Adventures

Well, friends, it's been a while. A month, to be precise. . .

Dad and I just got back last night from a college visit. It went really well and I do like the college. We left on Saturday, got to the hotel at around 7pm I think, and went and grabbed some Culvers for supper. Then we went to find the church so we knew where it was. We did find it, and it was only a literal five minutes from the hotel, so that was nice.

Sunday morning we found out what "home-style" breakfast was at the hotel, and then got ready for church. The church was good, it could have been better, it could have been worse. They were having an unusual service that day, so in some respects it was hard to see what the church was really like. After the service we had some Mexican food (part of what made the service unusual was the Mexican families --- the mother of one man had made all the Mexican food for lunch). I had never had Mexican food before so I had to learn how to eat it. They had a tea --- hibiscus flowers made into a tea --- it was sweet and almost sticky. It was good though. Anyway, after church we went to the local grocer and got some supplies so we didn't have to eat out for every meal. Then we went back to the hotel and I finished reading my book and Dad rested. Then we attended the evening service at the same church, and ate supper.

Monday morning we headed over to the college and from 9am-2pm I attended classes (Graphic design II and Fantasy Fiction), had a meal at the cafeteria with a violist student who takes lessons with my teacher, and met professors. It was really great and so different from the last time I visited which was a hurried rush and go here and do this thing, so I really didn't get to enjoy it as much as this time. After that we went to a nearby state school so Dad could say hello to his co-workers and friends over there. Then it really started to blizzard, so we made our way back to the hotel. We got cozy and ended up watching The Princess Bride in the evening. 

Tuesday, yesterday, I had one more class to attend at the college, so I did that, and then we went and checked out of the hotel and checked the road conditions. They looked decent, so we grabbed some Caribou and headed home. The roads were patchy. We got home around 5pm. 

It's good to be home. 

Ways I Help my Father and Mother at Home and on the Farm

     I was having a conversation with a friend once about helping our fathers and mothers. We had both read a certain book and it mentioned helping fathers extra. Of course we both do what our parents ask us to do, like school or checking on the food in the oven, but we were talking about extra things to help. I asked my friend what she did to help her Dad, and she said she didn't really do anything extra. I was kind of taken back by that. Since the conversation, I have summed up a list of ways I help both my parents. How do you help your parents beyond the basics? I'd love to have new ways to help them! 

For Dad: 
1. Mowing, raking, picking up sticks... all things I do to help my Dad keep the yard looking nice. Now that he's done with his Ph.D, he has a little more time to trim and do yard projects. 
2. Being on time. It's always nice to be waiting for him instead of making him wait for me. Being a girl, I take more time to get ready to go places, so I have to plan extra time, but that's okay. It means that if I wait for him I can be sure our bags are in the van, the cooler has the right food in it, I have all my music.... etc. Again, a little thing. 
3. Folding his shirts right. Weird, right??? Sometimes we don't fold his shirts right and then they don't fit in the drawer nicely, and then it annoys him.  Well, it's a little thing, to be sure, but anything I can do when it's my job to fold the laundry! 
4. Keep the piano tidy. So often I just set music on the bench or rack, forgetting that the piano is not in hiding, and everyone can see the mess. Keeping it tidy should be a no-brainer, and I try to remind myself to take care of it when I notice it getting bad again. 
5. Good Mischief. See number 4 of things I do for Mom. Often for Dad all we come up with are things like buying him a special candy bar he really likes and slipping it in his drawer. 

For Mom: 
1. Laundry. Always a good place to start! :) I like to surprise her by doing it even though I wasn't asked to. Plus, then she can do something like getting off her feet after being in the kitchen all day, and not have to worry about yet another thing.
2. Kill snakes. Yes. I have the Snake-killer Badge around here. I killed 27 snakes in one day last fall. My mother hates snakes. So, because I love her, I kill them for her. I just killed one this afternoon. It was a gory death by the lawn-mower blades. Not the way I usually kill them, by the way. 
3. Try not to listen to too much music. . . the struggle is real, folks. :) I like to listen to a lot of fast movements and higher-pitched instruments, the violin, flute.... the list goes on. Sometimes the high notes bother her after a while, or she just needs some quiet. I try to sense this and either turn the music off or down or switch to Bach cello suites or something soothing and relaxing. 
4. Good Mischief. (Is there such a thing?) My sister and I "invented" Good Mischief when we were little, probably 9 and 6 or thereabouts. Good Mischief is when we think of special things to do for Mom.... number 1 for Mom up there would fall into this category. Sneaky things, yet very helpful and fun to do! Also very funny to see when she notices we did them! :) Overall Good Mischief gives us a good secret to giggle about for a few minutes or until she notices, and it gives Mom some relief with all the house-hold things. Now that Sophia is in college, I have to do it by myself which honestly isn't as fun as doing it together. 

      Now I'd love to hear what you do!!! It can be so hard to get up off the couch and go help, but it's really worth it!