Last weekend, when I spent some time with my mom in Dallas, we were trying to analyze why I don’t seem to have a lot of spare time. To tell you the truth, I couldn’t really pin point what I do all day besides clean up kitchen messes and straighten up ..and pay bills..and teach school..and blog of course (in my spare time whatever THAT is).
This morning I got up unusually early at 6:00 am…but I don’t know why. I guess I had a little too much hot tea the night before. I finished my post about the aprons that Rebekah and I had made the day before, got ready for the day, and Jacob and I headed out to the college in the rental car I’m driving while my Neon’s bumper is being replaced. It was a really gorgeous day..crisp..clear..and cold.
Poor Jacob was pretty anxious because we didn’t get out the door quite as fast as we needed too. I’m driving the SPEED LIMIT..because I’ve had TWO warnings in one week. Add two fender benders in TWO weeks (I wasn’t involved either time)..and I’m like a cat in a room full of rockers. So late or not..I’m taking it easy. :o) 7:56 a.m. I dropped Jacob off for his Biology class and lab at the gorgeous new college campus that has been built only 15 minutes from our house. He had good reason to worry. The professor locks the door for safety reasons at 8:00am on the dot. I’ll be so glad when Jacob gets his license!
I realized, about half way to the college, that I had left the suit bag that my son, Andrew wanted to borrow to use on his trip to his interview in Oregon, in the truck back home. Rebekah was supposed to drop it off the day before while in the neighborhood but forgot. So after dropping Jacob off, I drove back home, grabbed the bag, and headed back to Magnolia still trying to be VERY careful about my speed. :o)
Why all the way back to Magnolia (45 min. drive) ? To alter those suit pants I mentioned earlier this week, of course. Andrew had to buy a new suit for the interview but he couldn’t find pants that really fit. It costs a LOT to get suit pants altered. I think that’s silly. It took me 30 minutes to do a perfectly decent job. Thank goodness, I had already altered some men’s dress slacks for someone at church, so I had some previous experience. It is quite a job to understand how to change the seat area of a pair of pants. He was leaving in just a few hours for the airport, so it was today..or never.
I didn’t get to start sewing right away though, because my granddaughter was sick when I arrived at 9:00am. Andrew was on the phone with the pediatrician trying to figure out if Lena was reacting to the sudden lack of steroids she had been taking for pneumonia or was it a bug (Mom confirmed that the other kids at nursery had the bug too so it was probably a bug.). I went to get Lena, the 2 yr.old who had been sick all night. We gave her a bath as she was still a little messy from the night’s mishaps. Andrew, Mr. Casual Mom, said, “You can sew now Mom—just leave her in the tub. She loves playing in there.” Ok..I’ve never done that myself, but I’ll try it. Next thing I know, she’s frantic. We had a little ‘accident’ in the tub.
Andrew was still on the phone with the pediatrician and Ebeth, so I got her all cleaned up (Ebeth was at her morning college class), cleaned out the tub as best I could, and got Lena dressed. She was asking for food, so I tried a little apple sauce. She didn’t want me to put her down..because she was feeling so sick. So I left the sewing machine, and held her for awhile. She threw up on me, poor thing, but I was prepared with a large towel and a small bowl. ( I had a feeling that applesauce wasn’t going to last too long!) Andrew got her set up watching a Veggie Tales movie. She NEVER gets to watch movies and she was just mesmerized! She’s such a cutie!
That freed me up to sew Andrew’s pants… It was a little embarrassing..even if I AM ‘Mom”. But he was pretty stoic..we had to get those pants pinned one way or another. I guess if it has to be anybody, it might as well be Mom as some stranger. Ha! Eventually, I had to leave Andrew with the babies, because Jacob would be out of class at 10:50. I felt so bad leaving him with all of this, but he seemed quite content and confident. Amazingly..our kids really do grow up someday!
Off I went to get son #4 leaving son #2 very grateful for his altered suit pants. I had forgotten my cell phone, so I parked and went to wait for Jacob in the atrium seating area. When he came down the stairs, he hooked my arm with a grin and said, “Hello Mom! What’s up?? “ He gave me a big hug as we walked out the door of the college to the car. Of course, he wanted to drive me, but I wasn’t sure that was ‘kosher ‘with the rental car, so I didn’t let him that time.
We got home as quick as we could, had a long discussion with Dad about some family issues..which I won’t go into –Ha! Then I gave Jacob his promised hair cut which was very important for a debate tournament. He was getting ready to leave for Dallas at 4pm with another Mom and her daughter and it was now 1:30pm. I tried getting back to school work with Christian but Jacob got a call from the recruiter saying..”Where was the finished application for the Texas Army National Guard? This online form is MILES long! My grammar lesson with Christian was constantly being interrupted with, “When did I start high school? Where did we live in 1994? Have I ever been x-rayed..(yes)..who was my doctor?” Where have we lived for the last 15 years… (Shall I start counting?) OMGoodness!! I thought I was going to lose my mind!
Here he is trying to get ready for a weekend debate trip, and he hadn’t finished this meticulous application. So the questions begin.. “Are we closely related to any foreign nationals? Yes, my daughter-in-law, Elisabeth from Germany. Have we left the country? Yes, Germany. What dates?” You should have seen me scrambling for ticket stubs from our Germany trip, test papers and transcripts, old addresses. Jacob had to call just about everyone we knew trying to get addresses, references, and dates. But I’ve been through this before..with Matthew. It’s all about security. I don’t think we need ever worry about our nation’s security at least as far as military servicemen are concerned. They literally leave no stone unturned!
All afternoon, Christian, my 16 yr.old, was peppering me with a whole different set of questions…” Mom--how do you spell inordinate? Mom can you come see this Daphne—It’s eating the rotifers..Eeew! Yuck! Hey mom, I think we need to feed the rotifers and bacteria in my fish tank. They’re eating each other all up. I’m going to lose the whole colony! (There are no living fish in it at the moment, so Christian is growing bacteria instead.) I’m not kidding--For real. I suggested pond fish food..so he ran off and happily ‘fed’ the bacteria. He’s also growing mold on cheese on a plate in his room. I’ve offered several pieces of molding cheese from the fridge, but he keeps rejecting them. He wants to grow his mold HIMSELF. I’m convinced that all school labs need a fridge. It’s the absolute perfect environment for growing mold!
At 5:00 pm, Jacob finally has to leave with Tim who is on the A/C committee (financial church committee) and meets at 6:00pm before the once a month men’s meeting which starts at 7:00pm in Magnolia. Between Jacob, Tim, and my friend Peggy, we get a coordinated meeting time and place I45 about 40 minutes away and finally two more family members are out the door.
In the midst of all the chaos, I couldn’t help thinking about my daughter and what she was doing at that moment. Rebekah was at my friend, Laurie’s lovely home, having ‘tea’ and planning a flower garden. Sigh.. She would be spending the night at Laurie’s and then go straight to work as a hostess at Chili’s the next day. It’s only five minutes from Laurie’s house. Tea…gardening..sounds so lovely right about now…
Suddenly, the quiet sets in. It’s 5 pm. Tim and Jacob ate snacks before they left, but I need to have dinner ready when Tim get’s home which will be late. So I start beef stew…but I have no interest in eating. Whatever in the world is wrong with me? I assure you this is NOT normal! We do some chores and get things tidied up. I never really got ANYTHING on my to do list done today, except the haircut and the pants mended.
Then I start feeling really cold. This doesn’t make sense. I’m pretty certain that I’m pre-menopausal..so all I EVER feel is HOT. I’m hot natured in the first place and 72 is almost always too warm for me. We keep the temp at 72 in the winter. Our house is poorly insulated, so if we turn it any higher..we pay through the nose! I turn it up to 74…and still shiver. I feel so blahh… Christian is quietly playing a computer game. I go ahead and finish tomorrow’s post, way early…just because I don’t feel in the mood to do anything else. Which is so strange…I smile even though I’m so tired because the comments were so sweet. :O)
By 7:00pm my energy level gets even worse. Usually I’m getting things done right up until 10pm when I either watch a movie with family or write a post. Now, I try to watch a movie with Christian just because I don’t seem to have the ummph to do anything else... Castaway--Wow—this is NOT what I want to see…cold..miserable…stressful..then hot. I can’t even relate to the hot part. LOL! I put on slippers, and socks, and a warm long-sleeved shirt and wrap up in two quilts on the couch. Oh..gee..I finally get it…I’m sick and have a fever….and then those familiar cramps start up.
I’m supposed to babysit the grandkids the next two days in the morning..but I think I’ve caught that flu bug from them. I call Ebeth about 9:30pm and tell her the bad news. She’s very sweet and encouraging. Calling her early gave her time to find a substitute. And then I conk over on the couch and just lay there. Dear Christian, who has a heart of gold, brings me more blankets, EmergenC drinks, aspirin, etc. He has such a servant’s heart. There is no chore or task he will not cheerfully do. He takes care of me for the rest of the evening. Good boy!
By the time Tim get’s home at 10:00pm, I’m feeling a little better due to the medications kicking in and we all snuggle on the couch and watch half of “It’s a Wonderful Life” together. Percy is laying in my lap keeping me warm and enjoying the rare privilege of being on the couch (on a blanket) because he’s normally banned from it. Finally..I go to bed, because I’ve had it—we’ll have to finish this movie tomorrow. It’s so funny and heart-warming, that I go to bed dreaming sweet dreams. Tomorrow, now, that's another story! I KNOW I have the stomach flu..so I guess I’ll be on the couch all day…still…
It really is a wonderful life…
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