Guess who's still alive!

Still haven't floated back down to earth yet. This marriage thing...I could totally get used to this :) The honeymoon was amazing--West Virginia is gorgeous. We've been fixing up the purple house, hanging pictures and arranging furniture. It looks like a house inside--now to conquer the landscaping!

And bless him, Trent let me bring my boys with me. Erik and Philip have been enjoying their new home. However, Erik hasn't been without his misadventures...

A TALE OF TWO FERRETS

We brought my ferrets home the Sunday after we got back from the honeymoon. We wanted to thoroughly scrub out their cage before we permeated our house with eau de ferret, so we turned them lose in what we thought was a ferret-proof laundry room. Now, Trent had not hooked up our drier to the vent yet. We all know that the drier vent leads outside, right?

Right-o, we all know where this story is going now.

We covered the hole to the outside vent with a heavy tool box and we left for evening services. We were deep in conversation when we pulled into our driveway that evening. Did I mention that the drier vent comes out over the driveway? It does. Our deep conversation ended abruptly when I said quietly, "The drier vent had a screen over it, didn't it?" Mr. Screen was laying there politely on the driveway. I beat Trent to the laundry room and there was Philip lazing by the air conditioning vent. Erik was gone.

I promptly became very upset.

There were about 10 minutes of frantic running about with flashlights and calling Erik. Then Trent came out with his own flashlight and suggested I stop and think about what Erik would do. Erik would find the closest wall and follow it until he found a place to hide. The closest wall was the house. And the closest holes were under the central unit. Trent started opening the crawl space door under the house when he heard scratching on the other side of it. He told me to start calling Erik and, as soon as there was a large enough opening, little Erik peeked out timidly. He didn't seem to mind me hugging him tightly. And Trent didn't seem to mind being caught in a group hug with a very dusty ferret.

But Erik didn't stop there.

Couple of days ago, we turned them out in the laundry room again so we could give the cage another scrubbing. I returned to the laundry room for who-knows-what and noticed that I only saw Philip chilling out on the floor. I felt ill. The drier vent was covered and duct-taped. The air vent was duct-taped. Where could the little idiot be? I paused by the washing machine, which was sitting there with the lid up. You know the feeling you get when something isn't quite right? I got that feeling about then. So I glance down inside the washing machine. There was Erik, half covered in cold, soapy water. He got a quick rinse and I closed the washing machine, thinking that was that. A few minutes later, I was talking to Trent outside and happened to glance up at the laundry room window.

Erik was dancing about joyfully on top of the washing machine.

This time, I disassembled his staircase--he was climbing up two paintcans and a box to get on top of the folding table, which was against the machine. He's a smart little bugger. Philip's smart too--he just doesn't care.

But yay for ferrets anyway!

And I wanted to thank everyone for the well-wishes. God has blessed me richly in many ways--including giving me Christian friends who keep us in their thoughts. Thanks to all of you.

O, and did I mention that we don't have Internet access at the purple house? We don't, thus the not-posting-ness.

¡Ciao!

So...it's about here...

I have to admit that I'm just a little scared. I looked around my room the other night, with its little bed, the windows that look out at the backyard and the mountains beyond, the ferrets, the desk, the family all around me, and I realized I will be leaving all that behind me. The dinners at the table, the goodnight prayers and kisses, holding the dogs in my lap. It's hard not to cry just think about it. This is the life I've known for 21 years.

And it's all about to change completely.

I'm about to leave behind everything that's been so comfortable and start something totally new. But as Sister Hazel put it, "You know I'm scared, but that's not the same as being afraid." This is life, this is change--it's inevitable. Not only is it inevitable, but it's right, it's what God intended. And it's OK. Those flutters in my tummy aren't nervousness or fear. It's just the trepidation of plunging headlong into the unknown.

I wouldn't have it any other way, really, and I've been waiting impatiently for this moment for 9 months or more now. I can't wait to marry Trent, to be Mrs. Dutton, to submit to him, to love and be loved by him. It's perfect. It's more than I could ever ask for. This is it. All that's required to have it is to embrace change with open arms and a smile. So that's exactly what I'm going to do.

Sure, there will be a bit of grieving for the past, for what I left behind. But that is nothing compared to the new life I will have with the man I love, and I know he'll be there to support me when it hits home that I won't be kissing Mom goodnight anymore or saying the prayer with the family. God did something wonderful beyond comprehension when He created this union of husband and wife.

And I gotta admit, having an on-demand cuddle buddy is going to rock.

So that's my introspection, probably my last as Ms. Rebekah. That's just so cool...I'm gonna go revel in it a bit ;)

Dare I say it?



6 days, 6 hours, and 15 minutes from now....








'Bout time already!!

Ladies and gentlemen, classes are over. I have passed. I am a senior. I don't plan on thinking again until Fall.

Now in the final throws of planning mode. My hand's about to fall off, but I have only 4 thankyous left to write (for now).

Get to see many relatives soonly.

16 more days...I think I can make it..........the wait...ish killing me..................................................

*snurgle*

My boss, Kenny, walked in the other day and saw me putting on some makeup.

"That ain't gonna help you none," he said with his tough, retired drill instructor drawl.

"Well, Ken, I saw what a good job it did for you, so I thought I'd try some..."


I love my job :)

So I drive by the same Baptist Church every day. And this Baptist Church has one of those big signs in the front with announcements and stuff on it. This particular sign has been announcing the Church's Easter Egg Hunt even before Easter. Until yesterday.

Yesterday, the sign changed.

It now reads: "The deacons told me to change this, so I did."





Someone must have found a rotten Easter egg.

:)