Tonight, I Became my Mother

Well, what everyone said was inevitable has truly happened. I've been noticing signs of it for a while now, little quirks that are more than familar, they are ingrained into our family tapestry, but tonight it became official.

Tonight I became my mother.

Now, before anyone gets upset let me clarify, I love my mother. I think that she is a truly strong, amazing, beautiful woman but she has one particular habit that I swore I would never pick up. In fact, I think it was at the top of my list of "Things I'll Never Do When I'm a Grown-Up."

You think I'm kidding? There really is a list, and every time I got into a fight with my parents, I would add what offense I thougt they had committed to it.

Yeah, I was a really difficult child. and teenager. but on the good side I'm a down-right pleasant adult.

Anyways, the list is long gone, and I'm sure that in the future I will do absolutely everything that I wrote down, because they're all things that normal adults do. Like not let kids eat dessert whenever they want, or limiting our Mountain Dew intake in an attempt to curb the particular addiction that plagues our family.

But, I digress.

The particular offense that I committed tonight was shopping along my neighbors' curb and bringing home my first "please take me!" piece of furniture. In my defense, I think it's a chair with a lot of potential, "it has good bones" as I think my mother would say (but I'm not precisely sure, so Mom, if you don't care to be associate with this particular phrase, then I'm now certain I didn't get it from you.)

Anyways, I know this is a common occurance, in fact, we did this on a regular basis when I was growing up. We would be happily driving down the road, singing along to whatever Deliah-esque song we were listening to, when my mother would slam on the brakes to look at something that some one had lovingly placed (read: chucked) onto the curb. And as she sat there trying to decide whether or not it would fit, go with our house or was a lost cause, I would sink a little deeper into the chair of Ruby (our mini van; yes, named it, my brother and I were abnormally attached to it.)

And as she would start moving things around in the trunk and employing my brother to help her load it up, I would stare out the window and hope that she would hurry up before someone came outside.

Now, I know you're thinking I'm some kind of furniture snob. But before you judge me too harshly, you should know that my apartment was outfitted using Ikea and Craigslist for under $500, and I just picked up a please take me! chair for pete's sake.

It was never that I was opposed to using other people's stuff, it's that I always felt like we were stealing. And even tonight, I didn't pick up the chair on my way home from the store, I went back when it was starting to get dark. And quickly loaded it up with a pounding heart, still hoping that I could get away before someone came outside.


And I did.

The James Dean of the Compton Family

The Urban Dictionary defines cool as the following:

[ Being amazingly awesome or inspiring in a way that makes you want to be like the thing or person that is that way. also a person that happens to be unsurpassable in any way by anyone else for these traits. ]

I know this guy who is the epitome of cool. You know the kind of cool I'm talking about. Not the person in high school who was always trying to be popular, but the kid that you saw and realized that he was the person you wanted to be friends with. Because he was always the one doing whatever he wanted. He is the kind of guy who decides something is interesting and then so does everyone else. Whether it's possessing a lumberjack- jacket, beginning ballet at the ripe old age of 17, or ending the shaggy hair trend of the early 2000s, he is always true to himself, and as a result people tend to follow.

He also happens to be my little brother.

And today happens to be his 20th birthday.

When we were little we had a tendency to be late to things i.e., church, preschool, vacations... not one of our families BEST traits, but a consistent one none the less. Well, one day, when Reid was in preschool, the first little kid to get dropped off in the car circle asked the teacher if Reid had gotten there yet. The teacher answered in the negative, and the 4 year old replied that he(or she, I don't remember, but Reid has always had an abundance of female admirers, so it is entirely plausible) was going to wait outside for Reid and proceeded to sit down on the walk way. Well, the next kid gets there and asks what the first one is doing and once informed, decides he/she is also going to wait.

Can you see where this story is going?

So, 25 + kids later, my mother pulls up to the drive way (a good 10-15 minutes late) and my brother gets out of the car to a chorus of cheers "YAY!!! REID IS HERE!!!" by his entire preschool class. And it has been so ever since.

And so now, Reid is 20 and still cool... and I am a sister who is blessed to have a brother who wants to hang out, makes the effort to call every couple of weeks, and lets himself get caught up in whatever new (AMAZING) adventure I come up with. And I am so thankful for him!

Love you Reid!! Happy Birthday!!!

xoxo, Rach

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!!

"The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor."

- Vince Lombardi

At one of his football games

Playing "charades" with me and Reid at my 6th birthday

After my 22nd birthday dinner

As a football coach, Dad has a Vince Lombardi quote for every occasion, something we find amusing as we ponder what "The Great Lombardi" would do. Our family has always been the most important thing to him, something that my brother and I saw and understood the magnitude of even when we were little. He was never too busy to play with us, to actually enjoy coming to countless concerts and award ceremonies. He once flew home mid business trip to attend my 4th grade chorus concert, just because I had a speaking part. And twelve years later I still remember how special that made me feel. Dad, I love what a good friend you have become to me, and I am so thankful for our daily conversations. I hope you have a wonderful birthday!!!

xoxo, Rachel

Happy Birthday Momma!!!

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.” -Washington Irving

Me, Mom, and Reid (my brother) circa 1989

Reid and Mom at Reid's HS Graduation

Me and Mom at dinner

I am blessed to have a mother who has become one of my dearest friends. I hope you have a wonderful birthday, love you!!

xoxo, Rachel

An Apron with Spin

I was a girly girl when I was little. Dress up, barbies and playing house were my daily activities. I was also an opinionated child, and from when the time I started talking, I was dressing myself. My favorite dress was black with giant multi colored polka dots (now I still have a certain love for polka dots, they are just so happy!) But more than the polka dots, I loved this dress because it had "spin." It was multiple tiers and when I spun around, the skirts would twirl out around me. Every dress that I wore had to have spin, otherwise there was no point. So, this last weekend Tiffany and I took a trip to Orlando to get new furniture and other accessories for the new apartment (we're moving in August), and we had a wonderful time shopping and just goofing off.


Well, I have lately been on the hunt for an apron and after much searching, discovered one at this lovely store, World Market. I LOVE this space. In high school I spent 4 weeks in Guatemala on a mission trip for my school (I went to a Christian Prep School, and yes, they let us take time off of school to take this trip!) Anyway, the inside reminds me of the Guatemalan market, bright colors and random things EVERYWHERE. And here is where I found the perfect apron. As soon as my roommate saw it, she said "You WOULD pick that" (no, she's not at all sarcastic). It is an apron, with a skirt that conveniently enough spins when I twirl, which I proceeded to do in the middle of the store.

The apron and World Market can be found here.

"There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good." ~Edwin Denby

xoxo, Rachel

Glamour Queens...

One night last week Tiff and I were sitting around the aparment with nothing to do and I stumbled across this website that lets you do virtual makeovers using your own photos. So, the next two hours were spent picking out different hairstyles, makeup and accessories (my favorite was the tiara.) At some point we decided to give Tiffany side bangs (on her head, not the computer) and please, no worries (I can see all of you cringing in fear... she already has bangs, they are just not side bangs). Instead of side bangs, she ended up with spokes sticking

straight out- punk rock style. It was actually around 1 am because we are still on college time... so we were slightly slap happy when these pictures were taken, and of course we were listening to music (loudly) and you all know that when there is music, dancing must be involved!!

(and no, her bangs don't usually look like that either)

"You can always tell a real friend: when you've made a fool of yourself he doesn't feel you've done a permanent job." - Laurence J. Peter

Have a wonderful week!

xoxo, Rachel

Blackberries, Frying Pans and Flying Devil Bugs

I don't do bugs that fly.

Give me a spider, or anything else that crawls at you, and I can deal with it. But after a highly traumatic (or in my family's opinion, dramatic) experience several years ago, I handle flying bugs with screaming, and a lot of it­­­! You see, I live in Florida and in addition to powdery beaches, tropical winters, and the bluest sky, we also have these horrible things called palmetto bugs. They are cockroaches on steroids- three times the size and they like to dive bomb... it seems usually at me. These horrid creatures are the basis for my aversion to all bugs that can go airborne.

This weekend I was home alone. My roommate was out of town visiting her boyfriend, so I spent Friday night curled up on the sofa doing research and watching old episodes of NCIS (my current TV obsession, but definitely not the point…) Anyways, so here I am sitting on the sofa, minding my own business, when I reach down beside me to get a book I’m pulling information out of.

And instead I grab something that moves.

And it doesn’t just move, it starts flying at me and hitting me!!

SO, I start screaming, and (thankfully!!) have enough presence of mind to set my laptop down on the coffee table before I jump up and start swatting. Well, Tiffany (my roommate) and I had a similar experience to this last year, and we got the bug outside by turning out all of the lights inside, opening the back door and turning the porch light on. The bug flew out and left us there, alone, screaming.

Well, OF COURSE, I thought this would work again… so I get the TV off, and the living room lights, and the back door open, and the porch light on, and I’m standing there (still screaming in spurts) expecting the bug to behave and go outside. Except…

I forgot the light over the stove was still on… and so, because flying bugs hate me as much as they do, he flew into the kitchen. I get that light turned off, grab the frying pan that I had used to make my grilled cheese dinner, and I’m waiting, and waiting, and waiting. Everything went quiet, so I think that maybe, just maybe the bug did what it was supposed to (now keep in mind that I am yelling at the bug to go outside, and of course I am expecting it to listen to me) but, SURPRISE, SURPRISE the bug is not on the porch, but under the burner on the stove. So, with all logic and presence of mind, I do the most reasonable thing…

I hit the burner with the frying pan.

Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. But the bug did not venture out toward the swing weapon, but had the audacity to crawl down into my stove. Can you believe it? After hitting the stove a couple more times out of sheer irritation, I left the bug alone.

Now fast forward 24 hours, and one of the girls from my studio is over doing homework, and she goes into the kitchen to throw something away. When she turns the light on, there sits the devil bug on the floor. The screaming commences, and we are trying to find something to trap it, without using any kind of container that isn’t disposable. We come up with an empty blackberry container. After rinsing it out (who wants to deal with that stain?) I sort of lob the container at the bug to trap it.

EXCEPT, the bug is big enough to push the blackberry container along the floor!! Ever the problem solver, I grab my trusty frying pan and plop it down on top of the plastic. So when Tiffany arrives home another 24 hrs later, the frying pan was still on the blackberry container, which is covering the flying devil bug, who still isn’t dead. Knowing me, she just starts laughing and leaves the pan on the floor until I get home to explain.




And now we have a better flying bug story to tell when trying to liven up the crowds…

xoxo,
Rachel