Sister B Gets Married! (part one)

Thursday Night: The Families Meet :)

Somebody's Getting Marrrrrrriiiiieeeeeeed

Sister B is getting married a week from tomorrow.  This is her man:

He is fabulous.  We love him.

These are all the new sisters-in-law he's getting a week from tomorrow. 

(sans Sister B, the little one in the middle.)

This is one of my favorite pictures of them.  

This is the picture of them that makes my heart the most happy.
Look at the way he makes her smile :)

"To the outside world we all grow old.  But not to brothers and sisters.  We know each other as we always were.  We know each other's hearts.  We share private family jokes.  We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys.  We live outside the touch of time."  ~Clara Ortega

Snapshots of My Summer

 Afternoon Starbucks brownie with my niece...

 Yogurt Mountain with the whole family (Fourth of July Weekend)

 We take up two tables -- at least. 

 Midnight swimming!

 Delicious after-church lunch fun at Papa's and Beer...

 Late afternoon sidewalk view from Trio's Cafe downtown...

 Baking cookies :)

 Helping Mom prep peaches for preserves and pie!

 Taking my niece to breakfast at -- where else? -- the Awful Waffle.  Haha -- except that it was nice and not awful at all...

 Enjoying baseball at a Greenville Drive game!

 On the way to the beach...

 The Sisters.  One week.  Thanks, Mom and Dad!

 Our view :)

 Prepping for B's bridal shower!

 Scones and sisters -- a perfect bridal shower combo :)

And now, back to our regularly scheduled school year... 

August

It's August. Faculty workshops start tomorrow; classes begin next week.  My years don't exist January-December; my years are August - May.  It's a nice arrangement and I like it. 

Yesterday, as I passed under the trees near the swimming pool, I noticed all of these yellow fluttery things littering the ground.  They were fallen leaves! In August! On a 97 degree day!  I guess even in the middle of the hottest month of the year, God is still reminding me that change is coming.  I love how He does that.

I also love:

* a new storehouse of mechanical pencils and composition notebooks (back-to-school sales are fabulous)

* being back in the gym after a much-prolonged absence (this body needs some serious gym time)

* a sister mini-vacation at the beach at the end of this month (The Beach and Sisters = quite possibly the most amazing combination ever :)

* knowing this year I'll watch my first set of freshmen graduate with their college degrees

* prepping for a new semester and praying for my newest batch of students (they have no idea what they're in for with my Intro to Composition class.  <insert evil cackle here> )

* Psalm 27.  My Light and My Salvation.  Love it.

Dreaming of the Seashore...

For whatever we lose (like a you or a me),
It's always our self we find in the sea.
~e.e. cummings

Last Christmas, my parents bought my sisters and me a week at the beach! We don't go until August, but I can hardly wait.  I wish I could spend every summer at the seashore...

Some of my favorite recent beach memories:

Several years ago, Sister A and I took my niece to the beach for the first time.  She loved it.  Precious little one...

Last summer, my best girl friends and I went to Hilton Head for the weekend -- we had an elaborate set-up on the sand.  In retrospect, we were far too far away from the water, haha, but it was still tons of fun. :)

Service, not Servant

This weekend was fabulous!  My sister G turned 27 and ALL of the sisters united for a weekend to celebrate her and her awesomeness.  We laughed, we ate good food, we spent hours around the table reminiscing and swapping stories.  It was a fantastic weekend with my four best friends.  I am incredibly blessed to have the sisters I have, the parents I have, the life I live.  Incredibly blessed. 

 Saturday lunch (photo is missing sister C, who arrived Sat night...)

Birthday girl and some of her adoring family fans :) 

On Sunday, we all went to Myabi's for some delicious hibachi-style Japanese.  Our server and chef were incredible, and we cheered and laughed and oooh'd and ahhh'd and generally made sure that they knew they were doing an excellent job serving us.  Because there were eight of us, we took up the entire side of the grill, and that, my friends, was EPIC.  It is the best way to enjoy hibachi, I think.  It's always so awkward to share with strangers...

Anyway, our server kept saying how kind we were, how nice we were, etc, and I was a little perplexed until my sisters pointed out that the group across from us hadn't expressed any excitement or joy over their chef.  They were morose and sullen, eating silently (even the teenagers and kids) and wearing frowns almost constantly.  My sister noticed one of them grab the chef's large container of "white sauce" (possibly the best part of the hibachi experience -- yum!) and pass it around to their family members.  The chef's face was a study in politeness -- my sister felt sure he wanted to snatch it back and teach them a lesson in rudeness, but he obviously felt he couldn't. 

It's a SERVICE being offered, people, not a SERVANT to be treated as a low-class citizen.  Everyone wants their work to be appreciated, whether you're a teacher, a hair stylist or the hibachi chef at Myabi's.  It makes me upset when people aren't treated well; when their work isn't respected or enjoyed.  It fires me up. 

Unfortunately, showering the people across from us with white sauce and screaming at them was not really an option.  Haha.  So, we tipped OUR server/chef really well, gushed about the fabulous experience, and left Myabi's smiling.  Hopefully, our server and chef felt appreciated and valued.

Oh, and as a random postscript -- my dad taught me not to date men who don't tip, or who treat wait staff poorly.  Dad says men who don't tip or act rudely towards the wait staff are scum.  So I always check the tip when I'm on a date :) 

Late but Great Christmas Pics

The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family. 

~Thomas Jefferson

Sister G with her sweet hubby...

Sister B and her soon-to-be hubby...

The most beautiful, wonderful Mom in the world...

Laughing with my Dad :)

The whole, magnificent gang on Christmas morning!

And thank you for a house full of people I love.  Amen. 

~Terri Guillemets

"Dandy Little Bundle for a Fella to Cuddle"

My sisters and I have created our own language; I think every close family does it.  We have phrases and expressions that we use all the time and which don't always have explanations that seem to fit their use.  For example, "be careful of the icy patch" comes from our childhood (see previous post) and could be used as an ironic reference to an ex-boyfriend who has become rather sketchy, or it could be said while family members enter mom and dad's house, or it might be used on Christmas morning as a declaration of unity:  (ie, as all the sisters raise mugs and declare laughingly, "be careful of the icy patch!")

This ridiculousness is what makes family... well, family.  Dorky inside jokes and stupid memories that get replayed over and over (sometimes to the chagrin of brothers-in-love or soon-to-be brothers-in-love) over dinner and coffee and dessert and breakfast and at the movies and in the car and so on and so on.

The cool thing about husbands joining the ranks of the M girls is that the inside jokes get explained (even if they intrinsically do NOT make sense) and then, when you have the good taste that my sisters have, the husbands join in.  Because they are pretty cool guys, when all is said and done.  After all, any man who thinks that one of my little sisters is A Dandy Little Bundle for a Fella to Cuddle is all right by me.        

Contentment

I may not be in love.  I may not be anyone's Mommy.  I may not drive the flashiest car, live in the nicest part of town, go on luxury vacations, or have the metabolism of a 15 year old gymnast :)  I may, despite my best efforts, hurt people I love.  I may struggle with "letting go" -- I may forgive "too easily" (for you, A). 

I may get bossy when around my sisters; I may laugh too loudly at crass jokes and secretly feed the cat that hangs out in my parents' front yard (even though my Mom has "expressly forbidden" the feeding of stray cats).  I may cry at movies at which no one else cries (for you, C).

I may not look the way I'd like or act the way I should or be as strong as I dream of being. I may fight when I should flee, flee when I should fight, and leave best friends in awkward situations to fend for themselves (ask Jiggers about the walmart trip in college). 

But tonight, I'm just so extremely thankful -- for this abundant, merciful, and love-filled life I've been given.  I am not deserving.  If only I could give this day to someone who didn't have a good day today.  I wish I could wrap up the comfort found in a loving family, a cheerful home and a deep sense of belonging and gift it to someone who doesn't have any of those things. 

If that "someone" is you -- I'm praying for you tonight.  You are not forgotten.  May you be ridiculously and extravagantly blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth...

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. -- Psalm 145:8

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. -- Psalm 34:18 

Home

The light is what guides you home, the warmth is what keeps you there. 

~Ellie Rodriguez

Home is a name, a word, it is a strong one; stronger than magician ever spoke, or spirit ever answered to, in the strongest conjuration. 

~Charles Dickens

It's only a week and a half until I leave the cozybutsometimeslonely lodging of my little apartment and head towards the hustle and bustle of another M Family Thanksgiving at Mom and Dad's.  It makes me smile just thinking about it -- the laughter, the drama, the cooking, the smooshing into a very small house and fighting over the remote control... ahhh.  Family.  Good times, good times.

My family is big.  And loud.  And passionate about almost everything.  Addendum.  Some of us are passionate about SOME topics, and some of us are bored to tears by said topics.  Which is part of the magic of my family -- there's always something to talk about and almost always someone who will listen to you talk about it.  Or argue with you about why you should be talking about something else :P

Home is a lovely blue house with a beautifully landscaped yard and an American flag always waving from the front porch.  

Home is a blue/white/yellow kitchen, a dining room with a picture window, and a bird identification book always close at hand.


Home is feeling the heat from a freshly poured cup of steaming coffee and seeing the sleepy faces of my family wandering out to the back porch, which has somehow become the unofficial gathering place for starting or ending each day when the whole family's in town.

Home is where the most beautiful, gracious woman in the world answers to the name of "Mom" and leaves little chocolate bars on the pillow when she knows you're coming home...

Home is where a smart, laughing salt-and-pepper headed man steals kisses from her when he thinks we're not looking and always makes sure there's enough coffee in the pot for "one more cup."

Home is where sisters live :)

Happy homecoming to all the weary travelers tonight.  May you know the truth and peace of being HOME -- wherever and with whomever that home exists.

Unzip Your Pants!

I'm sitting outside of Starbucks, sipping some deeeelicious coffee and grading some faaaabulous papers (love my students!) and I'm thinking about making wise decisions. 

I would like to be wise.  I love owls.  I love glasses.  I love men who wear sweater vests.  A love of wisdom seems implied.  Haha

In all seriousness, though, a wise Word once said that faith without works -- or for the purposes of my thoughts today -- "knowledge" without action ... is dead. 

So today I celebrate the extremely small step of  realizing what needs to be done ... and then doing it. Since my mom and dad practically drove that expression into the proverbial ground of my childhood, I know they'd be proud to know I'm living it today.  Well, technically, yesterday and today.  Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Oh, and the title?  Well, it's a sister-thing, but suffice it to say -- if your pants are too tight and they're giving you a tummy ache, you gotta unzip.  There's just No Other Option.  In life, sometimes you've gotta suck it up, let go of whatever's holding you too tightly, and do the right thing.  The cool thing is, whether in a real-life-pants-situation or a metaphysical decision-making situation, "unzipping" offers nearly-instant relief.

(for sisters A and G)