Spring Break St. Simons

A new tradition was born this year: During Spring Break of my daughters senior year of high school, she and I will go off together on our own little vacation. Indy and I decided to hit the Georgia coast so we could swing by her university on the way back and she could do a Day & Night with a student to be more familiar with what lies ahead and get some questions on my little list taken care of. I don't think she she did that though! C'mon, how hard is it to open the desk drawers and measure them with your hands so I will know what size organizer to buy?!
Note to self: Not sure about this "Two birds with one stone" stuff. We should have chosen the Florida gulf coast where I believe they got a tad more sun and warm weather and just spent more time together than trying to be productive at the same time as vacationing. I do hate that tendency I have. But, when you plan something a couple months in advance, you don't know the weather will be uncooperative for your little window of time. So our beach trip turned into more of a spa trip and everything that we planned to do for morning was pushed to afternoon or to evening, if we went outside to sit in the sun, it rained, if we planned to go out for breakfast we ended up waiting for dinner to eat...that sort of thing. It was weird. We made the best of it, but it was starting to get just a little old by the time we arrived at Mercer and our "luck" was still with us. Indy's host ended up no-showing, we waited 45 minutes for them to scrounge one up and got the tour guide we hated from our previous trip, and then the other great idea I had to finagle a face t0 face interview instead of the phone interview for this Service Scholars thing Indy is trying out for worked, but we had a 6 hr wait from the time her Day & Night deal was over before the interview took place. Argh! We went to the mall, went out for lunch, and napped in the car until it was finally time. The interview went great though. Our drive home was much better than the drive out and we made it home before the storm system moved in the next day dropping tornados along the areas we had just driven through.

Not a lot of photos from St. Simons, but here they are!

After we arrived the Monsoon abated somewhat &

we loved our room with the view of the ocean!

The next morning we headed out for a walk on the beach

to look for seashells.

Surprisingly there were next to none, but instead

several of these jelly fish, some intact and others...ewww, not so much

Indy liked this little crab and his sideways crab tracks

Our hotel back there

I liked this walkway and door to nowhere
It seemed like a great photo op to me until I
realized there was a cup of who knows what right there!

A really cool ocean river
it made a big giant horseshoe along the beach
like a rainbow and the current was pretty swift
It was very windy!

We went to Halyards for our fancy night out

they were supposed to have crab but didn't

Luckily we still had one more night to find

crab legs and struck gold at Crabdaddy's!

The day we left, the weather was starting

to improve. Figures!

Blown Away By St. Simons

So, Indy and I drove through a small hurricane to arrive at St. Simons Island, Georgia last night. It was a long 9 hr drive due to some traffic, and detours, both planned and unplanned. Then the deluge hit and we drove from Atlanta to the coast in a torrential downpour. It was one of the worst driving experiences of my life. There were times I literally could not see the road and could barely make out the car in front of me. Turns out the wipers on the silver volvo need to be replaced. They were seriously not up to the task.

This morning Indy and I took a very nice walk on the beach. I hoped we'd find some neat seashells. Well, we found several dead jellyfish instead. Virtually no shells at all. Weird, huh?! We took a couple photos but there doesn't seem to be a memory card thingy on the hotel's computer I'm using.

As soon as we showered and dressed - the day was looking gloomy again, we planned to go get pedicures and eat and hope for sun when we returned - the sun came out! It was decently warm and humid, so we threw on our suits as fast as we could, rushed down to the patio in front of the ocean and the second we got there, big black thunderclouds rolled in and rain drops started falling. We laughed and put everything away and went back to go get dressed again and go back to Plan A.

As soon as we left to get lunch and a pedi, the sun came back out. No joke. I was annoyed then. But we were hungry and so we did not fall for it a second time and run to change back into suits.

We had a nice lunch, got our pedi's, and returned to the hotel to find blue skies and sun, and WIND!! Like you would not believe. Sunbathing in F1 force winds is something else. Indy was battling her towel which kept flying into her face even though she was lying on it. Our flip flops and water bottles were blown away and had to be chased down. It was interesting. But we got almost 2 hrs of sun before we couldn't take the wind chill.

So we've decided since the Beach Trip is apparently out, we're turning this into a Spa trip. The agenda tonight is massages and we're going to a nice restaurant for late night dinner of Soft Shell Blue Crab if they have it (I haven't had that before - it's seasonal and I have no idea when that season is!) and Indy's going for a lb of Snow Crab Legs. That's why we're eating so late - so we are really hungry!

It's Only A Car

We got the '02 Volvo on Tuesday for a great price! Horrible interest rate, but that made the price go down again and we're refinancing it through our credit union at a low interest rate anyway, so yippee! No more juggling cars and drivers!

We have options! SAFE OPTIONS!!

So I debated on the title of this post:

1) Silver & Gold

because now we have two Volvo S60's: silver '05 and the "new" ash gold one pictured here.

2) "Look! No Grandma Tires!"

because Indy didn't like some of the tires on the older models we saw and called them Grandma Tires. She was happy when she saw this car didn't have nasty tacky old-style wheels. Gib also likes the wheels. I like the tinted windows.

3) It's Only a Car

the winning third quote comes from Taryn who, when Indy was vocalizing her hope that we didn't buy a car with Grandma Tires, replied something to the effect of "It's only a car, Indy".

On Wednesday when they came home from school, I anxiously awaited their arrival so I could ask the all important questions- how was school? and did you like the new car? Taryn emphatically stated said she HATES it and I'm pretty sure she wasn't referring to school. Hey, it's a great car considering what we paid for it!

I think she liked the car more when she didn't think she'd be driving it. Somehow Taryn didn't get the memo that she'd be driving this from now on, Mike would get the truck back, and I'd get the silver Volvo the girls have had the privilege of being spoiled with. Yeah, it's not quite as smooth of a ride, and yeah, it is a serious downgrade not having heated seats, but other than that, it's basically the same car except the interior is beige leather instead of charcoal gray. Oh, and should you have a cassette, you could alternate your CD's with cassettes! Whoo-hooo! And you have to, get this, dial a knob to change radio channels unless you use the controls on the steering wheel which is what we use anyway. It's a funny combination of technology meets blast from the past.

Indy on the other hand, really likes it, which is good because that means she'll be more likely to take it when she's ready for a vehicle in college. This one didn't have the sports pkg which means the seats are slightly different and Indy actually finds them more comfy. If only they were heated, right?! Well, when you're a poor college student, you're lucky if your car has heat and air-conditioning!

So, in the end, I think she couldn't wait to tell Taryn,

"C'mon, it's only a car!"

If Only

So we found a Volvo, not quite as inexpensive as some of the others we've looked at in person and online, but it's waaay nicer too. This one is at the Volvo dealership which is worth a little more to me because they check the vehicle a little more thoroughly. It's at the tippy top of our price range so it all depends on the news we receive today on the interest rates. We have to keep in mind that Indy may be taking over payments at some point in the future and because it's an '02 you have to go with a 36 month loan, possibly a 48 if Volvo can come through with something. If we get it, we're putting Indy on the loan as well so she can start building good credit. Indy and Taryn had to swing by and exchange cars with us so Taryn could go to soccer and they got to see it. They liked the looks of it - Indy was glad it didn't have "grandma tires" like some of the others we were looking at online did...so think happy Volvo thoughts today!

Oh, and that rescheduled soccer game that T got to play in?! She took a real bruiser of an elbow in the ribs from a giant that normally would've knocked her flat, but she managed to stay on her feet and went on to score a goal! And she just missed scoring another one by only 2 inches. Her team won. Go T!!!!!

The Weekend

On Friday night I was up at church for enrichment night. A lurking migraine that I was trying to push off until I got home erupted full force and I had to bail before it ended. I went straight for the big guns and did the nasal spray while I was driving home, but I had waited a tad too long and it had a good grip on me. I was annoyed with myself because I realized I hadn't eaten lunch or dinner, and with a storm coming in the next day, that was the clincher. By the time you figure it out, there's no way you can eat because you're about to hurl. Mariah saw me briefly when I walked through the laundry room and straight to my bed and my last conscious thought was "I wonder if Mike even knows I'm home. Maybe I text him...ugh, he'll figure it out". I don't know when it was that he did, he said something to me. I woke up at midnite and he was on the couch so as not to make the waterbed slosh which has disastrous results. Since the worst had passed, it was safe for him to come to bed. Whew!

On Saturday, we had to get up early. Gib was going to try to go hiking - everyone was to carry 10 lbs and we were weighing his textbooks to see how much they weighed. It had rained and was really wet out there, but c'mon, they're Boy Scouts! This ain't Baseball - there aren't rain-outs! They left at 6:30 a.m. and returned at 7:15 a.m. because nobody else showed up at the Barn to go hiking. I guess it rained out after all. Wimps.

Taryn had to get up early for her ACT practice test, but at least her soccer game was cancelled! Yay! That's two so far that she'll get to play in that she would have missed. And I had an all day workshop to attend with 4 other ladies from my preschool. We were meeting to carpool there at 7:30 a.m. That was a bit brutal. But I made it. Once I got some enhanced Crystal Light in me and managed to choke down a power bar, I knew I was going to be okay. I think the Topamax is doing its job, because that migraine was a Mega but I only took the nasal spray and a Clint Cocktail in the morning to knock it out. That's about 3 or 4 fewer doses less than previous Mega's would have taken. The workshop was half good and half c'mon people I got up early for this?!

Indy didn't have to get up early, but she did work...ALL DAY! The restaurant parking lot was totally filled when I drove by on my way home. She served the lunch shift, and then was asked to stay on as a hostess because they had been on a wait all day and I think somebody had to go home and they needed someone really good at seating folks and managing the flow of customers. Indy had 3 rooms that she was in charge of while the other hosts had one, maybe two. I don't remember exactly when she got home, but it was after 9 pm. In all that time, she had one 10 minute break.

By afternoon we were in a Tornado Watch. By the time I got home we were in a Tornado Warning. Remember my motto: Bigger Word Bigger Problem! Mariah and I got the cats in, but forgot to lock the kitty door, and Pixie went right back out. We worked and worked to talk Pixie out from under the deck as giant thunderheads rolled in, ranging from white to gray to black. I could see a wall cloud off to the west with fingertip clouds coming down from it and hoped that was the storm line that news was saying had the rotation in it. But nevertheless, just as I was going to call it and let Pixie fend for herself, she came out. We had a little talk on the deck while I was pretending I didn't want to scoop her up and then I scooped her up! It wasn't even raining yet, but it didn't take long for the rain to hit followed by a nice Spring thunderstorm.

Then Mariah and I got the tornado closet cleaned out. It was dubbed The Closet Of No Return when we moved in because everything got dumped in it until we decided where it would go, and sometimes it seemed like once it went in there it was never seen again. It is a nice sized long skinny closet under the stairs that if you really needed to, say in a tornado, you could get 6 people in it. If everyone is here, and we can't all fit in the tornado closet, we can also go into the half bath right across the hall. Mostly you want to be in a small enclosed space, in the interior of your home without any windows. It'd be great if we could get into the Man Cave without going outside because that would be the absolute safest; and I would under two conditions: 1) my head was about to explode - a sure sign the pressure is jumping and there is imminent danger and 2) the storm report spots one on the ground and says hey, it's headed straight for you! My head was fine, so we just prepared the tornado closet so it would be ready for Spring! By the time we got it all cleaned out the warning was over. Now we are prepared for the next one, and we won't need 20 minutes to get inside the closet!

Mariah wanted me to share some photos from her camera she got for her b-day. This is her first Volleyball game from two Saturday's ago. She had one last Saturday too. I didn't get to go, but she says they won. It was a bit of a struggle and the coach wasn't happy that people didn't arrive 20 minutes early for warm-ups. I thought for sure with my early-bird hubbie that Mariah was one of the 3 who made it, but she said Nope. What?! Did everyone go back to bed?!?! .

The first point for us

The first huddle of the season

The end of the first game

We had a few daffodils in the yard for Emily's birthday

The cats helped me pick them

It's a Two-fer

So, while I was incommunicado those past couple weeks, a couple really nice things happened that I wanted to share. One was that our niece Mickie visited Emily's grave for us last week which meant the world to me. She sent a photo and everything. Emily would have been 12 this year. So sweet of her to do that for us, especially considering she is expecting a baby! You don't see that kind of selfless giving very often. It's always a bittersweet time for me and the world goes on but for me it's like moving through mud in slow motion. It really brightened the week for me, so thanks Mickie!

Another nice thing that happened last week was when Fred did something really sweet for me. I was getting my hair cut, so I wore my new red shoes I found in Florida the day before Fred's wedding because I knew Lori would flip over them. My hairdresser was chatting away and then she spotted them and froze, then she goes, "where did you get those?". So I smiled and announced, "Florida!". She would have ripped them off my feet and made me leave with a nice hairdo and barefoot, but luckily for me she wears a size 10. (wow, that's a big foot, huh?!). So, anyway, she was so enamored of my red shoes, and I was too, that I decided to call the store where I bought them and see if she could order them over the phone and have them shipped. They said NO. So I asked if they would hold them because their price was about $20 cheaper than anything online and then I called & emailed Fred and asked if he would go get them and mail them to me. He did - what a sweet guy! Of course he played golf first, but we forgive him for that. When I called Lori over the next couple days, she never said hello, she just answered the phone going, "do you find my shoes?" & "did Fred go get my shoes?" and "are you coming over with my shoes?". It was really funny. But, Lori and I just LOVE Fred and our red shoes! By the way, the dentist did too, but I told her there was only room for two pairs of these red shoes in my town.

Doing Our Thing

Well, you know it's bad when one of your lurkers calls you on the phone and wonders why there hasn't been a blog in nearly 2 weeks! I had to point out that the title of the blog isn't Ringo's Wife but Ringo's World and he called the wrong number and should be talking to his son!!! Good thing his son was right there to hear that! That was funny - thanks for lighting a fire under Mike...you'll never know when it might take! And you know what, I'm surprised Mike hasn't blogged to tell you all about his great night of poker and his lucky new poker table! It's very nice and he didn't even have to pay for it in the end - as a matter of fact, I even got $60! Yep, it was another work guys poker night at our house and Mike won! Gib was thrilled he got to play too even though his dad took him out. The next night Mike took me out....to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.

Here's one of Gib's paintings from his 8th grade Art class. His first ever. He did pretty good, dontcha think?!

Taryn has been hard at work on the ACT prep class and is taking the final class & practice test this weekend. The following Saturday she takes the ACT test for real and then she takes it again for real in school on 4/22. I sure hope she has been as diligently studying as I have been diligently nagging. It sure is alot of hardwork...for both of us! We've started the college search process and I've already logged in several hours this week alone in that endeavor.

Mariah sadly experienced some bullying at school. It makes me see red and I feel so bad for her. She did get to see the fearsome Mama Bear emerge though. That's always a sight to behold. Well, she knows she's loved and her family is in her corner and nobody wants to mess with her mama! I am actually looking forward to Mariah getting into middle school because the drama level goes down when it's not one group of 20+ all day and everyone changes classes each period.

Indy is now serving all the time when she works and not hostessing at all anymore. She was kind of bummed at first because she liked doing both, but now she likes it. One cool leftover from being a "slash" employee for so long - when she was a runner the other night her base pay was as a hostess instead of the measly server wage! She is starting to really rock the serving job too and her tips are getting better and better. Indy is always in the top rankings and last night came home with the news that she moved up from her previous highest ranking at #4 to #2 of all the servers there for last month!

I have started another search for a 2002-2006 Volvo. I actually found the perfect vehicle on my first day of going "hmmmm, I think I will look to see if there's a cheap Volvo out there" but it happened so fast that we wanted to think on it overnight and lost out. Oh well, we're in no hurry. It'll happen if it's meant to be. The van has really kinda had it. Mike thinks one more repair before we send it to the gallows, but even then, we've got a bit of a conundrum here between cars and drivers, and cars that our drivers can actually drive. So the plan is that if we can find a Volvo cheap enough it will make the summer soooo much easier and then when Indy is ready she can take over the remaining loan if she wants it. Or Taryn can do the same when she goes off to college and if Indy takes that Volvo, we'll hunt up another pre-owned cheapie for Taryn. Then we'll be back at the drawing board for Gib. We might still try one more time on the van so we have it as a backup vehicle, but it will never go far. That last family trip to St. Augustine was its final hurrah.