Fall Fun with the Fam

If good old Will Shakespeare was right, and "all the world's a stage", then Mother Nature certainly picked up on her cue this past week, (Well, really, how could she miss it, loudly and fervently whispered from the wings, by all the Summer-weary players?) by presenting us with lovely seasonal weather on the heels of the receding tropical storm. This was just in time for the aptly named Fall Break that brought Derek back home to roost for a long weekend. (Get it? Because he's a...Gamecock? Ha! Nope, not sorry...)

And believe me, his family was more than ready to see him, after his 8-week absence. Husband took time off from work to drive down and pick him up on Wednesday, when his scheduled classes wrap up by noon. Then when Riley and I returned home from his soccer match that evening, we had a full Casa de WestEnders once more. (Yaaayyyyy!)

After bounding past Husband to claim my nice big Derek hug, I took a step back, waved my hands in the general direction of his head, and inquired, "What's happening here, with this...situation?" He smirked, peered over my shoulder at his father, and said, "What'd that take, like 1.5 seconds?" You see, it seems that my eldest child had been exercising his right NOT to shave since the last time I'd actually laid eyes on him, and had acquired a robust covering of...auburn....face fuzz.

And apparently the road trippers had discussed how long I would be able to refrain from commenting--and expressing my...lack of enthusiasm, let's say. He claims it's because the extra growth protects that portion of his skin from the sun...which of course is true...but I'm still chalking it up to college student laziness. Eh, it's his mug, he can do with it what he pleases, right? (Especially because he promised me he'd clean it up some before Christmas--I'll take it!)

Also speaking of exercising his newfound independence and grown-up (ish) status, later that night, as I was preparing for bed, he sought parental permission to go to a friend's house (around the corner) and watch the rest of the Red Sox/Astros game. I spared an incredulous glance at the clock, then stared confusedly back at him. "But, it's 11:06!" I sputtered. He laughed at my reaction and burst out with, "Mom! I'm in COLLEGE, you know!"

Then he shook his head ruefully, put his buddy on speaker, and enlisted his support to make his case, "Lou, tell my mother I'm allowed to come hang out with you!" Lou politely greeted me (as always), and played to my sympathies by describing the two of them as "feeling a little boy-deprived" and therefore needing some quality guy time. Oh, sure--how am I gonna argue with that? So, in what I'm certain is going to become a familiar pattern going forward, I agreed that he could go...but warned him not to wake any of the rest of us up when he came back. (He passed that test. Good job adulting, son...)

On Thursday 3/4 of us had to go about our routine of school/work, etc.--and Derek took advantage of the downtime to enjoy some R&R. But on Friday, he and I got to take a very special field trip...to Costco. Yep, the college kid needed to restock his snack stash, for all those post-workout/slept through a meal/late night studying hunger pangs. Besides, nothing says Mother/Son bonding quite like buying a cartload of food for him to take back to school, right? (Yeah, we'll go with that...)

Later in the afternoon, we all trooped over to the High School to watch Riley's soccer game (yes, another one). Derek basked in his "visiting alumni" status, and his younger brother appreciated having an especially strong cheering section there to witness his moves on the field. Then, for the first time since receiving his permit, Riley took the opportunity to show off his burgeoning behind-the-wheel skills to his sibling by chauffeuring all of us home (in a very circuitous fashion, in order to amass a half-hour of official Log Time). I'm not gonna lie--that was a bit...disconcerting, folks. Not at all because of Riley's performance, which was steady and solid...but the fact that both of my babies are getting FAR TOO OLD for my comfort. (Siiiighhhh...)

Where are we now? Oh yeah: Saturday was designated for "getting ALL the stuff DONE", which required the older teenager to set an alarm and drag himself out from under the covers at a reasonable hour. Before you castigate me as a mean parent for forcing him to do this during his mini-vacation, let me assure you that he had no one but himself to blame, as he had firmly announced that he wanted us to be finished by 11:45...so he could plant himself in front of the TV for many ensuing hours of college football viewing. (So yeah, don't spare any sniffles for the rabid NCAA gridiron fan, 'kay?)

First documented pumpkin patch experience

And lemme tell ya, the agenda was chock full of some super-fun errands, y'all. Like flu shots. (Yippee for...contagious disease prevention!) And haircuts. (Whoo hoo for personal grooming!) And finally, the actual entertaining part: the annual ritual of selecting pumpkins to adorn the front porch in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Now, we've been doing this since the boys were in preschool, when it involved a class outing to a local farm, to tromp around in the dirt and choose your preferred gourd right off the vine. But now that the guys are well past that stage, in recent years we've honed and streamlined the process...to the point that it involves only a quick stop at the supermarket with the largest and most varied array of the orange fruits on display.

This year's winner: Harris Teeter...where they also got their vaccinations...and which happens to be located right next to the Great Clips where they get shorn. Holy Hyper-Efficiency, Batman--that was almost too easy! Aaaannnd, everyone was installed on the sofa--with lunch in front of them--before the 12:00 kickoffs. BOOM!

That left Sunday, with just a few short hours for one last load of laundry and as much more in-person conversation as we could manage, before Husband and Derek packed up the car and headed back to the other Carolina. It was an altogether wonderful stretch of having the whole family together again--not only the precious time I got to share with Derek, but also watching the brother camaraderie in action as they reverted right back to their usual behavior--teasing each other, laughing a whole lot, and horsing around together (video games, football, basketball, you name it, they squeezed in a little bit of a lot of things) as though they'd never been separated. Riley has definitely not yet become accustomed to--or learned to appreciate--being a temporary only child, so I know he was extra-glad to get his favorite partner-in-crime back for a while.

First pumpkins on porch picture!

Oh, and something else that we didn't realize would change about the family dynamic: Derek and Husband are unmistakably the most outgoing and talkative members of Team WestEnders--they'll carry a discussion without anyone else having to do more than sit there, nod, and listen. However, without Derek around, Husband obviously has to shift his attention elsewhere...which means that he often tries to chatter at Riley or me...much to our chagrin. (Hello, a pair of introverts in da house! If you reeeaallly need something, you can find us in our rooms, chilling...)

Anyway, as they were leaving it occurred to me that we've already passed the longest period that Derek will spend away at school this semester. It's only a month until he's back for Thanksgiving, and then about 3 more weeks after that until his Winter hiatus. So we'll all just hang in there for a while longer as a split-squad, until we can be reunited for the next holiday. And maybe in the meantime we'll send Husband out into the neighborhood to get acquainted with a chatty neighbor or two--aha, a mission!