We are the Old People

Yesterday Tommy called me and said they were getting off early. I didn’t get too excited because, quite frankly, they say that a lot and it never actually happens. “Early” to them means 7 p.m. He asked if he could bring his roommates at the barracks home for dinner. I said sure, but was pretty skeptical. This dinner has been in the works for some time now, but it never actually happens because of their schedule. This time, though, they actually did get off early!

So of course, there was an accident on 95 South and it took me 1 hour and 40 minutes to get home! And when I finally did get home, I had a house full of Marines playing Wii and drinking beer. I started in cooking for them – salad, french bread, spaghetti with homemade meatballs, tiramisu, and of course, wine.

We had a great time, and the guys were soooo appreciative. I sometimes make cookies or bars over the weekend and send them with Tommy and they devour them in like a day. And keep in mind that these guys are between 22 and 25 years old, and have been living in the barracks (you think a residence hall room is tight? They’ve got 6 guys in a room!!) eating Chic-fil-A and Domino’s Pizza for four months! They were so excited to get a home cooked meal!

After dinner we hung out in the living room talking. They are all pre-contracted Pilots, unlike the other Marines like Tommy who won’t find out their job for a couple more weeks. Jared is from Kentucky, Dick is from Kansas, and Owen is from North Carolina. We had a great time making fun of them all – Owen for wearing his $12 jeans that he’s so proud of that are, apparently, the reason he can’t get to 2nd base with this girl he likes :) And Jared for wearing footie pajamas like Wyatt’s to bed! It just went on and on. They are HILARIOUS!

After a while, the subject of my birthday being this week came up, and they asked how old I was. I told them I was 31, and I could tell it took them a minute to process that. I think Dick even said, “31? Wow…” At which point it hit me: I am ALMOST a full decade older than the youngest Marine there. YEESH!

I officially felt OLD. Tommy and I have been together for almost 11 years. We have a house. Our 19-month old kid was running around in his diaper. I know how to cook a full meal. And these guys are just babies, trying to find their way in life. It’s their first time away from home. Of course they went to college, but this is their first time really away, you know? And they were just so cute!

I think they enjoyed their evening with the old people. They thought Wyatt was great and offered to babysit sometime. We finally had to kick them out, because I think they would have sat there all night! Apparently we have now adopted 3 “big” kids, which is fine with me. Our home is always open.