1. The cocktail was invented in New Orleans.  We were at the source, so we visited fancy bars (like in the Roosevelt Hotel on Christmas Day) and drank fancy cocktails. You know, because we value history.
2. The party was invented in New Orleans, or so you can be led to believe.  We were at the source, so we visited a frozen “daiquiri” bar, which basically sells slushies mixed with alcohol.  Six bucks for 32 ounces.  You know, because we value a bargain.
3. We saw several examples of eye-catching apparel while walking through the French Quarter (beautiful drag queens, sequined and feathered Mardi Gras tunics, and even an “alien” in platform shoes), and everyone in the family was mature enough to not stop and gawk and point.
4. The cuisine is amazing in New Orleans.  We ate everything from gumbos to soul food to po’boys to oysters to Caribbean-inspired dishes (College Boy ate turtle soup–twice!), and everyone in the family was mature enough to not turn down anything presented on the plate.
5. While staying at a lovely shotgun-style rental home, Husband and I didn’t have to act parental and scold and safeguard all the original artwork and mercury glass on display.  Honestly, the kids admired it all, and probably picked up some interior decorating ideas.
6. While the family was enjoying the long series of Christmas Eve bonfires along the Mississippi River levee, Husband and I didn’t have to act parental and vigilant and caution the kids to stay back from the roaring flames.  In fact, we were glad the kids were bold enough to get close, because the photos they took are awesome.
7. While walking down Bourbon Street, Husband and I didn’t have to act parental and blush and stammer and explain any of the debauchery we saw and heard.  Face it, our kids have the internet, and they all know what strippers do.
8. Our kids might not have been affected by the phallic-shaped glasses wielded by tourists on Bourbon Street, but they sure did giggle at one of the stops on the St. Charles Streetcar Line–Peniston Street.
9. Not only were our kids old enough to be admitted to all the bars playing all the amazing music, they are also old enough to have jobs and therefore had the money to buy their parents a round or two.
10. Not only were our kids old enough enough to be admitted to all the bars playing all the amazing music, they were also old enough to appreciate jazz, from Dixieland to ragtime piano to hard-driving street-funk.
11. Not only were our kids old enough to be admitted to all the bars playing all the amazing music, they were also old enough to participate with us in a 90 minute mixology class at one of these bars on Frenchmen Street.  We learned how to make classic New Orleans cocktails, because we value education.  And cocktails.  We value cocktails.
12. No one fell asleep at Midnight Mass.
13. No one seemed embarrassed that Mom and Dad were dancing, or singing to the music, or taking photos of themselves wearing beads and shiny costumes at Mardi Gras World.
14. No one needed supervision in Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo.
15. No one needed supervision anytime, really.  And I barely texted the kids during those few times they went exploring on their own.
16. Toward the end of our stay, while watching the local news, we took notice of a story about locally-made kombucha, valued for its restorative properties.  We groaned collectively, since we had been eating and drinking so much.  Then the news reporter ended the story by pointing out that kombucha can be delicious when mixed with alcohol and served as a cocktail.  Yup.  Only in New Orleans.
17.  Santa didn’t bring any presents, and no gifts were exchanged. No one pouted. Our gift to ourselves and to the kids was this family vacation,  the memories we made, and some great cocktail recipes.

1. I am using his pillow.

2. I am sitting in “his spot” on the couch.

3. I am not yet using his toothbrush although the thought did cross my mind.

4. I have grown to be very comfortable in the smack-dab middle of the bed.

5. I don’t care what pajamas I wear to sleep.

6. I have stopped watching the evening news, since I receive no satisfaction in yelling in anger and frustration when no one is there to nod his head in sympathy.

7. The default setting on my weather app is for Hong Kong.

8. I have stopped cooking meals.

9. The recycling bin in the kitchen hasn’t been emptied for 2 weeks.

10. I have consumed a disproportionate amount of chocolate.

11.  I have consumed zero cocktails, because really, what’s the fun in drinking alone?

12. I obsessively check my phone immediately upon awakening since Husband has (FINALLY!) learned to text me on a regular basis.

13. I go online way too frequently to check our credit card activity, mostly to see if he has purchased anything in a jewelry store.  (He has!) 

14. I have become addicted to watching a brand-new Hallmark Christmas movie every night since I don’t have to share the TV.

 

1. “Did you say hello to all the ladies here? Show some respect to your elders.”
2. “Don’t drive so fast.”
3. “Just be careful when you talk to some men, because they could be dangerous.”
4. “Watch out!  There’s a stop sign ahead!”
5. “You have some schmutz on your sleeve.  Here, let me spit on this napkin and clean that up for you.”
6. “I hope those aren’t the only shoes you selected to wear this weekend.”
7. “What time did you get home last night?”
8. “Are you planning on wearing your hair that way all day today?  In public?”
9. “Did you get enough to eat?  That didn’t look very filling.”
10. “You ordered a dessert?  Too many sweets aren’t good for you.”
11. “Are you and your sister keeping secrets from me?”
12.  “We both have a chance to receive Holy Communion today.  I assume you have no heavy sins and can partake with a clear conscience.”
13. “It’s always nice that you can find some time to spend with your mother.”

 

1. “When we look at these photos many years from now, you will be glad that you shaved the mustache off for our ceremony.”

2. “My mom is worried that the cake will be dry and crumbly.”

3. “My mom is worried that all 225 people will not fit into the banquet hall.”

4. “My mom is worried that there won’t be enough food to feed everyone.”

5.“Why did I ever agree to a dress with a train? The bustle is making me look fat.”

6. “I need a bridesmaid to hold my dress up while I pee.”

7. “OK, using a Porsche for the get-away car is cool, but it’s hard to sit in a bucket seat with this huge dress.”

8. “If the priest says ‘man and wife’ instead of ‘husband and wife’ I swear I will make him correct it.”

9. “Taking the garter off with your teeth may have been fun for us, but a few of our guests are offended.” 

10. “Oh, I am so happy that your parents offered to pick up the tab for the open bar.”

11. “My cheeks hurt from smiling.”

12. “Just let me lead, damn it, because I am a better dancer than you.”

13. “So yes, the priest did say to be fruitful and to multiply, but I cannot picture myself as a mom. And if we have kids, let’s wait until we are 40 and then just have one.”

14. “Psst, you mean you don’t know that couple that just went through the receiving line? I don’t know them either.”

15. “Elvis Presley signed our guestbook.”

1. My parents obviously believed that pregnancy was not to be discussed with children, so I was totally caught off guard when my dad informed me that I had become a big sister overnight.
2. My dad actually came home from the hospital to get me ready for school. ( I was a first grader.)  He threw open the blinds and turned on all the lights in my bedroom, whereas my mom would always wake me with a kiss and a gentle shake.  I was quite peeved with his failure to follow morning protocol.
3. When my dad finally told me I had a baby sister, I jumped out of bed and onto the bed.  I jumped and jumped.  This was such exciting news.
4. I couldn’t wait for my mom and my sister to return home from the hospital.  I filled every vase in the house with asters from my mom’s flower bed.  The florist delivered a huge arrangement of pink roses, but I am certain that the quantity of asters was more impressive than the quality of those roses.
5. Several days later, I started to miss my status as only-child-center-of-everyone’s-universe, and I told my parents to send my sister back to where she came from.
6. I may have been 6, but I wasn’t that ignorant.  I knew the stork really didn’t deliver my sister, and I pleaded with my mom to tell me the details of how my sister came out.  My mom staunchly refused to tell me anything.  We didn’t have the mother-daughter talk about how babies are born until I was in high school.  And I am still waiting for the mother-daughter talk about how babies are made.
7. I was jealous of my sister’s big blue eyes.  (And yes, I still am.) But the fine hair on her head was dark, to my delight, so ensuring that I would be the only one in our nuclear family with that much-desired and far-superior blonde hair.
8. But then I realized that I WAS the only one in the family with blonde hair.  My sister’s coloring matched my mom’s, while my hair and eyes matched no one’s!  Oh my God, I was probably adopted.
9. Since we were six years apart in age, I quickly recognized that Sister wasn’t ever really going to be a playmate.  But no matter–instead, I could be her protector, her provider of entertainment, and her boss.  (And yes, old habits die hard.  I am still her boss.)
10. My mom had been given a slightly-creepy statue of St. Gerard as a baby shower gift.  (St. Gerard is the patron saint of pregnant women, which baffles me–were there no female saints available for this job?)  Once Mom tucked the statue into a drawer and off the dresser, I realized that this happy and healthy blessing of a baby was here to stay.
11. None of the gifts coming to the house were for me.  Not a single one.  But now I know that my baby sister, Sophie, was far and away the best, most precious Christmas gift my parents ever gave me.  (Do the math–count back 9 months.)  (HAPPY 50th BIRTHDAY, SOPHIE!)

 

1. Since I was told to plan for the worst, my pantry has been re-stocked and re-organized.
2. That troublesome leaky spot on the basement wall that I have been nagging Husband about for a while now?  He fixed it.
3. College Boy was given orders to evacuate campus, since the university is close to the coast, so we get to enjoy his company at home for several days.  It remains to be seen whether he will enjoy OUR company, especially if the internet goes out.
4. On the way home, College Boy stopped to visit his sister, and they had their own version of a “Hurricane Party,” apparently.  Hey, any kind of sibling bonding is a good thing.
5. I read that every “hurricane kit” should contain some comfort food, so I felt justified in bringing home lots of chocolate and other treats, all in Happy Halloween packaging.
6. Gainfully Employed Son in central North Carolina is riding out the storm with his Significant Other and her two cats.  This experience is good for a relationship, since each one can see how the other makes emergency plans and handles stressful situations.  (Bless your heart, dear Emily, for taking care of my boy.)
7. Even though my baby sister’s Golden Birthday/Girls’ Weekend Away in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is officially cancelled, I know she will always remember that the many hours I spent planning all the details and activities are a testament to how much I cherish her.
8. I have learned some new science phrases, like “wind shear” and “sea level pressure” so I feel smarter.
9.  Power outages?  No problem–I like my brandy at room temperature and by candlelight. And I got plenty of brandy.

1. “Aren’t you showing too much cleavage in that blouse?”
2.  (Pointing to my red-orange purse.) “You picked out that purse?  You don’t like beige?”
3. “The Chinese buffet is the best place to eat in town.  Everyone can pick whatever they like and eat as much as they like.”
4. (A few hours later…) “The Chinese buffet wasn’t very good today.  Maybe because it’s Thursday.  The best cooks probably work on Sundays.”
5. “Your husband has lost weight.  He looks good.”
6. “It’s so good that your daughter isn’t fat.”
7. “You and your sister are too fat.”
8. “Did you get enough to eat? That salad has no meat on it.”
9. “I hope your daughter finds a nice man to marry soon.  Because you know, in another three years, her looks will be gone.”
10. (Brushing my bangs off my forehead.) “I know your hair is bothering you. I can just tell it’s bothering you. You should wear your bangs like I do, off to the side.”
11. (Brushing her hand across the top of my chest.) “There are too many designs on your blouse.”
12. (Brushing her hand under my eyebrows.) “Your makeup has too many sparkles in it.”
13. (Pointing to my hands.) “You like that nail polish color?”
14. (Referring to granddaughters.) “Why do they wear jeans with holes and rips in them when they come to visit me?  They show me no respect when they come dressed like that.”
15. “I keep my mouth closed and covered when I go outside, because wind is bad for the heart.”
16. (Pointing at me.) “You’re wearing too summer-y of an outfit.”
17. “Why are all these women reporters on TV wearing dresses with no sleeves? It’s an ugly fashion trend.”
18. (As I was getting ready to walk across the street to the Dunkin Donuts for a coffee.) “Watch out when you cross the street. Look both ways.”
19. “I heard on the news that if you drink coffee, you will live for a very long time.  I am drinking more coffee now.”

1. How could that skink have possibly gotten into the house?  Did I let it in when I came home from work?  No, wait–Husband was the one preparing the grill and leaving the door to the deck wide open.  It’s all Husband’s fault.
2. Had I not been shrieking in the next room, I suppose I could have used my phone to film Husband–on his hands and knees and wielding a broom– trying to coax the skink out from under the dining room table.  Hilarious, right?  Damn skink got away.  Again, it’s all Husband’s fault.
3. Skinks are fascinating examples of the wonders of God’s creation–when the skinks are outside in the driveway.  When they enter my house, skinks become nasty creepy crawlie critters that need to leave immediately.
4. Skink is probably a male.  A female skink would be doing the skink-equivalent of stopping to ask for directions: she would come in the middle of the room, and wait for us to gently catch her and guide her back outside.  Male skink is hiding somewhere,  too proud to admit he’s lost.
5. Skink is probably hiding in the dishwasher, and I won’t discover this fact until after I run the dishwasher, at which point it will be too late to save him, and I will have skink guts all over my cups and plates and utensils.
6. Skink is probably hiding in my box of biscotti.  Or my box of granola bars.  Or in that open bag of pretzels.  Do I now want to reach for a biscotto or a granola bar or some pretzels?  This may be the best motivation–ever–to stay on a diet.
7. Skink is probably hiding under our bed.  And I will probably step on him when I get up to pee in the middle of the night.  This may be bad news for my bladder.
8. Skink is probably hiding in the damp bathroom, and he will run across my naked foot while I am in the shower.  I remember how the movie, Psycho, freaked me out for weeks.  This would be even worse.  I may never bathe again.
9. Skink is probably hiding in my purse.  When I get to work, what if the skink comes out of my purse and runs across my desk?  Will my students notice?  Will I scream?  Jump out of my chair?  Jump on top of the chair?  And will any of my students be alert enough to film this on a phone?  Oh my gosh, and then post this on Youtube? The horror, the horror!
10. Skink is probably hiding inside one of the many boxes full of College Boy’s dorm supplies.  College Boy will probably find the skink when he unpacks these boxes in August.
11. Skink is probably hiding in Gainfully Employed Daughter’s former bedroom.  Remember how ET–in the movie– hid among the stuffed animals?  What if the skink is posing amid all the horse figurines that remain on Daughter’s shelf?  It could happen.
12. Maybe we need to invite Gainfully Employed Son to come to visit for the weekend–and insist that he bring along his cat.  And maybe the cat can find the skink.
13. If that freaking skink insists upon staying in my house, he had better be useful and eat all the spiders and crickets that may come in from the rain.
14. Do I even know what skink poop looks like?
15.  “Leaping lizards!”  Why is that an exclamation in the English language? Could it be because lizards actually leap? So that means that skinks can leap?  Oh, crap.

 

1.  From the moment we saw her, we fell in love with her.
2. She greeted us warmly and sincerely, and made us feel like we had known her all her life.
3.  Happily, she didn’t look like our last several guides at similar establishments–those guys had flannel shirts and beards.
4. She was witty, and she spoke clearly and with authority, a reflection of the accomplished woman she no doubt is.
5. And her voice was animated and carried well.  She probably learned all this from a female role model, like her mom.
6. Our guide was knowledgeable about all aspects of this small business, and she answered all our questions.  Her passion for cider was evident. She likely grew up in a family that appreciated fine alcohol.
7. Our tour was enhanced by the guide’s grace, poise, intelligence, and beauty. What a great asset for this company!
8. We want our daughter to grow up to be just like our tour guide.  In fact, we would be happy to have our tour guide come spend every major holiday at our home.
9. We loved the final part of our tour: the sampling!  My husband later claimed that she seemed to pour us bigger samples than she poured for the others, almost as if we were her favorite customers.
10. She was a natural in the tasting room.  She described the bouquets and flavors so well–she must have been raised by foodie parents, and was probably a discriminating eater as a child.
11. The effervescence of the cider matched her effervescent personality.
12. Throughout the tour and sampling session, our guide exuded competence as well as kindness–we would want someone like her to take care of us in our old age.
13. She even offered us a family discount on the cider we purchased.
14. We would highly recommend this tour–and this tour guide–to everyone.

1. You lucky S.O.B.  Two weeks of semester break is unheard of back home in Virginia.
2. You do realize, right, that your credit card is linked to Dad’s, and that we see every transaction?
3. We are just going to assume that all the credit card transactions from “pubs” and “taverns” and “bars” are not just for alcohol purchases.  Surely they include meals as well, right?
4. We are living vicariously through you, so you had better post those photos from your trips to New Zealand and to Melbourne as soon as possible.
5. Did you honestly think that Dad, who makes a living studying helicopters and such, would not happily give you the money for a flight down to a glacier?  He cannot wait to see photos of that chopper, by the way, as soon as possible.
6. How’s your love life?
7. I cannot believe you ate kangaroo, yet again.  Seriously.
8. How come your siblings know more about your travels than I do?
9. So, you climbed a mountain in New Zealand all by your lonesome. Yes, I know you have done this before, but oh my God, you were all alone.  In a foreign country. What if something bad would have happened?  What if we never heard from you again?
10. So, you climbed a mountain in New Zealand all by your lonesome.  OK, so I admit that I also took off all by myself on more than one occasion when I was studying abroad.  I was stupid and reckless, I know, and my parents worried.  This is the almighty payback I get from karma, right?  Karma is such a bitch.
11. You are picking up traces of an Australian accent, especially when you pronounce the names of cities there.  It’s cute, for now.
12. Dad is so completely jealous of your two jet boat rides.  I will never understand you crazy men and the need for speed.
13. You went to an art gallery in Melbourne!  You went voluntarily!  I am so happy that you are doing what I love to do!
14. You ordered your first flight of beer!  At a microbrewery in Melbourne!  I am so happy that you are doing what I love to do!
15. I really hope that all these glorious natural wonders you have been seeing –like rain forests and glaciers and coral reefs and pristine mountain lakes–are still around when your children are college-aged.  Because I want you to use your education to save the world, because I eventually do want grandchildren, and because I expect you to pay it forward and send them to study abroad.