College Bound

Noooooo! Really, how did 18 years go by so fast? I know, I know, it's all part of the family plan; you raise your kids, teach them well, and send them off into the world. Do I have to? Simply, yes. On the heels of the East Coast blitz, the West Coast tour is in full swing and the list of favorites is building. At the end of this week, Andrew will have visited 10 colleges on both coasts, a good sampling of higher learning. He's excited and inspired, how awesome is that. This college tour gig isn't just about picking schools, there's something bigger happening here.

I know when the time comes, and his car is packed and I'm counting the days until Family Weekend, I'll be freaking out, but for now it's all joy and what an incredible feeling. I'm so proud of my son.

And on a lighter...you know NJ is the Garden State, right? Aptly named for the prolific summer crop of tomatoes and corn, the slight green tinge visible on almost every surface, and the gi-normousness of some of the plants that grow here (kind of like in Hawaii, but without the OMG we're in Hawaii sense of ah!). Check out this picture. I have to get someone to take this shot with me right next to it, because then you'd see, this hibiscus is bigger than my head - I'm not kidding!

Have a happy day!

xoxo

P

Friday Ponderings

The weather here is crazy, one minute it's gorgeous and sunny (read: hot and muggy) and the next it's sky-streaked lightening with booming thunder and flash flood-like rain (read: hot and muggy). It's high drama weather with WTF hair! Really, you'll never know how curly your hair is until you experience this. I feel kind of like I'm in my early 20's again, trying to get that Phoebe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High hairdo, and NO, not the pool scene. Anyhow, managing the 'do' is one of the many things on my list of Holy Craps!

Bugs - I've never seen so many weird, mongo, noisy bugs. On really balmy days, it's sounds like a transformer ready to pop, the buzzing is so loud. And the no-seeums, these sneaky little pests that you can't really see (ha!) pack a bite that sends you searching for the benadryl. Then, there's this one bug at the beach (Holy Crap) about the size of a juice box that scares the bajeezus out of the kids.

Last weekend was our East Coast Whirlwind College Road Trip. Andrew and I drove about 18 hours in 2 1/2 days, visited 5 colleges, 5 states (NJ, PA, NY, MA, CT). I'm happy to report he fell in love with 1 school, is excited about a 2nd, would be happy to attend a 3rd and there were 2 automatic rule-outs (phew). He's touring his West Coast choices next week, so we'll see what happens. Of course, this is just the beginning - applications, decisions timing, financial aid (huh?) and acceptance letters (see how positive I am). He's excited and anxious; the enormity of the process is not lost on him. Honestly, as long as it's a choice and he's invested in the process, success will follow. I'm looking at this next school year as his launch and my let-go - Holy Crap!

School starts in 2 weeks (yipee!). As much as I love summer and the lack of a rigid schedule; it breeds inefficiency in all of us. Too much Cartoon Network and Wii, not enough cracking down preparing for 1st and 3rd grade. Oh well, the kids are happy, they're swiming like fish and have ventured out on their Boogie Boards when the waves are calm - that's just cool! The Beach Club has been a luxury and I've tried hard to squeeze every penny out of it. It's an automatic play date for the kids, a meeting place for moms, and a relaxing respit for dads at the end of a long day. We're springing for it again next year! Summer's going to be over in the blink of an eye and soon we'll all be lamenting how cold it is - Holy Crap!

xoxo

P