A Piece of Alabama Heaven

Miracles do happen. And I am living proof.

I just met another girl from Alabama. Living here. In Jersey!


Yep. You read correctly. There is another slow-talkin', sweet-tea-makin', peach-cobbler-cookin', kids-running-around-the yard, come-on-in-just-as-you-are, feel-like-I've-known-you-all-my-life Southern belle running around New Jersey. This place will never be the same.

I met her a few weeks ago at a mom's event. I'd heard she had just moved from Alabama to the Garden State. I admit, I was a little giddy to be meeting someone from my own backyard.

She pulled up a few minutes late and unloaded her four kids. Wow. She was skinny and beautiful. Dang it. I decided I could still like her. :)

As she headed over to the group, she went to grab her keys. But, they weren't there... She'd locked her keys in her car.

At that moment, I knew we was gonna be tight.

We have spent the past month hanging out and chatting on the phone. We have shared and laughed. It brings tears to my eyes to watch our oldest two play together. They both have missed their Alabama friends tremendously and seem so thankful to have a friend to relate to.

The thing is, they get it. They know what it feels like to miss Nana's, Maw-Maw's and cousins. They miss Auburn football and Vacation Bible School with friends. It's a lot to adjust to. It's been hard for us, but I know it's been hard for the kids, too.

I will say, God has brought me so many friends since I have lived here. And for that, I am so grateful. But, I still can't believe that He brought me a new friend from home...to make this feel more like home.


Thankful.

As they left to go home tonight, we all waved and hollered as they loaded their suburban to drive away.   My heart was more full than it has been since moving here. I feel amazed, that I have someone here that gets me. That understands. That also needs family away from family.

(Speaking of family, my mom knows her family. We aren't related, though, that I know of... Hey, it is Alabama people...)

So, here's to our Jersey future. And until we get back home to Alabama, God is taking care of us with more friends, and now, more family than we can count.

My precious new friend and I, with her youngest son.

Yeah, our kids ran around in diapers. That's how we roll. 

Say "ALABAMA!!!!"

Say, "NEW JERSEY!!!"

Redneck in Jersey

Our welcome gift to Jersey? 18 inches of snow.

 Fellow Southerners, here are ways to stand out in this neck o' the woods...

1. Refer to it as "New Jersey".

It is simply "Jersey" up here in the North. Write it down.

2. Talk.

Dead give-away. I've tried to mask my Southern draw at times so people could understand me better, but I only end up sounding like a goob.

3. Say you're excited about visiting New York City.
It is simply referred to as "the city." Helpful Hint: Use little enthusiasm when you say it. As in, "Yes. dah'ling. I'll be having brunch out on the terrace and then going into the city."

4. Ask what "jug handles" are. 

Jersey doesn't allow left turns on most major roads, so you must turn right to go left. Just don't ask. 

5. Drive off with the gas nozzle still in your car.
A man might chase you down screaming. Simply explain that where you're from, you pump your own gas and are having a hard time getting used to the 'Don't Pump Your Own Gas' law. But take note: He won't care.

6. "Improvise" when there is no diaper around.
See picture below.

Hey, it got us home. All I'm sayin'.

7. Cry when people are short with you.
People are brutally honest up North. Hey, a librarian made me cry. A librarian. It's not something I'm proud of.

8. Call a grocery cart a "buggy". 
That most certainly will get you shot.

9. Let your son run around outside in his diaper.

Yes, it is cute, but the neighbors will talk. I do it anyway.

10. Do random acts of lunacy. 

Recently, I drove around with a dirty diaper stuck on top of my car for a few days. I didn't know it was there. (thanks, honey) That's a sure-fire way to say, "I'm not from 'round here."

PS. Refer to this list if you are ever passing through the Garden State. It might come in quite handy. (or at least explain the dirty looks)

(or "Bama", as some call me up here)

Funny Buddy

We don't get to fly home to Alabama that often. And when we do, we spend most of our trip visiting  family, which we miss terribly, since moving to Jersey. But, we also try to carve out a little time to visit some of our closest friends. There's never enough time!

My oldest son's best friend, Drew (above pictured as Superman), is one that we always squeeze in. They met at church at age four after we moved back to Alabama from South Carolina in 2008. (yeah, we've moved a lot) They were instant buddies. And my son misses him terribly.

As much as my son misses his little friend, we do, too. He was a riot. I'm talkin' laugh-so-hard-you-almost-pee-your-pants funny. But, he wasn't trying to be, which made him all the more hilarious. His adorable high-pitched voice (one of a kind) and the things he would say, we still talk about.

This past Christmas, our schedules were crammed and we could only squeeze in a couple of hours for the boys to be together. My husband and I arranged to drop off our son at a nearby Chick Fil'A so they could grab lunch and play on the indoor playground. We left him with Drew's Mom, and a couple of hours later, returned to pick him up.

After good-bye hugs and giggles, my son climbed into our car. And, oh how the story time ensued...

If you know anything about Chick Fil'A at lunch time, the indoor playground is crowded.  And it's little. So, it's loud. But, most moms sit at their tables outside the glass-enclosed playground, chatting away, totally ignoring the chaos.

My son said, that at one point, he and Drew were inside one of the tunnels blocking kids from passing through, unless they knew the magic "password."

Apparently, one mom, who was brave enough to enter the area without a hard-hat, noticed the boys were causing quite a traffic jam inside the jungle gym. "Umm, excuse me! Little boys inside the tunnel! You need to get out and let other kids pass through!"

They didn't budge.

She spoke up again. "Little boooooys! You need to move out of the way!"

Drew could contain his frustration with the lady no longer and spoke up from inside the tunnel...      

                         "Don't make me go home and get my brand new paintball gun!"

As you can imagine, that did not bode well with playground mom. "Little boy, do I need to go get your Mommy?" Snap. She threatened to get mommy. He knew he had no choice but to relinquish his power over the tunnel. As he turned toward my son and climbed out of the enclosure, he leaned in and passionately said, "She crushed our dreams, man."

Now, I don't encourage any of this behavior and Drew's Mom was mortified when she found out what he had said. We told the boys they shouldn't have blocked the tunnel and they should have obeyed the mother the first time she asked them to move. But, you better believe that when the boys weren't looking, we laughed...our stinkin'...heads off.