Diary of a happy white woman

Today, I broke down and donned maternity pants. I had been putting it off because I figured it was still too early, but judging by the button imprint left on my abdomen yesterday (and the fact that I had NO clean dress pants this morning), I knew it was time. I’m not certain that the pants I’m wearing today should even count as maternity pants, though, because I’m pretty sure I could have worn them 6 months ago.

Daddy and Gunter attended a men’s conference Friday night and Saturday morning, so Mom and I put our time without them to good use. Friday night, we ate at David’s Catfish, attempted to make a packing list and then I introduced her to one of my favorite movies, “Diary of a Mad Black Woman.” Quality time.

By the way, I know full well that Madea movies are not the most wholesome. She needs a mouthful of soap, but I'm sure anyone who's tried it on her has come face-to-face with her "piece a steel."

Saturday, we shopped for trip necessities, mainly long-sleeved shirts, stretchy pants and a jacket. I gather that the weather in Israel is sort of like Alabama’s – unpredictable – so I figure with long-sleeved T-shirts, a light jacket and an emergency 88-cent poncho, I’ll be ready for anything.

The folks from Liberty keep telling us to bring at least one pair of long pants for when we visit the holy sites. Weather.com says the recent temperatures have ranged from the 50s to the 70s. Those snowbirds from Virginia can wear shorts if they want to, but we from LA (Lower Alabama) don’t even pull out the capris until the thermometer says at least 80 degrees and sunny.

Speaking of unpredictable weather, it snowed at our house Sunday, and I’m pretty sure Gunter was as excited as any kid on our street. I, on the other hand, am not big on snow. I like to look at it and watch it fall from inside. Being outside in snow = being cold and wet.

We stocked up on travel snacks last night at Wal-Mart. I’ll never be able to pack all that stuff. Actually, I stocked up on snacks, but Gunter only had eyes for some 100 Calorie Pack cupcake things.

I thought you might like to see where we’ll be staying while in Israel. The first part of the trip, we’re staying at this hotel in Tiberius, on the Sea of Galilee. For the next 5 days, we’ll stay here in Jerusalem.

Mom was pleasantly surprised when she saw the hotels. Apparently, she thought we’d be staying in a cave somewhere, “like in Bible times.” Thankfully not. Caves don’t have beds or hairdryers.

Oh, another bit of good news: We’ll tour every day until about 6 p.m., and then we’re asked to stay in the hotel after dinner. The staying-at-the-hotel-in-the-evening part is the news I’m excited about. That means this non-night owl pregnant woman will have time in the evenings to rest and recuperate! Sounds like Gunter will have plenty of classwork to do, but he can handle it. I tend to meltdown in states of perpetual exhaustion.

Getting excited! Will start packing after some of our clothes are clean again.