Wedding Jewelry

Charlie's jewelry-making skills are really coming along very nicely.  He has made a number of truly elegant necklace/earring sets for my mother, and his name is getting out there.  He now does not only beading, but chainmaille, fine silver chains, and pearl silk knotting.  Recently he was commissioned to make a necklace/earring/bracelet set for a wedding.  Pearls are really hard to photograph for some reason, so thanks to my mom for getting some decent shots of this set before he had to hand it all over to the bride (who was thrilled!)  Here's the results: 

Full set

Necklace and Earrings

Necklace - back clasp mother-of-pearly inlay

Bracelet clasp - mother of pearl inlay

Big News on Oldest Son

Oldest Son has big news--NEW JOB!  He was talking to someone he met at a party a while back, and they started talking tech, and the next thing Rick knew, the guy was saying that his company was currently hiring and that if Rick got him a resume, he would make sure it got into the right hands.

He got called in for an interview a couple weeks after the resume was delivered, and the next thing he knew, he was being offered a job that was only 5 minutes from home (which means no more tunnel toll commute and a helluva lot less gas), slightly higher pay with an increase coming once he has finished training, and once he's fully qualified, the job will entail about 50% domestic travel with expenses and per diem paid.  Heck yeah, sign him up!!

He put in his 2-week notice, and starts the first of the month. 

Proud of that boy, landed that one completely on his own without anyone from the family pulling any strings for him. 

High hopes for that one...

When the Heck Did THIS Happen?

No, he hasn't graduated yet. But we just got his senior pictures back, and it is really starting to sink in that my "baby" is growing up. Kinda hard to deny when you look at these, right?

No Loud Noises!

How do you explain to a deaf kid what makes noise and what doesn't? 

Rick and I are starting a new business doing voice overs.  We have gotten the home studio equipment, and the microphones are VERY sensitive.  They can pick up sounds all over the house.  So we've told Charlie that when we are working at the mic, he needs to be very quiet and not make any noise--not even clicking the keys on his laptop.  He promised to be quiet as a mouse; we turned back to the mics, and he walks out of the house, letting the screen door bang shut as he goes. 

Ay, yi, yi!!!

Gainfully Employed

Charlie is over the moon again!  We got news today that he has been hired for summer work and possibly on into the autumn on the weekends at LaQuinta, a hotel within walking distance of our home.  He submitted a list of about 20 different places in our area and ranked them by preference, and this was 2nd on his list.  His counselor at school got him an interview with them, and they hired him immediately.  He's all smiles now that he's found a way to avoid another dull, boring summer alone.   And they took him on even knowing that he will need to be absent for a week for that EYF program in New York. 

Explore Your Future!

Got a call at work today.  It was the transition counselor at school.  She wanted to let me know that she had just gotten Charlie's ACT scores, and that they apparently qualified him for a program at RIT/NTID this summer called Explore Your Future, where the kids get to experience different job fields like electrical engineering and robotics, and all kinds of cool stuff.  The only caveat?  The application paperwork was due the next day; we had to get this turned around very quickly.  Charlie's scores took them all totally by surprise, so he wasn't even on the radar for this program. 

The kicker?  DORS (Dept. of Rehab Services, a.k.a. Voc Rehab) was willing to pick up the $750 tab for the program.  It was free, all I had to do was get him to New York and back at the appropriate times. 

Would I let him go?  Could I turn the paperwork around quickly?  HELL YEAH!!!

They went and pulled him out of class to tell him about it, and he was excited, so I got started killing trees.  The stars were all in alignment, because the one form I couldn't get today was the doctor form, but his secretary promised she would have him fill it out as soon as he got out of clinic this afternoon and fax it to me so it would be there in the morning.  She actually sent me an e-mail later in the day, after I had already left work, to let me know he had signed off on it and she had faxed it over. 

God is definitely loving on Charlie these days.   

Now we just need to figure out all the logistics.  But he is going to really enjoy this summer! 

Another Hair-Raising Adventure

Here are the pix from Prom 2012, his junior prom. 

The young lady he was escorting played the Cowardly Lion in their production of The Wizard of Oz this spring, and they enjoyed each other's company and decided to go to prom together.  His teachers are already taking bets on what next year's hairstyle will be.

Let 'Em Eat Cake, part II

My parents' 50th wedding anniversary is today.  In addition to putting together a memory book of photos of their lives, I wanted to make a special cake. 

Mom laid down rules for the celebration, to which I *strictly* adhered.    They would allow me to take them out to dinner, but not to invite any of their friends.  I wanted to take them someplace nice, but Mom insisted on Famous Dave's.  Not that Famous Dave's isn't nice, mind you...but you know what I mean.  Okay, Famous Dave's it is, if that's what you really want. 

My plan was to make them a special cake, take it over there early and drop it off, and have the staff  bring it out when my folks and I were ready for dessert.  And mom suspected I would be up to something.  But here's where it got interesting.  I called the Famous Dave's nearest to me to make arrangements to pull this off, and they informed me they were closed for remodeling.  At first I was disappointed, but then I realized this could play into my plans quite well.  (I'm such a sneaky rat...)

I called the next-closest Famous Dave's, and made the arrangements for the cake idea with them.  They were happy to be in on the deal. 

ChinaBoi wanted to help make the cake layers.  This wasn't a box mix, unlike the last time when he was forced to make his own birthday cake.  Oh, no.  This was going to be a real 3-tier WEDDING CAKE, and it had to be made from the original Wilton recipe.  We started mixing and baking on Wednesday night for a Saturday dinner.  I showed Charlie how on the first batch of batter, and he made all the batter from there out.  Then he supervised while I decorated. 

When it was time to meet Mom & Dad at the Famous Dave's near me on Saturday, the boys and I drove out about 15 minutes early, parked in the vacant lot, and called my parents on their cell phone.  I made myself sound upset, explained that we had arrived early to get our names on the list, only to find a huge sign saying they were closed for renovations, but that Oldest Son had checked on his fancy smart phone and found that there was another Famous Dave's over in Laurel, how about we meet there instead?  Mom answered that they had left early, too, and were only about 3 minutes away, why don't we wait for them to arrive, and they'd follow us to the other one.  (She was suspicious about the re-direct and wanted to see this sign for herself.)

We cackled about how we'd pulled this off, and Mom's suspicions that I was up to something were totally allayed at that point.  They followed us out to the other restaurant, and we had a nice dinner.

They were a little put out after dinner when the waiter started clearing the table--including all the condiments--before even asking if we wanted dessert.  They felt like he was getting the table ready for turnover for the next guests already, since there was a line.  Just when Dad was about to say something, they brought the cake out on a cart, and the whole restaurant started clapping and whistling.  So we let 'em ALL eat cake.

Shame I wasn't allowed to invite any of their friends.  The cake was good.  But I'm a good girl, and I always do exactly what my mommy tells me to do...tee-hee. 

HSAs: Down and Out!

Charlie passed his Biology HSA, and he did what is called a "Bridge Project" that qualified him to pass the English HSA, so he is officially done.  He still wants to take the English test again next year, though, since that will give us a good idea of how his English is progressing if his points value rises.

Now we start with ACT testing.  See if we can get his scores on that high enough to be accepted to college!  He already took the first one, just waiting on scores.

If I Only Had A Brain!

Here's a few pix of Charlie in costume for his school's production of The Wizard of Oz.  He originally was cast as Tin Man, but didn't do so well in that role, just couldn't seem to be serious enough.  At some point, the guy playing the scarecrow had to leave the production, so Charlie got moved to that role, and it turned out to be a much better fit for him.  He actually won Best Actor for it, too!  How's that, from Most Promising in his very first production to Best Actor in his second one?