Ups and Downs....Mostly Ups!

Christmas eve service at Tabernacle was small and intimate.....and a wonderful way to begin Christmas. Allie sang beautifully while the candles were lit. Afterwards everyone shared laughter and food in the fellowship hall.
Christmas Day was SO quiet, but we expected that. And it was a good thing. Allie's shot effects really kicked in and it was like she had had chemo. We spent the day lounging and watching MAMA MIA and other videos, but she really began hurting later in the afternoon, early evening. After dealing with the side effects she fell asleep and rested for over 12 hours......
Next day....she was MUCH better! I had jumped up early to head to my favorite place, (not!) WALMART to get all the final necessary food items for preparing our big meal the next day. Al left to go to the Murphys....and she returned early evening with Drew. Jeffrey had postponed his arrival until the next morning.
Al andI began a cooking show that no one could match. Drew filmed a little. We baked a Chiffon Pumpkin Pie and a Krispy Kreme Bread Pudding . Spumonte and cooking and then bed.
Turkey was in the oven at 7am along with the yeast rolls rising. Jeff, Jon, Elaine, Jennifer and Eliz arrived about 11am.
We had lots of food and giggles and stories. *!%*! lava lamps that I bought for the nieces were lemons...gotta take them back!
Jeff had to leave at 1pm to head down to Seaford for the wedding rehearsal. Drew and Al had to leave at 3pm to head to Epiphany in Richmond for a baby christening.....Drew was the godfather. The rest of the gang left about 4pm. I layed across my bed and the next thing I knew John was telling me it was 6pm....WHEW!
I layed like a slug on the couch and watched the repeat of the opening ceremony of the summer Olympics in Bejing. I'm conserving my energy. Lots of travel, fun, relatives and more food tomorrow at the wedding!
Allie is really pushing herself.....I'm trying not to be a crazy mom!

TODAY IS WHAAAAAAAT?????

I just cannot believe that today is Christmas Eve.....I don't think I have ever been so unprepared! I hope this isn't an age thing.....that's it's just an up and down year!!! Guess the easiest way to catch up is to go backwards.
Last nite Drew and Al came down from Richmond to go to a neighborhood gathering with us....after a short evening of drinking and eating, we drove thru the Wood's Family Christmas lights.....yep, it's over a couple of acres of tacky lights that you can drive through....and it's just around the corner!
Al is feeling much better....so thankful! She will be home this afternoon. Drew is going to be with his family at Epiphany. Allie is going with her dad and I to Tabernacle for our Christmas Eve service at 5pm.
I went to look at a couple more houses for summer workcamp and after visiting one, I just had to pull over on the road and compose myself......It's a long story, so I will write about it after the holidays.
JR was blowing leaves off the pool (while no one was home) , and he said the next thing he knew he was under water! His work boots filled quickly and he had on heavy clothes. He was under the pool tarp in the deep end . He came up once more for a gulp of air and tried making his way to the shallow end....hitting his head on the pool steps. He had a colorful shinner on his left eye for a few days. I took him to get an xray on his swollen wrist, but all is well. The church folks are relentless with teasing tho. They want to sign him up for a certificate in the POLAR BEAR CLUB! John beat them to the punch on Sunday. As he stood up to announce the first hymn, he had on a pair of Al's swim goggles......the whole church roared!
Our Christmas day will be quiet. Jeff, Jon & family will come the 27th for a day of presents and eating. Then Jeff heads off to a wedding rehearsal and Allie and Drew head to a baby baptism at Epiphany. Drew is the godfather, so he is quite nervous because he has to carry the baby down the aisle during the ceremony. Everyone is telling him to hold the kid like a football under his arm!
Sunday we will all travel to Newport News for Brienne's wedding....
So the celebrations for us are delayed a couple of days. We will miss Paige , Grover and the gang now that Christy has moved to Tennessee. We hope to catch up with them on Jan 7th.
We'll head to Martinsville....I MEAN EVERYBODY.....on Jan 17th for food and fun at Aunt Janet's. We haven't see all our cousins from up there in quite a while!
P.S. Thank God for our woodstove!!

Things Are Good!

I have no idea who this "Santa" is....he was roaming the aisles at Donk's theater when we were there!
I have to say things are really feeling good around here. It was a long ordeal to wait for Allie's endometriosis to be mailed (it's like the Holy Grail).....round and round with the insurance company, but finally done! She got the shot Wednesday morning and is already beginning to feel more like herself! Yippee!
I can't believe it is DEC 20th and I have done practically NOTHING!!! Tree is up, few gifts under the tree and all I am doing is eating homemade fudge someone brought us!
Drew is home from Hampden-Sydney.....he and Al spent the nite one nite....good to have them here by the fire. I picked up Ellen from her last day and school and took her to Alicia who was handing out food baskets at their church in Colonial Heights.....that was fun and really put me in the Christmas mood.
Random trips to Walmart and Books A Million.....gonna try to order some things online today.
Christmas will be quiet around here......Jon and family usually come the day after Christmas, but will be coming on the 27th instead......Jeff too......then we are all going to Brienne's wedding on the 28th down in Newport News.
Talked with Paige yesterday.....she is retiring from her job after 41 years! Monday and Tuesday are her final days. She is flying to Tennessee to be with Christy and family on the 30th......we are hoping to all get together with them around the 9th.
And of course, we can't forget our Martinsville, VA family! Looks like ALL of us are going to Horsepasture, VA to Aunt Janet's on January 17th....probably for an overnight! I love being with all of them! We'll pass thru Farmville and pickup Drew on the way.
So, our holidays will be spread out over all the next few weeks.....
I am so thankful that Allie is feeling better.....praying for her.....
I pulled into the driveway last night and the back yard was full of deer. Gave Will a good "haircut" last nite. Geez.....I gotta get Christmas wrapping and shopping!
On the WORKCAMP FRONT....
- Karen Scott's mom fell and broke her arm and had to have surgery
- Dennis Allen's father passed away earlier this month
- It won't be long before the rush to see which churches get in this year......

A Whirlwind of Happenings

This is a photo of Jeffrey at the Donk's Theater Christmas Show this past Saturday. The Scudders traveled with me and we met Pat & Bud Hirsch down there. What fun! Such incredible music...festivities....a wonderful way to bring in the season! The next few things I am posting seem bizarre....only because of the broad spectrum of happenings! It has been quite a rollercoaster ride around here!
- JR was blowing and raking the leaves off the cover of the pool a couple of days ago when he was here at the
alone. He fell into the pool....deep end....trapped under the tarp....boots filled with water. After coming up
a couple of times for air, he made it to the shallow end....hit his head on the corner of the steps. He has a
black eye.....I took him to get his wrist xrayed today....really swollen, but not broken....it is in a brace now...
and they put him on antibiotics for a few days just in case. His big concern was trying to hide the evidence
because he knew I would be a force to deal with. I just thank God that he is in great shape....the sheer temp
of the water would have caused more distress in most people! I am still saying a prayer of thanks....
- Whitehall Jewelers is going out of business here locally.....Drew told me if there was an engagement ring that
Al saw there, to let him know.....Al picked out one....I got it....Drew and his dad are picking it up next week...
it is beautiful and a godsend for a starving college student to buy! Drew is excited....I believe he will propose
next summer....that seems to be the plan....the ring is hidden....
- There is a graduation dinner Saturday nite for a friend at church.....and JR has a funeral to facilitate Sunday
for a family at church. After the funeral there is a big dinner at church....yep, that's the way the country
folk do it!
- Al is actually feeling better. She is still awaiting "the shot" to arrive, but the other medication they changed
he to is actually helping also.....we are excited! Her professors have been great about posting an
"Incomplete" grade for her to give her extra time for exams and work. She has been such a soldier that most
of it is done already. And other news: She met with her advisor and when she graduates next December
she will have a degree in International Studies with a minor in French & a minor in Religion....she is so
thrilled and I think pretty amazed that she has really done all this with the health challenges she's had!
I will stop here....more soon...just tired of typing!

I've Lost Track Of Days....

Sorry, no photo....I'm just trying to catch up!
A week ago, I helped Al make her last visit to the Somali family that she has been interning for, and I was so excited to see her recieve the good news! Fahiyo and her three brothers are moving to Arizona to be with an uncle and his family! Such a good ending to a such a heartbreaking story!
Later that nite, Al became increasingly sick.....so much pain from the endometriosis....
We called her specialist, and arrived at the hospital about midnight at BonSecours.
They initially gave her a dose of Morphine thru an IV.....and she had quite a reaction to it! After a large dose of something else to counteract it, she was headed up to her room....
Over the next few days, they did an external and internal ultrasound....results all good.
Basically, she slept and let her body catch up....nausea and pain subsiding...
Yay, she was out of the hospital for Thanksgiving....Uncle Jeffrey drove up and spent the nite. JR had won a turkey at the Fort Lee Golf Course Turkey Shoot.....I hadn't had a chance to finish shopping, but we had most of the ingredients for a great meal!
Later in the early evening, Alicia, Ben, Ellen and Kent came over for a game nite...Drew was with his family.
So we have entered into the holiday season....Al has decided to continue with two classes, and take an "incomplete" for the others so that she can take their exams beginning next semester. There's no way she can juggle her health and a full load at this point in time.
We went to see "TWILIGHT" yesterday afternoon....us girls.....it's definitely a "teenie bop" movie.....Fun!

VMI, A Ball & The Blue Ridge Mountains

The weekend was filled with pomp & circumstance and planted deep in tradition. After all, the first Class Ring Figure Ball at the Virginia Military Institute began in 1929. Allie's childhood friend, Benjamin Allen Scudder was presented with his class ring from VMI on Friday nite. Allie was given the honor to escort him and to put the ring on his finger!

Alicia (Ben's mom), Allie and I stayed at a little Day's Inn on top of a mountain in Lexington, VA....we went out for a quick dinner, and then the transformation began. Al was required to wear a white evening gown and long white gloves. She was to wear his HUGE class ring on her thumb....if she dropped it prior to putting it on his finger during the ceremony, it meant that he would die in combat. YIKES!

We met Ben at VMI....he was in his dress grays. There was an arch of saluting cadets with sabers they walked under to get into the hall. There was a live band with ballroom dancing after each cadet walked with their escort thru the giant ring.....our little boy and girl did good!

You can go to my FACEBOOK page CONNIE EAGLE ROMAINE to see all of the photos! The mountains were cold (21F) and it was windy, but our hearts were warm with love and we are so proud of our "little Ben".

Mom's Feel Too Much....

Al's endometriosis reared it's ugly head this past weekend. I made an emergency trip to Richmond on Sunday nite....ended up calling her surgeon and then just throwing her in the van and bringing her home. He said, total bed rest, come see him.....or hospital down the road. We are SO fortunate to have such a terrific specialist for her.....Tuesday morning he spent one hour with her.....
I took her back to Richmond late yesterday afternoon.....part of my heart is there, because I know it is a struggle to keep up when u don't feel good.....Anyone that reads this blog....please pray for her healing and endurance.....
We are all excited about the holidays coming up! I have to hem a ball gown today...and lots of workcamp to catch up on....but it's all good......Oh,....and pack for VMI! There will be plenty of photos of this pinnacle happening. The day after the ball, Drew is joining us for a football game.....we will be wrapping Al in blankets, and all kinds of warm stuff....she is determined to go! She and Alicia and I will be having a girltime in the hotel room.....and we moms get to go to part of the ball to photograph! Ring Figure at Virginia Military Institute is quite a happening......we are excited and honored to be part of it!
JR is keeping us warm with the wood splitter.....don't know what we would do without our woodstove!
We are also making plans to maybe attend the UKROPS Christmas Parade in Richmond and then DONK's Theater's Christmas Show!
Ho, Ho, Ho!