The Interior of WREN...a fabulous restaurant in downtown Beaufort, South Carolina

As I mentioned the other day, we had a delicious lunch at a restaurant in Beaufort last Saturday. Here are a few photos of the interior. I was really taken with it for some reason (and the food was good too!) What do you think? Cool...YES??

Oh how I LOVE the Rowdy Girls (and husbands)

You might remember that my college peeps and I (the Rowdy Girls) try to get together as often as possible, usually down at the summer house. We opened up the house for "the season" this weekend and had a most wonderful time. I feel like a new gal. If you're behind on the Rowdy Girls (and husbands) click HERE and HERE and HERE. So...some photos...

Friday afternoon...

Friday night...after a large pitcher of delicious sangria prepared by Meg and Will, we got a tee tiny bit silly. Louis' office would NOT quit calling. Reception was bad and we wanted to help. Will modeled our creation...

On Saturday, we had the best intentions of having brunch at the Beaufort Inn, but alas, they were not serving lunch because they were getting ready for a late afternoon wedding. SO...we ventured down the street to Wren...a newer restaurant in town that we'd not tried. I'll do a post later about the interior of the restaurant which was incredible. I took lots of photos because it gave me lots of good ideas to share.

Everybody else had a glass of wine or beer with their lunch...I decided to have a cosmopolitan with MY lunch. Yummy!! Kind of out of character of me but I wasn't driving and I AM over 21!

.....so THERE!!!!!

One Ringy Dingy...

I'm lucky to work with a Deputy Boss who "gets" my snarky sense of humor. If he didn't...well...it could be bad.

We've been have telephone problems here at home. The county is doing some water line work, and every now and then incoming calls get bumped somehow. We'll hear one little "brrriinnnggg" and then nothing.

Apparently, the people on the other end also hear it ring once and then static. Deputy Boss told me one day last week that he'd tried to call a couple of times the evening before and couldn't get through.

Yesterday afternoon, he tried to call and we were having the problem again. This morning we had a little exchange...

DB - I tried to call you yesterday afternoon. Your phone is out of order again.

Belle - I know...we kept hearing that little "brriinnnggg" and then nothing.

DB - Did you call the telephone company? You need to call the telephone company.

Belle - That's probably a good idea.

(OK...So, I went back to my office and got to work and did NOT call the telephone company...)

Later in the day...

DB - Did you call the telephone company? You need to call the telephone company.

Belle - I didn't want to tell you this but, you know that ring and static you heard?

DB - Yes...

Belle - That's what you hear when the other person has your number blocked.

DB - Call the telephone company!

I called the telephone company.

Hunting...and other stuff...

1. Hank and our friend Tom went turkey hunting on Saturday so Lorelai, Tom's wife Anne, and I took a hunting excursion of our own. Of course, we were hunting for shoes, clothes, and a lovely lunch instead of turkeys.

2. Lorelai, Anne, and I had a successful hunt. Hank and Tom did not.

3. Legare has found a place to live in Charlotte for the summer while he works as a summer associate in a law firm. Here's hoping that it turns into a permanent job offer upon his May 2011 graduation from law school.

4. I haven't put up the first Easter decoration and you all are making me LOOK BAD with your pretty tables, wreaths, and decorating projects. We won't be entertaining so I'm just not worrying about it...work is WILD these days.

Have a great week!!

But I REALLY wanted to....

I'm pretty sure it would have been wrong for me to whack a few individuals with a shillelagh stick today...

Wouldn't it??

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Lorelai's Room Makeover--400th Post

In honor of my 400th post...A Room Makeover for Lorelai!!!

Lorelai is home for spring break and we had a little surprise waiting on her. A room makeover!!

We aren't completely finished...the bed headboard hasn't arrived and we are awaiting a fix to the closet door but you can get the general idea...

She wanted Tiffany blue walls and I made the executive decision to do just two walls in the blue and two in an off white. There are a few accessories yet to gather but you can get the general idea.

This makes three rooms we've gotten organized since the first of the year. My goal was one a week, but it appears that we're doing well to get through one a month. Progress is progress though, so I'm not going to complain.

The Piano Bar

Between new job fun and life in general, we've also cleaned out mother's house and put it on the market. One thing that I just could not let go of was the piano. My granddaddy bought the Story and Clark console piano for mother sometime around 1965. There were no music stores anywhere around so the local hardware store, which also sold furniture, took care of the arrangements. Even though I have a piano of my own, this one was special...it's the instrument I learned to play on and DID play the dickens out of from 1968 until I sent to college in 1979.

Here's the thing...what in the WORLD was I going to do with a second piano? We brought it home, put it up against a wall in our den, and I started thinking. After a couple of weeks it hit me. A Piano Bar!!!! People scoffed...they didn't even have the good grace to do it behind my back...they laughed at me and rolled their eyes RIGHT to my face!!

I care NOT!! I love the piano bar and believe myself to be right clever if I DO say so myself.

What do you think?

Tuesday Tales

Let's see...
Hmmmm....
Weather sure is nice today...
School board meeting tonight...

I don't even have a joke to tell.

OH!! Did anybody watch the new show Parenthood? I really want to like it but couldn't come to a conclusion after just one episode. It seems to me that it's sort of a hippy version of Brothers and Sisters. What do you think?

Legare is home and we watched The Hurt Locker last night. SO intense, but very well done. It most assuredly opened up another special place in my heart for our men and women in uniform who "live" war on a daily basis.

On the work front, I've decided to be more zen regarding those who do not see the urgency of keeping to my time line. I can't keep up the whole cheeseburger, french fries, pepsi, double pie thing.

OH...and Ted is a bachelor, for those of you who are interested. (NOW, I'll see if he really reads my blog!!!)

What true friends will do for you...

I'm fortunate to have some great friends at work. I told Hank this afternoon that he really owed them for letting me vent, so that he didn't have to listen to HALF of what he might have to otherwise.

My flying monkey situation is going reasonably well, but this morning a little glitch in my time line made me all twitchy. There wasn't a thing that the monkeys could do, so about 10:15, I told my friend and colleague Ted that we just HAD to go to Henry's for lunch. (Go HERE to read about Henry's) Henry's can fix a multitude of woes, so about 11:45, Ted, Maura and I larked out.

I've known Ted for a long time and we've eaten lunch together, often several times a week, for years. Ted understands Belle-talk and sometimes even translates for others. Here are several examples from today.

Scene 1...Ted, Maura, and Belle approach Henry's. Belle opens the door and says...
"WELL, this is just the LAST STRAW"

Maura: What's wrong? Ted: There are people sitting at her two favorite tables. Go over to the booth on the left. Just let her sit on that side (he points) by herself and she'll be OK.

Scene 2...Ted, Maura and Belle are handed menus. Belle puts hers on the table without looking at it and proclaims, "There's no question!"

Maura: What is she having? Ted: Today is a cheeseburger day.

Scene 3...Ted, Maura and Belle are finishing dessert. Belle takes the last bite of her Boston Cream Pie, stands up and says, "Wait right here, I'm going to do it!!!"

Maura: Where is she going? Ted: She's going to get another piece of pie.

Know what? I WAS...but divine providence saved me from myself because the last piece of Boston Cream had just been claimed. I didn't think it would be right to snatch it out of the hands of the kid sitting at the counter with his dad.

God bless true friends who understand you, are patient with you, pay for your lunch (thanks Maura!!!) and don't judge you for wanting two pieces of pie when you're feeling twitchy!

It's Wednesday Already??

Since I started my new job, time is flying by. I told somebody yesterday that I feel like I'm in purgatory...since budget cuts are keeping them from hiring anyone to replace me in my old job, I'm getting pulled back in to those tasks along with the new ones. Please understand that I am NOT complaining, but wanted you to know why I may not be posting or commenting as much as usual for the time being. My blog reading and commenting will primarily happen on the weekends. Don't forget about me now...that would make me sad.

I'll have some pretty pictures soon of Lorelai's bedroom. Hank has been working hard since Saturday to get it painted. Our goal is to have it done by the time she gets home for spring break in a week or so. Legare's spring break is coming up also...we haven't seen him since he went back to school after Christmas. Lorelai fractured her finger playing flag football. Mother, Ned, and Hank's mother are behaving themselves. That about sums it up! Pretty boring, isn't it...BUT...sometimes boring is a WELCOME state of being.

Got to go get ready for work...my day starts with a United Way meeting in Charleston...

Hope you're having a good week...What's been happening in your neck of the woods?? SERIOUSLY...if you don't tell me in a comment, I'm may not know until this weekend!!!

Life of a Southern Belle Award - MILDRED'S MENAGERIE

It's been quite some time since I've given a Life of a Southern Belle Award. It isn't that I don't read fabulous posts all the time...I absolutely DO...but for a blogger to receive the award, a post just has to "strike me."

Today, I read a marvelous post on a Gracious Southern Lady over at Mildred's Menagerie. I adore Mildred, who herself is a MOST gracious southern lady. She is an adoring wife and caregiver, a loving sister and a wonderful and supportive blog friend. If you don't already know Mildred, go on over there and see what she and her husband Nalley are up to. I'm betting that you'll become as much of a fan as am I!

In case you've forgotten about the Life of a Southern Belle Award, when I find a blog/post that inspires me or tickle me to no end and I say to myself....now that gal is a Southern Belle. Southern Belleness transcends geography....it is a philosophy...a state of mind...style and substance...wit and charm...joy and sunshine...grit and determination...perseverance...love...respect, and much more. This isn't an award that one passes along to someone else. It can ONLY come from ME!!!

Congratulations Mildred...

While you're visiting Mildred, you might go see her sister Karen and her new blog. Caleb's Story is about Karen's memories of her very special son who, like my brother Ned, was born with Down Syndrome. Karen is new to blogland, so go over there and give her a hearty welcome.

The Book Club

A few like-minded people and I have started a little book club and last night was our first official meeting. This came out of a casual conversation while we were all standing around after a meeting. Since the casual conversation centered around the books of author Stuart Woods, we decided to read his latest book first and set down the following book club rules...

1. First and foremost, we'll meet at a restaurant so that we can eat, drink, and be merry while we discuss the book of the month.
2. In the event that a book club member would like to host in their home, that is perfectly fine; however, nobody should ever feel put upon to host.
3. Any member who doesn't attend a meeting can expect to be talked about by the other members of the group. We made an exception last night for the one member who wasn't there since we only made up the rule last night after cocktails and he didn't have proper notification that he would be talked about. (Now you know, buddy...now you know.)
4. We'll rotate the task of choosing the next book and will discuss where we'll hold our next meeting before we leave the current month's meeting.
5. If a member drops out, the remaining members all have to agree on who to invite to take said member's place.
6. As part of the book discussion, each member will highlight their favorite passage and read it out loud to the group WITH FEELING!!
7. We'll make up additional rules as we feel the urge to do so.

Belle's Review of KISSER, by Stuart Woods...To quote Randy Jackson from American Idol, "It was just OK for me, dude." I'm a big old fan of the character Stone Barrington, but Stone went a little overboard with the ladies in this one, if you know what I mean. Not Mr. Woods best work by ANY stretch. That's my opinion.

REVIEW of the restaurant, Med Bistro...Good. I had a nice salad and brown butter seared scallops with risotto and brussel sprouts. We liked the atmosphere for our purposes. Ordinarily, it would have been a little loud for me but it was a perfect setting for our enthusiastic discussion.

Next month's read is

Next month's restaurant...Bowen's Island.

Amusement

Today at work I received an e-mail notifying administrators of an upcoming meeting for all head custodians. Since my new program will be located within an existing facility, I filed the e-mail away. After awhile, the deputy boss (DB ) forwarded the e-mail to me with the message, "since we didn't put a custodian in your budget, I guess you'll need to take care of this."

I knew he was joking so I decided to play along and the exchange went something like this...

Belle: I already received this notification and, since I'll be located at ABC, made the executive decision that the ABC custodial staff will clean up after me.

I received a reply almost instantly...

DB: How many people do you think they have working out there????

Nice...real nice!

Rolling right along....

Well, let's see. All is quiet on the Ned front, hallelujah. He really pushed my buttons last weekend, if you haven't already figured that out.

I'm still working on getting my way Southern Belle-style with that other situation. I made really big strides yesterday.

This is boring for you, isn't it? Me too...

Heard a funny joke the other day. How many Clemson students does it take to change a lightbulb? Two...one to hold the beer and one to call daddy. How many University of South Carolina students does it take to change a lightbulb? Just one...but after all it IS a major!!

That's all I've got...

Things Always Look Better in the Morning...

THANK YOU, my friends, for your sweet comments. I very keenly feel your support and, as I remarked to several people this morning, there is no DOUBT that this blog and the friends I've made through it are wonderful blessings in my life.

Part of my problem is that I am a first class WORLD class control freak. And since I've had to admit that I am human (thanks Kathy...LOL), I therefore have to admit that I don't have all of the answers.

Now I KNOW that y'all thought that I DID have all of the answers so for heaven's sake, don't go abandoning me now that I've confessed that I'm a mere mortal!

Here's how things look today. Hank took Ned back hoome this morning and I joined them by telephone. I'm told that Ned appeared to be awfully ashamed (I hope so) and hung his head low. He apologized to everybody and then we discussed some possible reasons for this behavior...he's lived at Aldersgate almost a year and has never acted out. For some reason, his stress level skyrocketed...

A new resident moved in a month or so ago, so I wonder if perhaps that extra person getting some of the attention might have been a factor. Mr. Herbert and Miss Nell thought about the fact that he's had a cold for about three weeks that turned into bronchitis. He's been on cough medicine and a strong antibiotic. Maybe that had him edgy...I know that decongestants surely make me feel jumpy. I also wondered about what he's watching on the TV in his room, but they say that he's a Disney Channel fan all the way.

Hank wonders if perhaps Ned doesn't sleep well. They've told us from the beginning that he sits up in his bed with his Bible in his lap, sometimes until 1 AM....BUT...he doesn't get up until about 9 AM, so if he actually sleeps, he's getting eight hours. I have to smile at the thought of Ned and his Bible because Ned can't read, but who are we to say how Ned and God are communing with each other. Every now and then Ned will pass along something God told him.

Regardless of the reason, Ned has to understand that he misbehaved. Hank left Ned with another "talking to" about getting mad in Walmart and how sometimes when people get mad out in public other people call the police. We don't want to scare him...but maybe we do. I left Ned with the message that if this happens again, I (the wicked witch with the flying monkeys), will be the one coming to address the situation instead of the calm and patient Hank. If that doesn't scare him straight then nothing will.

Have I told you lately how wonderful my husband is?

Oh Merciful Days

After a couple of successful days with Operation Surely You Jest, (no flying monkeys have been called upon) I just got a phone call about Ned and some recent bad bahavior. I cannot imagine what is going on.

He and the boys went to Walmart and when a child came up to him and spoke, Ned got upset. Nobody knows why. When Mr. Herbert tried to calm him down, Ned was VERY rude. Then he balked at getting in the van to go back to the house. Later in the evening, he was rude AGAIN to Miss Linda, who was working the evening shift...so much so that she got upset and at midnight, called the house supervisor, Miss Nell.

When Nell called this morning, she said that she doesn't think he remembers what he did, but when questioned by Hank, Ned replied, "I'm praying about it." He remembers! He also told mother, "They're going to close the house and I'm going to have to move." That simply isn't true!!

Hank has Ned at the farm for the night and has made it VERY clear that he will apologize to everybody tomorrow morning when he goes back home. Hank's feeling is that Ned did it to get attention since we have been so busy lately and haven't been able to take him out as much.

I'm having one of those little spells now...a selfish spell when things reach a critical mass that I'm NOT in any way proud of, but at least am honest about. Maybe this will give some comfort to other people who are in similar situations with disabled and elderly relatives...

Here goes....I feel very very bitter sometimes about our having sole responsibility for everything related to mother, Hank's mother, and Ned. With Ned as my only sibling and Hank only having a half brother who generally causes more harm than good, we don't have anybody to help us with ANY of it. I know that we are blessed beyond measure, and again, I'm ASHAMED of the way I feel right now, but dang it all, there is always SOMETHING. Along with feeling bitter, I feel guilty and selfish about feeling bitter.

OH MERCIFUL DAYS!! I can't find stitch of humor to include in this post. Sorry!

Thanks for indulging my little pity party. I'm going to wallow in it for the rest of the day and will hopefully be back to my old self tomorrow.

Raise Your Hand If....

Humor me please...raise your hand (in the form of a comment) if you believe that THIS southern belle will do whatever it takes (within the
boundaries of integrity, solid values, good taste, and so forth) to get her way!

This afternoon around 4:15, I launched Operation SURELY You Jest!!, known in my inner circle (that would be those of you who comment) as Operation Don't MAKE Me Call Out the Flying Monkeys!!

For PITY sakes...you know Scarlett would have if she COULD have!!!!!

My cause is virtuous, but I'm going to need to be stealth about it for awhile so I can't give you any details.

Rest assured that Hank and the kids are safe, as are my friends and neighbors. WAIT, OK...yes, friends and neighbors are safe.

Don't forget about leaving that comment!

Can you believe we didn't take any pictures???

Steph, from Living Life in the Lowcountry, and I had a wonderful lunch today. We met at a little restaurant that we had both been to before around 11:30 and were flabbergasted when we looked at our watches for the first time, only to discover that it was 2 PM!!!

We talked and talked...I couldn't tell you what was happening around us if my life depended on it. We talked about our families and blogs that we enjoy. We'd already discovered that we knew some folks in common since Steph used to work in Hometown, so we talked about those people too. Turns out that we lead very similar lifestyles and that our values, as well as our expectations for our children, are much the same. I do; however, have a few years on her

When Steph walked in she said something like, this is exciting but a little strange...I felt like I was getting ready for a blind date!

At that point, I had to tell her about Hank's concern that I was meeting "a stranger" for lunch and that I could be ABDUCTED! I suppose that people who don't "get" blogging have a hard time understanding how nice it is to meet someone whose life you've been reading about and who you've been trading e-mails with.

It was a thoroughly delightful experience and I have no doubt that we'll try to get together again. I've had a couple of comments today that some of you might like to join us...we'll have to see what we can do about that.

I forgot my camera...sorry 'bout that!

Exciting Morning

I'm SO excited...am all ready to leave to meet Steph from Living Life in the Lowcountry for lunch. She's the first blog friend that I've met in person. Maybe this will be the start of organizing like-minded Charleston area bloggers for get-togethers every now and then.

Like-minded Charleston area bloggers....what do YOU think about that?

We Deserved A Treat

We live in the most wonderful place.

We can wake up on Saturday morning to this....

Then we can drive for about an hour and enjoy this...

Hank and I don't take vacations very often. We're too busy. We both work really hard and find joy in lots of things...football season, the summerhouse, the farm...but we don't often just take off to eat, drink, and be merry without having to haul food and/or sheets and towels along with us. About the middle of last week, we decided to celebrate my new job and the fact that we were getting a little break from either of our mothers having a spell. The Sanctuary on Kiawah Island for a night seemed like just the thing to do. The fact that it was Valentine's Day weekend was an added bonus.

We left home around noon with snow on the ground, ran a few errands along the way, and checked in around 2:00 PM on Saturday afternoon. I immediately took my leave for the spa and a 90 minute hot stone massage. It was so wonderful that I'm without words to describe it. About 15 minutes in, I realized that I was breathing...know what I mean? Sometimes it seems like I don't take a good deep relaxing breath for days and days.

While I was being pampered, Hank bundled up and took a brisk walk on the beach, then found a quiet comfortable place to read. He pushed the "five o'clock somewhere" rule to around 4:00 and enjoyed a martini...The Clemson (because of the Clemson blue cheese stuffed olives...) while he relaxed and waited for me. We enjoyed drinks in the lobby bar and a delightful dinner in the Ocean Room before retiring to our beautiful room for the rest of the evening.

I decided that, even though it was chilly, we should open the french doors so that we could hear the waves. The doors stayed open just a little all night, and what a glorious sleep we had...until 6 AM, that is, when Lorelai called to tell us that her throat hurt and she had a fever. (6 AM...GOOD grief! We need to have a chat about what constitutes an emergency. I do believe 8 AM might have been more appropriate. "Take two advil" is NOT rocket science.)

We dozed until about 7:30 then had a delicious breakfast at The Jasmine Porch and were back at home by noon. Gotta love the South Carolina Lowcountry!

Enjoy my little slide show of The Sanctuary if you feel so inclined.

Hank, the Weatherman...

My husband gets very excited over weather...especially snow. I'm more zen about it...snow, that is. I get pretty fidgety about hurricanes though.

When it started to snow this afternoon, he called the children, who have already seen a fair amount of snow this winter at their respective schools. Neither was terribly enthusiastic. Then he asked me, "Who can I call to talk about the snow since you aren't excited about it?" I suggested he call Ned...or mother...she likes to talk about anything.

He called Mike over at the farm. Mike will talk about anything too. Hank walked out into the snow, talking about how the deck was covered and the forecast had changed. I started to wonder how he was going to cope when it got too dark to see what was happening.

Then he called Ned...Ned was not particularly excited either. Then he called mother....she wasn't there.

Then he checked the weather forecast....AGAIN! He never sat down. He walked from the fireplace to the back door to the telephone to the fireplace to the television to the front door to the telephone to the back door WITH the telephone to the fireplace. After that, I quit paying attention.

When I got up to check on supper he stopped me as I walked past the back door..."Stop...look...LOOK!"

I guess I'll get up in the morning and go out to play in the snow. I'll need to get my South Carolina Lowcountry snow gear out before I go to bed...let's see...sweatshirt, jeans, raincoat, tennis shoes, and the plastic grocery bags to go over my shoes.

Lawsamercy!

Well DO Now!

Well DO Now!! It's snowing...

Ah....Life!

Ah....Life! Funny where it takes you. I've been introduced several times in the last couple of weeks as "ABC School District's newest principal." Every time I hear it, I'm a little bit startled. SERIOUSLY, I must be the luckiest belle in the world to have landed this gig! I get to hire the team of people who will build a brand new magnet school program...one that hasn't existed anywhere in our region until now. We get to start small for the pilot year, and even at full capacity, will still be considered a "small" high school program.

We'll get to work with all kinds of students and excitement is already building in our community. It's especially exciting to talk with parents who never thought that going to college would be a reality for their children, much less during high school and with free tuition and books. You know I'm not one for getting all weepy but when a parent holds your hand as they leave an application interview and says, "Thank you for giving us hope"....well...let's just say that I've had to blink real fast and try to convince myself that the tears welling up in my eyes are from allergies.

Hank and I have talked a lot about this since I was hired, and he understands that the next 15 months are going to be very hectic for me. I'm so blessed to have a supportive husband. We absolutely MUST hit the ball out of the park in the 2010-11 academic year. This wasn't a task I would have taken on when our children were younger, but what with the empty nest, the timing couldn't be better. God is amazing that way, isn't He?

I almost didn't apply. I knew two people who were and thought that they'd both be good candidates, but one morning I got a call from someone who assumed that I'd applied. When I responded that I had not, he was taken aback since I'd been involved in the planning, partnering, and approval process. That got me to thinking and the rest, as they say, is history.

Ah...Life!

A Most UN-Belle-like Obsession

This probably won't make much sense to you because it CERTAINLY is not making sense to me or Hank. I have a new television show obsession, Madhouse, set in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Honestly, it isn't because of the car racing. I do NOT get car racing!! It has something to do with the personalities of and relationships between the people. They eat, sleep, and breathe racing. they're praying one minute and beating each other up the next. Some of the rivalries go back generations and I SURE don't know how in the world their wives put up with them.

One acquaintance of mine suggested that I might like the show because I knew people just like these fellows from back in the day in Hometown. There wasn't a racetrack in Hometown but there WERE some characters...that is for true.

So, have any of you, dear readers, seen Madhouse??

A Suggestion for Starbucks

Friday morning I had an 8 AM meeting at one of our schools 20 miles from home. I built in enough travel time to stop at Starbucks for a tall bold. That's it...nothing fancy...I'm strictly a black coffee kind of girl in the mornings.

When I walked in at 7:40 there were nine people in line. Two people were preparing drinks, one person was asking customers what they wanted and writing it down on the cup, and one person was collecting money AND heating and bagging pastries. It seems like all nine people, or at least the ones I stayed long enough to hear place an order, wanted complicated drinks and a pastry, heated of course. I stood there for seven minutes and only three people paid and moved to the side. I couldn't wait. I didn't huff or puff...I didn't make a snide remark under my breath. I couldn't...I didn't have enough energy without my tall bold!!! I just walked out and got in the car.

It seems to me that during the morning rush, they could have some kind of express lane for people like me who just want a plain old cup of joe (and shouldn't have to wait forever to get it.)

I believe I'll send Starbucks an e-mail from the Land of Belle. I'll let you know if they respond!

Patience!!! Please?????

Carolina Girl from Lowcountry Fayes and Lisa from Pickles and Cheese. PLEASE bear with me. I have your prizes all bubble wrapped (that was last weekend's task) but have gone all week without boxing them up and sending them along. I've been putting in a few extra hours at work.

They will go in the mail on Monday morning WITHOUT fail.

Please tell me that you aren't completely irritated?

Round and Round We Go...The Circus (for real!)

I went to visit with mother this afternoon. Her dementia causes her to get into conversational "loops"...at least that's what I call them. There are generally three or four themes that she talks about over and over and over and over and (you get it) for an entire visit. To keep from screaming when she's on a theme for, say, the seventh time in half an hour, I've developed a little technique which, as it turns out, generally spins that theme out of the loop.

Let me say, here, that Hank doesn't always like my techniques BUT I don't always like how he deals with his mother so there you go...I happen to think that mother would approve. The more she "loops" the more agitated she gets. It can't feel good.

For example this afternoon the first theme was "do I have enough money to take a little trip...I'd like to see the beach one more time before I leave this earth." My answer for the first several rounds was "yes, you have enough money to take as many trips as you'd like...When the weather warms up we'll see about going to the beach." When I felt as though I might scream, my reply changed to "yes, you have enough money, although you're REALLY going to need to give me a time line for when you're going to leave this earth so that I can make plans." First Theme--CHECK

Second theme...mother announced that she's developed a bad habit of saying, "doggone it" when she can't find something or drops something etc. She doesn't believe this to be at all ladylike and needs to use another expression. (Apparently "golly doodlebugs" isn't working for her any longer.) My reply for awhile was, "oh my goodness." After several rounds of theme two, I suggested that she might substitute, "dammit" for "doggone it." She informed me in no uncertain terms that she'd never said that word IN HER ENTIRE LIFE and is not going to start now. And theme number two spins out of the loop. YES!

Third theme...I noticed when I arrived that she had a new little doodad in with her framed photographs. It was three or four inches tall and had "I Am Someone Special" written on top with a little verse below. After about five minutes she picked it up and said, "Did you see this? The lady who sat with me when I was sick brought it to me. I always show it to people when they come in because I don't want them thinking that I think that I'm special. I most certainly do NOT think that I am special and would never have purchased this for myself. It was a gift from someone ELSE who thinks that I'm special." My reply..."well wasn't that sweet of her."

Theme three X 5... My reply..."If it bothers you, why don't you put it in your bedroom where guests can't see it?" She didn't say another word about it, but put it right back in its place of honor where it will be noticed. AWAY with theme three!

I'm tired now! I drank a large Pepsi and ate a cheeseburger and french fries from a truck stop McDonalds on the way home. I don't even LIKE McDonalds. Do NOT judge me!


On a brighter note, Ned and his housemates are going to the CIRCUS in Columbia this week. He loves the circus and used to go every year until mother got where she didn't want to leave home. Think good thoughts for him, though, because he has a nasty cold!

Have a fabulous week!

Sleepy Heads

This morning when we got the mail there was a really cool letter from Clemson, so I called Lorelai. Naturally, she was still asleep even though it was almost lunchtime.

ME: Lorelai...WAKE UP....We got a letter notifying us that you made the Dean's List. I'm so proud of you..this is so exciting!!

LORELAI: (in a very sleepy voice) At Clemson???

ME: NO, at Notre Dame!!

(OK...so I didn't say "no, at Notre Dame" because I was still kind of sleepy, just having recently gotten up myself. Don't JUDGE ME! I had a big week!)

Oh MERCY!

I'm being a bad blogger and a worse giveaway sender. I PROMISE to get the prizes out this weekend. Since Tuesday night, my work world has turned upside down...in a GOOD way! I hit the ground running on Wednesday morning and haven't stopped. Got home this afternoon just in time to check e-mail, do this post, and change clothes before I have to run out again. I'm going to have BUNCHES of blogs to read this weekend and can hardly wait.

My Mysterious News

Last week, I interviewed for a new position within our organization. Even though I love the role I'm in, this was an opportunity that I just couldn't pass up. I was thrilled when I got a callback for Monday afternoon. Tonight, I was recommended to the school board and officially hired. Life is about to get VERY interesting and longer hours will become part of my routine starting now! My office will eventually move to a different location which means that the people I interact with on a daily basis (some for many years now) will be different. I'm going to miss a lot of people, but look forward to making new friends too.

Having said all that, I am flattered to have been chosen and BEYOND excited. I'll be able to hire a team of people and we'll work together to create something wonderful. I know I'm being vague but as an educator, I'm not comfortable putting too many details about my job on the old blog. If you want to know more just send me an e-mail (that I can reply to) and I'll tell you more about it one-on-one.

Whew...it had been a long time since I'd applied for a new job and the process was exhausting. Hank just looked at me and asked, "Aren't you happy?" My reply was, "Of course, I'm thrilled... but I'm also STUNNED!!! It's going to take awhile to sink in...

They liked me....they REALLY LIKED ME!!!

Counting Our Blessings

I don't talk much about Hank's side of the family...those stories are his to tell. I quite often tell you about MY mother, but the honest truth is that we have lots of ups and downs with his mother too.


I "take care of business" with mother, but as I recently mentioned, Hank doesn't always like my style. She is all set and enjoying life at Green Grove, but when she has one of her little spells, I take the approach that if you're going to act like a child then I'm going to treat you like a child, which apparently comes across sometimes as being impatient and hard hearted. Mother wasn't a very nurturing parent...she was a Betty Draper sort of mother (without the smoking, drinking and so forth), know what I mean? On the other hand, I didn't turn out half bad so I suppose she and daddy deserve credit for some of that! Our relationship is what it is. Hank is more kind and patient, both with his mother and mine. That must be why they like him better than me.

Hank's mother has survived breast cancer and quintuple bypass surgery. A couple of weeks ago, she fell at her nephew's house, crushed two vertebrae, and after three days in the hospital moved to rehab. They gave her some medications that made her loopy and we started getting phone calls like this...

Nurse: Sir...your mother is in the hall and she refuses to go into her room. Can you come talk to her?

Hank: Well, it's late. I was just there and now I'm home and I live more than an hour away. You're going to have to put her on the phone. (I pick up the extension)

She comes to the phone.

Hank: Mom, you need to go in your room and get ready for bed. You need your rest.

Hank's mom: If I go in that room, they are going to kill me.

Hank: No, they aren't going to kill you. Why would you say something like that?

Hank's mom: I KNOW what I KNOW and they're going to kill me!!!

He got the nurse back on the phone and told her there wasn't anything he could do. Two hours later when he called back to check on the situation, his mother was STILL out in the hall.

You've got to give it to her, she was sticking to her guns.

Hank's mother is back at home and the rehab people are coming to her. She's no longer afraid that people are trying to kill her. Our angel, Ann, who stayed with mother and Ned is helping out a few days a week until she truly gets back on her feet.

I'm so thankful that Hank's mother and my mother don't have spells at the same time. Like I said, they both have TIME but at least they don't have a time at the SAME time. For that, we really truly count our blessings!

Several Somebodies Have Won Prizes!!!

I gave that random number generator thingy a try and the winners for the giveaway have been chosen. I wrote that I had ten prizes while apparently there were only nine, BUT I'm adding an extra Starbucks card to make ten. We do NOT mislead our friends here in the Land of Belle. Just shoot me an e-mail (lifeofasouthernbelle@gmail.com) with your address and I'll get the prizes in the mail by the end of the week. After my mysterious activities are done...

Got a BIG old u-haul trailer in my driveway with things from mother's house that we don't have room for. Something tells me that we'll be making a trip out to the Treasure Barn next weekend with items for sale. I just heard about the new TV show, Horders, this week. Great balls of fire, I don't want to become one of those people!! I fear that I could be genetically predisposed after all of the JUNK we hauled away from mothers. I guess I'm probably NOT a horder, though, because we took thirty times more to the trash dump and Goodwill than we brought home.

Anyhow, I digress....THE WINNERS ARE...

$25 Target Gift Card- LYNETTE from Lynette's L.A.M Blog
$10 Starbucks Gift Card - TALES FROM MY EMPTY NEST
$10 Starbucks Gift Card - KAT from justabeachkat
$10 Starbucks Gift Card - PVE DESIGN
Lilly Shift Ornaments - BEVERLY from It's A Golden Day
DREAM sign - CAROLINA GIRL from Lowcountry Fayes
Cute Pink Dustpan, Brush, and Dish Towels - LISA from Pickles and Cheese
House on Tradd Street - MAUREEN from FamilyLifeBurbsNY
The Overnight Socialite - SHERRIE from My Life with Boys
Someday You'll Thank Me for This - BECKY from Ya Ya's Funhouse

....and finally...to my friend Bill who featured my blog in a class that he is teaching. Your number didn't come up but I'm going to bring you a surprise anyhow! I need to bring Ed one too for helping us yesterday in Hometown.

Hank and I are now going to unload the U-Haul...

This and That

The giveaway is officially closed. Good luck everybody. I'll be pulling the names out of the hat on Sunday night, so stay tuned.

Tomorrow we're headed to Hometown bright and early to collect the last few things from mother's house. It's the end of an era. My parents built the house and moved in just after I was born in 1961. Lots of memories! We'll get a cleaning service in for the carpets and so forth next week and hopefully have it ready to show by February 1. Hometown isn't exactly a hubbub of activity these days so I'm not real optimistic about a quick sale. Maybe we'll get lucky.

Interesting week at work...might have something to tell you about toward the middle of next week.

Mysterious, yes?

Finally, remember this framed poster than we got Lorelai for Christmas?

Well, Legare sent this little jewel to me this week. Funny, isn't it?

You can't choose your family....or CAN you????

Sometimes family relationships in the south aren't what they seem. Take for instance, my Aunt Sookie. Sookie isn't really my aunt, she's my daddy's 80 year old cousin and my second cousin, therefore I call her "aunt." If you aren't from the south, don't try to make sense of it. It'll just make your head hurt.

Sookie never married and let me TELL you, it takes a village!!! Unfortunately, what with all of the hullabaloo of getting mother and Ned settled and their house cleaned out, I've not been as attentive as I might otherwise have been. Sookie is very fortunate to have good neighbors, friends, and other family who check in regularly.

Anytime you go by, there is ALWAYS something that's "lost." Monday, I located a long lost key to her carport storage room in an old cherry Sucrets tin with four marbles, used twist ties from bread bags, rubber bands, and a Buffalo nickel. Yay for me, now I apparently get the honor of going back and cleaning out said storage room.

Sookie adores family photographs and has them displayed all over. Many are of loved ones who have gone on to their great reward, but those of us still kicking are represented too. It's always an adventure to see which photos she's moved where around the house, not to mention looking for the ones that are "lost."

As I walked around a corner the other day, I did a double take when I saw this previously undisplayed photo hanging on the wall in a lovely gold frame...

How often do you reckon Dolly stops by???

Perhaps SHE could clean out the storage room...

Giveaway Time

For no particular reason, I feel compelled to have a little giveaway. Some folks have a few entries banked from responding to previous posts. You may respond to this post anytime between now and Friday at 5 PM Charleston, South Carolina time. If you want to share about the giveaway with others on your blog just let me know and I'll throw in a couple of extra entries. No pressure...only if you want to. Lots of times I want to but don't have time to...

There are a number of prizes....

A Target gift card in the amount of $25

Two Starbucks gift scards in the amounts of $10

A cutsie pie little clean up brush and dust pan and Valentine dish towels

Three fabulous books, gently ready by yours truly but in practically perfect shape.

This nifty DREAM sign to sit on a shelf....and a set of three sweet Lilly shift ornaments for springtime decorating. I think that comes out to ten, count them, TEN prizes. Let the fun begin!!!

Okey dokey then...

Tomorrow we start the GIVEAWAY!

I'm thankful to say that my hair has quit hurting. I believe I will survive. Thanks so much for all of the kind comments. They made me smile!! I started feeling alive again on Saturday morning which was good because I needed to accomplish a few things over the long weekend.

1. We can check off the cleaning and organizing of the living room and dining room. Easy peasy since they were neither dirty nor messy. Hank moved some pictures, touched up some paint here and there, and I added reupholstering the 25 year old camelback sofa to my "to do" list.

2. I organized all of my files for mother's and Ned's business dealings and piddled around in the downstairs "study." We'll need to work on that again next weekend, but I already know to add a new rug and window treatment to the "to do" list. Tomorrow we are going to mother's house to try to clean out a few more things. We need to get it on the market.

3. Speaking of the "to do" list, Hank and I had a little, shall we say, DISCUSSION, about said list since he has one of his own that starts with replacing our windows, replacing our back deck, and planning for the demise of a heat pump. He suggested that his list is the REAL "to do" list and that my list is really a "want to do" list. I'm pouting.

4. I wrote and addressed letters to 15 students who have just been accepted to Clemson, encouraging them to accept the wonderful opportunity that they've earned. The letter campaign is a task that members of the Clemson University Parents' Council take on each year. It's a fun thing to do. When Legare got accepted to Law School at UNC, he got a phone call. These special touches are nice, don't you think?

Tune in tomorrow for the giveaway!!!

Hair....

So, not only does my hair still hurt, but I just caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I have clown hair....it's sticking up all over my head. Last night, I thought that washing my hair might make me feel better. I didn't do a thing to it...no conditioner, no mousse, just shampoo and then I put the hair dryer to it...no brush, THEN got in the bed. SO...I have clown hair and don't feel compelled to do anything AT ALL about it. (photo from google images)

Here's another good thing about blogging...even when you're sick and have clown hair, you're not lonely. I visited with a whole bunch of blog buddies this morning and was thoroughly entertained. It's time for some motrin now...maybe some ear drops...ice cream might make my throat feel better...

I'm still posting my GIVEAWAY on Monday. And I owe Froggity a post from a recent tag. Not to mention, I really need to be feeling better by tomorrow because we're supposed to do a deep clean on another room in the house. I changed my mind about the master bedroom and bath. We're going to get in the downstairs study. It's the equivalent of the upstairs closet room...i.e., a catchall room. I'm starting to get our business, Ned's business, and Mother's business all mixed up. I need to make the study into the organized office space it's supposed to be.

Later, my friends....

Oh the best laid plans...

I've been a poster girl for doing all the right things to keep from getting sick or spreading germs. Sneezing into my elbow, washing my hands ALL the time...I wasn't supposed to get sick. I ignored the slight sore throat and little twinges in my ears for two days. I even got up this morning and went to work (after which I promptly called and made an appointment with the doctor). I was NOT supposed to get sick...

But I am...Not the flu, but an awful ear infection and probably strep throat. After looking in my ears, the doctor decided to forego the strep test since the treatment would be the same as for the ears. Considering the swabbing for the flu test, I was just as happy not to have them do the swabbing of the sore throat.

My hair hurts...

Meetings and Granite Countertops

I'm home...it's cold...I want to take a hot bath and put on my pajamas, but NO!! It's school board meeting night. I don't GENERALLY mind going to school board meetings, except when it's raining or cold or both. I should just stay at the office and work right though, but it takes me less than 10 minutes to get home and taking a little break is nice...except when it is raining or cold or both.

I do believe I neglected to mention that Lorelai is all settled in her new apartment with her new (YAY YAY HIP HIP HURRAY!!!!!!) roommates. There are three other girls, all seniors, who are just as sweet as can be. Each girl has her own private bedroom AND bathroom. The kitchen has granite countertops.

This is NOT how it went when I was in college back in the early '80's. Hardly anybody at my sweet southern all girl college ever moved out of the dorm and into an apartment. There were always four girls in a suite sharing a bathroom. I believe there was a sad little kitchen area in each dorm basement but it was scary down there. Shoot, my freshman year we didn't even have air conditioning. Times sure enough have changed.

God was good to us. We'd reconciled ourselves to the fact that Lor was going to have to tough out the unfortunate roommate situation in the dorm for the remainder of the year. THEN...this apartment opportunity fell into our collective lap at a football game tailgate party. She went over to look at it the next afternoon and signed the lease the day after that. We moved her in Monday a week ago.

Legare is jealous because his apartment in Chapel Hill does not sport granite countertops. Life can be hard son...life can be hard...

There Will Be No Mocking Today!

We're proud! Hank and I got in our closet room on Saturday morning and did what we had to do. While he tackled the baseboards, inside of the windows, floor, and ceiling fan. I went though boxes, and bags, and clothes baskets and ALL manner of junk that had found its way in there over the past couple of years. The chair is going to consignment.


When we built our house, we took some space out of this fourth bedroom so that our master bath could be larger. We then used the room as the nursery and a playroom. When Legare and Lorelai to all grown up, we decided to turn it into a big closet...somewhere for extra clothes, shoes, bags, the ironing board, and so forth. We didn't plan on a bunch of junk too, but OH well!

We ended up with bags and BAGS for trash, recycling, Goodwill, and the Treasure Barn, our favorite consignment shop, which is located out in one of the more rural areas of our county in an old store.

PLUS, we ended up with another "to do" list, but shoot, I always have one. We still need to repaint and replace the sad looking curtains I grabbed in a hurry one hot summer day as the sun was beating in and making our upstairs into a sauna. The windows also need to be cleaned on the outside, but that is DEFINITELY a job for a warm spring day. And the lamp needs a new shade.

Now...what to tackle NEXT weekend??? I'm thinking the master bedroom and bath...