Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Many people have asked why it has been so long since we've had a blog entry. Okay, not really many, maybe just a couple. I only have time for a quick explanation. I'm leaving on a jet plane, but I do know when I'll be back again. And when I return, there will be more BVG adventures to share. I'll miss my Sisters. Cool just returned from her week in California, and now I'm off to North Carolina in the morning. Why does it take me a whole week to prepare for one week away? Look for an answer to that and many other exciting things when I return. Farewell from Firstelle!
Friday, April 13, 2012
To continue from the last post...After the birthday party at the lake, I invited my three new friends--later to be called the Bethel Valley Girls--to the church I was attending. I wonder if they remember that--I can hear one of them saying, "Oh no, I went there first!" And then another would say, "Oh no you didn't, I did!" But they would be wrong. They quickly settled in to MY church, adding seven more children to the Sunday school rolls and nursery. In time we were all instrumental in establishing a mother's group and also a babysitting co-op at the church. It was during this period of time that I found myself pregnant for the third time, and I wasn't exactly happy about it. Not only was it a surprise, but I developed severe asthma that was difficult to control, and after trying five different medications that were deemed safe for my baby, I had to resort to something that made me get sick all of the time. I will spare the details. After all, that was 29 years ago---let bygones be bygones, right? On top of this, my husband was gone on travel for his job for 12 weeks, my mom had just passed away, my father was out of the country, and I had a five-year-old and three-year-old to care for while I could not breathe (I had to sit up all night in order to get any sleep at all) and got sick all the time (let me just say that vomiting in the sink while I'm fixing breakfast for my young children is not a fun option, okay?). So the Bethel Valley Girls came to my rescue. No, they didn't take my children to live with them on Bethel Valley Lane, they didn't clothe and feed them, and they didn't clean my house (why not?). Instead, they gave me an "Attitude Adjustment Shower," as opposed to a run-of-the mill baby shower. And where was this party held? Bethel Valley Lane, of course! Only older people will understand the significance when I say that for the centerpiece they had a plush rabbit on its back with some daffodils held between its paws. (Do rabbits have paws? Now I am doubting myself about that.) Hanging from the chandelier above were a few brochures on birth control methods. They were stuffed in a............oh, wait a minute, children might read this blog. Never mind, it doesn't matter, and it was too late anyway. The three of them gave me some wonderful gifts, such as a box of saltines and a book called Love Life. I always wondered if they thought I had a little too much love life, hence the third child, or if I needed to learn why I was experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. Anyway, the book was good, I still have it (and my husband of 36 years), and I never had any more children after that third one. Draw your own conclusions. The party was really a lot of fun, rampant nausea notwithstanding. The reason I bring this all up at this time is that the other day I was going through some old files, and I came across a hand-made card with the cutest drawing of a very pregnant lady on the front. The caption at the top is, "Happy Labor Day," and at the bottom, "We're pregnant with anticipation~awaiting the coming celebration!" There are six pertinent phrases written around the pregnant lady, things like, "It's what's up front that counts!" And inside, a precious poem. At the bottom is written, "Love, the gang," and then the three names of the Bethel Valley Girls. When I looked at this, kid you not, tears welled up in my eyes. Just the day before those three friends of 29 years ago had spent seven hours at my house as the four of us enjoyed our long-anticipated "Spa Day," complete with massage therapists and sliced cucumbers for our eyelids. Twenty-nine years, and we're still "the gang." How awesome is that? How blessed are we? That's why we say we are a Sisterhood. I'll write about Spa Day later, but here's how they ended the card, with two Bible references:
"Remember Ephesians 5:22 & Genesis 3:16"
Look them up!
So about that 'surprise child' of mine...in three and a half months he and his wife will make me a grandma for the first time. Thank You, God! And thank you, Bethel Valley Girls, for helping me through a tough season in life. You kept me laughing when I could have been crying, and you know, we're still doing that for each other today. I said it on Spa Day: "I love us!" Thanks for everything, Sisters. Cheers!
"Remember Ephesians 5:22 & Genesis 3:16"
Look them up!
So about that 'surprise child' of mine...in three and a half months he and his wife will make me a grandma for the first time. Thank You, God! And thank you, Bethel Valley Girls, for helping me through a tough season in life. You kept me laughing when I could have been crying, and you know, we're still doing that for each other today. I said it on Spa Day: "I love us!" Thanks for everything, Sisters. Cheers!
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Last night I took a walk down Memory Lane. Well, not Memory Lane but rather Bethel Valley Lane. It must be going on three decades since I last drove around that loop off of Bethel Road, and my mind was flooded with memories. It was here so long ago that the Bethel Valley Girls first met, three neighbors, the original 'Desperate Housewives' raising their children in this duplex community with its central playground. I didn't live on Bethel Valley Lane but met one of these neighbors in a women's group. She invited me to her young son's birthday party at a lake, and it was there I met her two neighbors and their children. It was the four of us with our nine children (or was it eight at the time?), and I remember thinking, "I really like these women. They could all be my friends." Little did we guess then that years down the road, with 14 grandchildren between us (and two more on the way), we would be the best of friends and as close as sisters. They all moved out of Bethel Valley Lane long, long ago, and my family and I left town for 11 years, living out of state and far away. We returned home two and a half years ago, and the Bethel Valley Girls reunited as if we had never missed a beat. We know we are incredibly blessed. Friendships like this don't come a dime a dozen, so to speak, so we treasure what we have and refer to it as a Sisterhood. From the roots so long ago on Bethel Valley Lane, something extra special has blossomed. Through this blog we will take a look back at our journey through life together as well as recount our monthly adventures that help define what it means to be a Bethel Valley Girl. While Bethel Valley Lane is very real, as is our enduring friendship, our names have been changed to protect our anonymity. We don't want to have to change our lifestyle after our blog starts attracting oodles of fans. For reasons known only to us, then, we are Firstelle (that's me), Elletu, Cool and j (think LL Cool J). Join us on our journey...we're glad to have you aboard!
Saturday, April 7, 2012
L & L Blogfest
Today I had my first Publisher lesson with Elletu, paired with a fine Pinot Grigio (it is 5 p.m. somewhere), a delicious 9-Layer Salad (2 better than the usual 7-Layer Salad) and Pastel Peanut M&M's (tomorrow is Easter). The weather was so beautiful we ate lunch out on my deck and watched golfers 'drive' by. We missed having Cool and j today, but this was not an official BVG gathering. The lesson was fun (I learned to micrcoscooch in Publisher, rotate text and format text boxes), but just for the record, it did not fall under the category of an awesome, amazing, astounding adventure. But I'm sure my next post will be amply astonishing.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Cheers!
Welcome! Soon you will be able to read about the escapades of the Bethel Valley Girls. We are Firstelle (moi), Elletu, Cool and j (LLCoolj) friends for over thirty years. Between us we have ten children and fourteen grandchildren, with two more grandchildren on the way. Through our decades of friendship, through the ups and downs of life, for richer or pourer, we have always adhered to our cork values. Stay tuned for awesome and amazing details of our astounding adventures aplenty, packed with alliteration and hyperbole.
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