A Blur of Motion

We drove to East Tennessee on Saturday and met Jen and her parents and had a long, leisurely lunch with them and got to know them a little better. Then, we drove the backroads of extreme southern Tennessee through the mountains and past Sewanee--The University of the South, hung out there on the side of a mountain.

Luckily, as we went through the worst of the roads, it was not raining, yet. As we got to flatter terrain, some of the family called and said we had bad weather moving in. That is not really good news when you are heading for "Tornado Alley" down around Etheridge, TN. I made some interesting pictures of the clouds until the battery on my digital camera ran down. Unfortunately, he has my camera this week, so I haven't gotten to download the pix yet. We made it unscathed to Mom's house, but it took about an hour longer for the trip than I had hoped because of the torrential rains. We got settled in, and I never was happier to see a bed.

Then, promptly at 2:30 a.m., my eyes popped open. "This is not good," I thought. "I have two church services and lunch to cook and a birthday party for my mother to orchestrate today. I need sleep." However, I am obviously plagued by the curse of my grandmothers--insomnia at the worst times. So, I tried to sleep for the next hour, finally gave up, and started my day at 3:30 a.m.

Somehow, I managed to make it through the day without even so much as a nap, and by the time we drove back home that night and I hit the bed at 10:30 p.m., I was never so happy to see the bed! :)

We love Miss Jen! She is so sweet and fits in very well with our family. The craziness of having 16 souls she did not previously know screaming at football players on a bigscreen t.v. did not seem to phase her in the least. Five little people running through the den as large men determined their standings in fantasy football did not send her packing. She just might make the cut! LOL!

Daniel, of course, to quote one observer has "got it bad!" Yes, he has definitely had a large bite taken out of him by the love bug. This is new territory for me once again. You always look at the kids your kids bring home and think..."Is this the one? Is this the girl I have prayed for all of his life?" I could not help but think as I sat across the table from her parents Saturday..."Are you the people I have prayed for for years to have success in raising a good, godly girl for my son?"

(He and she are probably chuckling and rolling their eyes as they read the ramblings of a mother walking down a new section of life's road. That's the trouble with these public blogs. You can never blog in secrecy. They will just have to get over it if I am embarrassing them to death.)

Well, all I know right now is that they make a darling couple and seem to be well-matched, right down to liking yucky cold iced coffee! They laugh so much, and that is a wonderful thing to see. If two people can keep laughing, come what may, they can get through anything.

Lord-willing, we are all going to the fair Friday. As luck would have it, an artic blast of cold air is due to arrive that day, so I guess we will be bundling up. Sarah is looking forward to the promised "shark exhibit" and Hannah just wants to ride the horsies. I won't be getting on anything more exciting than a ferris wheel. You know you are old when you have no interest in any rides but the merry-go-round and the ferris wheel. I just pray I don't get stuck up there at the top with the temperatures plunging.

Well, that's the update. Hope you have some nice weather where you are. I hear we are supposed to have a warmer, wetter winter than usual, at least in the next 90 days. That was not what I wanted to hear! I WANT SNOW... and lots of it! Soon! My house needs deep-cleaning, and being forced to stay in is the only way it is going to get done!