Annual girls trip

When we were planning our annual girls trip for this year, one of my friends offered up a long weekend at one of places included in her vacation club membership. It didn't take the other two of us any time at all to take her up on it.

We were less than an hour from our usual haunt, but we were closer to marshy water than we were the ocean. It was such a pretty place.

There were huge live oak trees with lots of Spanish moss hanging down. There were tons of birds around the marshy areas. The place had a beach club with a pool, eating places and of course, access to the ocean right across the island. The brochures called it a short bike ride or scenic walk. But seeing as it was our vacation, and we were trying to be as lazy as possible, we drove over there. 

We always bring breakfast stuff, then I provide food for a couple of meals — lunch or dinner, depending on what we need. That way, when we don't feel like getting fixed up, we don't even have to leave our condo/apartment.

We did hit a couple of really good restaurants, and of course, there was a wee bit of shopping done.

But mostly, the best parts of our trips are when we just sit around and talk ... and laugh.

The three of us only get together once a year, and of course we wish it was more often. But we have three-way conference calls several times a year. And with social media, emailing and texting, it seems like we spend more time together than we do.

Anyway, here are some photos from our trip:

I'm sure these guys can give you a hint at what kind of resort we were at.

I have this weird talent of being able to take beach photos that look like the beach was completely empty, when in fact, the beach was pretty crowded.

I love the texture of all types of palm trees.

As you can tell, we were roughing it. I had my feet propped up, reading a book, with music playing and the ocean just over that wall on the back side of the pool.

Doesn't this look like a terrible place to hang out?!

This was the view from our porch. We had two bedrooms (one with a king bed and one with two queen beds), a full kitchen and cute corner dining booth, a living room with a big ol' TV that may or may not have screened a sweet, weepy, girlie movie. And our balcony had rocking chairs and a picnic table.

The sunsets were just beautiful.

This was the walkway from the beach club out to the ocean.

We went to a campfire at the resort where we sang silly songs with even sillier motions and got to make s'mores. I think the kids got a kick out of the adults not being afraid to make fools of ourselves.

The last morning, we decided to buy breakfast. The young woman taking our order helped us switch and swap menu items so we could all get a taste of everything, including waffles, bacon and banana salted caramel french toast. The resort was small enough that the same ladies who ran the lunch spot at the beach club also ran the breakfast place at the resort. It was nice to make friends with them.

The Spanish moss just adds something special. It makes you FEEL like you're on vacation.

The right thing, I guess

This happened last year, but I don't think I wrote about it then.

Biscuit and I were shopping, and he asked if he could go to the toy section by himself. I was looking at bathroom rugs, which is the section right beside toys. So I told him it was okay for him to go and that he could look down three aisles then come back.

"I'll be right here looking at the rugs, okay?" I asked him.

"Okay," he said.

"And when you're done, come right back here," I told him.

"Okay," he said. And I could tell he was getting a little exasperated.

He has no idea what it's like to worry like a madwoman that the worst possible thing that could happen will probably happen.

I looked up and realized that there were more rugs on the other side of the aisle where I was, so I walked around to look. THE VERY NEXT AISLE!

And of course, that was the moment that Biscuit decided to come back. He didn't see me where I told him I'd be, so he did exactly what I've told him to do in that situation. He went to the service desk at the front of the store.

And although he did do the right thing, could he not have walked around to the very next aisle to look for me?!

So over the store intercom, I hear them call me to meet him at the customer service desk at the front of the store.

So I turned my buggy around and hauled butt to the front.

The first thing I did was hug him.

The second thing I did was tell him he did exactly the right thing by having them call me.

The third thing I did was ask him, "Did you look on a couple of rows near where I was supposed to be?"

"Nope," he said. "I looked at the exact row where you said to look. You weren't there, so I went to tell them to call you."

I was trying to decide whether I should tell him to check out the neighboring rows before resorting to having me called to the front.

But before I could decide, Biscuit said, "Hey, Mom. Were you embarrassed when they called you over the com?"

"The com?" I asked. "What is this, a space ship or a store?"

Visitor instructions

My parents came for a visit recently, and Jeff, Biscuit and I had to run out for a school thing.

As we were leaving the house, Biscuit turned back to give some instructions.

"Grandmama and Papa," he said, "make yourselves at home while we're gone."

Mama smiled and said, "Okay, we will."

Then Biscuit said, "I mean, help yourself to snacks in the cupboard."

Mama smiled again and said, "Okay, we will."

Then Biscuit turned back one more time and said, "Just don't break anything."

I guess hospitality only lasts for so long.

Out of the mouth my babe

A few things Biscuit has said recently:


Rules of the game: Biscuit has all these very complicated scenarios when he plays with his Legos and action figures. He even mixes movie characters with book characters and superheroes with cowboys.

But there are always exceptions and limitations.

"Okay," he'll say. "In the movie, this guy has the power to fly, but in THIS game, he can fly AND he has super strength." Or "this guy is from a book, but he's going to be on the good guys side with these guys from a movie."

And quite frankly, it's hard to keep up with the rules.

We were playing one day, and I had to get a clarification.

"Okay, so can the animals talk in this game?" I asked him.

"No, Mom," he said. "They are fully committed to animal behavior in this game."

"So, my whatever-this-animal-is-called can't help the superhero he's with?" I asked him.

"Oh, he still has all of his natural animal instincts," Biscuit explained. "So anything he can do in the wild, he can do to his enemies."

I love kids' imaginations. I hate that most adults lose theirs along the way.


Popcorn and a movie: Biscuit and I were watching a movie one afternoon, and I made us popcorn to eat while we watched.

About halfway through the movie, Biscuit said, "I've got something stuck in my teeth."

"I do, too, dude," I said. "It must be hulls from our popcorn."

I went into the bathroom to get some dental floss and saw a sample pack of fruit-flavored dental floss picks. I grabbed two of them and took them back into the living room.

I'm not sure what flavor mine was, but I didn't like it at all.

"I don’t like the flavor," I said to Biscuit.

He smacked his lips together and said, "That’s odd. I quite enjoy it.”


A very old man: I can't remember exactly how the conversation started, but Biscuit and I were talking about things that could get people upset or bothered.

I told Biscuit, "It's like Dad always says, 'We don't judge people by the group. We take people one at a time. If you like somebody, play with them. If you don't, don't. But don't make that decision by how someone is dressed or what their skin color is or how much money you think they have.'"

Biscuit thought about it for a minute, then he said, "Something like that could cause quite a tussle!"

He's 9 going on 74!

Anniversary gifts for me

So I complained in the last post about not getting to enjoy Jeff's anniversary gift with him, but he had something entirely different to deal with this year.

About a week before our anniversary, Jeff told Biscuit about our upcoming occasion.

"Hey, boy," Jeff said, "do you know that mom and I will have our 15th anniversary at the end of this week?"

Biscuit thought for a minute and said, "I know I wasn't there, but can I get in on this?"

And the reason my sweet boy wanted to get in on it was because he LOVES buying me presents. Jeff had already picked out a present for me, but he indulged Biscuit.

Jeff told him that he would take him shopping at my favorite kitchen store. He picked out a couple of nice silicone gadgets and two wooden spoons (one with a K on it and one with an M on it).

Then as he and Jeff walked around the store, he saw something that intrigued him.

"Whoa," he said, "what is that?!"

"That is a kitchen torch," Jeff told him.

"What do you use it for?" Biscuit asked.

"Do you remember the chocolate creme brulee you had at the beach?" Jeff asked.

"You mean the delicious chocolate pudding we had at that restaurant?" Biscuit asked.

"Yes," Jeff said. "These torches are used to make the crunchy crust on top of them. Remember how Mom told you to use the back of your spoon to crack it before you ate it?"

"Well, we HAVE to get one of these for her!" Biscuit said.

So I also have a brand-new kitchen torch. I've never had one, so I'm excited about using it. You can caramelize sugar on creme brulee or any other kind of dessert. You can toast a cheese topping on casseroles and other dishes. And Biscuit was excited to learn that you can also toast marshmallows with it, too.

Even though I won't get to go to the concert, I have some cool new toys to play with.

The joys of parenthood

When people have asked Jeff and me what changed when we became parents (other than the fact that there were three of us instead of two!) 

Well, we still went to restaurants. We like to eat out, so we just taught the boy how to behave when we were somewhere other than home. We still went to festivals. We just tried to plan food and breaks around him.

We still did pretty much everything we had done except two of our favorite things — going to the movies and going to concerts.

As Biscuit has gotten older, we've been able to see a few more grown-up movies, such as some of the recent superhero movies. But that's about as grown-up as we go with him.

As for concerts, we've taken him to many outdoor shows where the noise isn't an issue. And they've mostly been open to the public, so the talking in between songs has been appropriate, and the language has been clean.

Jeff and I recently celebrated 15 years of marriage, and just before our anniversary, I found out one of his favorite performers is coming to a venue one town over from us. I was excited about us getting to go see some music, but then I looked at the calendar and realized that the show is on a Wednesday night.

I didn't want Jeff to miss it, so before I gave him his anniversary present, I texted one of his friends to ask if he could go with him to the concert. And he said he could.

So Jeff is going to enjoy his anniversary gift with a friend, not me! It's funny the things you do as parents.

Cousins

We didn't get to have any kids after Biscuit, so I've tried to keep him close to his cousins. And no matter that he says he loves all his cousins, he definitely has a favorite.

My brother's son is five years older than Biscuit. And to Biscuit, he hung the moon!

My nephew has always loved babies, so when Biscuit came along, he couldn't keep his hands off him.

And as Biscuit has gotten older, their relationship has evolved to rougher play — wrestling, chasing each other and Biscuit getting thrown around.

As evidenced by this video:

I hope they can continue to be close as they get older.

These boys can cook

Sometimes Jeff and Biscuit use the excuse that they can't cook to get out of figuring out dinner. And it usually works.

But sometimes, I tell them I don't want to hear their excuses, and I make them cook!

I had a handful of leftover ingredients in the fridge, so we experimented. They were amazed that you could take random ingredients and put them together without a recipe or a plan.

But those of you who cook will understand how simple this was. I had leftover ground chicken with taco seasoning, wonton wrappers and corn. My plan was to put them all together, but when I started looking at the wonton wrappers, I knew it wouldn't fit well.

So I showed them how to put the meat and cheese in the wrappers and seal them closed with a dab of water. You'd have thought they were spinning gold like in the fairy tale!

A fun lunch

Jeff was getting ready to do some yard work, and Biscuit was going to help him. But I told them both they had to eat lunch before they went out. Sometimes you just have to take charge!

I was busy, so I asked Jeff if he could warm them up some pasta and meatballs I had made the night before.

"Sure," Jeff said (which is almost always the answer he gives when I ask him to do something for me).

I heard Biscuit laughing and walked in to see his plate.

Reading spot

Since starting third grade, Biscuit has really started to read a lot. Fiction and non-fiction alike.

He has to read 30 minutes at school, and he has to read 30 minutes at home each evening. And I'm so glad he's started enjoying it because I would hate to have to nag him to do it. I've also tried to make sure we have books he's interested. I've had really good luck finding good prices at different places and ordering used books online.

One evening, Biscuit said he was having a hard time concentrating on reading in his head, and I suggested that he find a place where he could concentrate.

Here was his solution. He got in Jeff's chair with his book and a flashlight and threw MY blanket over his head (It even has Linus saying, "If you touch this blanket, you'll regret it for the rest of your life!). He read longer than he was supposed to, so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Mr. Potato Head

Biscuit's class has been learning about biographies and non-fiction books. The students had to choose someone who had an impact on history to use for a project.

The odd part was that after the had completed a worksheet, written a summary and prepared an oral presentation, they had to create a likeness of their subject ... as a potato head.

They could use the real toy and dress it up. Or they could use a sheet from their teacher that had a cut-out-able body, arms and legs. Or they could use a real potato.

Do I even need to tell you which one Biscuit picked?!

He chose Albert Einstein as his subject.

They had to tell the basics facts about the person, an obstacle he or she overcame and what impact he or she had made for mankind.

Biscuit had a book from the library to use as his source. For the obstacle, he found a part in the book about how some people discounted Einstein's science because he was Jewish. They called his work "Jewish physics." Their comments urged him to look deeper into his Jewish roots, and he used his faith as a tool of encouragement.

I had never heard that about Einstein before, so I thought it was very interesting.

His teacher said she hadn't heard that before, either, so I was glad his report had an unusual piece of information in it.

Biscuit and I went to the grocery store to pick out Einstein. We looked at the white potatoes, but they were all too long and skinny. I suggested we look at the sweet potatoes. And sure enough, we found one that was rounder than any of the white potatoes.

Then I took Biscuit to the craft store and told him to look around for something that would make good hair and a mustache. We picked up some googly eyes, and I got some U-shaped pins from the sewing department that would make it easy to attach the white fuzzy garland Biscuit picked to make his hair and mustache.

I went online and found a man's suit that looked like it was from Einstein's era and printed it out for him.

I showed him how to attach the hair and mustache, and he took it from there.

Here's Mr. Sweet Potato Head Einstein:

Getting behind the wheel

Most people would be shocked to know how soon my brother and I were driving — the tractor, my parents' cars (only from our house to Granny's, which was even farther into the woods than us), the dune buggy and whatever else we could get our hands on.

A funny aside: My brother and I both learned to drive stick shift before automatic. I remember getting into an automatic for the first time and asking Daddy, "Where the clutch?"

Anyway, Daddy made this dune buggy when I was little. It's an old VW bug. And now, my brother's kids (two of whom are shown here) are driving it, and Biscuit is on deck.

But first, he has to start on something smaller. 

Biscuit hasn't liked loud noises since he was born. He really hated velcro when he was a baby. Sometimes Jeff and I would rip a piece of velcro apart near him. He would make this funny shiver. I know it was mean, but it made us laugh.

So Biscuit is wearing ear protection.

Papa left the grass a little higher than usual, then went back and close-cut a curvy track for Biscuit to follow.

I'm glad Biscuit will have these kinds of memories. And hopefully, when it's time for him to get his driving permit, he'll have a good bit of experience under his belt.

Dad's work

I forgot about this photo until I was cleaning off my phone.

I don't even remember where this photo came from, but Jeff clearly loves his job. Can't you tell?!

The trade-off

Biscuit spent Spring Break with my parents. It was quite a job trying to figure out how to swap him off. We were at the beach Easter weekend, and Spring Break started that Monday.

So we needed to find a place between the beach we were at and somewhere not too terribly far from my parents' house.

Jeff and I ended up driving a couple of extra hours, but it was only an hour's drive for Mama and Daddy, and we were in a town that gave us a straight shot home.

We met at a lake that I didn't even know existed. And it was a pretty place.

Here are some pictures:

I love wisteria ... as long as it's not at my house. Or should I say all OVER my house.

A really light breeze made little ripples on the water.

Biscuit pretended he was going to jump. I'm guessing that water was pretty cold, so if he HAD jumped, he'd have been jumping right back out!

Cool-looking grass under the water.

I love how he has his elbow propped on her shoulder.

I thought this was funny. Jeff and Papa kinda frame Biscuit.

Why would you use the perfectly good steps when you can teeter down the side rails?

He must've spent too much time at the beach. He was surfing.

I don't like pasta

Since I skipped such a long time writing in 2017, I can't remember whether I wrote about certain things or not. I haven't been as careful as I should've been about adding keywords and things that made it easier to search.

So if I've told you this story before, excuse the repetition.

Biscuit was a fan of pasta when he was little. The baby food people made these little pasta wheels that were the perfect size for him when he started using a spoon. Then for some reason, he stopped like it.

How could anyone not like pasta? You can make it as bland or fancy as you want.

So one evening for dinner, I made spaghetti and meatballs. Biscuit came into the kitchen just as I was adding the pasta to the sauce.

"Whoa!" he said. "I love spaghetti and meatballs!"

"Since when?" I asked him.

"Since forever," he said.

Apparently, he had eaten it at Grandmama's house and a friend's house and had told them that I never made spaghetti and meatballs.

But you know what I HAD been making? 

Penne pasta with meat sauce.

Basically the same thing as spaghetti and meatballs, but he didn't like it.

Biscuit wants to learn to cook, so we've been working on some dishes. So I thought that if I let him pick the pasta and got jar sauce, he could handle it himself.

So we were standing in the grocery store, and I said, "Okay, I want you to pick out what pasta we're going to use for dinner."

"Um, I don't think I want pasta, Mom," Biscuit said. "Can we have spaghetti instead?"

I squinted at him while I tried to figure him out.

And then I felt like a terrible cooking teacher (and mother) because the child didn't understand that spaghetti IS pasta.

So once I explained to him that everything in that whole section was pasta, he was all excited about looking at all the shapes.

Now, his favorite is bowtie (farfalle) pasta with red sauce and meatballs.