Trek

Today the high school  has a senior picnic and a panoramic photo of everyone in their college destination apparel. I was excited about it because that gave us a deadline to meet, and now I'm excited because the decision has been made! 

Another decision is looming - the Philmont Trek. Which one will it be? Last night, the Scouts gave a ranking of 5 treks in order of preference. Oh, and more good news, Gib's crew is stacked with strong backpackers and even the adults will be able to handle the most extreme trails! He is going to have an amazing time.  check out for a description of the treks and if you are so inclined, vote for the one you think they should do... there's a map and stuff on the site.   www.philmontscoutranch.org

Their TOP 5 - choices will be submitted to Philmont and we'll hear back which one it is.

1. Trek 33

2. Trek 31

3. Trek 30

4. Trek 32

5. Trek 27

INSERT: Email from adult crew leader this morning.

You know what they say…..be careful what you wish for.  We got our first choice. 

Indie is also in the middle of decision time - Washington University -St. Louis accepted her. It's #1 in the nation for her masters and it's also the most expensive. She is waiting anxiously to hear about financial aid. It may trump University of Tennessee if they give her enough. Otherwise, it's a pretty expensive option and she'll have to do some research to see if there is a benefit for her to go there over UT.

Mariah got her permit on Monday. We took the day off school and actually left at 7:30 and didn't get back home until 3:30. Three doctor appointments, the DMV, brunch at IHOP, and a little shopping. We found one pair of shorts at Platos and we succumbed and bought our first pair of TOMS. Gib got shoes too. Mariah, always thinking of her brother, said that with full tuition at BSC, the dude ought to get something as a congratulatory prize. We liked that so we did it.

He's IN!

Gib was accepted to all the colleges he applied to, I think the total was 8 - but one stood out for several reasons, the nicest of which was an offer that equaled full tuition!  After much deliberation and a final two campus overnight visits...

the dude accepted admission to 

BIRMINGHAM SOUTHERN COLLEGE!

Right after he sent an email to his admission counselor with his decision he got a reply.  About an hour later he received another email from the director of admissions. That was followed by email from the President of the University, who greeted him by name when we arrived on campus, and who rushed back over to shake Gib's hand when he heard Gib was an Eagle Scout.  He is loved by all and called The General - (see the link) who is hands down the first college President who takes the time to greet you. He and his wife lived in freshman dorms the first semester and he didn't take any pay for the first 2 years he was Pres. This begins his 3rd year with BSC. He is a very inspiring leader and it has a positive effect on everyone. I've never been on a friendlier campus - from the campus police, admissions, and even the caf chef Cecil who welcomed Gib as he was driving home for the day - it really makes you feel like you are one of the family. On top of all that, it is a top ranked University and their graduates are highly sought after.  I know Gib is going to love it there. It makes sending him off to college a little easier. And he's only 3 hrs away. That will be great too.

I'm sharing his congratulatory emails because I think it shows what a cool place this is!

Gib,

That is fantastic news!!!  I am so happy to hear it!  Welcome to the BSC family, my friend!

You have an amazing journey ahead of you, and I am thrilled that I will get to see it up close.  The Hilltop is very blessed to have you!

It sounds like you have done everything necessary to confirm your enrollment.  If you need anything at all, just let me know.  

Have a wonderful Easter weekend, and my blessings to your family!

John

Great news, Gib! As John said, welcome to the BSC family! It was so great meeting you and your folks and visiting with you all last week! I'm so glad your visit to campus provided you with a sense of our community and that, as we talked about, you "saw yourself" as a member of it!

Enjoy the remainder of your senior year and we'll see you in the fall!

Take care,

Jennifer

The General (click here)

Gib,

I just learned that you will be joining our BSC "Family"..,,I am VERY HAPPY about you coming to our college.  You are going to receive a super education and make life long friends!

Gen. K

Going Anywhere?

That's the question you hear ALL the time before and during Spring Break. When we return to our daily routines the question will be "what did you do on your Spring Break?" I like to say "we went to Chick-Fil-A".

In actuality, we went to and from the Midwest, the South, the dentist, the travel clinic, the doctor's, the chiropractor, the library, the salon, the grocery store, college visits, Target, etc.  Additionally, season 2 & 3 of Lie To Me arrived and it has kept the girls pretty occupied. Toss in a little excitement when one of the fostering kitties went exploring at 6 am and it's just been a WILD start to our week off.

Today was the busiest. Me & the Young'uns had a nice lunch with Mike at Cracker Barrel after the vaccinations and now he is out for sushi with Taryn.  Gib is out with friends, and Mariah & I are just hanging out here at the house. But, I feel very efficient and organized getting Gib's paperwork for BSA Philmont taken care of today, the kids got their Hep A and Typhoid shots, we have anti-malarials and Z-paks in hand, no cavities, and well, a whole bunch of other boring stuff (mainly mentioned up above).  The only thing we didn't do is go to the DMV for Mariah's permit.  I forgot to put it on the calendar and it HAD to be done yesterday or it can't fit in the rest of the week's schedule.  So we made a couple other appointments for Monday and that plus some quality time waiting at the DMV, means she'll sadly need one more day of Spring Break.

Gib had us laughing with his remark of who will be SOLE SURVIVOR upon our return after our college visits. I voted for Chino.  And I have a strong suspicion that Birmingham Southern College will be the Sole Survivor of the college selection process!

BACK

THERE & BACK:  Tomorrow Mike takes off to pick up Taryn for her spring break week. Me and Mariah will be kicking BACK, clean the house a bit, maybe do a little Zumba together. We've been on the Atkins diet and have lost about 10 lbs each. I think we may be ready to add exercise to our Spring Break plans as we cruise into Easter. Actually, I have been stressing a little about Easter because I don't want to buy any candy. I considered filling some eggs with cold, hard, cash. When Mike reads that I just know he will groan. What else am I going to do? Put celery sticks and Atkins bars in 'em?!  Taryn is in for a RUDE surprise when she goes to raid the kitchen for all the comforts of home and finds veggies, avocados, cheese, eggs, frozen atkins meals and power bars, and very little else. For a change, she may be happy to get BACK to college food!


BACKPACKING:  Gib watched a little basketball with Mike during lunch hour (school got out at 11) and then packed for his backpacking trip, played Ultimate, picked up his dinner I had phoned in at the corner store, showered, and took off for another weekend backpacking in preparation for Philmont at the end of June.  That's about par for the course - I'm usually seeing the BACK of Gib as he heads out the door.

I saw the itineraries for Philmont the other day - Philmont Itineraries  June will be here before we know it.
I mentioned it to Gib and asked what he thought they might be able to do. He said that because of how many scouts are signed up for it (over 40) there was no telling. I know he really wants his crew to include his Venture Crew buddies because they are tight group of friends and I think would enjoy a challenging Philmont experience vs being water-carriers for the "cripples" and younger scouts. I did mention how it was nice that when he was a younger scout he got to go with some Venture Crew dudes who carried the bulk of their supplies and water. Gib replied, "yeah, but they WANTED us - they ASKED for us to be on their crew because we were so cool".  Well, they all had a great time and everyone kept up.  Here's hoping his Philmont 2.0 is even better than the first one!!

I'm personally voting for itinerary #35!!! (It's over 100 miles long). When he gets home, I'll be all like, "What?! BACK already?!!!!"

Spring Break

Spring Break begins, officially, at noon tomorrow.  I wish we were doing something beachy fun... maybe next year?  Meanwhile, Taryn will be picked up on Saturday and Gib, Mike and I will be heading towards Birmingham for two college overnight visits Wednesday and Thursday. We will stay until evening of Friday and hope to go out with some cousins who live there.

Taryn will be sharing her room with 3 felines. Her friend from high school really needed a place for their cats while they listed their house for sale. I agreed to a month, and we all hope their house will get an offer soon.  The cats are sweet and well behaved. Daily litter box duty is the hardest part. They are quite starved for affection despite having an Xbox lap with Gib, TV time with Gib & Mariah, a cat-sitters DVD for other times, and visits with me every morning and night.  They will LOVE having Taryn there, once any territorial disputes are resolved.

Indie has some decisions to make for grad school. She had to let Texas go and Tennessee deadline is coming up quick. I know it is a difficult process for her to try to make the best decision without knowing the future. I firmly believe that the right path makes itself known - sometimes at the last minute. 

Mariah will be getting her drivers permit next Monday - IF she passes the exam she hasn't really studied for. Typically the wait time is horrendous, and the entire time I am thinking how awful it will be to have to try again --- so she better be prepared!!!  We are also considering hosting another French Exchange Student this summer. Some days I think YES YES, and others I feel more like UMMMM.  The girl who needs a host family looks like she may be a little too classy for us. Mariah wishes there was a section in the profile that related to sense of humor and introvert/extrovert characteristics.

It's Black

So much going on around here!

Gib and Mariah are taking another jab at being sick - this time with Bronchitis. I, too, am fighting the second wave and so far just dealing with a sometimes-cough. That's been fun. I think we've spent well over $200 in dr appts, prescriptions, Delsym and Mucinex the past couple months. The kids are on inhalers now to help get over it. So that's been kinda a black cloud hanging over us while we just want to avoid missing school, have fun, and feel good!

To add insult to injury - Gib got a killer migraine on the way to the car before school yesterday. LONG story short he barely made it there to drop off his sister and returned home in agony. I quickly called the Neuro and bless them, they saw the Dude that day. The Clint Cocktail + ER Advice from last year really helped and we didn't end up needing a shot at the Neuro's. But she gave Gib some self-injection medication for the next Big One. We are beginning a wave of diagnostics and treatment plans to help him deal with this unfortunate aspect of life - gotta get it done before college. And yes, I'm having a hard time thinking about that!

Life marches on with or without you - and today marked another milestone in our family - the Dude got fitted for his prom tux. He and his date went to the mall to select it and do the color match thing to her dress which is "dark green" - don't ask Gib if it is dark green like Loden or more like Forest.  And along the same lines, he tells me he likes the tux they chose and I ask what kind is it? And you know how it ends.....

"It's Black" 

 with a green (discount double check move) thing and a bowtie
 
 Gotta love the Dude.  
 
And P.S. I just signed up to bring stuff to the Senior Picnic where he is supposed to wear a t-shirt bearing the logo of where he'll go to college for the Senior Panoramic Photo in the stadium.  No!!!! Stop! Too fast!

Today is Emily's Day Sweet 16
I've been watching these daffodils come up year after year at preschool, and as I was walking by I quickly snapped this photo on my iPhone. I didn't see the sunbeams until I got home and put it up on the computer screen.  It brought a huge smile to my face.  
Everything is OK in the end - if it's not OK then it's not the end.

Put Your Best Foot Forward

 The other day I saw this on facebook and posted it to Taryn's wall because it is SO her!  It used to be that both Taryn and Indie would wear different socks when they were young, so as to completely tie in all the colors of the outfit they were wearing that day. Taryn saw way too many benefits to ever give it up and still enjoys the wild pairing!  Taryn's kid-sized feet look cute in different socks anyway - and she felt inspired to send me a picture each day this week of them.









 I am almost certain this is all Taryn and not so much the decongestants at work here.  She has been sick, but I hope she is feeling MUCH better!

Indie is enjoying her Spring Break right now in Florida. The vacation began at someone's beach house on the gulf with the girls (and the guy whose family has the house). The guys have their own traditional guys trip going on. The vacation ends when everyone meets up for a 3 day cruise to Bahamas and back. Indie says their group has about 20 people in block of rooms. Wow - will that ever be fun!! I am so excited for her - she deserves this celebration as they all prepare to graduate Mercer.

Mariah also came down with a cold. She missed school yesterday but is attempting to make a go of it today. We have been busy gathering items for the Silent Auction to raise funds for the Ecuador mission trip. Mariah made announcements at church on Sunday for this Friday's Parents Night Out. She and another youth going on the mission trip did such a great job! Everyone laughed in all the right places. They had an amazing script writer is all I can say. I am taking flyers to my preschool today in hopes of getting a ton of kids to come to our event. All the money raised Friday goes directly to the kids' mission expense. The Silent Auction funds will help the youth somewhat but the majority of those funds go for medical and dental supplies, school supplies, medicine, etc.

Gib has been busy preparing to slide into the finale of his high school years. There was a domino effect Prom Date Swap which I think he started. The girl he was going with liked his friend---Gib and Maya hit it off at the JROTC ball and Gib decided he'd rather go with her than be the third wheel in his group. So his friend is taking Gib's former date, the date his friend was taking is going with someone else, and I have no idea what happened to everyone else who was further down the chain reaction. Gib says everyone was happy in the end. And in case you wondered, Maya didn't have to dump anyone because "the JROTC always gets their man" and she was strategizing this entire time on getting Gib to take her to the prom. They are an "item" now. I can just see the Machiavellian maneuvers she orchestrated to get Gib's former date and his friend together so Gib was free to take her!  I like this girl.   Haha - Gib who never shares his personal life unless its need to know and we never need to know - will be less than pleased with THAT report! Mariah also has some girlfriend advice for him from the 9th grade girls which I am sure he will appreciate.

We have booked our stay in Birmingham for the last half of our Spring Break. Gib begins Break on a weekend backpacking trip. Taryn will be coming home while he is backpacking! yay! We will have a couple days together with doctor appointments squeezed in. Then Gib will do overnight campus visits at BSC and Samford. One of those schools will likely be The One! (Unless the University of Tennessee-Knoxville does something that changes everything....).  I am very happy with either Birmingham selection because they are outstanding universities - I think Gib will thrive with a liberal arts approach - it is an easy drive and there should be great opportunities for business internships. My personal favorite is BSC. I was bouncing in my seat yesterday when I heard back from his admissions counselor that they also have an Ultimate Frisbee team that plays at a competitive college club level.

We are finishing one last Boy Scout of America scholarship. It would sure be nice if Gib gets something from the BSA organization or this memorial scholarship we are working on now. Every little bit helps! We are thrilled that he has received a big award offer that puts a private liberal arts college within reach financially.