Back in Atlanta, Rachel was still trying coming to grips with her pregnancy. She couldn't remember experiencing the morning sickness and dizzy spells so soon into her first two pregnancies. She'd gone to her doctor with the question and was told no two pregnancies were alike. Dr. Adams also informed her that being 38 years old and pregnant was much different than being 20 years old and pregnant. Rachel knew there were risks involved and wanted to do everything in her power to make sure the baby was healthy. She'd been worried about the possibility of the diabetes reoccurring but the doctor had informed her that having lost almost 100lbs, changing her eating habits, and her exercise regimen had completely reversed her condition, because of this Dr. Adams was confident Rachel would be ok. However, there was more of a chance of her developing other complications because of her age so the doctor informed her they would definitely stay vigilant. The doctor made the decision to classify Rachel's pregnancy as high risk because her age factor made the risks for problems higher and she wanted to be prepared with all the proper tests and screenings for any possible difficulties. Classifying Rachel as high risk meant she would be seeing the doctor more frequently than usual as they would be monitoring the baby's growth with ultra sound technology, and doing genetic testing to determine the likelihood of possible birth defects with the amniocentesis testing.
Yes, Rachel had a lot on her plate she had not confided in anyone other than her best friend Sam. She had not talked to Sean since she told him she wouldn't marry him. That was over four weeks ago. Here she sat at the end of her first trimester of pregnancy, feeling nauseous, lonely, and tired all the time. Rachel decided to take some time off after that dizzy spell but she was too restless to sit at home doing nothing. A week ago she'd gone back to work and explained her condition to her boss. At his insistence Rachel began telecommuting, working from home, and only coming in when it was physically necessary for meetings and such. Today she'd finished up early as her boss was out of town. She decided to head over to the home of the family catering business to see if she could help out her mom and sister.
The kitchen of Georgia Bell Catering was located off Panola Road right off the exit of interstate I-20 east. The former Cajun restaurant went out of business several years back just when the Georgia Bell Catering business took off. The Weldon family was being swamped with catering jobs. Deciding expansion was in order the family was able to take over the lease of the restaurant that was in foreclosure and fully equipped with all the appliances, stoves, and refrigeration units needed. They hardly had to do any renovations to get their business up and running in the new location. Prior to the move the Weldon's operated out of three household kitchens, which had been fine in the beginning but as Georgia Bell's reputation began to grow expansion became a necessity. Now the business was thriving and they'd even opened the doors to eat in guests for lunch and dinner services.
It was nearing lunch time as Rachel parked in back and entered into Georgia Bell catering from the kitchen entrance. She immediately spotted her mother busy attending steaming pots and pans and giving orders to the kitchen staff. Rachel snuck up behind her mom with a hug and kiss on the cheek.
"Hi, Mom, need some help," Rachel asked her surprised mother.
"Hi, Micki, what are you doing here at this time of the day," Rachel's mother answered, calling Rachel by her nickname. Georgia Weldon had given Rachel the middle name of Michelle after her grandmother, therefore, Georgia had chosen to call her oldest daughter Micki in honor of the grandmother she'd loved so dearly.
"I took a few days off and was bored so I decided to come here to let you put me to work," Rachel replied. "Where is Marjorie?" Rachel asked peeking into the steaming pot nearest to her.
"Get out of there," Georgia swatted Rachel hand.
"Ok, Mom, what can I do to help out around here today?" Rachel laughed quickly pulling her hand back.
"Well the lunch buffet table has to be filled for the lunch crowd. Today's entrées are fried chicken, Salisbury steak and gravy, and baked chicken with cream of mushroom gravy; we are having the usual veggies, green beans, collard greens, cabbage, and baby lima beans. The additional sides are macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, rice, and yams. For dessert I have the peach and apple cobblers baking in the oven. They should be ready in a few minutes. What you can do, is grab one of those aprons from the hook and start battering the next batch of chicken for the fryer while we start taking out the food for the first service of the day," Georgia said as grabbed a platter of chicken and headed out to the dining area.
"By the way your sister is in the office balancing the books," Georgia told her before going through the door.
Rachel grabbed an apron before heading to the office to say hello to Marjorie. Sticking her head in the office located in the back of the kitchen.
"Hey, Marjie, how we looking in the money department?" Rachel asked greeting her sister.
"Oh, hey Sis, I didn't know you were coming in today," Marjorie said pulling away from the computer. "Why aren't you at work?" she asked Rachel.
"Oh I'm playing hooky today; I felt the need to cook and decided to come lend you all a hand. Do you think you could put me to work?" Rachel asked.
"Sure, this is the time of day when we could use all the help we can get," Marjorie said. "I'm just about finished with the books and I'll be in to help in a minute. Do me a favor and do what you can to make sure mom takes it easy out there. Her arthritis has been giving her trouble lately but she won't slow down," Marjorie told her.
"Ok, I'll try but you know how she is," Rachel said pulling on the apron and tying it on as she left the office heading back to the kitchen to get to work.
Rachel spent the rest of the day helping out with the lunch and dinner services, and then she helped Marjorie and her mom prep and clean-up for the next day. They talked about the upcoming menus for two New Year's Eve parties and an anniversary party that were next on the schedule for Georgia Bell Catering. Then Rachel grabbed her things preparing to leave. Before she could say her goodbyes her mother pulled her aside to talk.
"Micki, what's going on with you, child? I know something is wrong because you haven't been yourself. You seem distracted, deep in thought, and a little sad. Wanna tell Momma what's wrong baby?" Georgia said concern for her child evident in her words.
"Oh Mom, everything is fine. There is something I've had on my mind lately but I'm not quite ready to talk about it yet. Don't worry it is nothing bad, just a decision I have to make and I am weighing all my options. If I need your advice I promise I will ask. For now, I'm just praying for direction to make the best decision for me. You could help by praying that too, ok Mom?" Rachel asked.
"You know I always pray for my children. So whatever it is you will do what is best for you because you have God in your life Baby, you know He has always seen you through whatever you are going through," Georgia replied.
"Thanks, Mom," Rachel said with a hug before heading to her car and driving home.