Where Do I Begin???. . . .

Just when you think you have it all together, your kids grow up and prove you know absolutely nothing.  Parenting teenage almost adult boys is not for the faint of heart.  When you think you know them, they show you that you do not know them at all.  Those sweet little angels that you loved and snuggled and loved watching sleep and loved how they smelled.  Ahhh the memories and tears I shed over those little boys and they have no clue how much a mother loves a child.
We spend 16 + years encouraging our kids to grow and be independent, giving them everything they need to do that and then when they go and do it you are no where near prepared.  I was told by my almost 20 year old child, that he was an adult and could do things on his own.  He thinks that because he came and went as he pleased while at college that he can do that in MY house.  Ha Ha Ha Ha !!! This is very hard for your children to understand, they want to flex their adult muscles and they want to be that independent adult so bad.  What these new adults do not realize is all of the responsibility that comes with being an adult.  They still want to sleep in till 1100 and have their food prepared for them.  They want to have their laundry done and car and gas provided to them at no charge of course.
We are always proud that our kids have grown up and excited when they start a new chapter in their lives but when it comes to that chapter where they are suppose to be on their own it is difficult to deal with especially when they still live at home.  They do not show that in those gushy commercials on TV about having children.  They do not show the angry teenager storm out of the house and say, "you don't trust me and you don't want me to grow up."   I bet if they did it would make parents think twice about teaching all this independence.  Nahh, I am just kidding, it would  not have changed anything for me.  I do love that my kids are independent, and that is what we want but they really should teach us parents how to cope with all this independence.  Boys are very different from girls too, I think girls will always need their moms but boys on the other hand they do not want to be seen as "needing" anyone.  ughh the trials of motherhood.
It has taken me a week to write this, every time I read it, I think it sound whiny and needy.  I just want to convey the pains of motherhood in raising teenage and soon to be adult boys. 

Such sweet little angels 

Big T doing what he loves most.  I love this picture, his grin. 

Sprat also doing what he loves most.  

No Resolutions Here. . .

I used to do New Year's resolutions when I was much younger but, I always seemed to fall short.  I made  a decision a long time ago that I would just try to be the best Me I could be.   I make that resolution every morning as I go about my day.  I still fall short but I try every day. 
One of the things I have been trying, to be a better me, is the 100 days of real food.  I got the new book for Christmas along with some new Instant Pot accessories.  Along with the "real food" adventure I have added, very gingerly, yoga.  Don't laugh, if my mother-in-law can do it, I think I can start a beginner session.  I have only added a few poses to help with flexibility.  I took ballet for 9+ years, rode horses from the time I could walk till I had Sprat, and I cheered through high school and  college. I used to be flexible, it is a horrible feeling that I have problems getting in and out of the floor.  ughhh !!! Getting old stinks, age sucks our brains out and takes away our flexibility and agility.  Ok so it is not just age, it is our schedule and for me it is a neglect of taking care of myself.  I guess maybe I did make a resolution of sorts, I am going to do better about taking care of me this year.  You will have to stay tuned to see how this yoga business works out, I hope that I do not have to post from a hospital bed in traction or something. 

Happy Thanksgiving . . . .

So happy to have my Sprat home, if only for a few days.  Thanks to a minor snafu by Mom Sprat also enjoyed his first plane ride via a first class flight home from Boston, while the hubbs flew coach. It felt good seeing the boys talking and picking with each other.  I guess absence does make the heart grow fonder.  There was minimal arguing and fighting these last few days.  We had a whirl wind Thanksgiving visiting everyone but it was so good to see family and friends.  It seems as though we blinked and now we are getting ready to send this big guy back to school.  Good news though, he will be home for a longer Christmas break. 

We got to hear all about how cold it is in Boston already and how it is dark by four o'clock. I do not think he is ready for the real winter he is going to experience, he has only had a taste of cold.  He does have lots of winter clothes and a big coat and boots to wear but he is going to experience Winter like he has never had before. 

 He has gathered with his friends to visit and catch up on what everyone has been doing and he had a list of places he wanted to eat that they do not have in Boston.  First meeting with all his buddies was Bojangles and then he wanted to eat at Salsaritas with all of us.  The boys went to Thanksgiving Eve Love Feast, that was also a must on Sprat's list of things he had to do while he was home. He took a picture of his Thanksgiving plate to show his teammates what a southern Thanksgiving looks like.  He  is the only true Southerner at this school so they all love to hear him talk especially the young ladies.  The hubbs had to stop on the way home from the airport to pick up Cook Out with some sweet tea.  He has asked on numerous occasions to send him some sweet tea via the mail.  I told him we could not do that.  It is funny the things that we get use to and that we miss when we do not have it.  He seems to be having fun and doing lots of cool stuff, Mom just hopes he is studying in between all of the fun.  Mama feeling blessed and very thankful for this visit with my boy. 

Below is one picture I was able to snap over this break, I hope I will get a couple more during Christmas. 

Leaping into Technology. . .

This week I leaped into technology by creating a snap chat account.  My younger hipper co workers helped me set up my account so that I could face time with my son in Boston.  He played in his first college lacrosse scrimmage this past weekend and on Wednesday last week he texts me to inform me he may have a concussion.  He said he had the worst headache he has ever had.  He has migraines and I had a migraine that same weekend for about three days.  I thought ok, this is a bad migraine.  He then informs me that he got leveled at the scrimmage with head contact.  Now is when mom drive goes into overdrive.  That is why I did the snapchat, I needed to see his face.  I felt like if I could see that face I would know one way or the other if it was a concussion or migraine. 
My co workers are the best, I was able to face time him and see that face that I have not seen since September 2nd.  I felt some better after seeing him, he did not seem loopy or disoriented or in severe pain like  I thought he could have been.  He is still having a headache and he text his dad today and told him that he saw the trainer again today and they would not let him go back to practice and that their main concern was to get him back in class.  That is troublesome too, that he has missed class because of this. 
Needless to say there has not been a lot of sleep for me.  When I worry I do not sleep.  Work keeps my mind off of everything so I have been working more filling in for folks when they need it.  Things are winding down and we will get to see him in person the week of Thanksgiving.  Cannot wait to see him.  Praying he has stayed on top of his grades, otherwise he will be home for good.  Low grades means no scholarship, means the boy comes home.  Praying he has stayed focused and diligent in his studies.
Update on Big T he made A honor roll this semester and made an A in his college class he was taking.  He did a tour of the Community College since he will be making trips there next semester for classes.  Up to this point his college classes have been online so he has not had to go to campus for anything.  Things are getting very exciting at our house. 
Update on 100 days of Real Food, I fell off the wagon, so I will attempt a re-start soon.  I was talking with a friend who is a PA and she was talking about processed food and headaches and migraines and other physical ailments that we have in common and I was telling her about this book.  We had both come to the conclusion that processed food is bad and we should be eating "Real" food.  This journey is on going at our house. 
Stay tuned as the college kid comes home and the Real Food journey starts again.

Time Capsule Opening. . . Drum Roll ^*^*^*^*^*^*

I told you we had a lot of celebrating to do for this Grad.  We celebrated yesterday to my Mom's and Sprat opened his time capsule that we sealed on his first birthday.  Lots of treasures were  found some worth a little dough and some just  very sentimental.  I think Sprat got a kick out of opening it and seeing everything we had put in it.  I know we all had fun watching him.  There were pieces of history enclosed with lots of pictures.  He had a C3PO pez dispenser still in its original packaging, pictures of the hubbs Dad from his service years and patches from his time on the police force.  Mint uncirculated coins from his year of birth, some Joe Camel advertisements from relatives that worked at RJR,  metal toy tractor from my hubbys youth, the cork from our bottle of Champagne from our "romantic" meal we had in the hospital right after we had Sprat, and all the cards from his first birthday and his infant Baptism.  So many memories. . .

Poppy enjoying the cake and festivities . . 

Getting ready to open the time capsule. . . 

Taking in all of the fun. . . 

I do not give a lot of parenting advice but this is and was a very cool idea and I am so glad we did it.  I highly recommend doing one for your little one if you have one.   Stay tuned, we have one more party before Sprat goes off to school. . . 

I am the Slacker Mom. . . But, I do Love my Kids. . .

I am a slacker mom, I have one good picture of Sprat in his cap and gown and not one good one of he and I together.  I must say, I am a little jealous when I see these moms with these great pictures of their boys and their tux at prom and their cap and gown at graduation.  I am just never able to capture those moments, I have other moments but never these perfect moments.
I have this one halfway decent picture of Sprat:

As you can tell, this was a quick snap as he was coming off the stage after receiving his diploma.  He hates having his picture made and that does not help when trying to capture these precious moments. When he was little I could hold him hostage and snap away but, now that he is grown up he is harder to hold on to to grab those special moments.

This is one of my favorites, I love those chubby little cheeks and that smile is contagious.  He has always had such a great smile and was always such a happy little fella. Not many things upset him.

I challenge you to look at these pictures without smiling.  He is just so darn cute!!

So many adventures ahead for this guy, I cannot wait to see what happens.  Stay tuned as Boston is getting closer and closer.  Who knew there was so much paperwork involved in going to College?  I do not remember this much.

Lots of Possibilities this Week. . .

Positive things happening this week at our house.  The hubbs is on his second face to face interview with a company he thinks will be a great fit.   I get to be a mock juror this week for a local law firm.  I am so excited!!  If you do not know what a mock jury is, here is what I learned in my criminal justice classes last semester.  When a law firm has a big case and is not sure how a jury might perceive their client they will enlist the help of a mock jury to run their defense strategy by and see how they react.  This is going to be very exciting, I am like a little kid the night before Christmas.  I also applied for a couple jobs myself other than the mock juror position.  Now I have not been in the workforce since Big T was born and he is thirteen.  I got my first, I am sorry you do not fit with our company the other day.  I must say, I was a little hurt.  I sort of thought the "I don't fit" was a little odd, are they trying to stuff me into a container.  I know that God has a plan for us and in His plan I may not be working so, I am going with the flow.
I have been searching indeed jobs for what I think I would like to do, I have also looked on monster jobs.  These are two very good sites to check out when looking for employment.  If you are looking for more professional positions I would highly recommend Linked In.  This is where the hubbs has found all of his contacts and prospects for jobs.  He has also connected with some of his old college buddies and past colleagues.  A friend asked me the other day if anyone goes to the employment office anymore.  I told her I was not sure but, I think indeed and monster would be more help than the employment office these days.  I guess if you are filing for unemployment reimbursement then you would have to go to the employment office periodically.
Looking forward to a wild and crazy week.  Praying for the hubbs and that God's hand will be in what ever offer he receives.  I know He holds us in His hands and for that I am truly grateful.
Stay tuned for tells of our adventure we took last night. . .