*burp* Excuse Me.

Turkey for me
Turkey for you
Let's eat the turkey
In my big brown shoe

I don't think I've ever eaten so much in my life. Not necessarily in one sitting, but more this weekend than probably any other. Why? Boyfriend's Family duty. Ah yes, that glorious moment in a relationship when you meet the boyfriend's folks.

Corey had met my folks a couple of times, and one of my brothers and the corresponding sister-in-law. This time he met my other brother and sister-in-law, and my grandmother. And as usual, he was all but ignored at my family meal save a couple times when my eldest brother asked a few "tell-me-about-yourself" questions, which Corey answered politely and concisely. And I'm sure Grandmother was too busy trying to figure out if his hair was as long or longer than mine or my mother's had ever been and formulating the sweetest possible way to ask "why are you dating a long-haired boy?" It really doesn't matter what the rest of the family thinks, because my mother adores him and her word is generally the law. Score a big 50 points for Corey. So (to bring this rambling paragraph to a point) Corey is already in solid with my set. So it was just a matter of how I could do with his set - or vice versa. And that matter was resolved Sunday.

Apparantly, I am the only girlfriend that he has ever brought home. His dad and grandmother had met several of his female friends, but never a girl he was actually dating. When he informed me of that Saturday night, I was both honored and consumed with apprehension. His family situation is a bit odd. Corey is the person both his dad and his grandmother depend on for...well...pretty much everything. And that can become really stressful for him. Especially when they start to act out for one reason or another. They're good people, don't get me wrong, but they've been dealt several lousy hands and they tend to take it out on the wrong people sometimes.

So I haven't nagged Corey about not meeting them for so long. It's understandable that he's cautious about bringing new people into the family mix. So I can only perceive this as a good sign.

I think he was more nervous about it than I was when we pulled into his grandmother's driveway. And it appeared that they were more nervous about it than either me or Corey - which is really out of line with my other experiences. His grandmother greeted me warmly and held on to my hand all the way into the kitchen. It was really kind of sweet. His dad was just a jumble of nerves and did the nervous gabbering thing that Corey had warned me about (and that Corey does himself sometimes). Almost immediately, we sat down to eat at a table that was loaded down with food. It was really good. Most of the conversation, however was between the family members and his dad's lady friend (a very sweet little lady who sadly had to go to a funeral right after dinner - so I didn't get to talk to her as much as I would have liked). I suppose they were just trying not to make any missteps.

After supper, Corey's dad drove his lady friend to the funeral, leaving Corey and I alone with his grandmother (YIPES!). But I love her. She's a very sweet little lady, who I actually have a lot in common with. We talked about dishes and ceramics and Carnival Glass, and I think that really impressed her. Corey says she can sometimes be a little mean, and I can see that she could, but she was well-behaved Sunday, and I just love her to pieces. She's a lot like my grandmother in some ways, and I was glad we had some talking points. I think she liked me. At least I REALLY hope she does.

When his dad returned (without his lady friend), we were all sitting in the little TV room. He grabbed a piece of sour cream pie (which was really yummy) and joined in. He was still a little gabbery, but I like his dad a lot. I see a lot of him in Corey. They're both kind of shy. The difference there is that Corey doesn't speak out of shyness and his dad can't stop talking out of shyness. Sounds weird I know, but I think that's what it is. Corey's rather more well-centered than his dad too.

We knew a lot of the same people, and come to find out, our families are well acquainted with a LOT of the same people. That's a small town and two old families for you. Corey's dad knew my Granddaddy too, and that's usually a big point in my favor when they discover who he was. I think his dad liked me pretty well too. Again, I REALLY hope he does.

I'm just glad I survived unscathed. And I'm glad to know more about Corey's family. It really helps shed some light on his character.

I think I've rambled long enough.

To Resist Coffee Addiction

I have never owned a coffee maker in my entire life.

I always drink tea and Cokes (that means Diet Dr. Pepper) for my caffine fix. But Corey is a coffee fiend. The man MUST have his coffee in the morning or he just can't get going. So the fact that I don't have a coffee maker has been a slight problem. He was going to the nearby Hardee's every Saturday and Sunday morning (while I'm still trying to wake up) to grab us both some coffee and a biscuit. This has become a bit of a pain to him and the biscuits (I always get country ham) were putting me in fear for my figure.

So Friday night when we both needed to go to Wal-Mart (or as Corey theorizes, the only true reality - he's on the cat food aisle right now and I'm in skin care), he had apparantly had enough and bought a coffee maker for me (himself).

While I don't generally drink coffee, I do appreciate a cup now and again. My instructor this quarter snuck a Mr. Coffee into the computer lab, which has been irresistable and handy for those 5-hour classes.

So I was already primed to start down the dark path of coffee addiction.

When Corey made his coffee Saturday morning, the smell of it brewing roused me. What a nice smell. It was also nice to have a fresh decanter waiting for me when I woke up. It was even more nice to wake up and greet a caffinated and therefore more personable Corey.

All of this was so nice in fact (my resolve was already wavering mind you), that while I was starting to feel depleted before I was ready to conclude my movie marathon last night, I went ahead and made some for myself. Bad Jennifer.

This could lead to a slippery slope, so I'm determined to resist the daily nightcap. To firm my resolve, I only had tea this morning.

While I'm sure Corey would be triumphant if he turned me into a habitual coffee drinker, I will prevail. I'm certain the novelty will wear off pretty quickly (for me).

In the meantime, I bet that coffee maker will come in pretty handy when I make my two pumpkin pecan pies for Thanksgiving - oh, and all the goodies my family has come to expect from me around Christmas...and when I feel like writing late into the night...

Dude, somebody stop me now.

From Hoodwinked:

The Cliffs of Insanity!!!

This storm it came up strong

It shook the trees

And blew away our fear

I couldn't even hear

You know how when you've had horrible experiences in the past, all new experiences of the same sort (either good or bad) have a sort of shakey presence in your mind? That's where I am at the moment.

Everything is going so remarkably well with Corey that I'm beginning to fear the worst. The bottom has always fallen out on my relationships in the past, so I guess I'm just fearful that it will here too. I know it's not right to always be in fear of things going wrong, and I do fight very strongly against it.

I don't fear at all when Corey's around. It's just the whole, "Is he okay? Did he get to work all right? Is he lying face down on the asphalt somewhere?" thing. Just abject, unreasonable worry. I'll get past it soon enough, though. I generally get over this sort of thing pretty quickly.

Other than the whole Jennifer losing her mind thing, things really are amazing with Corey.

Last weekend, during the paddle trip, I was teasing him viciously. When he flashed the "mean ole girlfriend" face and threatened to call DFACS for a foster girlfriend (again), I let slip an apologetic, "I love you." He just grinned and said that he loved me too. This was a first, and I was happy with that because he honestly doesn't have to say it. I know.

But then that Sunday when he was about to head home to get ready for the mean ole' week, I got the very first, out and out, direct, "I love you" from him. Although I already knew that he loves me and he knew that I love him, it certainly was nice to hear it.

Ever since then, I get the declaration once a day - and that's more than enough.

I hate saying it too often, because almost every time I've said it previously, it was overused. Then (inevitably) the relationship ended up falling flat, and I ended up eating my words. The "I love you" declaration is too often and easily used as a band-aid for a doomed relationship. I refuse to allow that with Corey.

Anyway, here's to many more lazy Sunday viewings of the Princess Bride and more of JW's wine. Love really is a splendid thing.

Corey looking delightfully rugged on the river.

REM doing "Half a World Away" - one of my favorite REM songs.