Some days just don’t quite go as you plan…

I woke up this morning excited because it’s my 3rd day that school is over and I’m not teaching anymore! But I had a list of stuff to do that ran off the end of my paper, and I was looking forward to making a yummy supper for my husband [last week's dinners were all either Japanese take-out or egg sandwiches because of working 9-13 hour days at school finishing up the year].

So I got up pretty early [for someone that loves sleeping in, that is] and was scurrying around the house, cleaning things that hadn’t been cleaned since a very long time ago, and getting things done before we leave on a week-long trip early tomorrow morning.

I met a few lovely ladies for lunch, a much looked forward to event for me! With Marylou, Christa, and Ginny, you can’t help but have a good time! Great times, I enjoyed it greatly! So excited I can finally do things like this again…

After lunch, around 2pm,  I ran a few errands in town, went to Walmart, places like that. After Walmart I ran the car through the carwash – it’s been so dry and dusty and the car was filthy. I didn’t think I had time to wash it at home because of my lengthy list of things to do. While I was in the midst of the automatic car wash, my car died. It started back up enough to get the nose our of the car wash for the next person in line, then promptly died again, and nothing I could do started it. The older gentleman who works there came running up and asked the insulting question to a female: “Do you have gas in your tank?” I had just filled up minutes before, thank you very much, and I have never run out of gas in my life. He seemed quite puzzled to know what was the matter after that.

Another “gentleman” came along, and although he wasn’t your cultured kind, he and his very long hair and kind heart, and me and my large 7-month pregnant belly pushed the car further across the parking lot. He gave me a few suggestions about what it could be, but said I have to wait a half hour before trying to start it again. So he helped me push it some more to the vacuum area where I vacuumed my car [with the annoying quarter-thing that keeps running out] and then decided to dust it as best I could with my little baby wipes that I always keep on hand. After a half-hour I tried to start it again, and no luck. I had already spent an hour at this car wash, and was quite ready to finish running my errands and go home.

Phone call to Ben, who was working an hour away. He knew what the problem was, and said the spark plugs had gotten wet in the under-carriage wash. My little old car can’t handle new-fangled things like that. The only thing to do was wait some more and hope it dried out. By this time the car was spick and span and I couldn’t think of another thing to do to clean it further, so I went into Walmart and made my 3rd purchase for the day, just to kill time. Also to kill time I stood in the book aisle and read “Chicken Soup for the New Mother’s Soul” and between laughing and crying and aching feet, I was quite cheered when I came out.

By this time another hour and a half had passed, and Ben was coming to rescue me. I tried the car again and it started! I was overjoyed, and called Ben to tell him he didn’t need to come after all. Mid-conversation, the car died again, at the end of the carwash parking lot. Needless to say, I needed a rescuer after all. By the time I finally got going at 6pm, all the places I needed to stop in at were closed and all thoughts of a lovely supper prepared for my hard-working husband had long since vanished. And not a thing had been crossed off my list.

Since I’ve been home, several things have been crossed off, and other things have just moved to next weeks’ list. But all is well, because 1) school is over for the year!!!   2) tomorrow I’m going home and seeing the friends and family I haven’t seen in 5 months  3) at least the baby is still inside of me and not outside when things like this happen!!  4) I had a good lunch date with my friends  5) I really am very blessed of the Lord…

Cheers, and hopes of many happy days to come!!

Good news and bad news… Bad news first: the only coffee shop in Jesup has closed up. We now have an hour to the nearest coffee shop of any kind.

Good news: a Starbucks just opened up in Brunswick!! Although it is a good hour away, Ben and I just had to stop in to try a caramel frap with an extra shot of espresso. As usual, I wasn’t disappointed. [Before this, the nearest Starbucks was 1.5 hours away].

Baby Names: a lot more difficult than I ever imagined. It feels like we’re getting no where! Girl names are especially hard, although they’re also the cutest. I was in a strange mood the other night when Ben and I were talking about names, and discussing how “the books say” you must always check so the initials won’t say anything wierd. There is a name that starts with an I that we like, and I started giggling and suggested we name the baby’s middle name “Wonder” so that his initials will be “I. Wonder Y.” As Ken Davis says, “Lighten up, and LIVE!” Not that Ken Davis is my hero or anything…

Now for the Southern Lingo…
…that I once thought was strange  but now find myself saying
…and other amusing cultural things

Might should: “I might should clean up the garage.”
Along and along: “We’re fixing up the house along and along” [means as we're able]
Yankees: Anyone present day from farther north than Maryland, not necessarily a soldier from a particular war 150 years ago [yes, I am called this quite often]
Ya’ll: used to refer to more than one person in conversation
Baby: Not necessarily an infant, but a term used to speak with affection to people of all ages
Redneck: a title to be proud of, a social status of respect and dignity [there really are some cultured rednecks, as strange an oxymoron as that sounds!]
Chivalry: “went out with the hoop skirts” according to a 7th grade student! [whatever happened to the Southern gentleman??]
 Dis, dem, der: used instead of this, them, there, and any attempt to correct a student [quote], You can’t take away my heritage!!” [end quote]
Fixin’ to: “I’m fixin’ to leave” [getting ready to]
Bless their hearts: You can say anything about anyone, as long as you end with this line. It kind of cancels out all other negative said

It still may be the United States, but sometimes it still feels like a totally different country!!

The computer is back! I’m back on xanga again, after being blocked from the library computers for the past month while our laptop was getting worked on… Fun times, this xanga world! Never mind that this dial-up is the slowest ever…

Busy times here… In the past few weeks since I’ve posted, two of my cousins from Ohio came and spent a glorious weekend here, I flew up to Indiana and had the dearest time with my friend Shirleen (another Mrs.-Yoder-to-be ), my friend Cindi came and visited for a fun weekend, and I played piano at Jesse & Sherry’s wedding while Ben was the Best Man last weekend. We’ll be home two weekends, then go to PA for my sister’s graduation, back to GA, then to IN again for Shirleen and Darin’s wedding, then on to PA once again for the rest of the summer! We have been so busy like that ever since we moved here, it’s a little stressful sometimes… Lots of great memories though, I sure can’t complain about that aspect of life! But sometimes “normal” would sound really good….

School is winding down for the year!! Next Friday is our last day of school, and to say I’m ecstatic is an understatement. I’m been working full-time ever since we moved down here last August, so I feel like I really don’t even know what “normal” life is like in the South. I hope I’ll be able to spend more time with my friends down here, and even just enjoying the bliss of being at home. I’ll probably not know what to do with myself!!

My 2nd grader has been giving me some heart-hugging comments lately. I’m so ready to just be done with school and not have the responsibility of teaching anymore, but he’s been my little encouragement. One comment he made a few weeks ago sent me giggling. I was leaning over his desk helping him with something, and he looked up at me and suddenly asked, “Do you use an eyelash cutter like my mom??” I was a little puzzled about what he meant, and said, “You mean an eyelash curler??” He grinned and said, “Oh yeah, that’s right! I guess I always thought it was an eyelash cutter!” [and no, I do not use one]

Then yesterday he came up to my desk and asked if I’ll be around for summer Bible School in July. I told him that no, I’ll already be in Pennsylvania [not to mention that I don't think I'd volunteer to teach so soon after finishing a whole year, plus being one week away from having my baby!!]. He said, “Oh man! I was hoping you’d be here and teach my class cuz you’re such a good teacher!” Bless his heart, I’m only the 2nd teacher he’s ever had, but he sure knows how to melt my heart!

I saw our little baby for the first time yesterday on the ultrasound!! So sooo exciting!! I wanted to find out so badly what gender the baby is, but Ben doesn’t want to know and I knew I could never keep it a secret from him if I found out, so I’ll be kept in suspense for another 2.5 months! The baby is doing perfectly well, there’s not anything that the doctors are concerned about. That is such a blessing… One funny thing during the ultrasound is that while the technician was doing measurements on the baby, she suddenly stopped and asked if my husband is tall. I told her that he’s around 6 feet tall. She grinned and said that the baby’s legs are a few weeks ahead of schedule, that I’ll probably have a tall baby! It’s just fun to find out stuff like that, to hear how the baby really is a part of me and a part of my husband. It’s mind-boggling… The technician said our baby weighs 3 pounds & 3 ounces right now. No wonder I feel like my tummy grows more every day!!

I suddenly figured out yesterday why babies are red and wrinkly when they’re born. You know how we look when we’re in the pool or tub for a 1/2 hour or even several hours? All wrinkled up? Well, these poor babies are in liquid for 9 months, no wonder they’re sometimes not the cutest things the first few seconds after they’re born! That made me feel a little better, that I don’t have to be worried if our baby doesn’t come out looking like a Gerber baby cover child.

Well, if any of you up in PA know of a furnished apartment we can rent for about 2.5 months this summer, please let us know. We thought we had that all worked out, then our “landlady” changed her mind. Definitely something we’re praying about, we’re planning to move in about a month. Somehow this time seems strangely familiar to last summer when we were moving down here… Last minute drama seems to be the story of our lives!!

Only 2 more days until the weekend, then one more week of school!!!