Let's Get Together

The never ending movie was on last night. For us, that would be "The Parent Trap," the Lindsey Lohan version. The Vansome and I first started watching it our first night in Disney World. We actually missed the first maybe five minutes of it. We stopped on it when Annie arrives at camp. It was cute, so we watched. Soon after, Grammy and Pap arrived from the airport. We were the only ones in our rooms, so I left to show them around. I stayed and talked with them while they had dinner. Shortly after we returned, Brandon and Tina had a luggage emergency, so I was pulled away from the movie again. The Vansome had been watching by himself the entire time. He thought the whole thing was adorable.

I didn't get back to the movie until the part right when the girls decide to get the mom to come to San Francisco. We watched for a while, but it was getting later and later. We kept thinking it was almost over, and then they would start some new misadventure. We had an 8:00 am appointment with a Disney Bus looming, so by the time the girls started to head off on the camping trip, which I knew from the older version, we decided we just weren't up for hijinks in the woods with bears and honey.

Last night after I got home from VBS (see previous post) the Vansome was flipping channels and we saw young Lindsey Lohan again. We thought we might give it another shot. This time, it was right at the part where Halley/Annie was arriving in London for the first time, a whole section of the movie I had missed earlier. We really thought we would be able to see how it ended this time, but once again, we ran out of steam. We turned in pretty early, just about the time the evil fiancee was introduced. I think I was asleep before 10:00.

Of course I know how it ends. I used to love the original. I would like to see this ending, though. This movie can be hard to watch at times, knowing what we all know about young Miss Lohan. She was so absolutely adorable. Really just made me long for a cute little red haired daughter. It just makes me so sad to see her being so cute, and doing a very convincing job of being two people. She had such promise. And now, now she is a trashy little skank. I'm so sad about that. The Vansome thinks that there is still hope. "She's still young," he says. "Look at Drew Barrymore, she turned herself around," he says. I say, "Sorry, Honey, but there's just no getting over trashy. You either are or you're not, and she's proven which side she's on."

As much as I loved the idea of the movie when I was a kid, I've always been bothered by it, too. The secret twin sister was such a cool idea! My BFF Shannon and I used to pretend we were twins named Karen and Sharon. She was always Sharon because it was kind of like her real name and I was Karen because that's my mom's name. I liked the romance of them getting their parents back together because I am, and always have been, a hopeless romantic. What disturbed me even then, and really disturbs me now, is how in the world could anyone think it was a good idea to split up their daughters in the first place? How could you, as a parent, chose one twin to live with you and then pretend the other never existed for the rest of your life? It's so touching when the twins switch places and Halley gets to see her mother for the first time. It even jerked a tear out of the Vansome's dry eyes. But really, at the same time it's just so disturbing. How are those two not in therapy for the rest of their lives? How are they not just so angry at their stupid selfish parents for giving one of them up in the first place?

Oh, I do have such a love/hate thing going on with this movie. I'll have to move it to the top of my Netflix queue so we can finally finish it. Maybe I'll move the older version to the number two spot so we can compare and contrast.

Break Out the Glitter and the Popsicle Sticks

It's that time of year again! I'm talking about VBS, baby!

The Quest for Truth kicked off last night. Dakota Joe and Digger(not a dermatophyte) have the Grace Lutheran kids digging in the Bible, playing shepherd dress-up games, listening to stories told with a cool outback accent, and crafting their little hearts out.
I am taking a break at the moment from making up name tags for the rest of the week. I've been coloring in glyphs and the Sharpie fumes were getting to me. What is a glyph, you ask? A glyph, according to Dakota Joe, is a sort of picture word, a symbol. Each day has a specific glyph, and I have assigned glyphs to separate our three groups. They are also separated by color, hence the Sharpie overload I am currently experiencing. I needed a glyph-coloring break.

This year I branched out and took on the role of Bible Challenge leader. Several years ago, after a couple of years of strongly negative experiences, I promised the Vansome I would never volunteer for VBS again. I liked being able to blame it on him when I said no. Because I really wanted to say no all along, but I have those guilt issues, you know? Anyway, even after I changed churches, I still steered clear of VBS.
Last year, my beloved sister was co-director. She's amazingly good at that kind of thing. It would be my worstest nightmare. She talked me into helping out with registration. She promised me I would not have to be in charge of kids. It really was the least amount of kid-contact you could get. I could watch them having fun, but from a distance if I wanted. I convinced the Vansome it was safe, I would not get burned out and he would not get dragged in to help.
I gathered registration forms, divided kids into groups, and designed and printed name tags, all in the comfort of my own home. I shared registering duties with a member I hadn't met before, and I was reminded of what I liked about VBS in the first place. I am so painfully shy and socially awkward, that I don't get to know people in the church very easily. VBS puts you in a common boat with lots of different people for a whole week, so you get to know them better.
It made me feel more like an actual member of the church.
This year I had signed on for registration duties without hesitation. While we were at Disney, (in line for the Great Movie Ride, as a matter of fact,) Ame told me that her Bible Challenge person had just called and cancelled on her. I said, "I'll do it!" After we got back, she called and asked if I really meant it, or if I was just caught up in the excitement of Disney World. She knows me so well. But I'd had time to think about it, and I really thought it was something I could handle. The older I get, the better I am at recognizing my weaknesses and knowing how to keep myself from getting overwhelmed. I knew from last year that this job required very little actual responsibility for the kids' behavior. I have a job to do, and if someone's being disruptive, it's their group leaders who remove them or whatever. I can mostly just go about my business. I can't really handle wrangling unruly kids. I will never ever agree to be a group leader. Ever.

I made my debut last night with the green group (the trinity glyph's.) I totally forgot every bit of my "script," which I knew I would do. I was nervous and it showed. The kids were more forgiving than I thought they would be. I had stopped off in my downstairs Sunday School classroom earlier that evening while gathering Bibles. I got on my knees in a dark, out-of-sight corner and talked to God for a bit, asking him to remind me that this was all about his glory and to use me for his purposes. It didn't make everything "work" like magic, but it kept me from being bothered by it. God kept my focus where it should be. I know the kids were learning the truth, no matter what I did "wrong."

I had been most nervous about the pre-schoolers, because I didn't have instructions for them. I'm all about instructions. They really give me a sense of security, even if I don't follow them exactally. The pre-schoolers turned out to be my favorite group of the night. The time really just flew with them, and I had thought it would drag. Group leader Heather was amazing! She has such a gift for working with young children. She made it look so easy.

Getting ready for tonight, I realized that I had made last night's rhythm exercise way harder than it was supposed to be. Just my style, to make things unduly hard for myself. The rhythms are a series of knee-slaps and hand-claps to help memorize the day's Bible verse. I misunderstood the chart in my instruction book, and I added in hand-claps were there were none. It was supposed to be:

"grace" (knee-slap) "and truth" (knee-slap) "come through Je-" (knee-slap) "sus Christ" (knee-slap) "John" (knee-slap) "one sev-" (knee-slap) "en-teen" (knee-slap) (clap clap).

I added claps in between the knee-slaps, including an odd double clap for "came through" and a double time knee-slap/clap/knee-slap for "sev-en-teen."
I was really having a hard time with it earlier that day, and granted, I am not the most coordinated person, but I thought, "How are these young kids going to get this in ten minutes when I've been practicing all day and I keep messing up?" Duh, it's not supposed to be that complicated.
Yesterday, I thought my instructions were a little bit difficult, and I practiced and practiced, but still kept forgetting stuff. Today, my lesson was so much easier. I can do the whole thing without prompts. I know I'll still leave something out, but it won't cause the whole thing to come crashing down. I'm not nervous at all. I'm looking forward to it.

My Sharpie high is fading, so I must get back to the name tags. Then I've got some knee-slaps to practice.

They Didn't Miss Us, They Missed The Bed

This is what the boys have been doing since we returned:

Joe

Beans

Beans dry nurses on our clothes whenever he is in need of comfort, which is what endeared him to me in the first place. Since this was the first time we've left him, and they didn't have access to the indoors while we were gone, we were fully expecting to find a freaked out Beaner Kitty when we got home, leaving us with wet shirts for days. The Boy was especially worried about him. Beans is by far the neediest cat we've ever owned. We were expecting to be ignored by Joe for a few days, that's been his standard response to our previous vacations.

What we didn't expect was for them to both come running as soon as we called them from the back door. Beans was only mildly neurotic, he didn't even suck on anybody's shirt right away. Joe acted like nothing had happened. They said Hi, checked things out around the house, and then settled onto the bed for a good long nap. Beans has been napping inside all day every day ever since. It's all I can do to make sure he gets outside enough to potty.

But Was It Worth It?

Yes, yes it was.

We stopped in Tallulah to top off the tank, eat lunch, use the *ahem* facilities, and switch drivers. The Vansome announced as he took over the wheel that we were On Our Way, and the vehicle would not be stopping again until we were safely back in our own driveway. No sooner had we pulled on to the road when we noticed a tree frog on the windshield:

so we had to pull over. The Vansome was able to pick him up, but he escaped before he could be brought to safety in the grass along side the road. Apparantly tree frogs are a tad slippery. We gave him adequate time to get away from the tires, but then we had to move along. We wished him well, and apologized for leaving him in northeast Louisiana. I'm pretty sure he had been riding with us since Florida.

Back on the road, "NOW, we don't have to stop again until we're home."

"Um, Vansome, um, I really really want you to take my picture by the Hollybrook sign, remember?"

Long long ago, when I was a skinny little grade schooler, my daddy had taken my picture in front of a sign for Hollybroook, Louisiana. On the way back from a Big(ish) Family Disney Trip. Just like this trip, only we were too young to have spouses and children of our own, and I'm pretty sure we didn't even have a Brandon yet. Every time we pass through Hollybrook on our way back from Disney, I want to take my picture again. But not enough to actually stop, because I'd rather just get home sooner. So I always think I'll do it on the way back, because it's on that side of the road, and then on the way back I don't really care so much.

This time, it was Important. I needed a current picture of me by the sign. I needed it to be on this trip, the trip with all my family again. It was really Important. I was on the lookout, but I missed the sign. The Vansome saw it as he sped by. I convinced him that it was Important enough that he should turn around and go back. So he did. He crossed the highway, drove back a little ways, crossed again, and then pulled over. Then I saw the sign. It was not where I remembered it to be. It wasn't even the same sign, the original was green. But it was the only thing in the area that said "Hollybrook" except the top of the watertower (which was totally out of the question.)

I handed the camera to the Vansome and then stepped out into the grass on the side of the highway. My next step brought me crashing down, cursing, in pain, and pissed off. I had stepped in a massive hole hidden in the unruly grass clumps. The Vansome found me on my hands and knees, still cursing because I was still in pain. I kept waiting for the pain to subside just a little, but it just stayed and stayed. It really was disproportionate to the injury, I thought. The Vansome was sure I had broken my ankle, but I kept thinking surely it's not that bad. I hadn't even heard a "pop." A decade ago, when I lived in the duplex, I stepped out of my back door onto the side of my foot. That time I heard a definate "pop." It was only sprained and I didn't even use crutches, I just hobbled around for a couple of days. This time there was no "pop," so surely it couldn't be that bad, right?

The Vansome helped me to my feet when the pain and cursing finally abated. He half carried me to the sign (because I didn't go through all of that for nothing) and I got my picture, dammit. I faked a smile pretty well, I thought, but the camera just caught my squinty hair-in-my-face look. He took two just to make sure, but I deleted the other one because, well, it was not terribly flattering.

I tried to keep it raised after we got back on the road again, but that's hard to do in the front seat of a 4-Runner. So we pulled over again. This time The Boy and I switched places. The Vansome arranged bags to prop my foot on, and then he soaked one of his T-shirts in the icy cooler water and wrapped my ankle.

When we did arrive home, zero stops later, I found that I could actually walk on it fine. It totally supports all of my substantial weight. Now the ankle is fine, but the outside edge of my foot is not. My foot is swollen (see if you can tell which one):

and it hurts when I do things like press on the gas pedal, or if I hit it on something, which I do with some regularity. I believe I may have fractured the little bone that runs from my ankle to my pinky toe. Not much to be done about it, really.

A Little Whine With My Cheese

I have been home for three days now and I still can not get it together. I haven't finished unpacking, the only reason we have clean clothes to wear is because I have an awesome mother-in-law with awesome laundry facilities at her home. I haven't made my bed since we got back. I uploaded all my pictures yesterday and I finally got around to checking my e-mail today. I've been trying to eat better since we got home, and failing miserably. Waah Waah Waah. Sorry. I'll try again later.

Back Home

I'm back, eating my lunch while I do computer chores. My posts are going to be out of order for a while. I wrote out a few, long hand, while we were away from the computer. I'll post them as I find time. I started a post on Bob's computer, but I saved without publishing, so I'll clean it up and get it on here later, most likely not today. I have a ton of things to do to wind down from the trip, but mostly I'm just resting my gimped up ankle (more on that later) and making lists. I'm anxious to get my pictures up, but I don't know which bag has my USB cord. Pap will be by soon to pick up his Pap's Day prize. He heads back to San Antonio tomorrow. The Vansome and The Boy are back at work and I am enjoying the quiet (except for my Robbie Williams in the background, I never got around to putting him on a CD and I've been having withdrawals.) This has got to be the most useless post ever, but I'm not up for thinking just yet.
I just removed my BFDT countdown ticker. That was sad.

Taking a Vacation From Our Vacation

Today I am in Punta Gorda hanging out with the In-Laws. We slept in way too long, then Nickie and Jeff came over and made us a huge breakfast at about noon.


It was truly wonderful, just what we needed at just the right time.

The Vansome spent the rest of the day in his usual position at his mom's house:


I've been sleeping on and off, pretty much wherever I'm sitting. The Boy is in his usual spot, but I don't have a pic of that. He's in the guest room playing games on the bed.

Bob had knee surgery this morning. So far his recovery is going extremely well. He doesn't seem to be in a lot of pain and he's actually walking around a little bit.

It's so quiet and peaceful here, the perfect antidote to 4 wild days in the parks. Now if I could just stay awake...

Posting From Disney World

I am in sunny Florida waiting out a thunderstorm as I type. I was just showing off my blog to my mom, who is trying to nap after four hard days in the parks. I'm on Roy's laptop, but I've got to go and keep Jett so his parents can have a date in EPCOT. Updates soon!

And We're Off!

I am typing as fast as my never-learned-to-type fingers will go. Today is the day. I still have one more bag to pack, my Toilet Trees. The Vansome is doing something outside the window, I have no idea what. The Boy is still in bed. He showered after his haircut last night, so he can sleep a little longer. My new Go Phone works, I tried it out with Ame last night. I've made my CD's, I've checked out an audiobook, I have my car bag full of diversions for the long drive ahead.

I can not express in words the joy and excitement I am feeling right now, and it will only grow over the next few days. YAY! Big Family Disney Trip! YAY!

Too busy to post much, just wanted to say We're Leaving Tomorrow!

History in the Making

We are leaving the day after tomorrow! The Siblings and I have been planning this trip for 5 1/2 years now. It's hard to believe it's really been that long. I had the priveledge of experiencing Disney during the holiday season in 2001. It is still my most favorite Disney Trip. It was such a magical, beautiful thing, that I wanted to share it with the rest of my family. The Boy had just outgrown the whole Disney thing and I was really longing to experience Disney with a little kid, particularly a kid that I loved. I came back from that trip with the brilliant idea of arranging a group trip for all the people I love most in this world.
We initially set the date to coincide with Grammy's 60th birthday, so that we could all be there to see the holiday decorations. I remember telling the sibs that no one could get pregnant for the next year because that would mess up my numbers. I had printed up a cost estimate for each family including the children they currently had, and if they waited long enough, then the new kids would be under three and therefore free. Jug didn't tell me they were already expecting Laila at that point. Ame didn't even know Ethan was already on his way.
Other major family changes occured in the following years. The dates were changed and moved around more times than I can count. What started as a group of 16 is now a group of 21. The kids have all been with their families in the meantime, so only Baby J will be a first timer.

The last time I went to Disney World with both parents and all 4 siblings, EPCOT was only a couple of years old. I wore Duran Duran buttons on my shirt. My sister lost one of her jellies in the Atlantic Ocean. My dad had only recently finished customizing Ol' Yeller, the Old Yellow Van. My mom and I thought the frozen fruit bars were the coolest things ever, because you couldn't buy them anywhere else. My older brother wore cool T-shirts, my middle brother had a head full of thick hair, and my baby brother had not yet started school.
I thought it was the most wonderful place in the whole world. And I still do.

Kickin' It Old School

The Boy got some Old School Converse High Tops today. Bought them with his own money and everything. He added the pink and black checked laces, definately something I would have worn 20+ years ago (but don't tell him that!)




Last night I made Bimini Chicken, which calls for 3/4 cup of coconut milk. Since the only way I've found coconut milk at Krog's is in a can, I always have leftover milk I don't know what to do with. I hate to throw it out, but what would I use it for if I saved it? Last night The Boy and I came up with the great idea of pouring it over some pineapple slices. I remembered that I had some fresh strawberries in the fridge so we added a few of those. We chilled the whole thing while we ate dinner and it made a wonderful dessert. I mean really really tropical-y good. I impressed myself with my own culinary sponteneity.

Today I started listening to my Walt Disney World park music CD to get myself in the mood, not that I need to be any more excited. I'm still listening to the Elizabethtown soundtrack in my car (Free!!!!!Bird!!!!!Yeah!). I am really enjoying those CD's. I can't believe I'd never heard Elton John's "My Father's Gun" before, because I am a fan of Sir Elton. It's kinda cheesy when you really listen to the words. I mean, what do two British dudes (Sir Elton and his lyricist Bernie Taupin) know about being a confederate soldier? But then what did they know about having a 5 day a week job in outer space, and they managed to make that believable and poignant.
I've also discovered Ryan Adams out of this E-town music. I'd obviously heard of him for several years now, but I just never could get past the fact that his name was Bryan Adams without the B. I guess for kids who didn't grow up on good old 80's Bryan Adams, it probably didn't even cross their minds. But for me, it was like he was capitalizing on the name similarity. Which of course he wasn't. I just kept thinking "name copycat." It's really funny because he is so not Bryan Adams. I'm really liking everything I've downloaded from him so far.



I took a couple of outside pictures today. This is my prolific rose bush:



And I have actually grown a real strawberry that I can eat! And nothing else has gotten to it yet! There are actually a few strawberries on my plants right now, as well as some more flowers. Yay me!

As The Ticker Moves

I noticed my BFDT ticker says 5 days! It's actually only 4 days because the Vansome and The Boy are now both officially off work Thursday, so we are leaving around 10ish that morning. We'll be spending the first night in the Gulf Shores general area. Hopefully we'll be able to spend some time with the Vansome's cousin Barry, we'll know tomorrow. I'd prefer to go straight to Destin, but the Vansome is afraid they'll be booked up. I am looking forward to seeing Barry again, though.

PSA

Don't wear flip flops to the library. It's really loud.

Armed Fugitives Interupting My Shopping

I scared my husband half to death yesterday. Apparantly there was an armed and dangerous fugitive running around close to our house. He got home early, which he rarely does, and I was not home, which is even more rare. The back door was unlocked, which is actually pretty normal around here, but it always bothers the Vansome when I do that. Also, I hadn't checked the mail yet, and I'm pretty neurotic about getting the mail as soon as possible. He was picturing The Boy and I being forced into my car against our will and being kidnapped. Luckily he was only in that state for about 10 minutes before I showed up. When I picked up The Boy from work, we had errands to run. I had taken him to the bank to cash his paycheck, then we had gone to Office Depot, Best Buy, and Target. He's just lucky I decided against going to WalMart, too, because that was on my list, as was Old Navy.

I've been a busy little girl lately, getting ready for the BFDT. I'm almost done with my shopping, but the things I need I may wait and get in Destin. I've got all kinds of crap laid out on my bed right now, so I can do a little pre-packing. Today I have to see DJ, my insurance guy. I dropped off my elevation certificate for him Wednesday, but he called later to say that I didn't give him the right stuff. Now I'm waiting for him to call me back to tell me when he will be in his office today. I also have some library books to return, and a fine or two to pay.
I'm hoping to avoid having to shop today. I've been going through money at a scary pace the last two days. I'm ready for that to stop for a while. I did get some really good deals on some shoes for the BFDT. I got a pair of Born leather flip flops for $40 and a pair of Simple sandals for $5. I was loving the sandals until I tried to break them in by walking around the neighborhood in them Wednesday night. They were the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn, but I didn't anticipate where they would rub. Now I'm missing some skin on the sides of my feet and I won't be wearing them again for a few days, until I heal up a bit. I have some really good blister band-aids that should make them wearable at Disney.

Grammy finally talked me into watching Elizabethtown this week. I loved it! I watched it by myself Tuesday, and then I talked the Vansome into watching with me Wednesday night. He liked it even more than I thought he would. I downloaded all of the music and I've made CD's for Grammy and myself. It will make good trip music.