A Halloween Preview

My Favorite Conversations

My favorite conversation with Mary this week. 

After falling down in the driveway and skinning her knees. I pick her up, she's sobbing and tells me "I'm okay ... I'm just gonna cry." After two minutes of good tears, she tells me "I'm all better" and gets down to play again. The end. 

Homecoming

I accidentally dressed Mary in Vanderbilt colors Saturday morning, so we had to leave her at home for the UGA Homecoming game. 

That's kind of a lie. I did accidentally dress her in yellow and blue, but that's not the reason we left her behind. Paul and I got to go to our first Georgia game together this season. We've been going separately to the games since our tickets are always in different sections. We stuck together for this game and, wahoo, so much fun! 

Only one more home game to go while we're living in Athens ... kind of bitter sweet. But we'll be back! 

Traffic Court

I went to traffic court yesterday. I can now put that at the top of my list of the worst things I have ever done. 

I got my first speeding ticket in August, going 84 in a 65 on the interstate. Going 19 over would give me 4 points on my license and an awesome raise on my insurance, plus a $20 convenience charge to pay the ticket online. I decided to show up for my traffic court date and see if I had any better options. I had to be at the courthouse at 9:00am, along with every other traffic violation in the past few months including DUI's, probation violations, driving without a license, etc. Too bad for us, the courtroom was under renovation that day and all of us has to sit in a crowded lobby until we could see the judge individually. They started with major offenses first and worked their way to speeding tickets last ... six hours later.  I brought books to keep myself occupied but when probation sentences are being read aloud and people are being escorted to jail every few minutes, it's hard to concentrate on much of anything. I was pretty sure I was going to be taken to jail by the end of the day. 

Since this was my first traffic offense, I wanted to use my option to plead 'No Contest' - getting the ticket dropped from my record and no points added to my license. Too bad you have to do that in front of a judge. I spent six hours waiting to see a judge for 20 seconds and sign my name. Some sort of mail-in form would have been nice ... 

So I did it, I'm done. I paid my fine and the ticket was dropped. Was it worth the trouble? NO. I will now drive 10 under the speed limit everywhere I go, as long as I never have to go to traffic court ever again. 

 

The Mom Prom

... what Paul's coworkers lovingly call the event we attended last weekend. 

Their firm represents a hospital in Milledgeville, GA that holds an annual charity ball each fall. There were limited tickets to the dinner this year, and most of the firm was happy they didn't have to go. They were thrilled to send us rookies in their place instead. 

If you don't know Milledgeville, it was the capital of Georgia before and during the Civil War, and I imagine it's not too different today than it was then. It still boasts it's antebellum history and that confederate flag! The Oconee Regional Healthcare Foundation Ball, ... or The Mom Prom ... is the time of year when women the age of my mother, put on their best high school prom dresses and come out for an evening of fun. I'm sure I was entirely underdressed wearing a cocktail dress instead of a floor-length, sequined, rhine-stoned number. But we had a GREAT night of people watching, and absolutely a ton of fun with Paul's coworkers. 

The best part about the weekend was our fabulous Bed and Breakfast. The Antebellum Inn, built in 1890 ...

and our visit to see Uncle Remus and Brer Rabbit in Eatonton on the way home. 

Can't wait for Mom Prom 2009!

A self-portrait

Not sure how this picture ended up on my camera. Looks like Mary's 1st self-portrait. Maybe she secretly created some sort of facebook profile and needs a stunning picture of her serious face. 

She loves her.

This is Reese. Mary was super excited to see her today. 

Judging by the look on Reese's face, I don't know if she was quite as excited about all this hugging business. But, later they traded sippy cups and it was all good for the rest of the day.