Post Reunion Blues and the "Egg in the Snake"

Wow! Somehow I survived the frontal assault on my stomach yesterday. We started out with Mom's biscuits (butter and apple butter with a dash of brown sugar for good luck) and coffee. That lead to hamburgers and hot dog snack for a late lunch. That was soon followed by the 2nd 7-churn round of homemade ice cream. The banana remained a top contender but I think the strawberry and peach made some serious ground on Saturday's round. I ate way too much ice cream; but, so did everyone else. Here's a picture from Friday to give some idea of the setup and the associated frenzy.

We then swam some more and hung with the family under the live oaks with the big industrial sized yard fans making a breeze keep the gnats at bay. It was warm and humid and the pool felt great even if there were 30 people in there at one time.

For the weekend, I was one of the monster adults who had to fight off 5 to 6 boys (and an occasional tough girl) under 10. It can be exhausting after about 15 minutes of swimming and throwing kids into the air. I remember sinking to the bottom of the shallow end and just listening to the sounds of so many kids in the pool having the times of their young lives. It was then I thought about all the boys in the pool and was so glad to know chlorine is a powerful chemical!

After trying to swim off some of the ice cream the hour we all waited for arrived! Time for the swine on which to dine. Once again, Uncle Marion McLeod came through with a fine feast of pork and sauce. We had all the fixin's possible including Tricia's great crunchy broccoli cole slaw. It was here that I made my first mistake of the weekend. I decided that since the first plate was so good, that the 2nd would have to be twice the reward. Well, I got twice the case of stuffed abdomen. It took a few laps around the farm, 2 Pepcid Completes and some cool air conditioner to get me straight. Boy, I hadn't done that in a while, maybe I will learn next time that the formula for that disaster was printed in the sky all weekend. I took a good nap and then we exploded (best term available) the remainder of the fireworks for the weekend.

We made it to Alice Drive for the 11am service this morning but not before a round of orange dannish and cinamon rolls at Mom's place. I had a brief spell on the way down the long drive way sipping coffee and retrieving the Sunday paper. If I didn't eat a bite for 2 days, I would be fine. But, of course, after a great visit to Alice Drive, we had a big spaghetti lunch and I had two plates and a little more BBQ. My scheduled Sunday afternoon nap was a great opportunity for Miles and Dylan to swim more with their cousins. Of course, this was also another opportunity for more homemade ice cream. Mom threw together a batch of chocolate and a batch of peach for the afternoon. It was the best of the weekend if you ask me (and I know you did).

As we were sitting around under the oaks saying our goodbyes and talking about the weekend, some of the boys playing over by chicken pen excitedly began to report they had found a snake in the egg nests of the coop. Of course, snakes are a favorite interest to boys of all ages, especially on the farm. Once we all got in there, we saw it wasn't a poisionous snake but a very large garter snake. But, the coolest thing was that it had an egg already swallowed. Robert Calcutt, my brother-in-law, got the snake out by the head and into the yard for all to see the snake with the egg in its stomach. By this time, all the boys were in a frenzy wanting to kill it. Tricia was doing a mighty fine version of the chicken dance due her high state of nervousness around snakes of any kind, much less one in the flesh with an egg bluging from the side. To our sheer delight, Robert moved position on the snake and the snake began to unhinge it's jaws and the egg made it's way out, completely intact. Miles and Dylan were enjoying the show along with the rest of us. Tricia, by this time, was on the verge of "falling out" and was running into anyone within 5 feet of her dance. It was a site to behold for all. Once the egg was out, that was the sign for "let's kill this snake now". Any boy with a stick or club or rock had free reign on this poor reptile's head. Within five minutes, he was headless squirming coil on the sandy floor of the big tractor barn.

Now, where else can you get that kind of fun for free? My only regret was not having a camera. It would have made a great video with the snake in the foreground and Tricia jumping around in circles in the background. Miles and Dylan got to see it up close, so it was something we will laugh about for many years to come. "Remember that snake with the egg in it's belly?"... "yeah, remember how much Mommy was dancin' around while it threw up the egg?"

We finally got the boys rounded up and calmed and then we got in the van and head home. We had a long band of storms for the drive but made it home around 9pm.

Keller was happy to receive his prize for the weekend, a leg from the hog (feet included). I also have another bone once he's done with that one. Shadow had another earful for us once we got home too. But, he was glad to see us. I'm glad to be home again and ready for a full week. A week that will take me to Tennessee for work and a week of VBS for Tricia and the boys. I hope you had the kind of fun we had this weekend in your own way, with good friends and family. I was proud of how my family got along so well this weekend. We might be rough around the edges on some branches of the family tree but its a mighty tall tree with lots of branches. Granny and Grandpa Charles would be proud of their children and their children's children... Remember to thank those who make the freedoms we enjoy, so easy to enjoy.

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