Weekends

Last Wednesday, I received a phone call from Sarah, asking me if everything was okay with Rachel and the baby. There was a small misunderstanding about something Rachel posted on the Family Website, and Sarah/Ben were calling to make sure that things were okay. So, Ben and I started to talk, and he let me know that they were going to Niagra Falls and then Palmyra for the Pageant. I thought that would be fun, so I told him to have a blast. Well, I started talking to Rachel about it and she said that sounded like fun. I told her, jokingly, that she should pack up the kids and join them. She said it would be nice to see some family, and go on a mini-vacation. I was working the weekend, so I couldn't go. She decided to call Mom, and see if Mom could be talked into playing hooky and join her for the drive. Mom's quote was, I believe, "Rachel, you are so bad." So, they left Friday morning to head to Rachel's grandmother's retirement apartment (it was on the way) and then to Canada to meet Ben at their hotel. Rachel will have to post her comments on what they did and such, as I wasn't there. Here's a few pics, though:



So, that was Niagara Falls on Friday evening and the Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon was spent driving to Palmyra and seeing some of the sights before the Pageant. Again, Rachel would be best to ask about this, but she said that the evening was great and the girls were gems being as tired as they were. Even Mom said the Pageant was great, and she would know, being that she was one of the original six people who joined the church. *giggles*

So, that left me to fend for myself for the weekend. Well, I received an email on Friday from Amazon.com (maybe I'll get paid for ad placement) letting me know that my order of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" was being prepared for shipment. Well, in the past, Amazon has sometimes been less than prompt with shippingorders to us, I took this to mean that my copy of Potter would not be here on Saturday. In talking to Mom, she said that she had not ordered her copy of the book yet, and so I decided to brave the stores in search of a copy, even though I had not preordered a copy. There are two Wal-Mart stores that are 24 hour stores that are equidistant from our house, so I decided to try the biggest one, as they would have the bigger shipment of books, thus more likely to get a copy quickly. I went into the store, and found that there was a line to purchase the book, but no display or anyone to ask about what the procedure was. I just left, as the line was way too freaking long, and I wasn't about to wait another hour in that line. I high-tailed it to the other store (which is the one I wanted to go to in the first place), walked in and there was a display of books, right by the registers. No lines, nothing. I even got a collectable poster, and two wristbands they were giving out to determine the order in which customers could buy the book. The wristbands had the main color and name of the 4 houses of Hogwarts, and they were handed out to people who were in line. I didn't see Hufflepuff (they were last) but I snagged a Slytherin and a Ravenclaw one. I wish I had gotten more, as people are now selling them on eBay as collector's items. I am keeping the green one, as Nancy said in our conversation about the book that I would be best in Slytherin. I am giving the Ravenclaw one to Liz Ott, as she is one of the smartest people I know and would do best in there. Silly, but I like them. They'll do until the pink breast cancer bracelets make a comeback - - I love that charity !!

I'll give my review of the book in another post, time for bed.