Leap of Faith?

We would like you to consider going overseas…..

I sat there looking at my managers and I was so flustered.  I didn't know how to respond.  I was flattered, but absolutely terrified…..  I did not see this coming, but then again, since Josh died I tend to stay in the moment and not look ahead.  It's been this way....inching along with life, since that black day in 2010;  Slowly getting back into the game of life, but this would be more like a leap! 

I’ve been working my butt off at work to avoid thinking about what I’ve lost (Joshua) and where I am (Empty Nester), and somehow someone took this as commitment and passion.  Wow, I guess the mask I wear hides it well.   

What does Brad think?  The man has mentally packed his bags, including his golf clubs, and is ready to go.  I was always happy to follow him…and now apparently he’s willing to follow me. 

Me? My thoughts are all over the place……How do I leave my Joshie?  Yes, he has gained his wings and doesn’t need me anymore, but even knowing that doesn’t take away my mama bear need to protect him and be near his resting place.  

How do I leave my girls?  Never mind that they are grown up.  They just need me to touch base from time to time and they're fine with text, phone or video chat.  But my heart still asks “Where will the girls spend their holidays, summers and breaks?”   I needed to know, so I asked them.  They both instantly perked up and told me they would jump on an airplane to come to me.  I guess this is nothing new to them. 

Friends and family?  The friends I have at this point in my life will follow me to the ends of the earth, and we’ll be sure to post those adventures on Facebook!

 

Once upon a time I loved adventure, I loved sights and sounds, I loved people watching, and I loved.  I also loved having my kids with me and raising them wherever life took us.  No matter where home was, I had them with me.  Then Josh died, the girls left one by one for college, and it was back to Brad and me. 

So what’s really at the heart of the matter???  If I do this, I will have to pack Joshua’s room and pack up the girls’ rooms;   I hoped I could put that off another decade or so.    Arrghhhhhhhh!!!!!!   I'm also not so sure how I feel about trying to enjoy life and dream again.   After losing Josh this seemed impossible.

So much to consider.  Fortunately, we are just at the beginning of this and I have some time to keep tossing and turning.  

Here is the test to find whether your purpose on earth is finished:   If you're alive, it isn't.
-Richard Bach

HUGS!
Sherri

Empty Nestin - Decorating

Decorating has been my distraction lately.  Now that the girls are off to college, I’m looking at their rooms with fresh eyes.  Since they took most of their stuff with them, I need to make their rooms cute again. 

Britt’s room was pretty easy,  all I had to do was walk around my house and grab a few things, such as the lovely bottles left to us by Brad’s grandmother, a huge starfish from a long ago Bahamas trip, some great seashells, and voila.  Beachy Bedroom!
 

  


Stephi’s room still has a lot of her stuff, but there are gaps.  I was sitting there when one of her garden photos grabbed my attention.  THAT’S IT!!  I'll use Stephi’s GARDEN PHOTOS! 

Stephi is a great amateur photographer with a great eye!  I love her work so much there are several on the walls throughout our house.  Here are two I want to put on her walls.

 
 
I kept walking by, and finally opened the door to Joshua’s room.  We’ve changed little things over the last 3 ½ years, but it's still Josh.   Since it is the largest kids bedroom, with a large bed, his room has always been our guest room.  That meant throwing Josh out from time to time, but he didn’t mind. 

These days, I keep wondering if we should leave it as the room of a "forever 12 year old boy", or update it a bit like we have updated the girls rooms. 

I would like to make it welcoming and peaceful, though I don’t know if that’s possible; The four of us are split on what to do.

 
I looked at Peyton Manning's jersey!  Josh was such a huge  Peyton Manning fan.  He wrote how happy he was to get to see Peyton and the Colts play the Washington Redskins. 

I’m so happy Josh and Brad had that night together!  When we lose a love one, we tend to hone in on regrets.  In this case, we got something right.

As it should, although I object at times, life has moved on around us, and so has Peyton who is now a Denver Bronco.  I changed Joshua's Colts bedspread right after his funeral, which was pretty traumatic for all of us.  Last week, I changed the window valance to match the bedding, which  I admit, brought on some anxiety on my part. 

After all of this, there was still one thing I just had to do!  Something was missing.….a Broncos banner.  I went online and ordered a pennant to go on the wall opposite of the Colts banner. 

Who knew how emotional it would be to fill these three rooms?!  Just yesterday, it seems,  I was getting after the Newmanettes to keep a path clear from bed to door. 

Oh how I miss the messes, the smells, and the sounds!
  
 I sat down on the edge of the bed after I tacked the banner on the wall, and found my eyes full of the tears I couldn't stop, but when they finally did stop, I stood up, put fresh sheets on the bed, and thanked God that there are three rooms that hold treasures and memories of my three children.


“A child enters your home and for the next twenty or so years makes so much noise you can hardly stand it. Then the child departs, leaving the house so silent you think you are going mad.” -- John Andrew Holmes

Hugs,

Sherri

Empty Nestin'

I'm sitting here enjoying a muffin before heading out for some surf and sun in South Carolina.  Brad is off with his white dimpled mistress and will join me for lunch. 

Both daughters are settling into their college lives.  Britt was already moved in, so we stuffed two cars and dropped Stephi off in North Carolina.  The move-in went seamlessly....we somehow managed to avoid getting hit by all the couches, 54” tvs, and furniture.  Holy Moly, I didn’t even have a tv in my dorm room, and we hiked through 3 feet of snow each way to use the shared hallway telephone.  I have dorm envy!!! 

Stephi’s room looks great with the tiny tv and her beloved 1D/5 SOS decorum.  Two seconds after it was set up, she was pushing us out the door.  Brad wasn’t quite ready, but I felt pretty confident that she would be begging us to feed her in a day or two.   The next day I received this text :  PLEASE TAKE ME AWAY TO DINNER!!!!  Happy to Oblige!

After feeding her, on our dime, and setting up the all important DVD player, it was time for that long awaited no kids vacation! Wooohooo!  We’ve been dreaming of this day since the first time we stuffed luggage, beach toys, lotion, and diapers into the car. 

Turns out it’s not as easy to shut off the parent brain as we thought.  Even though Brad and I always worked to keep the romance alive during the kiddo years, it feels sooooo weird!

For so long, vacation has been kid-centered ; always thinking a step ahead of the kiddos.    Now I’m free to do my thing, but I just can’t shut down those mommy voices in my head. I fought the lurch forward reflex when the adorable toddler put that shell in her mouth…her mom was on it! That sweet child needs a hat!  I was so proud of that sweet girl who tried and tried, and finally mastered riding the waves.

Will it ever go away? 

My mountain man and I have lots of couple time now, but we know each other so well, we can’t fake it!  Dang!  I know he hates the beach; He knows I love it.  How can I enjoy a day at the beach when I’m worrying about how much Brad hates the beach?

I’m thinkin maybe those little white lies we told when the relationship was new weren’t so bad. 

We look lovingly into one another's eyes and say....

“What do you want to do?” 

“Dunno, what do you want to do?”

“I dunno, hey, we could go to a jazz bar for 21 and over”  I can see the light go on when  he realizes “yes, we can do that” .

So here are a few highlights we shared with our friends and family.....

When wildlife and humans unsuccessfully share playground. = jellyfish sting



Facebook status, day 2:  Pretty proud of myself. Its 1030 and im still awake. I doubt it has anything to do with that nap this afternoon. Yep, kids are out of the house and im a party girl. Sweet dreams all!

 

Hi Girls, guess where we are?
Brittany response- ballpark...btw rockin' the nail polish!
Stephi response:  Oh Mother! lol!

 

My poor attempt at a selfie.....how do you work this thing? Click!

 

And this was just week 1......
until next time.



HUGS!
Sherri

Moving From Grief to Empty Nester. Chapter Fore!

Stephanie is graduating from high school in June;  Mid-August we’ll take her to college, and then  we’ll return to an empty house for the first time in 21 years.  This is not how we planned it!   We had THREE children;  the second one is graduating, so we should have one more at home!  

I prefer the pitter patter of gigantic teenage feet, hearing the shower turn on in the morning, the smells of  perfume, cologne, and stepping over things on the floor that do not belong to me.  I love hearing the laughter of friends chillin’ in our family room or basement, and overhearing the latest drama.

Yes, we had a  life  “BK” Before Kids, but it’s such a distant memory.

Fear Not, Brad has a Plan!

Picture this:   A peaceful well-manicured green field, and a golf cart with two golf bags.  One belongs to Brad, and the other belongs to the tall blonde smiling next to him.
He is standing at the tee sizing up the next shot:  He checks out the wind conditions, weather, distance and angle. After much thought, he pulls out the perfect club, takes the shot and it sails gracefully into the air landing two feet from the hole. 

The tall blonde cheers on her golf partner, stands up from the cart, sizes up the situation, pulls out the correct club,  swings the club sending the golf ball gracefully into the air landing on the well- manicured breezeway.  A Perfect Hit! 

Joshua's golf glove and score card in his own hand

I know Brad has his dreams and I want to be supportive, so I started golf lessons two weeks ago.   I needed golf clubs, so I dusted off Joshua’s clubs and put them in the car.  It felt weird…. and it felt right.  I then realized I needed a polo shirt with about 5 minutes to find something .  

 What to do…… It suddenly occurred to me, and I ran upstairs to the room behind the closed door.  I slowly opened the drawer and pulled out a familiar green polo shirt and put it on.  It was actually a bit big on me.  It had fit Josh well 3 ½ years ago. 


Joshua -5th grade

Heart Pangs!  I zipped up my jacket so I wouldn’t keep looking at it ,and jumped into the car.

I made it to my lesson on time, and met my awesome golf instructor;  A petite and spunky woman  who is completely  convinced I am a natural athlete with natural ability.  If hitting the little white dimpled ball a few yards is natural talent?    I am amazing!

Brad was so excited.  How was it?

I’m a natural chipper; Teacher said so.

That’s awesome!  How far did you hit it?  75 yds, 150 yds?

I hit it near the blue and white post in the middle of the green field. What’s it called?  A Driving Range?

Let’s  go hit golf balls this weekend so you can show me your natural talent.

Mother’s Day was our golf date.  I confidently filled the bucket of balls and grabbed the club I used at my lesson.   I set up like Teacher showed me, secretly sent prayers of protection out to the poor unknowing guy next to me, and began to swing.  Some of the balls actually went in the right direction and had some distance.  I was so relieved…and a bit proud!

Brad beamed from ear to ear and then took me out to buy a couple of golf shirts and shoes.  I listened as he carefully explained all the technical considerations, and then I promptly picked out the cool looking shoes with beach teal on them.

Five days later after my second lesson.... 
Brad wanted to know “How was it? “

It was fine.

How’d you do?

I’m a natural putter, Teacher said so!

Remember Brad’s dream?  Here’s Reality:  The man hits the golf ball which sails into the air and lands 2 feet from the hole.

Brad's birthday present from  Josh in 2009. 

The tall blonde cheers on her golf partner, returns her ice tea to the cup holder, gets up from the cart she was driving too fast over the hill to catch air, she looks around suddenly realizing she has to hit one of those little white balls, so she pulls out the first club that catches her eye, and hits the ball.  It sails into the air about 10 feet and then rolls down the hill about 30 additional feet. 

The group waiting behind them let out an audible #%&&! as they open another beer!  It’s gonna be a long day!

It’s gonna be crazy hard dropping Stephi of college, Joshua’s absence is going to hit to the core again. 

I'm trying to stay positive and that means I start thinking of the next chapter sorta like a Dr. Seuss Book....  Oh the adventures we will have.

 

Hugs,

Sherri

Seashells and Snowstorms

I’m still here.  I know I haven’t posted lately, it’s just this snowstorm weather is making me a bit stir crazy, but all things considered….I’m doing just fine!

I'm not the only one with the winter drabs....Britt has been checking in pretty often.   She has become a kind of crazy cat lady with her new kitten. He gives her something to take care of, entertains her and loves her.   We skyped yesterday and I must admit, he’s pretty adorable.

Stephi is STRESSED!!!!  These days she’s in that strange place where she’s excited to go to college, but has tons of studying to do before graduation.  One moment her smile is wide, the next she is in full teenage drama mode!

Two weeks ago we headed down to UNC Wilmington to check things out, and meet with our neighbor Emma who is a  student there,  Stephi was such a happy girl!   



Snow on the Beach-Stephi grabbing some great photos!

 We had plenty of free time, so we did one my favorite things....walk on the beach  a mere 7 minutes from campus.   All of Wilmington was covered in snow following a rare snowstorm which gave the beach a surreal feel.    It was extra special for me since the last time I was on this beach I was with my bestie, and all 6 of our kids.  Happy memories mingled with new ones as Stephi ran ahead taking some stunning photos while Brad and I walked along gathering shells.  There's nothing quite like the peace and wonder that comes from watching crashing waves.



Beach Selfie!


A few short days later we were back in DC under 14 inches of snow; I snuggled in my comfy chair next to the fireplace where I read a little, wrote notes of encouragement to newly bereaved parents, slept a little, and watched some Olympics. 

I won’t lie, there’s more to the story and my need to hide on the couch….life has been a bit of stressful following abnormal blood work from Brad’s quarterly post cancer treatment regimen since his 2011 surgery.   Long story short, his blood work came back abnormal and there were two weeks of “what ifs” as we awaited his cat scan appt. and doctor followup.

I was prayin sooooo hard!  I couldn’t imagine what we possibly faced ahead of us, and terror struck my mind and heart more than once.   I gotta tell ya,  I gave out a  loud Thank You Jesus when the doctor called back with the clean results.  They are following up with another blood test but it looks like a false positive.

Now that I am free of worry (fake it till you make it) I'm watching Stealth Kitty chase stink bugs, and bump his head against walls when he tries to cuddle up…he keeps missing our leg and hits walls!   OUCH!  Hmmm I don't think he is a natural cuddler, but he’s willing to learn!

 I am appreciating and embracing the quiet normal of our everyday.

Oh, guess what? I  began Congregational Care Training this week to learn how to better help those in crisis.   I’m really looking forward to the training, as it helps heal my heart after losing Josh, but with all this cold weather I am tempted to just keep snuggling and sip hot cocoa.

I hope you are staying safe and warm this winter season.  P.S. Britt  the meteorology students says more snow is ahead.  Sigh.......

Hugs!
Sherri

My Hippie Angel

This past week was my last planned meeting with Peter, the Grief Guy.  Over the last 28 months, Peter has been instrumental in pulling both me and mine back from the brink of despair after Josh died from SUDEP, for which I will always be grateful.

He diagnosed my PTSD resulting from the trauma of finding Joshua that fateful morning and helped me realize my crazy is ok.  He also called me on some habits, and he did not back down…for this too I will always be grateful.

Some would wonder why I continued our sessions for so long?  Hmmm ponder moment….We have such expectations of our friends and family when someone we love dies.  We expect them to say just the perfect thing to help us feel better; we are shocked and hurt when they stick that big ole’ foot smack dab in the middle of their big mouth instead.

Peter has never done this!  He magically knows just what to say!  He resets my mindset, he allows me to forgive myself, and he doesn’t judge even if ugly comes out of my mouth.  Of course, it has taken him DECADES of study and practice to master the role of the grief guy.                Note to self…. give friends and family a little slack.

Since this was our first meeting in two months, Peter learned about Nancy’s son, my whooping cough, my ”Winter Blues” (SAD), how my sweet friend Erika is losing ground to her cancer, and how bleak things have seemed as of late.   His response was a  truly caring shake of the head and a sigh “things Sherri really did not need to deal with right now” …..thank you Peter for putting it out there!            So true! I truly didn’t need to deal with them, but when you open yourself up to love, there will be times like these….. life doesn’t stop for you to catch your breath.  All you can do is live in the moment!

Just like waves crashing in from the sea.  You can’t look past the wave in front of you or SPLAT!  Waves will always come, and you need to decide what you can handle and whether to ride it, or duck under to the calm just beneath the surface.

I can see how far I’m come from 28 months ago, and I guess I’m pretty good at judging waves now.  I’ve crashed too many times to count but I’ve definitely learned it's ok to duck a few. 

The things I have learned from Peter are:

1.  You are not in control of your life or anything that happens in your life.

2.  Take your life wave by wave, living in the moment, especially during the time of active grieving.

3.  Be gentle with yourself for you've just experienced the unthinkable.

4. As long as you don't endanger yourself or those around you, there is no wrong way to grieve.

5.  You can't cut corners on your grief.

6.  You can't be healed because you were never sick.

7.  There will one day be comfort and peace again.

 

I was not prepared for the tears that came as I walked out of Peter’s office…they were a blend of fear and hope...I'm taking life on my own, and admitting that I'm trying to keep moving forward without my Josh.   

Is this the last time I'll see Peter?  Don’t be silly, of course not!  After all he’s not a miracle worker, and I surely will overachieve again.  When that happens I know he will look at me without judgement and not blink when I share what is truly on my heart.

God sends us angels for different seasons of our lives.  They can take many forms, and one of mine was a silver-haired reformed hippie with a thoughtful presence and contagious laugh.

Thank you God for my Angel!

Hugs,
Sherri

Purple Day Admiration

Today is National Purple Day!  The Day of raising awareness of epilepsy and seizures.  I donned my bright purple cardigan and off to work I went!    There was a lot of purple in the office and I thanked them for wearing purple whether they did it for epilepsy or it was merely coincidence.  I figured I could use their coincidence to raise awareness in a complementary way.  "Hey, thanks for wearing that gorgeous purple blouse for Epilepsy Day".  Gets'em every time!

I think back over this journey in epilepsy that started for us in 2006, and the beautiful people we have met through it.  Two little guys I greatly admire are the Epilepsy Ninja Brothers.  Nicky and Jordan are brothers who each have a different form of epilepsy.  Nicky's seizures come in the way of auras of light and incapacitating pain.  The poor little guy has been in and out of the hospital having more tests done than a little guy should, and we're not gettin much helpful information from the effort, but he charges onward with a huge smile on his face.

We met the boys along with their wonderful mom and dad after Joshua died from SUDEP.  It was their early encouragement and support that brought me here today.  We have met for ice cream, chatted and cheer each other's efforts to fight epilepsy.  Of course, this leads to big squirmy hugs all the way around at the National Walk for Epilepsy the last two years.  The boys are video stars bringing great awareness at such a young age.  Oh, how I admire their courage and that they show no fear in their advocacy for epilepsy research.

The boys are such balls of energy, and you can't help but laugh when they're around.  Such great kids, who could choose to be sad or greatly limited by epilepsy but who choose to champion over epilepsy and the side effects of seizures.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqAbf76vpM8

Then there's Mylissa who is a fellow Danny Did Ambassador who I met last year at an epilepsy walk in memory of Chelsea Hutchinson.  I was immediately taken by her warmth before I even realized who she was.  Mylissa lost her sweet son Dallas to SUDEP shortly after we lost Josh.  Mylissa, who works with children with special needs, has her own serious medical issues while her husband Jeff lives with epilepsy.  Through all their pain and sorrow, they have been caring, rational, and strong advocates for SUDEP and epilepsy research.  When faced with a very strong willed Neurologist vehemently opposed to admitting that SUDEP does exist, Mylissa spoke calmly and so eloquently that the defensive doctor became speechless,  showed his sympathy for their loss, and even more, became a bit more open minded.

Such loving families who have suffered so much in a short lifetime and put off such a positive energy and feeling of love! 

These are people that give me hope!



Sending you all Hugs!
Sherri

 

Peanut Butter & Jelly

Brittany has returned to school, and is doing well…she’s back in the college saddle again; Brad is off on travel for work all week; Stephi is fully immersed in her wonderful annual choir Broadway Night practice, so she comes home just in time to crawl into bed every night this week.

This means I’m sitting in my big comfy seat, with a lovely fire warming my toes as I watch my current TV show obsessions. The beauty is I don't even have to worry that my TV choice is keeping someone from watching their football games, teenage soaps, or cartoons.

I’m don't even have to worry about feeding anyone, myself included.  As the mother of three young children close in age, the hustle and bustle of life made life chaotic....I truly found the rare quiet night much like tonight a real treat.  Still with all this, I'm desperately wishing it was a Josh and Me night. 

When the girls were off at school or with friends, it would be Josh and me at home.... He was always such a sweetheart during these times without his sisters to aggravate. We both enjoyed "our time" so much.

If Josh were still here with me and he realized we had the house to ourselves, I have little doubt that he would be up here asking for chair time, and talking about life as seen through the eyes of a 14 year old boy. sigh....I’m getting to the point in my grief where I am starting to change those pangs of missing what can't be to remembering my three Newmanettes as little children.

My mind wanders back as I eat my dinner of peanut butter and jelly. PB&J was a Newman food staple. Yes, I nourished my children’s growing bodies with peanut butter and jelly. At first it was sliced into four triangles with crust, then it was four triangles without crust, then we discovered a tool that cuts the bread and seals the sandwich in a circle. Oh rapture, oh bliss….our little bit of heaven on earth through the eyes of three Newmanettes. Josh then took it one step further when he fell in love with Uncrustables. .... Peanut butter and jelly sealed circle sandwiches in a box.

Such a little thing to make someone smile!

My mind returns back to the moment at hand and for a moment I can smile.

Oh the beauty of little things and oh how I miss them!

 ~Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. – Robert Brault

 

Hugs,

Sherri

 

In This Moment

I have had so many unwritten blog entries swirling in my head over the last few weeks.  Such a crazy time of the year.  The world celebrates as the families of those who have lost children try to find the Joy in the darkness.

Yesterday, evil showed his horrible face when one person shot and killed 27 innocent souls, including 20 children.

The media swirl is abound and everyone is beside themselves.  They talk about showing support to those who now face heartbreak and despair during a season of Joy.  They just talk and talk and talk...

Many families will offer heartfelt condolences along the lines of "I can't imagine what you're going through, but I am so sorry". 

Sadly, I can imagine......

It has been two years for our family, our third Christmas without Joshua, and sometime within those two years....(truth be told..pretty much in the last two weeks), I have learned that Christmas is magical because it is a book we keep in our hearts full of those great memories of happiness, peace and joy.  The beautiful realization is that this book includes memories that noone can take away, and they are the greatest gift!

Pray for these families....they will need all the strength prayer can muster to get them through their holidays. Not only will Christmas presents remain untouched under newly decorated trees, but many are in the middle of Hanukkah and have lost their child during their holiest of seasons.

Send notes of love not only to those lost in yesterday's tragedy, but to those you know who have lost a child at any time...every one of these tragedies tears the wound of loss wide open!

Keep those you love close!

Give Hugs every opportunity you have!

Merry Christmas....may your book be full of Christmas memories!

Hugs,
Sherri


 

Weathering through the storm

It's 2 am and I am wide awake thanks to a very loud storm that shook our house with every BOOM!

It's not all that unusual to find me awake around this time.  When I was pregnant with each of the Newmanettes, I would magically wake at 3 am for snack and bio break.  When they were born, they each kept that 3 am feeding for a long time.

I don't really mind it.  I can get some "to do" things done and just take in the quiet of the house.  I'm becoming comfortable with that quiet again....for the longest time, it reminded me of the quiet left behind by Joshua's death and it made me sad.

Now I take these moments to think, meditate and just be.

How far I've come in 23 months!  It still aches beyond belief that my little one has gained his wings, but I'm starting to take in life again.  It feels good to be able to do that.

The fog has lifted somewhat, though it is the one lingering noticeable thing people see in me.  I once had a very good memory, and an uncanny memory for names;  now, my memory is foggy at best though I still am able to remember names....God's doing, I guess.  To compensate, sticky notes abound at my work desk though we have moved from "don't forget purse" to "Tasking A due Friday Do a,b&c". 

When setting up future meetings at work, my boss was sharing with me her intention to cancel a meeting on November 19th since it was so close to Joshua's Angelversary.  How touching is that?  I asked her to keep it on the books but to be my stand in should I not be able to do it.   I really don't know what to expect.  Two years out and I still don't know how I'll react to things, but I'm learning with each one of them.

Stephi seems to be thriving with her school work and circle of friends.  Driver's Licenses have brought great freedom and opportunity to her sweet friends.  One Direction remains her obsession and I believe her coping mechanism to continuing on after the storm.

Brittany continues to deal with it in her own way at college and it hurts to not be closer.  We had the opportunity to spend a weekend in Nashville with my mom and it was great on all accounts.  Last weekend we Skyped for three hours as we watched our newest tv series obsession.  It was kinda cute perching the computer with Brittany's face on a pillow next to me.  Oh if only we could skype heaven.

I don't know if I'm in denial, packaging my feelings of missing Britt under grief for Josh, or just so happy that she's a flight away and I will see her soon, but I'm still so happy that she is off pursuing her dreams while I remain in a home that now has two empty bedrooms.

The storm outside has passed and there is once again quiet.  I can't help but think how parallel this is to my life now.  Another storm will surely come, but for now I will enjoy the quiet peace.

Hugs,
Sherri

 

Sometimes ya just need a little home!

I went home to Ohio this past weekend to attend my college roommates House Warming Party.  Pink, recently returned to her hometown, bought a fixer upper and plans to bring this cute house back to its' splendor.  This is a pretty big undertaking for a single woman with grown kids.

I thought it was well worth the five-hour drive just to see her and our third roomie, Marcia, if only for the weekend.  They warm my heart, make me jiggle giggle, and forget about life for a while.

It never even occurred to me to ask Brad to go with me.  I knew he would be trying to get in some last golf of the season, plus I needed someone to let out the dog and feed Stealth Kitty.  Honestly, it's a good thing I didn't take him since the house had some low ceilings, and he would never have fit in the shower.  A grown up shower will be built shortly so we'll take him next time.

The weekend was a great escape from city livin' complete with some good old American livin'...... the Annual Cider Festival was in full gear across the street with its bright lights, music and addicting lard foods.  To get over my disappointment  when the one and only apple press broke down on the first day, I got my hands on some deep fried Oreos...it sounds yucky but let me tell ya, they are addictive.  We will turn a blind eye to the calorie count on them..

After staying up til the wee hours chatting like teenagers about everything with Pink,  I woke up the next morning screaming for caffeine.  Let me ask you....when does coffee move from a 'nice way to start the day' to 'must have or the world will suffer?'

After some caffeine intake, we decided we needed to get Pink's place in order for the party and I was busy in the yard when Brad called.  "What ya doin?" 
S- Weedin'! 
B- Hmmmm.  What's Pink doin'? 
S- Mowin' the Lawn! 
B- Boy, you girls sure know how to have a good time!

This is a far cry from what we were doing in college, but ya know what, we're ok with that.  We have grown up and we now behave like model citizens...
most of the time....
some of the time.....
well.....we try.....



 Marcia, Pink and Me
 

Cars start rollin' in and we are quickly in a full blown party but no Marcia.  Two hours later still no Marcia, so I called her to nicely tell her to get her tush there.  I'm not sure I was very gracious when she told me she was busy gettin' her nails done!!!!  I drive five hours to see her and she is getting her nails done?  Sigh...she is so lucky I love her!  An hour later I see her familiar mini coupe and the antics begin. 

Pink's kids are all there with their sweeties.  It's been way too long since I've seen them.  I love all our kids...between the three of us we have ten children... within the ten we have three college students, two weddings in the works, and 1 new police officer, so they keep us hoppin'.  Pink's older daughter was our summer nanny when we were overseas, and all but two have walked with us for epilepsy so far.  I have changed their diapers, bribed them with ice cream, and they have all held my hand tight and made me stronger in my weaker moments over the last two years.

About an hour into the party, Britt started texting me from Oklahoma to remind me to behave because she knows things get a little crazy with the roomies around.  It's not anything we plan, it's just our chemistry.  We are all so different but we are a good fit and apparently, a good source of entertainment even when all we're doing is sittin' there.

The party winds down just as the Cider Festival fireworks are set off just for me(let me live my delusions on this one please).  I'm standing there arms around my roomies, and in that moment I am happy.   Me the bereaved mom, Pink the newly divorced empty nester in her new home, and Marcia, the crazy woman whose mouth would put sailors to shame, and I love them dearly!

The next morning it was a quick bite at the Annual Pancake breakfast to benefit the soccer league before heading back to the fast paced life of DC.

Friendships and family have become all the more precious to me since losing Josh and weekends like this make life a little easier!

Hugs!
Sherri