Eating, graduation jitters, the wedding

The dinner Mama and I had planned with church friends went without a hitch even thought the husband of Mrs. Patrick’s daughter is a less than pleasant fellow. I am sure they are hoping that I will have the chance to befriend him but there are pretty strong odds against that. For Mrs. Patrick’s sake we will keep the invitation to visit open ended but I cannot go too far out of my way. There are some people that it is dangerous to befriend. He is one.


Mama and I took the 4th and 5th grade children’s church this week and we had a ball. My lesson for them was pretty long but they listened well as I explained why we do some of the things we do in church, why we talk about the same verses, why we tell the same stories. Then Mama had a game for the kids. She put a half of a twizzler on a plate and buried it in whipped cream. The kids had to put their hands behind their backs and get the twizzler chewed up and swallowed first to win. We had fourteen kids who competed two at a time. They were really getting into it by about the third set of contestants. A few even took the plates with the left over whipped cream and licked them clean. After the game was over Mama sprayed the remaining whipped cream into their open mouths. It was a mess but everyone had fun.

Grandma called to let Mama know that the zucchini were ripening fast and she needed the recipe for zucchini relish so she could start canning them. After Mama had given it to her she called back to report that one zucchini had made five cups of the relish and Grandpa had told her that there were at least twelve more just like it getting ready for picking. It is funny when I think that Mama was lamenting the fact that we had only planted three zucchini plants. When the ten okra plants start to produce we are really going to be in trouble.

Mama and I will leave tomorrow afternoon to drive to Colorado Springs in order to attend Andrew’s graduation. Brittany called on Saturday evening stressed out because she and Andrew were on their way to the airport – in separate cars – to pick up his mother and four other guests who are staying until Friday so they can also attend the graduation. She was worried about the visitors and what might be expected of her to entertain them. She was worried about what an inconvenience it was to Andrew and the schedule he has to keep leading up to the graduation. She was angry that he cannot seem to tell his mom, “no.” The whole thing should sound familiar to all of you newly weds. I am just hoping we do not have a “bridezilla” on our hands…especially for Cori’s sake.

I think what may really be bothering Brittany is the big deal everyone is making of Andrew’s graduation. It’s not like he is graduating from the Air Force Academy or something special. Oh, wait. He is. And it is a big deal. It diminishes her wedding significantly for the moment but it will come to prominence soon. The spotlight will once again be redirected and all will be well. She really has done quite a bit of planning for the wedding and I am praying it all works out well, but for right now, Andrew’s graduation is the focus of the moment. I hope to enjoy it.

Mama and I picking up Lucy, Brittany’s dog, from the De La Garza’s this evening. She will make the trip with us so she can have a play date with her mama. With the guests in the immediate area I do not know if taking the dog is a good idea but we have already made the commitment. It could be fun to see how she is received by the foreign nationals. (Don’t worry. She is way too small to eat.) The dog will come back home with us to be kept by Bobby and Sandra while we are in Florida at the afore mentioned wedding; after which we will take a few days of vacation.

That seems a long way off.