Big Adventures for Tiny Humans, No. 1

My toddler loves bread, don't they all?

Most days start with a piece of bread topped with peanut butter, jelly (no toaster please) and a portion of fruit. Lunch is the same. She sits on the kitchen counter and munches through her plate of goodness before moving on.

Back in January when winter temperatures felt their most extreme, I often hesitated to leave the house because of the misery outside and the burden of bundling both myself and the little one for said misery. One day, however, we needed bread. See above - we NEEDED bread.

I have a favorite bread shop, but it's 20 minutes out of the way, so it doesn't fall naturally into my routine each week. We used to live very close to this shop, but when we moved over three years ago and a year later had a baby, the distance made my visits less frequent. Sure, I occasionally pick up bread at my regular grocery store, but I prefer to keep a supply of sliced bread from my favorite shop in the freezer.

The thing with this shop is that it's cozy. No matter the season, I think it's the perfect amount of cozy. In the thick of summer, the fans are going and the windows are open, so you smell the fresh bread as you pull into the parking lot. In winter the cold wind pushes you through the door, and as soon as it slams behind you the shop wraps you in a hug of warmth. On top of the cozy feelings, the made-from-scratch bread is wholesome and delicious (I don't feel any guilt feeding it to my toddler multiple times a day), and the owner and staff are outstanding (they are kind and conversational and offer excellent customer service). To me, it's worth the trip to visit this shop.

So on this day in January when we NEEDED bread, we bundled and we went.

When we arrived, the shop wasn't busy with other customers and we weren't in a hurry. The staff member offered us a bread sample as we walked in, which we happily accepted. Then, my tiny human found the table and chairs made for tiny humans tucked behind a pillar on the side of the room. There was nothing but delight on her face as she pulled me to sit in the tiny chair opposite her. She loved every bite of her slice of bread and then proudly carried her paper to the trash bin.

a summer visit here, but same practices

I only bought one loaf of bread that day. I knew the loaf would never make it to the freezer, and I knew in a week we would NEED bread once again.

My bread-loving toddler asks about the bread shop on a regular basis, and we happily anticipate a grand snack-time adventure every week or two.