Welcome Back

Photo credits go to Ebe while in Ventura at Emmaus earlier this year

While I did accomplish a fine bit of blogging for the recent pilgrimage to Turkey, Greece and Rome (hope you caught it, if not, check it out at SOTH Pilgrims), my personal blogging habits have fallen off.  Discontinued, really.

No longer, though, for we are back.  Ebe is finishing up her 30-days of photos and then we will start some cool new photo-journaling program.  Until then, prepare yourself for my daily musings.  You know that you are excited!

The Sabbatical

It has been a year since I last did any work around the blog and while the break may have been something that was needed for a variety of reasons, it is certainly good to be back! I have heard from the whole group of 5 of you following the Newton Family Adventures that you have missed not seeing regular entries, so thanks for the shout-out and support!

I am indeed back with a new look and photo for the blog, and of course a whole new perspective on life and what is happening in our world. It is always an adventurous ride, thanks for coming along!

Happy New Year and here is to a truly blessed 2011 for us all.

Homecoming

Last Friday was homecoming for TOHS, so like all good alumni should do, Holly dragged us along to see the game and festivities that are always a part of the celebration.

We rolled into the game right before 1/2 time, so we got there just in time to see the parade (I have to agree with Schnoogs on this one...not a lot of effort was put into it, especially compared to the whole halftime show her class produced last year), but the band is always good to listen to.

Fireworks are a staple of the TOHS Homecoming, and this year did not disappoint. While we were enjoying the show, it suddenly occurred to us that Daphne was probably at home under something and shaking; thunder, fireworks and loud noises in general send her into quite a state of neurosis.

The game was an easy win - Thousand Oaks beat Calabasas 42 to 10 - and we avoided all of the post-game traffic by exiting through the side gate and walking home.

It is good to know all of the tricks when you have been around for a while!

A New Chapter

We have officially entered a new chapter in all of our lives. While it sounds somewhat dramatic to state it like that, it sort of snuck up on us in a quiet sort of way and now that it is here, I am not quite sure that we have all fully accepted it.

The day went well. We loaded up the car, hit the road and were parked at the dorms by 9:45 am. Holly checked in, got her keys and we had her things up in her room in no time. Met the new roommates and their respective family members, set up the big things like bed and clothes, then walked around the campus to grab some lunch.

David had to say goodbye after lunch, so after a few final photos (check them all out here), Holly and I set out for a variety of errands, partly to pick up some items she still needed and partly to get her oriented to her new surroundings. This isn't Thousand Oaks, that is for sure. The San Fernando Valley is bigger, louder and far more congested on many different levels than my little lamb is accustomed to, but I said nothing.

I attended a parent orientation (during which they repeatedly assured the parents that many safety precautions are built into campus life...not helping my concern for the little suburb girl in the big bustling city!), then went out for dinner instead of the BBQ on campus. We decided that we were more in the mood for a salad.

One more trip into the store for a few more items, hanging the corkboard on the wall, and then I declared the fact that it was time for me to go. No big fanfare, no symbolic or emotional send-off, just a big hug and promise to see her in two weeks.

She's coming back soon enough, I see that she left some of her favorite clothes in her room. Maybe we all need to ease into this new arrangement in our own way.

30 Miles

Extra long twin sheets have been purchased (why do dorms make that weird bed size standard, while so few retailers carry those sheets?). Fees have been paid. Forms have been filled out. Suitcases and boxes are packed. The car is loaded. The time has come.

We set out on the 30-mile journey to Northridge today. I actually drive further than that to and from work each day, but it still feels like we are taking a huge trip. A different city, a different county and a whole new and exciting chapter of life for the Schnoogs...it is college move-in day!

Originally thought to just be a few hours for David and I, we realized after going through the orientation packet yesterday that there are things going on all day, until the "ceremonial send-off on the lawn" where the administration forces the clingy parents to leave and officially let their kid live their life.

I originally was going to go into work at about 2 because I didn't think I was going to be that clingy parent that just hung around, but as we went through the activities and realized that there were some activities for the families to learn more about the campus and life there, Holly phrased it in such a way that I couldn't leave early. "I wouldn't be bothered if you wanted to stay for the family picnic and send off."

Since she put it that way...I am sure that the next few postings will include a fair share of pictures and details of the move-in excitement!

Empty Nest

It's coming.

Very soon.

This weekend.

I think that I should have started blogging about this earlier to prep for it, much like we did for graduation.

Not feeling too ready for the big move.

Schnoogs is naturally excited beyond belief.

As she certainly should be!

Graduated!

It is done...the Schnoogs has graduated.

I have to admit that while there was a lot building up to the day, it was actually pretty smooth and not overly emotional once we got there.  It was exciting, tender, a little sentimental but mostly just a lot of smiles, happiness and pride as we watched our only child take that step into the next chapter of her life.

There was actually one emotional-almost-meltdown moment on my part in (of all places) Trader Joe's, but we got through it and things were fine after that.  The thing that tripped me off was less about the fact that Holly is growing and leaving and more about the fact that she is a great person with a truly kind spirit...it makes me proud and grateful to know what a good kid (young adult) she has become.

The graduation itself was fun and moved surprisingly well given the fact that her class was slightly over 600 kids; that is a lot of names to read, let me tell you!  We sprinted back to the house where we had a really nice evening with about 25 family and friends, many of whom travelled quite a way to celebrate with and tell the Schnoogs what a special person she is.  We took around 150 photos...here are 17 of the select poses to enjoy!

Time to take a deep breath and enjoy the short summer before it is time to pack up and leave for college!

Let the Celebration Begin

It is here.  I blog in anticipation of the big day.  It has certainly consumed much of the text in this space of late, and has been quite a focus around the house too.

We are doing the BBQ dinner at the house post-graduation and at last count, Holly reported a group in excess of 20, maybe 25.  Good grief, I'd better get to shopping!

Enjoy another shot of our Sunday on campus, much to Holly's chagrin!

Lancer Pride

Goofy season has officially begun.  Actually, I just typed that because I realize that I have declared it some kind of season in my last two posts and want to be consistent!  

After attending Holly's Baccalaureate, I coaxed her into riding over to the high school in hopes of finding an open gate so that we could take some good photos in front of the Lancer - a hulking sculpture made of spoons - in the quad.  

At first the Schnoogs resisted, but I wore her down with my stunning logic...I was driving the car and was determined to get a good picture, so better to do it now than with 1300 or so people in the quad after graduation. She acquiesced.

We got lucky and found a gate open back behind the bus entrance.  It was in my opinion a stroke of brilliance to do this, as it is mob-scene central on the night of graduation.  I saw it last year while serving my debt to the then-senior class by serving cookies and punch in exchange for the promise of a preferred parking permit this year (it arrived in the mail just yesterday!)

I believe that even Holly got into the mood, striking some fun poses out front of the TOHS moniker for posterity.

Baccalaureate

Graduation season has officially begun.  Holly is done with classes (has been since Friday), has her Yearbook filled in with all of the signatures she is after, received her cap and gown, is scheduled for rehearsal Tuesday and Wednesday...and attended her baccalaureate ceremony on Sunday.

This is the optional service that is held at a local church, recognizing the efforts of family and faith in a student's life.  It is lightly attended, less than 10% of Holly's 600 some-odd person class attended; but it was a nice ceremony and a good warm-up for the main event on Thursday.

I am surprised to report that while I got a little misty-eyed when the officiating pastor started talking about all of the milestones that parents celebrate with their children (he had me at, "first word" and then went on to catalogue the years), I did not cry, weep or wail, as Holly had predicted I might.  I blinked, snapped a few photos and held it all together.

Let's see how long that will last.

Springing Forth

It is officially Spring. In some parts of the country, I would suspect that this declaration brings hope to those still looking at snow on the ground and temperatures below freezing. Here in sunny Southern California, it means lots of greenery and blooms!

I understand that today is also Nowruz; the Persian New Year. It is tradition that the precise event is celebrated at the moment the sun crosses the equator. I didn't take note of when that occurred, but am content to acknowledge the event and share in the appreciation of the renewal that Spring always brings.

It's easy to appreciate just how lucky we are when the sun is shining, plants are blooming, birds are chirping and I can get home on a Friday before dark.

Yep, life is good.

Acceptance

A brief break in the Parisian travelogue to share some exciting news. Holly has been accepted to her first (and some might remember only) choice in colleges - Cal State University Northridge - as a Cinema and Television Arts major!

We learned of this great news on Friday evening as Holly and David combed through the pile of mail that came while we were gone. Holly was specifically looking for something from CSUN and found it pretty easily - a package addressed to her from the Office of Admissions at Cal State Northridge. (Holly later admitted that she knew she was 'in' just from the package, because by her logic, 'they wouldn't waste the postage or materials to send me paraphernalia on the school if I wasn't going there.') Sure enough, right across the top of the letter in bold red letters was:

WELCOME TO CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE

Naturally, excitement and pandemonium then set in. I was not actually home when the package was opened, but was on my way so they waited until I came in to tell me. Grandparents and friends were then called to share the good news and Holly just floated around the house for the next 30 minutes or so. I only teared up a little bit and was of course immediately called out for it, but come on! What Mom wouldn't shed a tear or two to see her kid so happy and excited, especially based upon something that they accomplished as a result of their own effort and hard work?

The excitement has not died out, even with Holly coming down with a pretty strong bout of the flu for the entire weekend (and had to go home from school early today). There is a lot of work that lies ahead, but the first big obstacle has been handily covered with plenty to spare, Go Matadors!

Happy Anniversary

21 years is a pretty long time to stick with any one thing.

Big props go to David for 21 years of putting up with yours truly (the official date was yesterday, but I worked the late shift!)

I am one lucky chick!

Holly's Big Day Out

I would like to believe that Holly's birthday did not disappoint in terms of fun, celebration and general good times. The morning started off nicely as reported in the last post, and continued at an unhurried pace (Holly's favorite speed) through the afternoon. There was a pedicure, some shopping, a little frozen yogurt snack and then the real celebrating began.

Dinner was at Ruth's Chris Steak House - we went to the one in Woodland Hills - because the Schnoogs rather enjoys their steaks, especially since they are served sizzling in butter. Rachel went with the lobster bisque and I opted for the veggie-friendly portobello mushroom. The unsung heroes on the menu (in my humble opinion) are the sides...the sweet potatoes are to die for and the shoe string potatoes addictive! Full and borderline bloated thanks to all of the fine food, we rolled out at 6:45 to cruise on over to the Ahmanson Theatre (in Los Angeles, about 20 miles away).

The funny (although I am not laughing) thing about driving in LA is you never know what you are in for. A drive that should have taken 30 minutes took us an hour and a half and then we were routed through the deepest bowels of the city to a parking place that ended up being across the street and down about 3 blocks from our destination. It was hard to not be frustrated and irritable with the slow traffic, indecisive drivers and parking attendants that kept directing us further and further away from our target, but cool heads prevailed and we made it inside the doors of the Ahmanson at 8:30. They had started the show late (very nice of them to hold it for us), and took us into our seats after the 3rd song, so while we did miss some of the show, it wasn't too bad and we were not alone in our tardy arrival (I'm telling you, the traffic situation is out of control!)

The play that we saw was called Spring Awakening and it has won 8 Tony Awards. I am not sure that I can adequately describe the content of this play and still maintain my self-described G-rating on this blog, so let's leave it at a "coming of age story of a very confused and curious group of students in 20th century Germany." Check out this review for a little more detail and flavor of the entertainment. Holly had mentioned to me that she heard that there were portions of the play that were (in her words) 'awkward', so I bought tickets for her and Rachel together and then tickets for myself and a friend (David opted out) to sit in a different area - I think that it was a good move!

Once the play was over, we had plenty to talk about on the ride home, which we were all happy to see went much faster than the ride to the theater. Once we dropped off Rachel and made it into the house, the clock struck midnight and it was official - the Schnoogs is now in her full adulthood. Good job! Here are a few photos of our historic day.

My Work Here is Done

It is official. My debt to society has been paid and I am now in the clear. I have produced a fully adult and legal citizen who is now ready to face the world on her own...at least that is what I am claiming today!

Yes, happy birthday to Holly and congratulations on a very successful first 18 years. I naturally cracked myself up by greeting her this morning with a fine breakfast, wishes for a happy birthday and then a firm, "Now get out." I tried to pull it off very seriously, but she was onto me in all of 10 seconds, so I guess that we will let her hang around a bit more...at least to finish out her senior year of high school.

The day is shaping up to be a good one for the Schnoogs - Rachel spent the night last night to join us for breakfast (complete with the family favorite caramel pecan rolls - sans pecans at Holly's request). I hear that pedicures are on the agenda for the afternoon, then we will head out this evening for dinner at Ruth's Chris (Holly gets the beef-eating gene from David!) and into LA to see the musical Spring Awakening. There will naturally be a full report tomorrow, complete with photos of the birthday girl and celebration.

Now to figure out what I am going to do with Holly's room when she moves out...as if I will really be happy the day THAT happens!

Larger than Life

Senior year brings with it a variety of different activities, all of which are memorable and significant, up to and including the senior picture.

Holly did her photo shoot in the late summer, opting for some outdoor poses to mix things up a bit and capture of course the true essence of the Schnoogs. The photography studio then paraded the 50 or so shots in front of us and appealed to my sentimental side as a mother to make sure that I chose the portrait package that best represented the many fabulous pictures of my only child.

The selection and purchase of the pictures was back sometime in mid-September and I haven't given it much thought until we got the call that the photos were ready and we could come pick them up. Holly and I dutifully trotted down to the studio where our package was waiting. They did not disappoint and we are now the proud owners of several different sized pictures of three different poses of a smiling, rather adult looking Holly.

The big surprise was the 16x20 portrait that came as a part of the photo option that I purchased. I don't think that I gave enough consideration to just how large that picture would be and how it feels like a shrine or altar should be set up around any hanging portrait of that size. Don't get me wrong, it is a great photo of Holly (enjoy the 'picture of a picture complete with annoying flash burst' above), but it was kind of weird this morning for David and I to sit eating our breakfast with Holly staring at us.

David says the other option is to get the same sized print-on-velvet of dogs playing poker. I guess that I will get used to the Holly-giant stare.

In the Money with $chnoog$

Tuesday was a significant day for Holly's financial status - we signed her up for her own checking account. Not a joint account or one that connects into any of mine, but a bonafide free checking account accessible only by the Schnnogs (or 'Moneybags', as we like to call her). So continues the journey of gently placing (I prefer that phrase to 'kicking') Holly out of the nest.

The process was easy enough. Show two forms of ID, pony up some cash (thanks to Mom for the $100 starter), create a profile and it is done. Holly can now write checks, use her ATM card and perform a multitude of on-line banking tasks.

We did have the conversation about overdrawing on the account...I didn't feel that the slight mention of the $33 charge per offense by the bank agent really did the trick. You might say that I dramatically emphasized the ill-effects of writing a bad check or overdrawing on funds.

NSF has a whole new meaning for Holly now - Never Set Foot - as in "in the house" if any banking monkeyshines were to occur!

You Can't Take it With You

Holly made her acting debut last Friday in her drama class presentation of the scattered (albeit Pulitzer prize-winning) comedy "You Can't Take it With You", however due to some scheduling conflicts I did not witness her stunning performance until this evening. Schnoogs carries dual credits in this play - she is the Stage Manager and also shares the role of Gay Wellington with another student - a cheerleader - who had to travel with the TOHS football team last week and cheer at the playoff game tonight.

Holly's part was naturally pivotal to the entire play - at least as far as I am concerned! She delivered quite the performance and I was complimented by several students and parents alike at what a great job my daughter did at playing a drunken actress. It's true, that Schnnogs did an excellent job and garnered herself quite a few good laughs during her time on stage. Even passed out on the couch with her limbs flailing about as the other members of the cast attempted to 'hide' her, she was pretty funny.

She was so convincing that I teased her I had to make sure that she wasn't method acting!

Happy Birthday

Today is David's birthday, a fact that he is not bothered by, but he doesn't enjoy a lot of fussing and celebrating either. He prefers things pretty quiet and low key. No banners, trumpets, red carpet or balloons. No clowns, jugglers, mimes or bounce houses. Just a nice, normal day with maybe a little bit of special attention to meals and treats (David is a big eater, a fact that is nicely balanced by his quick metabolism).

Today is turning out to be the kind of celebration that he prefers. We had the 'famous' sausage-mushroom-cheese pie and caramel pecan rolls for breakfast, grilled cheese with sweet potato fries for lunch, WoodRanch BBQ for dinner and cherry pie in lieu of birthday cake. As David put it, "It doesn't get much better than this."

For those of you who don't know David, I want to take a moment to help describe what an unbelievably great guy he is. For starters, he has dealt with me for 24 years (21 married and 3 engaged) and has done so with nothing but love, respect and a great sense of humor (one would have to). There is a lot more to him than just being my husband and Holly's Dad, although both are roles that he relishes. I am strangely at a loss for words in how to best describe him without extolling his virtues for pages on end, so let me share this one little story that happened last weekend that sums him up pretty well.

We were driving to Westlake when a cat darted out from between two parked cars and into the street. He slowed, swerved and missed the cat, but unfortunately the car coming from the other direction ran over the cat and did not stop...I am hoping that it is because the other driver did not realize that he had done it. I was traumatized and on the verge of tears as we parked and got out of the truck. We leashed up the dogs, he handed all 3 to me and slowly walked across the street where he gently picked up the limp cat and laid it on the grass on the sidewalk. He didn't want to have anyone else run over the cat even though it was already dead - he said that it just seemed more respectful to move the cat and hope that we could find the owner to tell them.

He's just that kind of guy.

Friday Night Lights

Football season is a favorite time around the Newton household - particularly the high school games. No big endorsements or contracts, just natural talent that is still learning, making for some interesting and occasionally entertaining plays.

Thousand Oaks High School is having a great season (6-1) and they have some players who seem likely scholarship bound for college. Friday was the last home game of the season and it was against cross-town rival Westlake High School...it was a game that could not be missed!

The attendance had to be something of a record. The bleachers on both sides of the field were packed and there were enough people milling about on the perimeter to make me wonder if we were in violation of some fire codes! Westlake Village got on the board early, playing very strong and making the Thousand Oaks fans a little nervous about how this game was going to turn out.

Holly was once again up in the booth, filming the game and calling the shots with the other students on site to help capture the footage. David and I sat about 6 rows below her and I only turned around 7 or 8 times to catch her eye and wave. I am sure that the people in the row behind us thought that I was a little bit obsessed!

The 2nd half of the game was all about T.O. and they ended up winning the game 28-16, putting them in the playoffs. As the alma mater played and the people who knew the words sang (do not count me in that group - I have been going to these games for 4 years and for the life of me I can't figure out WHAT the heck any of the words are!), I felt a little sad, maybe even a little teary eyed that this is it - Holly's last at-home football game of her high school career.

As the crowd jammed the aisles to exit, David and I climbed up the bleachers to visit with the video producer, who was telling everyone how to pack up (a girl after my own heart, I have no idea where she gets the gene to boss people around!), I asked Holly if she felt sad that this was the last home game. The non-nonsense reply was, "No. They are in the playoffs, it's not that big of a deal."

Apparently the sentimental gene skips a generation.