Edited to Add: Still having some problems with signing in to comment. You can do so by clicking once on the comment link, wait for a dark screen to appear and then the home screen will come up again. Click on comments link again and you should be able to comment.
Friday morning, I got up at 4 am to prepare for the joyous task of collecting Sarah from UNC-Wilmington where she’d been for the week. Driving over the bridge leaving our island, I realized that I had forgotten just how much I love the very early morning hours when I am the solitary inhabitant of a lonely road with just the rising sun to keep me company. Although actually I think I would love the early morning quietude a bit more if I didn’t have to get up so early in the morning to experience it.
But still . . . it was lovely.
I arrived at the University and managed to finally find Sarah’s residence hall after taking an unintended tour of most of the campus. When I first walked into the dorm where she stayed, I was bombarded by chaotic, happy pandemonium and I thought, “Oh boy. I bet Sarah didn’t enjoy this week even one teeny little bit if this is any example of the noise and energy level that she’s been subjected to.” She is a true and faithful lover of quiet and solitude.
With some trepidation, I propped myself up against the front counter in the lobby and with students swirling around me, waited for a certain dearly beloved face to appear in the mayhem.
As the chaos and the noise and the energy level reached even more cacophonic proportions I suddenly saw Sarah coming down the hall toward me. The instant I saw her, I knew one thing beyond a doubt: she’d had a great time. Her face was bright, she looked energized and inspired, and there was confidence in her walk.
When I finally elbowed my way to her through the crowd and enfolded her in a long-awaited hug she said two things, “I had a great time, Mom. And I have a lot of stories.”
Such sweet, sweet words to hear. They instantly caused a whole week of worries to go right down the tubes.
A new friend happened to be passing in the hall and they posed together for a serious, scholarly portrait befitting the gravity of their recent stay at an institution of higher education.
After she had gathered her stuff and said her good-byes I got her–and three other teens from Manteo—packed into the van and we took off for home.
Snowy, of course, missed his sister greatly and was patiently waiting for her return.
In fact, he waited so long, he had to take a stretch or two to keep himself limbered up.
Finally . . . he caught a glimpse of something sister-esque in the distance and his concentration focused like a laser.
It was The Big Moment! The appearance of his Big Sister! Hooray and hurrah and hallelujah!
They had a little hugging reunion before Sarah headed into the house with her cute cohort bringing up the rear.
Finally. Back in the nest.
Welcome home, baby girl.
Note: I’m excited to report that I had a couple upgrades done to the blog over the weekend. The upgrade that I am most excited about is that the comment link is now at the top of each post, which makes it much easier to find.
Also, it is set up so that when you click on it, you are taken straight to the commenting box instead of having to scroll all the way through the post to get there.
Isn’t that fun?
The only glitch that my tech guy is working on is that with any post older than today’s, the comment button is a little lackadaisical. I have found the only way to get it to work is to click it once, wait for a dark screen to come up and then click it again when the regular screen comes back up. That minor problem should be fixed soon.
We always love hearing from you; enjoy the new and improved commenting system!
Sounds like a great week! My 17 yr old daughter went off for a week to a centrifuge camp and didn’t want it to end! Stayed in a dorm And she is the quiet type too. Glad Sarah had a blast.
Testing the comment thingy, and glad Sarah had a good time@
Melissa, thanks for the comment thingy testing! 🙂
Hi, hoping this works. Back from Kauai as of early Saturday morning. It was a wonderful trip. I am so glad Sarah enjoyed her week away.
Cindy from Sonoma
Cindy, so glad you had a good trip! I know you are glad to sleep in your own bed again.
wwhhooo hooo glad to hear sarah had a great time.
Becky, lots of woo hooing over here, too!
hi I think it is working for me… I just knew Sarah would do great last week.
Sharon, I’m glad people are still able to comment, even with possibly having to do an extra click or two. Yes, I was one relieved mama when Sarah did so well!
Welcome Home Sarah! So glad to read that you had a wonderful time!
Dianna, I asked her if she was going to blog about it and she said she probably would. If she does, I’ll be sure to post a link to her bog here.
Testing 1, 2. Testing 1, 2.
So glad that she is home and had a wonderful week. Looking forward ot the stories!
Jmckemie, nice to see another “tester” come through! 🙂 We’ve heard several dozen stories so far and each one is better than the one before!
So glad that Sarah had a good time. Testing….Testing…. Anna
Anna, thanks for testing and thanks for being happy with us about Sarah’s good week! 🙂
P.S. – it worked for me also following your instructions.
So good to see Sarah home and happy and to see that Snowy is back to his duties and back to snuggle with Sarah. I am sure she grew up just a bit on this trip and that’s a good thing, mama! Oh, and “Hi” – as a test.
Mary,
Your “hi-ing” came through just fine. Good to know that you had to follow the complicated instructions in order to comment; that will help the tech guy know what he’s dealing with.
And yes, Sarah did grow up a little more while she was away; which is good and scary both!
Kathy,
Thanks so much for being my First Official Experimenter! Very helpful to know that it IS requiring the extra steps to be able to comment.
It worked when I followed your instructions. Hope that helps.