Monday, October 31, 2011

The weekend in review.

What a great weekend! It began early Friday morning with me loading foamies, blankets, and way too big a suitcase into my car in the wee dark hours. I walked through the garage tip-toe-ing, listening for any sound that might indicate our neighborhood bear was lurking about. To say I was on edge would be an understatement. When I was sure I was alone in the dark driveway, I started walking toward my car and apparently hit the panic button on my key fob.

I've never come so close to peeing myself.

When I could breathe again, I finished loading my stuff and got on the road for Lynchburg. I got there just in time to hop on the LU bus with Abbie and Marly to go to convo (convocation = 3-times-a-week church with the entire student body of Liberty). When they're all there, the Vines Center is full. Can you imagine having church with this many people?


So fun! I wish I could go every week.


The LU praise band. They're awesome.


Abbie and Marly


I love being a college student for a weekend. You get to have all the fun and there's no homework.


After convo, we had lunch and got on the road for Greenville, South Carolina, and Leah. When we arrived, it was cold, windy, and raining. We were more than a little worried that Saturday would be the same and our race would be miserable. But we quickly got distracted by our plan to carb load at Chipotle, because we do our best girl bonding over burritos and guacamole.

Saturday was sunny and beautiful in spite of being 40°. We dressed as Super Homeschool Mom (me) with her two dorky homeschooled children (Abbie, the boy; Leah, the girl).


They played their parts well.



Some of the other costumes were great, but we only had time to get this photo of the best mullet ever.


At the finish with our medals. We ran slow as molasses but had a great time in spite of the fact that when Leah threw up her hands and shouted "Yesssss!" she almost broke Abbie's nose. We're looking for a 10K now, but Abbie says she's not running next to Leah.


And the weekend post wouldn't be complete without mentioning that when I got to the gym this morning, I saw that the staff members were dressed in costumes. There were a cat, a mime, one of the X-men (I think), and Waldo. I was riding the bike when Steve Urkel came around the corner:


After that I need a good dose of Monday.

Be thankful ~

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Recap before the weekend.

Tomorrow I'm heading out for a weekend roadtrip with two daughters, but before I'm allowed to leave, I've been told I have to blog. So here's a recap of the week.

1. Abbie borrowed a white dress shirt from Dillon on Tuesday. Or is it Dylan? Either way, Dillon/Dylan had this new shirt which had not been washed yet, and Abbie borrowed it. I can't begin to explain the intricacies that led to the borrowing of this shirt, but it happened. A short while later, Abbie noticed she wasn't feeling quite right. Then she looked down and saw that she was covered in hives. Proof that even at college age, boys still have cooties.

2. Man-squared was driving to work last night and was pulled over for speeding, but only got a verbal warning, not a ticket. This is significant for two reasons. One, he was driving the car that Ben always gets tickets in because the speedometer has been off since we had the transmission rebuilt several years ago, a fact that everyone in the family knows to be true except Ben, even though he's the one who gets the tickets. Two, Ben never gets warnings. If he sees the blue lights, he knows the ticket is coming home to Papa. Everyone else in the family gets out of tickets either by crying or saying, "Yes, sir" four thousand eight hundred seventy-two times.

3. Our renter called to say she is moving out. We gave a car away. I applied for a job with the Virginia General Assembly and the wait is killing me. I was told for the third time that runners are made in the pool.

Saturday is my second 5K race, this one with daughters 2 and 3. I'll be back Monday, hopefully with photos.

Be thankful ~

Saturday, October 22, 2011

The good thing about turning 50.

Daughter #4 came for the weekend yesterday, which she does from time to time. We were standing around the kitchen bar waiting for dinner to cook when she mentioned that there was a 5K race at the college in our town Saturday morning, and she was thinking about running it. I got excited and said, "Oh, cool! I'll come take pictures!"

So while we were reading about the event on my laptop, Ben came around the bar, put his arms around my waist, and whispered in my ear, "I think you should run it."

Noelle looked hopeful and I looked scared to death. But I figured I'd run 3.5 a couple of times, so there was no reason I couldn't do 3.1 (which actually turned out to be almost 3.2), so I agreed and immediately registered online so I couldn't back out.

This morning at 6:30 when we left the house, it was 41° and we screamed when we hit the leather in Noelle's car, but praise God for seat heaters. Amen. When we got to the race site, it was still 41°. An hour later when the race started, the temperature remained the same balmy 41.

I knew enough to line up toward the back of the pack, and when the gun went off my first thought was, "Why do we pay money to do this to ourselves?"

I was quickly passed by a LOT of people, but fell into a good, slow rhythm with a guy who looked to be about my age. He didn't know it, but he kept me going through the entire race. About a half mile in, we went down a long, steep hill and all I could think was, "Dang, we have to come back UP sometime."

After that the course was pretty flat, winding through old neighborhoods where most people were still snug in their beds.

At 2.5, we turned a corner to come back toward the campus, and my earlier prediction hit hard: the dreaded UP. My race buddy ran partway up and slowed to a walk, so I followed suit, gasping for air. After maybe 25 yards, he started running again, and if I'd been able to produce sound, I would have yelled, "NO! Not yet!" But I took off after him and almost caught him on the downhill past the dining hall.

At 3 miles, all of the university's athletes lined the sidewalk leading up the last hill, clapping and cheering for those of us still crawling to the finish. By this time, Noelle had finished and come back to run the rest of the way with me. What a huge psychological help! As we came to the finish, she yelled, "Look at that time!" Under 35 minutes, which was my goal.

After the race, we waited for the results to be posted. Noelle was in the first group, with a time of 26:20. We waited for a while for the next bunch to be posted, but got tired of standing in the cold (now 47°), so we left for hot coffee and home.

We'd been home a while when I received an email from the race folks. They informed me my time was 34:22, and I was stunned to read I was the first finisher in my age group. Wonders never cease.



Not bad for my first one. Next week I'm running another 5K with Leah in South Carolina. I've never been happier to be in a higher age group.

Be thankful ~

Friday, October 21, 2011

You can't make these things up.

Today as I was walking out of the gym, my phone buzzed. There was a text from a phone number I didn't recognize:

I'm having a party Saturday night .. wanna come?

I tried desperately to figure out who would be inviting me to a party while falling short in the ellipsis marks department, but couldn't. So I replied:

If I knew who you were, I might . . .

His/her answer:

I can't believe you forgot! Haa Sam.

Me: Haa Sam who?

Sam: Costa!

Me: Sorry, Sam, but I have no idea who you are.

Sam: OMG .. ha make me feel like a complete retard .. look on Facebook ...

At this point, all I wanted to do was point out that ellipsis marks come in threes with spaces fore, aft, and in between, but I don't text that fast.


Me: OK, I've looked on facebook and still have no idea who you are.

Sam: OMG I feel like a total freak. . I'm not even going to both you nomore!

I think that's a good plan.

Be thankful ~

Thursday, October 20, 2011

The grandbabies.

Two weeks ago (Yes, I'm behind.) Abbie and her friend Cesia went to Deb's for their fall break. It was somewhat of a culture shock to Cesia, who is from LA and has no experience with country living. Having to watch out for snakes has never been part of her thinking. But they had fun with my grandbabies and sent me a few photos.

Button loves Cesia.


Friday night is homemade pizza night, and Bean loves to help. Deb gets all the toppings out, and Bean eats the olives while she's making the pizza. What two-year-old eats olives? And with such gusto?


Honestly, do they get any cuter than this?


Aunt Abbie reading Button a story. Or maybe trying to coax him into taking a nap.


If I've learned one thing being a grandmother, it's this: the rate at which babies grow is directly proportional to the distance between Grammy's house and theirs.

Be thankful ~

Monday, October 17, 2011

Definitely a Monday.

Yesterday my car had a temper tantrum. It would start and then immediately die. So today I called our mechanic-y place and had it towed in. They called a while later with a bill of $761 for an air flow control motor and an induction service.

Not too long after that, Man-squared's friend Jeremy called to say he had fallen out of a tree this morning and landed on his head/neck/upper back. He was in the hospital in a neck brace, had a concussion, and they were checking for internal bleeding and broken bones.

Then Leah called and said the friendly folks at Bob Jones University's Public Safety office informed her that her right rear tire was completely flat in the parking lot. A couple of guys offered to put the spare on for her, but they weren't sure where to put the jack under the car. She called home and Ben talked them through it. She'll be buying tires today. Also, when she was putting her violin back in its case, she noticed a joint had come apart and her bridge is cracked. She'll also be buying some instrument repairs.

Then I got this text from the normally easy-going Abbie:

           Man, I am so mad at the world today!! I haven't PMS-ed like this in a long time!

I wrote back that we needed to hurry and go to bed so it could be Tuesday, and she replied:

           Tomorrow I have a physics test. Not any better.

I'm really hoping we won't have two Mondays this week. Leah and I can't afford it.

Be thankful ~

 

Friday, October 14, 2011

Why they really come home.

Abbie brought two friends home from college for the weekend. She assured me it wouldn't be wild because they had a lot of homework to do, and sure enough, as soon as they had eaten lunch, the computers and books came out.

Here's Erin working hard on facebook.


Marly concentrating on a text.


Abbie might actually have been working on a paper here, though I'm sure Pinterest isn't far away.


But the real reason they came home lies in the bedroom. See all those lawn & leaf size garbage bags? They're full of dirty laundry.


And enchiladas are in the oven. Smart ladies.

Be thankful ~

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Deborah's 25th

The older I get, the more I struggle to remember birthdays, even those of my own children. I know when they are, I just can't seem to get myself in gear to remember a card or gift or anything. So here I am a day late with Deb's happy birthday post.

Deb is our second child, first daughter. She had dark brown hair and big brown eyes from the start, and I have pictures to prove it. I just have no idea where they are. She's maybe 18 months in this photo.


About 2 years old.




Sorry for the massive jump over the years here, but by the time Deb was 19 months old, I was having my third child, and then my fourth 19 months after that. The camera got lost in the shuffle of three kids in diapers and apparently didn't get found until Deb's 16th birthday party, when we were safely past that stage. Funny how we missed her dorky, early-teen years. During that time, she insisted on cutting her bangs again, and then having no idea what to do with them, she overused a curling iron. She also had braces. That may be why all those photos are missing.



By the time she was 18 years old, she was a lovely young lady. She loved to sew and cook, had begun an in-depth study of nutrition and medicinal herbs, and knew she wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. That year she was an assistant leader on a Teen Missions trip to New Zealand and Australia. (Abbie will kill me for putting this picture up here, but Deb's the birthday girl and at least it's a good photo of her. Abbie was sick unto death while they were touring the Australia Zoo. She was just glad the koala didn't pee on her.)


By the time Deb was 19 she had her man picked out and he was buying land and beginning work on their house in Tennessee. They were married September 23, two weeks before her 20th birthday.


 Just a few years later they had Sticky Bean, and Deb is an amazing mama.


Every once in a while the girls get together, which is especially hard now that their lives go in three different directions, but they are closer than any three sisters I've ever known.


This is my favorite picture of them, cutting up and laughing together.



Deb still loves to sew and bake. I think she's making pancakes in this one. And baby #2.


Deborah, you are everything two parents could ever hope for in a daughter. We are incredibly proud of the amazing woman you have become. Happy 25th birthday!

Be thankful ~

The fam.

Back in June we had all the children home at one time and took the opportunity to take a family photo. Unfortunately, it was right after church but before dinner, so everyone was starving and we were moving a little too quickly. We got everyone arranged on the couch and snapped a few, then got to the important stuff: food.

When we uploaded the pictures after the children were gone, we realized there were two huge windows right behind us, so the faces were dark.

Abbie + Photoshop to the rescue. She had to make it black and white in order to get rid of most of the highlights, but here it is:


When did I become the mother of five adults? And a mother-in-law? And a grandmother of two adorable boys? I'm not sure, but it's more fun than ever and I'm so thankful for each of them and for God's continued blessing on our family. Thankful for our great health and that each one is happy and successful in his/her own way.

Be thankful ~

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Yesterday I went to my parents' house to see them and all three of my brothers. Two of my sisters-in-law were there, as well as my niece Anna and my "fourth daughter" Noelle (of the beautiful brown eyes). The occasion was that my baby brother Tom is home from Vietnam, where he currently lives, for a month. So of course we had to get the obligatory family photo:


We had a fun time laughing about lack of hair, tuition bills, and the fact that when we get together, we talk mostly about food. Because we have priorities.

One sister-in-law made a cake that was bigger than a bowling ball and included a carrot cake mix, spice cake mix, a can of pumpkin, and cream cheese icing. Really you could put cream cheese icing on a bowling ball and I would love it. Between the cake and the pulled pork and cole slaw, I went over my calorie limit for the next two weeks all in one afternoon.

So today I compensated by eating a Chipotle burrito for lunch. Why diet today when you can start fresh on Monday, right?

Tomorrow it's back to reality.

Be thankful ~

Thursday, October 6, 2011

In memory of Steve Jobs.

MacBook, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

1. I love that when I shrink a window, you make it look like it's being sucked down a drain. So cool.
2. I love that I can toggle between two windows with one click.
3. I love that your battery lasts 6 or 7 hours.
4. I love that everything is so intuitive even I can figure it out. And that's saying a lot.
5. I love that when I get mail, you make a little sonar ping.
6. I love that you don't weigh 20 pounds like my daughter's laptop.
7. I love that I can swipe with four fingers and see everything I have open.
8. I love two-finger scrolling.
9. I love that your plug is magnetic and so easy to disconnect.
10. I love all the cool gadgets on the dashboard, especially the sticky notes.

I'm sure there are more, but it's past my bedtime and I'm powering down.

Thanks, Steve, for hooking us up.

Be thankful ~

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Random thoughts for the day.

I was just standing at my bed folding laundry (aren't you glad you know that?) and thinking about a time many years ago when I was a young mom. Our family was part of a church that met in people's homes, and most of the families had little children. Inevitably at some point, a few of the moms would wind up outside with babies who were fussy. One early summer Sunday, I was outside with Mike, my oldest. He was about 5 months old. That's where I met Kelly, who was outside with her oldest, David. We sat and got to know each other, and made Sunday get-togethers a regular occurrence. Twenty-two years later, David became my son-in-law, and now I am so thankful for all the work and prayer Kelly and her husband put into raising him. We should bring up all our children with the thought that someday they will be someone's spouse, someone's son- or daughter-in-law.

David and Deb, Sticky Bean, and Button.



Then I was thinking about my younger brother who lives in Vietnam. He recently became a first-time father, which makes me a five-time aunt. His son's name is Walter, a family name, but the Vietnamese have a hard time saying that, so they call him Wally.


I have no idea when we'll get to meet Wally, but I hope it's soon. Look at that face!


Then I was thinking about the conversation I had with one of the trainers today while I was on the treadmill. He knows I'm trying to improve my running, such as it is, so he keeps an eye on me and gives me pointers. I was jogging along at my usual turtle's pace, and he came over and told me I was running too fast. He said I should be able to carry on a normal conversation, and if I can't, then I'm going too fast. (I think this means I need to walk.) Honestly, I can't imagine how long it's going to take me to run a mile if I slow down any more, but I'm going to try. I don't guess at 50 I can expect to win the speedy award, so I might as well enjoy myself, right? Then I got home and watched a video of an 83-year-old woman who just finished her 53rd marathon. MARATHON. It took her a little over 8 hours and there was only one person left at the finish line to give her the T-shirt and medal. But you know what? She did it. Got the T-shirt. *sigh* I'm such a whiner.

And then I thought about Doug Vitale, a young married Marine, who was devastatingly wounded in Afghanistan about 2 weeks ago. He will lose at least parts of both legs and has already undergone several surgeries. He has head trauma, brain swelling, massive injuries everywhere else, and is in a coma. Would you pray for him? For his wife? His parents? What an incredible sacrifice for my freedom.

Be thankful ~

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

The Trashy Heart

Abbie's sculpture:





Here's the artist's statement at the bottom:

When all you put into your head is bad music, bad TV, bad movies, and bad conversation, eventually that's what you're going to be made of. I wanted to show a sort of "garbage in, garbage out" type thing. The Bible tells us to guard our heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.

So proud of her!

Be thankful ~

Monday, October 3, 2011

For once, Pete did the smart thing.

Today when I got home from the gym, Man-squared told me this story:

He had gotten home from class and was sitting at the bar in the kitchen doing his math homework. The dog was acting antsy, so Man-squared opened the door to the deck and let him out. Pete shot down the stairs like he was going to chase the ever-present groundhogs but stopped short at the bottom, looking out into the backyard with his hackles up. MS wondered why he wasn't chasing like he usually did, so he walked out to the edge of the deck.

And saw a huge black bear looking at Pete from about 15 yards away.

MS ran back to the door yelling for Pete, who came tearing up the stairs and into the house like a scared little girl. Apparently he has some sense.

Be thankful ~

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Weekend wrap-up.

I think I have sufficiently recovered from my college weekend to share a couple of photos. The main reason Man-squared and I went down was because Abbie had tickets to see Oklahoma!, which was fantastic. The girl who played Ado Annie was the best I've ever seen, even better than in the original movie—so much so that I was still humming "I'm just a girl who cain't say no . . . " in Sunday school this morning, and that's not exactly appropriate.

But another reason for our visit was to see Abbie's first sculpture, which was supposed to be on display. Unfortunately, because Michele Bachmann was visiting campus, the display was postponed until Monday. I'm not sure what Ms. Bachmann had to do with life-sized packing tape sculptures, but that was the official word.

We did get to go into the depths of the art department to see Abbie's work though. Do you see the iPod on the guy's lap? I'm not sure if you can tell from the photo, but it's full of garbage. And so are his head and his heart. Garbage in, garbage out. Of all the sculptures I saw, hers was the one with real meaning. And it's not like I'm biased or anything.


The artist with her work:


Abbie took us to a cool place called The Farm Basket, which is a little gift store and sandwich place where all the food is organic. There's a cool little veranda overlooking a backyard with big trees and a little stream where you can sit and eat.


And of course there was the spaghetti dinner for 20 in a tiny apartment. Cooked on a miniature 3-burner stove in itty-bitty pots.


Marly and Erin danced for us, as well as Kim and Abbie. And if I were any kind of photographer, I would have pictures to show for it, but they're all blurry so I'll spare you.

This afternoon I'm paying bills and doing laundry and trying to talk myself into running in the morning, so far with little success. Hope your weekend was happy.

Be thankful ~

Saturday, October 1, 2011

A note from college.

This weekend I am a college student once again, except that the others call me either Mrs. S. or Mama S and thank me profusely for the dinner of homemade spaghetti with sausage and garlic bread. One of them said (while stuffing his face) "I miss my mom." Twenty people in that tiny apartment last night, and once dinner was served, there was complete silence. That was the highest compliment.

 But none of this stopped them from killing me twice in three rounds of Mafia, even when Abbie threatened them.

And then I slept until 9:11, proving that you can take the girl out of college, but you can't take the college out of the girl. I'm glad to know I've still got it.

Today we're going to see Oklahoma! and then driving home. I'll be back tomorrow with photos.

Be thankful ~