It’s been nearly two weeks since I’ve been here and I missed you all so much. I was able to chat with many of you via Instagram and Facebook so at least I had that. My daughter’s move-in went fabulously well. It could not have gone better. Missouri State is an amazing campus filled with wonderful people. In fact, I really enjoyed Springfield in general. So much so that I could see myself living there. My son, who joined us from Kansas felt the same way. It has a good mix of upscale downtown eateries and shops, but also that small town feel. I even visited the lovely Pagination bookshop while there.

My daughter and her roommate got their last choice dorm assignment. When they got the assignment, they were pretty upset. But let me tell you, they totally lucked out. In this building, there are a few rooms on each floor that are larger, by like a 1/3 at least and they scored one of those rooms. Check it out. Yes, that is a music station with a piano and various instruments. Don’t you love their windows? Emma’s side is on the left.

Em and her roommate. Both, musical theatre BFA students. You can see that Emma has a pillow with The Otter Pup on it, courtesy of her brother.

Emma is so happy to be reunited with her guitar. It was sent ahead with my son when he moved to Kansas. You know, his car STILL isn’t back from the dealer? Engine was replaced but they sure are dragging their feet on returning the vehicle to him.

Right Now:

As you can imagine, now that the move is behind us, I feel as if such a weight has been lifted. You all know how I was stressing about plans and the like. I am a planner but I could not for the life of me plan. I decided the day before we left that I was going to wing it. Winging it, worked great. My son was a huge help and we got to visit some of the town while Emma was acclimating to college life. The zoo. Man, was it hot that day. Evan also introduced me to ALL the regional food chains like Freddy’s, Culver’s, Andy’s, Cracker Barrel, Texas Road House, Frist Watch, and even the Waffle House. Surprisingly, many of these places had vegetarian and gluten free items for me to enjoy.

As you read this, I am at the church with the J High and High School students. I am not leading this year. My group graduated and many of them have moved into their dorms as well. I am assisting in other ways. It’s a good way to stay young. The students are fun to be around.

This Week:

I thought I was to be back in the office this week but word on the street is that the return to campus for me has been pushed to October 4th. I haven’t officially heard this but that works for me. Students do return to campus this week though so it will be busy here in my virtual office as well.

Reading:

I am done with Moriarty’s new book, Apples Never Fall. It’s quite different than her other books and it’s a chunk at nearly 500 pages. I really enjoyed it. It comes out September 14th.

I finished Bloodless by Lincoln Child and Douglas Preston right before my trip but didn’t have time to get the review posted. That book was also good but that writing team is a fave of mine. They really can’t go wrong. I hope to have that review up this week.

Watching:

Haven’t had a chance to watch anything but I have the premier of The Walking Dead and also American Horror Story to keep me occupied. Hope to sit down this week to watch those.

Grateful for:

• An excellent move-in experience. It was just like Kindergarten. We dropped her off, helped her unpack a little and then her friends took over. I still remember that first day of Kindergarten. She let go of my hand and three other girls took her away. Kind of the same thing. Even my son said so.
• That we caught our connecting flight there after our first flight was delayed for nearly 45 minutes. We had 7 minutes to get across the airport but that plane ended up being delayed too. I was a hot mess for a second. That Denver airport is hard to navigate with so many people.
• So, so grateful for Evan’s help. He had his rental car and he didn’t mind driving his sister and I all over the place. Even the shopping trip to the Target in Wichita went smooth as silk. Getting all the stuff in the car was tricky. My daughter had to ride with a laundry hamper in her lap but we made it work.
• Grateful that The Hub kept The Otter Pup happy. I guess she waited up late every night for us to come home. She was beyond happy to see me and still stares as me as if I am a mirage. She is looking for her sissy and brother though.

I’ve talked enough. I really missed you all and need to go through Feedly to see what you’ve all been doing. Oh! I saw that the R.I.P Challenge is happening so I hope to get my list together for that soon.