new house, we didn't get as much of a chance to talk with her then.  It was nice to catch up on things with her and we must have talked for almost two hours.

      Since we were in Cleveland, Julie wanted to stop at the West Side Market where she loves spending time.  She picked up a bunch of things, including meats and vegetables.  She got Emma some things too, including an assortment of macarons.   Abby was having fun because many of the booths had candy out for children since it was Halloween.  We saw quite a few kids in costumes there and even a Ghostbusters car in the parking lot, though it was a blue Mini Cooper, not a white hearse.  We spent less than an hour at the market and we wanted to head for home.  We wanted to have a little time to rest before it was time for trick-or-treating in the neighborhood tonight.   Abby will be wearing a unicorn costume like she did at school yesterday.