Surgery Day

About 16 years ago, we decided to name our soon-to-be Duley "Joshua," because in my estimation, Joshua was a biblical character who didn't screw up and bring shame to the name of the Lord during his lifetime.

During my pregnancy, God revealed to me that I had been putting my hopes in being "good" and pleasing others instead of looking to Christ for my salvation. I repented, placed my faith in Christ, and now HIS righteousness is my covering.  Around this SAME TIME, I was told that JOSHUA means "YAHWEH is salvation." What a difference in point of view!!  From that moment, Joshua no longer represented efforts to "be good;" instead, Joshua was a reminder that JESUS SAVES.

Here we are today, hopefully at the end of a summer-long toothpick saga, (I need a better name for this..) and Josh is about to go into a surgery that is dangerous and tricky.  "High-priced real estate" is the term being used for the location of the toothpick, and doctors keep saying that if this was a bullet they wold leave it alone.

YAHWEH is salvation.  JESUS SAVES.

There are so many people praying for Josh (physical/emotional/spiritual needs), for the surgeons, and for our family.  "Encouraged" and "comforted" do not even begin to describe how we feel regarding the outpouring of kindness and concern being expressed by our community- and even church families from far away!

Yesterday as I was taking a running break (Periodically I go outside and run laps around the hospital... I figure it's better than smoking...), I was praying for Josh, and all of these things were being woven together in my mind.

Our Heavenly Father, who is GOOD has chosen this for our family, and it will be used for good, because He loves us and has called us according to His purposes.

Abraham had to lay Issac on the altar before God provided a lamb, but God DID provide a lamb for Abraham, and Isaac's life was spared. God also has provided a lamb for us- the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.  We are praying that God will bring glory to Himself by sparing Josh's life today and also by giving Josh a real, living faith and hope in Christ.

Then in the book of Numbers, the Israelites were being plagued by deadly snakes. After the people saw their need to be healed, they cried out for mercy. God instructed Moses to make a brass serpent, raise it on a pole, and then those who looked at it were healed.  John 3:14-15 says, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life."

Similar to the Israelites, Josh is very sick right now and needs to be healed. We pray that the Lord would guide the hands of the surgeons and give them dexterity and wisdom to resolve the issue. At the same time, I pray that Josh would feel his need for Christ and that he would look to Christ and be healed. Both physically and spiritually.

  2 Corinthians 6:2:" For he says, 'In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.' Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation."

"But my prayer to You, O LORD, is for a time of favor. In Your abundant loving devotion, O God, answer me with Your sure salvation." Psalm 69:13.

Just as the lady reached out and touched the hem of Jesus' garment and was healed and forgiven, I am praying that Josh would figuratively reach out and do the same- That our God, who is our great and Glorious Physician, would preserve, protect, and heal our son Joshua.  JESUS SAVES, we pray that God would glorify Himself today.

It is going to be a good day. We love you Josh!

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. AMEN.

The Rest of the Story

Riding in the car, I used to look forward to the quirky news report done by a man named Paul Harvey. It was always some kind of interesting story with a strange turn of events or unlikely scenario, and he would say, "And that, my friends, is the rest of the story."

Unfortunately, there is a part 2 to my previous post. Stay tuned for news and the rest of the "Forced Family Fun Day Goes Wrong because of Toothpick" story...

I'm typing this post from the 12th floor of Lebonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, and this is the 20th day of Josh's summer vacation spent in the hospital. He will have some great material for the cliche "What I did on summer Vacation" essay. Hopefully he will choose to focus on the number of arrests we witnessed from the 9th floor window or the amazing 4th of July fireworks display we got to see over downtown Memphis. OR he could write about the day the superintendent of the school system came to visit him, along with other coaches and about 20 kids. If he is feeling super creative, he could pen a fictional narrative based on the imagined backstories of the doctors and nurses around here.  At this moment, I am thinking his essay might not be so focused on the positive and humorous.

If you remember from the last post, we left our second Lebonheur visit being told that he was just constipated from traveling and that the pain was not related to the toothpick. For our third ER visit, he had high pain and fever- BUT he wasn't vomiting and he could bounce on one foot without falling on the floor in pain. CLEARLY, the doctor assured us, he was not in need of anything surgical, and we needed to just make an appointment with a GI doctor and stop taking up space in the emergency room when it obviously wasn't an emergency. 

After several more weeks of pain and frustration and weight loss, we had a GI appointment.  The NP did blood work and scheduled Josh for a scope a few days later.  That afternoon, we had just gotten back to New Albany when she called and told us to go back to the ER... TONIGHT.  She said his blood work showed that his inflammatory markers were alarmingly elevated and she wanted him admitted for more tests.

An exploratory surgery to check out some "haze" on the CT turned into a bigger deal; Josh woke up missing 50 centimeters of his small intestine because of a puncture, abscesses, and infection. This is no small surgery, so we ended up in the hospital for a full week while he recuperated.

The doctors and nurses for this fourth time at Lebonheur were great- AND we had a room with a view of a liquor store and the Hernando Desoto Bridge.  There were light shows at both places, lol! There were "blue lights" at the liquor store regularly surrounding people, and we saw all kinds of drama going down.. It was like watching an episode of COPS in person every day!  The bridge lights in Memphis aren't quite so dramatic, but they are beautiful! The lights change colors, flash, and dance- it is a sight to see.  To top it all off, we had the best seat in the city for 4th of July fireworks! The Redbirds stadium and Mud Island fireworks were both right outside our window.

We were sent home on July 5th or 6th (days run together), and things seemed to be on the right track.  I was somewhat concerned that Josh wasn't improving as quickly as I thought he would, but I tend to be a little over-competitive and pushy (imagine that), so I put it out of my mind.  However, he undeniably started feeling bad again about a week after arriving home and his temperature went back up.  We called our follow up number, and they sent us back here... to our new home away from home...

Infection had set in from surgery and was working a number on Josh.  He had lost even more weight, blood counts were not great, and the CT showed "something." For a full day, we just knew that the CT showed "something." This is a scary phrase.

They got him started on IV antibiotics... and here we are, 9 days later... Hospital Stay #5.

Although this hospital visit has been very difficult (particularly mentally) for Josh, it has most certainly made us thankful for our family, church family, and community. SO many people have checked on Josh, brought food, offered help... I could go on and on!  And nothing has brightened his spirits as much as the many times a friend or two (or 22) has ventured up to Memphis to sit with him or play cards. It has been humbling and sincerely touching how many people have expressed their concern and offered to pray for Josh.

The good news is, there was a little progress yesterday. THANK THE LORD FOR ICE CREAM AND ANSWERED PRAYERS.  After a very discouraging day, he tried a little ice cream and it didn't hurt his stomach.  Then, he realized his pain was only a 2.. this was like a light opening up at the end of a long, dark tunnel.

While this was "the rest of the story," the end of the story is yet to be told. The next several days will be very important.  We are praying that he continues to poop, his pain continues to decrease, AND that when they take him off the IV nutrition and antibiotics, he will continue to improve.  If the cycle of pain/ inflammation/ constipation begins again, they will have another surgery, in which they "leave no stone unturned" looking for a toothpick that MAY be at large floating around in his abdominal cavity.  Lovely thought to end on, huh?

I can't end on that note- I just can't go there.  Instead, I will close with this: God is good all the time, and all the time, GOD IS GOOD.

"The Lord disciplines the one He loves, and chastises every son whom he receives."
"For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it....May you be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might, or all endurance and patience with joy.   "In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world"

We are hoping and praying for the best!

P.S. Before I could read over and post this, we had a setback today. Short version:  Josh was supposed to have some kind of special MRI... but actually an MRE... of his intestines this afternoon.  After drinking two things of gross-tasting contrast, he was left in his little triage room too long and the test didn't work.  Now he has to do it all over again tomorrow.  This sounds trivial... but it really wasn't.

AND THEN, the bigger blow was yet to come. When he came into the room, he asked me to take his temperature, saying he felt feverish. For 5 days straight his temp has consistently been between 97-98.1.  After only 6-7 hours unplugged from IV antibiotics, it was back to 99.7. This somewhat changes our hopes for a best case scenario, but we will know more tomorrow.... And after all, tomorrow is another day.

Even tonight- when there is no ice cream and only more gross-tasting contrast drink for breakfast- God is good.

Another few positives- we are close to the zoo... and since we got a family pass on "forced family fun day" we have taken Kayleigh to the zoo several times.  She wants to be an animal doctor.

Hannah was granted a $5,000 stipend for nursing school- Did you know that's what those car tags pay for?? Get the Nurses Touch Lives car tag!! :) 

And finally, our African Queen comes home from Kenya in 7 days!! We will be so glad to see Sarah!

Rough Start to Summer

There is something quite satisfying about wielding a machete in dense underbrush. As Josh and I alternately hacked with the machete, cut small branches with the loppers, and used our body weight to push briars out of the path, I reflected on the craziness of the week and just how much had transpired between in such a short time.

It all began with my idea for a family fun day.  When you have a large family... mind you, I realize that some people consider our family of 7 a crazy-large size, and then other friends with 7, 10, 12 kids probably snicker at my use of "large." Anyhow, for us, 7 is a comfortable, slightly chaotic number... and when you have a "large" family with working children who participate in extra-curricular activities, it can be difficult to organize times when everyone is present.

Going to the zoo is fun for people of all ages, and Kayleigh particularly loves it.  When the big 4 were younger, we lived in Memphis and went to the zoo regularly.  We would take our own drinks and picnics and look at animals for as long or as little as we wanted, and we all loved it.  On a tight budget, the only thing about the zoo being something we did frequently was that the answer to things like Icees, Dippin' Dots, cotton candy, and the misting fans was always NO.

 Consequently, my surprise for the older kids may sound cheesy, but they appreciated it.  Family fun day was important to me, and I wanted it to be fun for everyone... so this was YES day.  Although I DID take a backpack of drinks and snacks, it was FAMILY FUN DAY, and we would enjoy the Dippin' Dots or Icees as part of it.

The weather was great- sunny, and warm- and everyone enjoyed the time together.  After we had seen everything except the farm animals (we have our own petting zoo in the backyard!), we left and decided to stop for a "linner" (Lunch/Dinner) on the way home.  Huey's was close, so we crowded around a table and enjoyed burgers, salads, sodas, and more fellowship.

Huey's is a restaurant with a neat vibe- burgers come in baskets, there is graffiti all over the walls, and long toothpicks with colorful plastic ends cover the ceiling.

And then it happened.  Josh decided to add his toothpick to the ceiling's collection.  Trying once, twice, he was unsuccessful.  On the third time, he was going to go big.  Drawing a deep breath, he sucked the toothpick right DOWN the straw and right down his throat.  Choking a bit and swallowing the toothpick, Josh looked stunned.  Heck, we all were.  What in the world just happened???   Before thinking about the seriousness of the issue, several typical sibling "roasts" were issued, and there was a good bit of laughter.  However, as we waited for our check, a cloud of worry settled over us, and we wondered how this was all going to work out.

On the way home I asked the advice of a doctor, and he seemed to think it would be broken down enough by stomach acid to pass... but be on the lookout for ANY pain and be on yellow alert.  Later that evening, after a phone conversation with my uncle, we decided to take him on to the ER.  From 10:00pm until 1:00am we waited in the Tupelo ER for the doctor to finally believe that Josh did indeed swallow a toothpick, even though the X-rays did not show anything.  They sent us to Lebonheur, and we arrived BACK IN MEMPHIS around 2:00am.

Side note: Josh and Will qualified for a national bridge building competition, and they were supposed to leave with their school group at 8:54am on Sunday morning to fly to Nashville, on to Dallas, and then to Salt Lake City, Utah for the competition.  It was now 2:00am on Sunday morning.  The question became- what are they going to do? Can they even do anything? Is the toothpick still in his stomach? Is it lost in the intestines? Should they scope him? Should they try to flush it through? WOULD HE MAKE IT ON TIME FOR HIS FLIGHT TO UTAH????

The doctors finally agreed that they should just admit him for observation.  NO 8:54am FLIGHT.  As Sunday progressed, they decided that if he had no major pains, he should just go home (or to Utah) and be on standby for abdominal pain.  Meanwhile, Will and the other students were delayed in Nashville because of a canceled flight.

After church, Scott came to Memphis to swap with me, because I had to drive to a coaches' meeting in Montgomery, AL.  At 4:00pm, Scott and Josh left Lebonheur with strict instructions to "RETURN IF YOU HAVE ANY ABDOMINAL PAIN!!!" and drove to Nashville to meet the group.  Did I mention that Josh and I had ZERO SLEEP on Saturday night?  ZERO.  Not an auspicious beginning to a full week (that was only going to get fuller).

Sarah rode with me to Montgomery, and although I missed the first meeting, we were there for a very late dinner and visit with a boy with whom she had been corresponding.  By this time, I was slightly loopy and in a sleep deprived state... probably not a great way to meet a potential suitor for the first time.

Meanwhile, Josh met with Will and the group in Nashville and prepared to leave for Utah the next morning.

Monday dawned and sent the boys flying from Nashville to Detroit to Salt Lake City while Sarah and I drove home after meetings in Montgomery.

On Tuesday morning, I had to work 10-6 at Fleet Feet and then do some serious grocery shopping for Will's graduation celebration.  The boys had made it to Utah safely, and we were able to watch the livestream of their bridge competition between customers.

Both boys' teams got third place!! How exciting!!

Wednesday was cleaning day for the at-home Duleys and a long day of traveling home for the boys which ended with a flat tire on the side of the highway as they made their way home.

On Thursday, Josh finally got to sleep in and recover, but Sarah, Will, and I left the house at 3:30am to head to his freshman orientation at USM. Kay met us in Hattiesburg and picked up Sarah to go home with her until graduation.  Another long day full of meetings and information overload began when we arrived in Hattiesburg, MS at 8:00am.  Hannah, the MVP of the week, kept Kayleigh and worked on finishing up house chores and cooking for the graduation dinner.

The parents and students were separated almost immediately, and we both participated in different types of programming all day.  The information was helpful, and I think Will is prepared for August.  Southern Miss... TO THE TOP!

We spent the night in the dorms on Thursday night, and Friday got going early with advising sessions and information about the honors college program.  While Will was meeting with an advisor, I received a text from Hannah saying that Josh was having a lot of abdominal pain.  Our primary care doctor advised us to take him back to Lebonheur, so Scott took Josh back to the hospital while Will and I wrapped things up in Hattiesburg and Hannah and Kayleigh worked with all three grandmothers to get the house decorated!

Around 4:30 on Friday, Will and I entered the house to find that Hannah had done an AMAZING job; our Hawaiian Luau was a go.  Although Josh and Scott were still sitting in the Lebhoneur ER while the team of doctors decided Josh's pain was from constipation (presumably resulting from the traveling- even though he had never been constipated in his life), the pre-graduation dinner was a success.  Kay made Will a Tardis quilt for his graduation gift- it is the coolest quilt we have ever seen!!!!

Our friends Ginny and Nathan came to swap out with Scott, because he did NOT want to miss Will's graduation that evening.

The entire family and many friends packed in on the bleachers and beamed with pride as Will was honored for being STAR Student (highest ACT).  Below he is with Ms. Bailey, his choice to honor as STAR Teacher.

He was also honored as Salutatorian, Hall of Fame, Ms Scholar, highest 4 year average in Science and History, and recognized for his many scholarship awards.  He has worked so hard to be successful, and we are proud of his many accomplishments!

After a family picture session (that was missing Josh), Hannah and I left for Lebonheur.  We crowded up in his hospital room and watched a late night movie before falling asleep on couch and recliner. Saturday was a long day (especially for Josh) at Lebonheur, and the rest of the family visited at home with Nana and Papa John.

Late Saturday afternoon, after a major "Love it or List It" and "Fixer Upper" marathon, they decided to send us home with a regimen of meds for Josh.  We arrived home to a delicious dinner prepared by Papa John, and we decided to keep our plans for going to our annual gathering at the TN river with my parents.

Early Sunday, we loaded our tents, camping gear, and all of Sarah's gear for her trip, and headed to the river.  WHAT A RELAXING 24 HOURS!  The weather was so beautiful, and we enjoyed the last day with Sarah.  In fact, we were so relaxed that I didn't even take any pictures!!)

Sunday night we got to have steaks for dinner- what a treat!- and then about 2:00am Monday, I woke up thinking that I had fleas in my bedding.  The itching increased steadily, and I realized that I was having another red meat reaction.  Daylight confirmed that I was indeed covered in hives.  Thankfully, we had Benadryl, and I am officially a non-beef eater. No exceptions.

By 11:30 I had slept off the Benadryl and all of our stuff was gathered and loaded.  The kids headed back home, and Scott and I took Sarah 4 hours across Alabama to drop her off for her summer.  She turned in her cell phone and that was that.

Although I had been fighting it, I lost it.  There is something about knowing your child will be flying internationally without a cell phone that just made me tear up.  It will be a long 8-10 weeks until I can give her a big hug and have all my chickens back in the nest.  After a four-hour drive home, we felt like we had survived a ridiculously busy, stressful week that had involved thousands of miles driven and flown, over 100 hours in the hospital, two large family gatherings/ celebrations... and much, much more.

On Tuesday we slept late-ish and then jumped right into trail work and preparations for running camp.  I got two quotes from bulldozer operators, and it looks like we will be able to renovate our 1.5 mile trail.

Wednesday, Josh and I went hacking a path through the brush in order to mark a path for the bulldozer driver, and now we will have a true loop without any two-way traffic.

Today, I have spent the morning catching up on this blog, and I am about to take Kayleigh to the spray park with some friends.  That will be followed by a final round of laundry catch-up, housework, and then topped off with a girls night dinner in Tupelo!

Sarah, we miss you and love you and hope you enjoy us keeping you updated with our day to day ramblings this summer!! :) 

Final school and home Again!

Sunday night saw us safely in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, which somehow seemed very similar to Memphis. We were instructed to walk PAST Pizza Capri and into the nearby neighborhood to have the best Chicago deep dish pizza in the area.  We were not disappointed!  

Stuffed full of pizza, we walked back to our swanky Chicago hotel and went to bed early.  It was great to be back in the central time zone!  The next morning we had breakfast, got our final cup of Starbucks (My souvenirs as we traveled were the "been there" coffee mugs from all of our fun places!) and waited on the shuttle to take us to our final destination, the University of Chicago.

The University of Chicago is yet another urban campus.  Same song, different verse... we listened to an admissions presentation and then went on a tour.  The speeches were beginning to sound strangely familiar at this point... We heard the joke about siblings getting dragged along against their will, we heard about holistic application processes, and so on. We joked about the common story of the mom who tested the blue light safety system and was surrounded by campus police within 60-90 seconds.  Was this the same mom traveling to all of the schools we were? Did she really test the blue light system at EVERY college?  Or was it a different mom at each college?  Whatever the case, the blue light system is a good idea and seems to have improved campus safety around the country!

One funny story unique to U of C pertained to their annual scavenger hunt, which is an elaborate, fun event.  According to our tour guide, the challenge was to re-create a nuclear reactor.  Some highly intelligent students took this too far, created a real nuclear reactor, and were raided and arrested by the FBI.  When the misunderstanding was discovered, the students were subsequently released, and they were eventually offered jobs working for the government upon graduation.  Now, the University clears the scavenger hunt list with the FBI beforehand. This story cracked me up!

Here is the list of pros for University of Chicago:
Beautiful campus
Students are paired with a career advisor as well as academic advisor
90%+ students do internships, and there are internships reserved all around the city for students
There is an online platform that helps you find research opportunities
Dorms/ houses seem to have feel of community
Smaller school- 6,000 students
Students use ID to get passes to museums and cultural opportunities in the city
Chicago Transit is free with ID
You can check out artwork from the art museum to put in your dorm
More research is available for undergraduates than there are undergads to fill them
Financial aid follows you with study abroad
The school meets demonstrated financial need

Cons:
The marine lab is in Massachusetts
Registration for classes is random and based on a computer algorithm

After our tour, we loaded up the car and hit the road for the last time.  Our 9 hour drive home seemed like a piece of cake.  About 10pm we completed our circle around the eastern United States.  The week actually flew by, and we all had a great trip! It is fun to go, but it is always good to come home. 

College tour continues...

This is Saturday night, and I am currently in Erie, PA.  I think.  Maybe.  Yes, that's it.  The admissions counselor from Duke accurately pegged it when she mentioned being on the college road trip.  "Some of you" she joked, "are living the life of a rock star right now.  Sleeping in a different hotel every night, going from city to city each day..."  So true!! I can't believe this is our 7th night away from home.  The week has FLOWN by, perhaps because we have stayed so busy each day, but definitely NOT too busy to take in some history and culture along the way!

I left off about our travels the night we were in DC.  We woke up the next morning in DC and left our car parked at the hotel, hoofing it to the metro station.  Like professionals, we checked fair prices, loaded our metro cards, and hopped on the subway to metro center. Because the museums were not yet open, we grabbed a cup of coffee and went on a walking loop past the White House and around all of the monuments. 

I'll pause here and say that if I was going to live in any big city, it would be D.C. I LOVE it there.  Sipping Starbucks and walking amid the hustle and bustle of our nation's capitol, I reveled in the fact that I was surrounded by so much history. We made the corny joke about "You may not see the Trumps, but you can always see the Bushes!" as we walked past the White House.  The color change in stone was noted on the Washington Monument.  Pausing to soak in the fact that over 400,000 soldiers died fighting for our freedom in WW2, we admired the details and symbolism of the WW2 monument.  As we headed toward the reflecting pool, we told Noah the story of Kilroy and told him about how my Pepa would stamp his woodwork with "George Lark was here."  At the Lincoln Memorial, the boys looked for the face on the back of Lincoln's head and we sought out the word which was almost misspelled.

We walked back down the mall until we reached the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. This was a "payback" visit of sorts.  When I took the kids to D.C. back in 2010(ish), we skipped this museum because Will was the only one who wanted to go.  Last November, I visited the Museum of Natural History with Josh and Unee, and I immediately regretted not taking Will all those years ago.  The boys were not disappointed.  After a few minutes in the ocean exhibit, I set a meeting time and decided to let the boys read all the details while I went to the gift shop and then to my favorite museum next door, the Museum of American History.

After visiting the museums, it was time to hike back to the subway, this time via Chinatown, and then to the car... the drive to Boston loomed ahead. 

According to to google maps, the drive was supposed to take six and a half hours to get to Boston. Unfortunately, road work and traffic extended the drive to TEN HOURS. Speaking of traffic... the route took us through New York City.  Holy cow.  This Mississippi girl will NEVER, EVER drive in NYC again if I can help it. That was the most stressful drive ever, but we survived and arrived in Boston after 1:00am on Friday. 

Way too early, we woke, dressed, and headed into Boston on the commuter rail train.  This was a different experience, because it was a real Amtrack train!  We boarded at the platform, took our seats (after an embarrassing fall down some steps), and the conductor walked up and down the aisles punching tickets and taking money.  It felt like we were in an episode of Thomas the Train!

By 10:00am we had gotten our coffee and arrived in the admissions office of Boston University.  Although BU had a very modern lounge with coffee and tea, the information session seemed much like the others we had heard.  It was probably the lack of sleep, but the session seemed flat.  Our tour guide did a good job, but we weren't "wow-ed." 

Similar to Charleston, Boston University is a VERY urban campus- So urban, in fact, that one of their dormitories is an old Howard Johnson Motel.  Will has decided that he definitely likes the idea of an urban campus because of the access to city life and culture. 

After our tour ended, we began a long walk- twas a very long walk, indeed.  From Boston University on Commonwealth Ave., we walked to Boston Commons, stopping by the finish line of the Boston Marathon.  You know, just to tell it hello and that I would be seeing it again in 2020. :) 


After a nice cafe lunch, I signed us up for a freedom trail tour led by a man in colonial dress.


  Will was mortified, of course, because the man was shouting in Boston Commons, "Here ye, here ye the 2:30 tour will begin in 5 minutes." However, it turned out to be fun and we appreciated the fun facts and anecdotes that the tour guide supplied. 

For example, in the graveyard beside Park Street Church, standing beside the grave of founder Samuel Adams, the tour guide pointed out the Beantown Pub.  "Over there is the only place you can sip on a cold Sam Adams... while looking at a cold Sam Adams."  Bahahaha

We finished our portion of the freedom trail at Faneuil Hall, walked back to the South Station, and caught the commuter train back to Natick.  By the end of the day we had about 24,000 steps without exercising!

Friday night we spent another night in the same hotel, and then slept late this morning.  Well, the boys slept late, and I got a great treadmill run in with my companion, Madam Secretary. 

Today was a driving day.  We made it from Boston to Erie, PA in about 8 hours. 

We tried to make a pro/con list for Boston University, but each time we just kept coming up short.  It just seemed like we didn't know much more about the school than we did reading about it on the internet, but here goes:

Pros for Boston University:
Urban Campus (VERY urban)
cool town/ history
Freshmen do community service together during orientation week
94% of students do at least one internship
Handshake Program (kind of like linked in for BU students)
If accepted, financial aid package would probably be better than W&M

Con's
Larger school- less personal feel
Career center seemed a little more formidable/ less accessible from what the guide was saying
Larger class sizes than the other schools

The next few cons are mine- not Will's
WINTER!!!  Will assures me that this is NOT a con for him, but large amounts of snow were mentioned in several situations. 
Distance from home- 20 hours is a LONG way. 

Tomorrow we will complete the drive to Chicago and hopefully have pizza for dinner!

College Tour Day 4

I woke up earlier than the boys and took an exploratory run around Williamsburg and found exactly where we were supposed to meet at 10:00 this morning.  We ate a breakfast of leftover pizza and coffee from the campus bookstore, and made it to the admissions office with time to spare.

Very similar to the other colleges, William & Mary had an information session followed by a campus tour.  We learned some useful information during the information session, but the campus tour was AMAZING.  We walked around the campus for almost two hours and talked about everything a person could possibly wonder about the school.  As the tour guide described campus life, the college community, and the W&M experience, I could see Will as a student there.  Looking at him told me that he felt it too.  He was smiling, asking questions, and nudging me/ making positive eye contact from time to time. 


Although William & Mary undoubtedly boasts the "best and brightest" as well as Duke and other prestigious schools across the country, the atmosphere was not at all intimidating.  While promising to be rigorous and challenging, the school is a friendly, inviting place. 



As the visit ended, Will confirmed that he had it.  "The feeling."  THIS was his place.  The pro and con list was easy to make for this one, and I was thrilled to see that he had found a place he wanted to call home for four years.
 


PROs for William & Mary:

• "THE FEELING"
• Color, symbol, mascot- love them all
• 70% of undergraduate students participate in research, MANY of them get published as undergraduates
• Great campus atmosphere and active campus life (lots to do)
• Urban-ish campus/ adjoins colonial Williamsburg, great location
• Lots of quad type areas
• Career center is instrumental in finding internships for students early on in undergraduate career
• VIMS (Virginia Institute of Marine Science) is connected with the University, and W&M undergraduate students have a greater chance for admission into the graduate program. 
• Don't need a car
• less than hour and a half from the beach and only 2.5 hours from DC
• 12:1 student: faculty ratio... AND the professors TEACH the classes, not graduate assistants.  Also, the professors and research opportunities are very accessible to students. 
• It was awarded one of the top schools for having a "happy student body," and this was evident in talking to the tour guide and the other people on campus. 
• The tour guide spent a few minutes discussing how W&M was the first college to have an honor code. Apparently, the students were the first to be asked to swear not to lie, cheat, or steal upon enrollment. This may seem silly, but she took a moment to explain that although the pressure on students can be great, the honor code continues to be taken seriously. Additionally, the students encourage one another and rejoice when fellow students rejoice instead of feeling like they are in constant competition with one another. 
• Acceptance rate is 34%

CONs for William & Mary:

There are only three.  Two are minor, but one feels somewhat insurmountable.  

1. Not all dorms have A/C!  (This was a shocker to the us, but she assured us that it is only hot the first week or two of school, and a fan is just fine)

2. Community bathrooms in freshmen dorms

 

1 and 2 are the minor ones.  

3. It is a public university, actually considered the "public ivy league" school. Because it is a public school, they have out of state tuition... and it is MAJOR.  Scholarships for out of state students are HARD to come by in a ridiculously competitive environment.  So, prohibitive cost is the only major con for W&M. 

After being encouraged by admissions to go ahead and apply for regular decision and apply for all outside scholarships we can find, we walked back across the street and had lunch at the Colonial Williamsburg Cheese Shop then got a few souvenirs from the bookstore. 

Spirits were high as we left town in the direction of DC.  Will informed me a little later this evening that he plans to research and apply for outside scholarships, keep studying to improve his ACT score, and come up with an outstanding admissions essay.  Actually, this is all his plan B.  I think his plan A is to be adopted by a family in Virginia for the in-state tuition and VA grants. We will see how that goes, but I am thinking plan b is a better option.

We still have two more schools on this road trip, and I am always holding out for Southern Miss as an option, so who knows how it will all work out! 

The drive to DC was only three hours, and we were able to exercise and then go to dinner at a local Greek restaurant.  

Tomorrow morning we will wake up and take the metro in to visit the monuments and Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.... AND THEN DRIVE TO BOSTON.  

College Tour Day 3

Tuesday morning in Durham dawned cloudy and threatening rain.  This was the big day- we were off to see DUKE, as in THE Duke University, home of the basketball playing blue devils. We arrived at the office of admissions and participated in a well-done information session touting all of the amazing things about Duke. 


The speaker did a great job, and it was reassuring to hear her say that they wanted to see that students took the most challenging classes available to them.  This was particularly comforting, because most students who apply at more competitive schools have multiple AP classes and honors classes on their transcripts.  Although Will has a great ACT score, this will be the first year AP classes will be available for him at our school, and he worries about being handicapped by a transcript which lacks evidence of academic rigor. The admissions officer emphasized the importance of the essay in the application process, and I think she made Will feel somewhat better about doing the best he can with what he has... an important lesson for all of us to remember!


Some positive notable things about Duke from the information session:

• IF you get accepted, the school expects students to get $5,000 per year in loans, do work study, and parents pay no more of their expected contribution as determined by the FAFSA. 
• Study abroad is included in the cost and the Duke Engage program.
• Undergraduate research opportunities
• Only the "Best and the Brightest" go to Duke
• Freshmen live together in a place called East Campus.  This builds camaraderie and friendships.
• It is possible to do without a car- transit around campus and Durham available
• GREAT place for grad school (well funded marine biology research opportunities)
• Color is blue

The room was packed, and we were broken into six groups to disperse and take a 90 minute walking tour of campus.



This is where the visit took an unexpected turn.  Instead of walking onto the chapel quad and feeling as though THIS IS THE PLACE, the Gothic architecture and single digit acceptance rate settled over us, somber and intimidating, like the ominous clouds threatening rain. To clarify, the lack of "the feeling" may really have just been the rain clouds dampening our spirits or our tour guide's several references to depression and mental health; however, I don't think it was the case. I just couldn't see Will "THRIVING" and "EXCELLING" there, like Dr. Sancho (College of Charleston) mentioned being so important. 

When we got into the car heading toward Williamsburg, we all needed a while to decompress and process.  Eventually we made a pro/con list.  The pros are listed above, but here are the cons:

• The meal plan seemed expensive
• Community bathrooms in the dorm
• SMALL dorms
• Intimidating atmosphere
• 8% acceptance rate
• Campus set apart from town (surrounded by 9,000 acres of Duke forest)
• MINIMUM $20,000 student loans for an undergraduate degree

About 7:00pm, we rolled into Williamsburg, VA. It wasn't quite bedtime yet, and we were hungry, so we checked into our room and then headed to explore around Colonial Williamsburg a little. At the bookstore, we discovered that William & Mary is the "Tribe," but the griffin (half eagle/ half lion) is their mascot.  School colors are green and gold (Will saw this as a positive thing). Their logo is a W and an M meshed together with a crown, because in 1693 King William III and Queen Mary II of England signed the charter for a college to be founded in the Virginia Colony. 

We loved the area and found a quaint deli to enjoy some dinner and the latest episode of "America's Got Talent."  Back to the room, and off to bed we went. Although it was cloudy in Williamsburg, the next visit at the College of William and Mary already seemed promising.