Weekend Happenings

Good Friday morning!

Yes! There are new pictures in the Gallery this morning. The Boy came home from his first year at JSU, and I captured (Code for STAGED) some shots for the ol' blog.

AUSTIN UPDATE - I mentioned yesterday I would reflect a little on the pros and cons of being a mother of a child who goes away to college. I am by no means an expert, and I do not think I handled many of the new situations in a calm and rational way. (Obviously, that was Mikie's job... not mine.) However, looking back, I can see that some good came out of this new experience. And I'm talking strictly about The Boy... not me.

I'll keep my thoughts organized as best I can which means I'll be using the "list method."

CON #1 - It is not a "natural" act for a human mother to throw her human child out of the car and drive away. For over 18 years, I had daily eye-to-eye contact with this human child, and in a matter of minutes the daily eye-to-eye contact was gone. And I was supposed to be okay with this new turn of events.

"Let him go. Let him become a man," I was told by several people. In theory, this sounds good. In real life... not so much.

PRO #1 - Austin turned out to be a "caller," and someone in the family heard from him each day, even if it was just to say "Hi." This put my mind and heart at ease at the end of a long day. Austin also turned out to be someone who didn't automatically think Mike and I were idiots, and he asked a lot of questions about everything. (It turns out, Mike and I didn't know as much as we thought we did, but we didn't find it necessary to share that information with Austin.)

CON #2 - I didn't know any of his new buddies. I had spent the last 18 years knowing everyone Austin knew. I even knew the parents of his friends. Now he had friends from Georgia, and I only knew them by their nicknames and the stories he told now and then.

PRO #2 - The few friends I have met and spent time with this past year are no different from the boys he grew up with. They play X-Box. They like football. They like to eat. Most of them are in the band with Austin. I have come to the conclusion Georgia boys are not unlike Alabama boys. I like them. I like them very much.

CON #3 - I have spent a lot of time since Austin was born washing, ironing and folding his clothes. I have spent even more time making sure he wore "matching" washed, ironed and folded clothes. I have no control over this when he is at college. Sure, I can send the clothing washed, ironed and folded, but what he does with them when he gets there, I have no clue. I have had to let this one go.

PRO #3 - There is no pro to this one. I know he's wearing his red shirt that should go with his plaid shorts with his camo shorts. I just know it!

Semi-Funny Story - The first week of Band Camp, Austin had to participate in rookie initiation. It is highly secretive, and the older guys in his section did a great job of playing mind games with Austin and the other three "newbies." By the night of the initiation, Austin was a little nervous, but I was literally sick. "I'll call you when it's over, and let you know what happened," Austin said.

At midnight, I was sitting straight up in bed watching the clock. I woke the peacefully sleeping Mikie. "Mike! Get up!"

"What... What's wrong?"

"It's practically 12:30 in the morning and we haven't heard from Austin. Do you remember the show we saw where they initiated college students by wrapping them up with duct tape, and locking them in the trunk of a car, and leaving them in a field somewhere for days with no food or water? Do you remember that?" My mind and my mouth were racing.

"I think that was on 24," Mikie mumbled. He reached over, grabbed his phone and sent Austin a text asking for an update. We immediately received a text which said, "I'm fine. It's almost over. I'll call you in a minute."

"There. He's fine. We can go back to sleep," Mike mumbled again.

"We have no idea who sent that text. Any one of those boys could have his phone. He wouldn't need it in the trunk of a car." I was beyond being reasonable.

"I'm 99 percent sure you're thinking about something Jack Bauer did to a terrorist in Season Two. Everything is going to be fine."

"I don't trust those Georgia boys," I muttered.

About that time, the phone rang and Austin laughed and told us it was "nothing," but he couldn't tell us anything because initiation was most definitely a secret. "I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you," he chuckled. (Yeah. We watch WAY too much 24.) He said he was tired, and he would talk to us later.

"I hate this," I said, thumping my pillow into submission.

"He's going to be fine," Mike said. "I think you're the one we're going to have to worry about."

Truer words have never been spoken.

But we survived, Austin and I. He grew up quite a bit this past year, and I asked my doctor to increase my "Austin Has Gone to College" medication (quite a bit). He had a good year for the most part. There were some serious issues he had to deal with, and he had some difficult decisions to make.

Maintaining a Christian testimony at college is not THE easy thing to do, and Satan is alive and well at our universities.

More than once this past year, I have found myself wishing we were starting over again. Mike and I would be 29 and expecting our first child... a son. We would name him Austin, and we would raise him in church and teach him everything he would need to know to one day go out into the world and be a godly man. And we would have more time, and be more wise, and know everything we needed to say before that day arrived.

It's truly amazing how quickly the tiny baby in your arms becomes a man, isn't it? It happens quite literally in a "blink of an eye."

I will end my melancholy ramblings now. Today is a good day. Today all of the chicks are in the nest... and Austin's shirt matches his shorts! Yes... Today is a very good day.

Weekend Happenings

Tonight Austin and Josh are taking Grandmother out to eat while Roxie and I go to our first "official" crop together. Roxie and I are planning on doing at least ten pages apiece. We'll see!

Mikie will be home around 10:00 tonight, and I can't wait to see him for a couple of days before he heads out again Monday morning. (He's going to New Orleans next week, and I'm trying hard not to be jealous.)

Saturday is an unknown for now. It could very easily become an eventful day, but as of this minute... nothing!

Sunday should be fun for Mikie and the boys. They are going to their first ever Talladega Race together. (Mikie has gone to a race or two before, but not the boys.) Austin and Josh have really gotten race fever this year.

While they are enjoying the races, Roxie and I will be attending services at Shades Mountain Baptist... the church Mikie and I met, fell in love and were married. Some of our good friends who still attend there have a precious daughter being baptized, and we are going to celebrate this event with their family.

Like I said earlier... I have a lot of opportunities for pictures this weekend so the Gallery should be full.

Have a fantastic weekend. Spend a ton of time with your little ones! Next week, I'll start giving you hints about our May Special Guest. I think this one will stump EVERYONE! And I'll have even more ideas for "outside" things to do with your family and friends.

REMINDER #1 - Don't forget to enter the Mystery Bag Party Contest via e-mail, Facebook or the Comment Section. The drawing will be held May 12 which is just around the corner.

REMINDER #2 - I'll be having a Q & A on A Simple Life beginning May 3. Ask me ANYTHING between now and then! Again, just leave your questions in the Comment Section, Facebook or via e-mail.

REMINDER #3 - I'll be adding pictures to Project 365 Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so stop by and check those out if you get a chance.

Take care, and I'll talk to you Monday.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda

Hobby Date

Good Thursday morning!

There are a couple more "Things That Make Me Smile" pics in the Gallery. I promise I'll have some picture-taking events this coming weekend. Next week's Gallery should be SO much better. But until then...

RANDOMNESS #1 - I'm rhubarb shopping today. Some women like to shop for shoes, purses and summer dresses. Not me! Rhubarb, baby!

RANDOMNESS #2 - Do not... I repeat, DO NOT try the Raspberry Cordial at the Godiva Chocolate store at the Galleria. It may seem like a good idea at the time because it is sitting beside the always delicious Cherry Cordial AND it is wrapped in the prettiest light pink foil with a delicate design AND it is covered in chocolate, but when it is all said and done it is still a SOUR raspberry. You would be much happier going with your first instinct and eating the Cherry Cordial instead. Learn from MY mistake.

RANDOMNESS #3 - Mikie's convention is being held in Colorado Springs at a huge, beautiful resort... AND THE RESORT HAS A PRIVATE ZOO ON THE GROUNDS! I ask you. Is this fair?

AUSTIN UPDATE - THE BOY IS COMING HOME! Finals are finished. Austin's freshman year at JSU has been completed. We survived!

He is taking an English Lit class during the Maymester, but he will be staying/visiting with different grandparents Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights, and he'll be home on Thursday afternoons, so I don't really consider the Maymester "being away at college."

After much reflection (and reviewing the notebook I have kept since last August 7 when he left), I will regale you, the readers of A Simple Life, with the pros and cons of being a mother of a college freshman living in a dorm at JSU tomorrow. I realize I am not the first (or only) mother who has survived the "Dreaded Freshman Year," so feel free to add your two cents if you are member of this club!

Blog Linkage - I have two posts to share with you this morning. One for reflection and one for a smile!

1. Click on Sherri's Blog under My Blog List and read her April 18 post entitled "Letters to God." It is one part movie review and one part testimony. I want our family to see this movie very, very soon.

2. Go to www.coalcreekfarm.com and read the April 19 post entitled "Becky, the Cake Maker." If you are a fan (or a reluctant viewer) of the show LOST, you MUST see the cake this very talented woman made for a LOST Party. It is amazing!

Hobby Date

This date was listed under my post "100 Date Ideas" a few months back. It was very vague in the list, but since Austin and Melia have tried this one (and enjoyed it), I decided to make it more specific.

This is not an expensive date. It goes something like this...

1. Find a nice, local bakery and pick out a pastry treat for each other. Spend some time leisurely talking and enjoying your treat.

2. Go to a nearby Hobby Store and pick out something the two of you will enjoy doing together. It can be a puzzle, model car, kite, birdhouse kit, etc. Try to pick out something which will take a little more time than just one evening to complete.

3. Head home to get started on your project.

So, to actually make it more doable, head to Savage's Bakery in Homewood. This is an old bakery I visited for the first time over 25 years ago. It is wonderful, and it has a huge variety of cookies, pastries, cakes and pies. (I suggest trying a melt-away. It was my favorite back in the day, and now they have about five or six different flavors.) If you want to make it a lunch date, they have a semi-large selection of deli-style sandwiches, salads, soups, etc. Very, very good.

Now, take your time and meander (good word) down the hill to the Homewood Toy and Hobby Shop which has hobbies and kits to choose from. Take your time shopping and finding the perfect hobby you and your child (or spouse) will enjoy doing together.

VARIATION - After you have gone to your favorite bakery (no matter where you live in the country), go to your local post office and check out their stamp collecting kits. You may want to visit or call prior to the date to check on supply (I'm not sure every post office will have these kits on site) and cost. If stamp collecting was something you enjoyed as a child, it might be something you could share with your child now.

Have a terrific Thursday. Busy, busy day today. I have to kill a fatted calf in celebration of The Boy coming home. (Is it very difficult to kill and prepare a fatted calf. Does anyone know where I can find a fatted calf... legally. It doesn't sound pleasant, does it? We may just have pizza. His choice.) And then there are the banners which have to be made and strung across the front of the house. And then there are the flags which must be raised which have been at half staff all year. And then I have to run to Cracker Barrel and buy his favorite creme soda to have sitting on his pillow when he walks into his room (a/k/a The Shrine). Yes, there is much to do in preparation for his homecoming!

I'll have Weekend Happenings and some timely reminders for you Friday, so check back for a few minutes before you start your busy weekends!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda