This and That

1.  I have a holiday from work tomorrow.  First one since school started.  Yippee!

2.  It's nice and cool here and I'm in an organizing for the holidays frame of mind, much to Hank's dismay.  On my day off tomorrow, I plan to run lots of errands, plan menus, and perhaps purchase a few Christmas gifts.

3.  My Tigers played STUPID football last night against Georgia Tech.  So...we're 8-1...surely not looking at any National Championship.  Hopefully the ACC and a decent Bowl game.

4.  Tune out now if you don't want to hear me whine for a minute or two.  Along with planning for holiday fun, this is also the time of year that Hank and I have to start grappling with how in the world we are going to deal with our mothers. My mother is getting worse by the day.  It's getting more and more difficult to be patient and harder to get her out of what I call "a loop"...i.e. when she asks the same question over and over (times 10) in an hour's time. Taking her away from Green Grove makes it worse.  Our children drive 3-4 hours one way to get home and they don't want to run the roads when they only have two or three days here.  Plus, Hank's mother, you may recall, left Green Grove after six months to go back home so she is 1.5 hours away from us one way while Mother is an hour in the opposite direction. Hank and I feel overwhelmed trying to accommodate everybody.

Last year, we went away for Thanksgiving and had a marvelous time. Just us and the children, while we relied on others to accommodate the little old ladies and Ned.  We consequently ran up and down the roads between here and there and there and here over Christmas. I guess I'm selfish but I want one holiday at home.  They can all come here...I'll cook and clean and all that...I'm a hard worker.  The more the merrier.  I love to entertain...especially during the holidays. Here's the dilemma with that.  On said holiday morn, one of us has to drive 90 minutes to hometown to get Hank's mother...then 90 minutes back here. Another person has to drive 60 minutes the other way to get Mother and Ned (although he'll probably be here already)...60 minutes back here.  THEN, the entire process has to be done AGAIN in the afternoon to take them back.  That's what...ten hours of driving all total? Heaven help us...it's frustrating.  Very very frustrating.  I know...I'm a bad bad person.

5.  OK, I'm done whining.

6.  Did I mention that I have tomorrow off???  DOUBLE YIPPEE!!!

My brother Ned throws a Halloween party...

Y'all remember my brother Ned, right?  He and his buddies at the Aldersgate House threw (with a lot of help) a Halloween party last night.  We stopped by last Sunday on our way home from Clemson to help him decorate his room.  The pictures aren't great...he wanted it "spooky" and the light was so dim that the iPhone didn't get a good shot of all of the lights.  Anyhow, it was a good time for all.  We were supposed to dress up and good golly, I'm so beat on Friday afternoons that I wore my regular Clemson game Friday outfit straight from school, declaring myself to be Clemson's Number One Fan!  Hank wore a Clemson shirt and cap, so we were quite a pair.  Ned was a hunter...

The photos aren't great, but I hope you'll enjoy them. Ned is always "up."  Never sad or depressed.  We are so blessed that he has such a lovely home and so many wonderful people to care for him.

SO...how are you loving this last one.  Mother told me to find her a costume and the little devil that sits on my left shoulder kept saying, "Buy the witch hat...buy the witch hat...buy the witch hat."

Hope you have a safe and happy Halloween.

Bliss...

Bliss: "supreme happiness; utter joy or contentment"
       
Powerful.  Yes?

I have to tell you...on the now rare occasions that our children visit, no matter what is going on, I have moments of absolute bliss.

Lorelai and I went out and about yesterday...shopping, talking.  What a fabulous day we had in our favorite Charleston boutiques...clothes, shoes.  We got home just in time to relax a little before the Clemson/Maryland game.  Hank fried some fish and we "ate good" as my uncle used to say, while watching the game.  HOLY COW...the boys scared us to death for better than half of the game but they brought it home in the end.
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In the words of Coach Dabo Swinney after the game...

“I love these guys – I’m so proud of them…Matthew 14 says ‘let your light shine’…That’s what I told ‘em, and that’s what they did – like a city on the mountaintop…I can’t wait to get back home to Clemson and celebrate once again…. To come from 18 behind, which I think is the second greatest comeback in the history of the school…that’s about the players…That’s the heart of our football team and the character of our football team and of our staff.”
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Hank, Lor, and I were exhausted from the roller coaster ride but happy...you might even say we enjoyed a moment of bliss in that our Clemson Tigers are now 7-0 for the season.

Now I know that a lot of the credit lies with quarterback Tajh Boyd, but at our house we're completely and utterly crushing on #2 Sammy Watkins and #23 Andre' Ellington, a hometown boy.  Sammy is a true freshman and there is already Heisman talk.  WHOO HOO!

Lorelai is getting ready to change from her Lilly to her camouflage and head to the farm with her daddy to sit in a deer stand.  That's our little lowcountry gal (and a daddy who will be supremely happy, especially if she shoots well).

Clearly...

Clearly, my idea that this school year would be different in that I'd have ALL kinds of time to blog and read blogs was flawed.  This Tuesday will mark the end of the first quarter...life is good, but busy.  Of course, Clemson football takes up a lot of our time, but not this weekend.  It's fall break and Clemson is at Maryland tonight.  Hank is hunting (deer) and Lorelai and I are going hunting (clothes, shoes, makeup).

Legare completed his pro bono hours at the public defender's office yesterday and starts at the FIRM on Monday morning.

Oop....Lor is hollering, "MAMA, I'm ready when you are..."

Better scoot...more later.

50 and 3 days Old

Ah...the birthday surprises!  Meg and Will arrived on schedule and as we sat watching the South Carolina/Auburn game, SUE walked in the back door.  Are you believing that she let her daughter take the Florida/Alabama tickets?  This, my friends, is how I know without a doubt that she loves me without reservation. Louis; however, was not with her...family reunion and all of that.

About an hour later Hank walked out of the den and, so I thought, opened the back door to let the dog out. A minute or so later, I felt a pat on the head and a deep voice saying, I heard somebody has a birthday. It was LOUIS!  Here is what he did to get here for my birthday...

Last Wednesday, he flew from Jacksonville to Charleston.  He rented a car and drove to Florence for meetings on Thursday. On Friday, he drove from there to Rocksboro, NC, to visit an aunt and uncle, cook Brunswick stew half the night, and go to the Saturday morning portion of the reunion....jumped back in the rental car after lunch and drove the five hours here. Sunday afternoon, he took the rental back to the Charleston airport and drove back to Florida with Sue.

Hank outdid himself in the planning and the keeping of two big secrets.  I truly felt "celebrated" the entire weekend.

Dinner at Peninsula Grill is always a treat and was made even BETTER by sharing it with friends we love so dearly.  Our waiter asked me if there was anything special he could do for me...my response was PLEASE...can you give me regular updates on the Clemson/Va Tech game?  Not only did he do just that, he got other staff members involved and ultimately I got another big present...CLEMSON ROCKED VA TECH.

I was so excited about all of my surprises that I walked out of the house without my camera.  Louis and Will both took photos of us Rowdy Girls but didn't send them to me.  I'll have to get on them about that.  Meanwhile, I'll just enjoy the memories of being celebrated...50 ain't half bad!

My Birthday Weekend

I will be 50 years old tomorrow. 50!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is a birthday surprise in the works and you know how I absolutely do NOT like NOT knowing what is going on.

Here is what I do know...Legare is in Boston having a big time.  Lorelai is in Clemson having a big time. Their mother is in CRISIS and they are in other places having BIG OLD TIMES.

Here is what else I know...Meg and Will are coming in this afternoon.  Another person or persons will also be arriving at some point to spend the night but I don't know who it is.  It is not Sue and Louis because Louis has a family reunion. REALLY, Louis????  A family reunion????? 

Sue has tickets to the Florida/Alabama game so I really can't blame her as I'd likely throw her under the bus for football as well.  

I also believe that we are going to dinner at Peninsula Grill. That was my request.

About an hour ago, Hank said, Go pack an overnight bag.  We're going to the airport and on to Virginia for the Clemson/Virginia Tech game tonight.  I got ALL excited.  My heart went pitty pat. He was making all that up. 

So...what really happens when a belle turns 50???   Stay tuned!