Still Pregnant, Let's Talk About Fall

Yes, I am still here. Sorry, no baby to report yet. Let's change the subject shall we? Don't worry I will almost certainly turn any subject into a discussion about pregnancy.



It's starting to look fall like here in Wyoming. I am still stubbornly refusing to wear anything but dresses, but there have been a few chilly mornings were I felt quiet regret that I didn't wear my ever so flattering maternity pants. I am also still wearing open toed shoes. I put off wearing closed shoes until the last possible moment. My toes are independent, they don't like to work as a team.

Yesterday I picked and ate what were probably the last tomatoes from my garden. I have been watching them ripen and waiting for just the right time to pick them. They were delicious. Are you still getting food from your garden? OK, so here is the point where my mind begins to wander back to this pregnancy and I could go off on a tangent about how my pregnancy is sort of like the change over from summer ripening to the fall harvest, but that would be crazy talk. Crazy talk that comes only from a woman who is past her due date...so, I won't do that. You can imagine some eloquent post about seasonal changes and how they relate to my pregnancy.

Adopti-versary

I thought I should acknowledge Bumblebee's 4 year adopti-versary. You can read the full story here.

Today I'd just like to highlight a few of her charms since she pretty much has a regular feature on this blog:

• She has boundless joy. Seriously, her exuberance is truly amazing. I have never been around a happier creature.
  
• When the cell phone rings she tilts her head to the side. Soon after she runs to the window because she thinks that when the phone rings it means she is about to get some company.
• She makes me laugh hysterically several times a day.
• She's really good at cuddling up if we're sick or just having a slow day.
• She has challenged us to be more patient, responsible and understanding of the needs of others.
  

I could go on and on, but I will just say that adopting her was one of the best things that Eric and I ever have done. If you haven't adopted an animal I highly recommend it.

Distractions From Contractions

Yesterday my Mom came over and took a walk with me. Then Eric, Dad and I all had a lovely lunch (prepared by my mother) at our house. I'll tell you this waiting game is really getting me a lot of quality time with my family. Once we were done eating lunch Eric and I took another walk. Seriously I think I have walked all of the miles there are to walk. We've even exhausted the inexhaustible Miss Bumblebee (she wasn't really into the last walk yesterday).

After that we decided that a little distraction was in order. We decided to head out and just wander around town and check out the thrift stores or whatever seemed like a good distraction.

We entertained ourselves by taking weird photos.


We played foosball at a thrift store. Eric won. I blame it on the contractions.

We walked around some more, which obviously did not end up in a trip to labor and delivery. So, we continued on our quest. Eventually we found the weirdest store in the world. I thought you might like a few highlights from this store. I was walking around the store laughing hysterically at all of the bizarre items lining the shelves. Strangely the store also sold antiques, food, sinks, home repair items, dishes, disco balls, etc.

Let me describe this little strange treasure for you. For the price of $49.98 You can get this elephant fountain. Yes, it has a water feature. The glowing orb in the center actually changes colors. I was beyond words when I confronted this. When I find things like this I always wonder what events led to its creation. Was there a staff meeting at the fountain company? Did someone see this in a dream?

Next up we have a statuette of a bear grooming a raccoon. Wow! What more can I say about this? Awesome.

After all of the fun at the Ripley's Believe it or Not store we decided to head downtown and have a cup of coffee.

At first we talked about how much longer this labor limbo could possibly go on. Then we realized that no matter what we are just so close to meeting our daughter. We are so very excited.

Tomorrow or Today Will Do

OK, so I am going to write about pregnancy again. I am a little focused on it at this point and there is really nothing else going on in my brain. Plus, many of you have been emailing me and asking for updates. I will give you the low down in bullet points, mostly because it makes me feel cool to use bullet points.

• I have been having regular contractions since Wed.
• We went into labor and delivery when the contractions were consistently happening every 5 minutes or less (as per the doctor's instructions). They hooked me up to some cool monitors, made me wear a bed sheet for a while and then sent us home until contractions are 2-3 minutes apart. They aren't yet.
  
• I have been walking a lot. Bumblebee really appreciates all the walking.
  
• The upside is that I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my husband and mother.
  
• I am officially due tomorrow.

That's it. I think you're up to speed. What have you been up to?

Goodbye Jaws

When I was 8 years old I found a tiny little kitten (you can read the story here). Yesterday, 20 years later, she passed away. Of course we're all very sad to lose a member of our family, but also glad to know that she has moved on and is in no pain.

Goodbye Jaws. I love you.

A Story About Waiting

A few years ago, during our undergraduate degree, Eric and I took a school related art trip to New York. We had a great time, but ended up being incredibly sleep deprived by the end of our adventure. When it was time to head home we were eager to get on that plane, thinking about falling into the warm embrace of our bed in Missoula where we were living at the time. We took a pre-dawn flight out of New York, hoping to get home early in order to have a day to recuperate before we had to return to normal life. There was snow in the city, but it didn't seem like enough to constitute any delays. After a hectic dash to catch our plane we were on our way home.

We had one short layover in Denver before we were to catch our flight to Missoula. When we de-boarded our first plane we discovered that we had been bumped from our flight to Missoula. Apparently the snow in NYC had created something of a domino effect and they had a bit of a back up. Eric and I were unconcerned, we could handle a little wait.

We entertained ourselves in the usual manners. We rode the little conveyor belts in unique fashions. Do you do that? You know, going down the wrong way, running, walking backwards, etc. Once we had done that a few times we decided to get a bite to eat and a cup (gallon) of coffee, remember we were already sleep deprived at this point. After breakfast we went to check on our flight and discovered that maybe we could catch one in the early afternoon. With a few hours to kill we decided to try and find a quiet corner of the airport to rest and relax. Unfortunately there were many other folks who were also stranded in the airport, so there were no quiet places to wait, nowhere to sit.

So, we rode the conveyor belts for what seemed like endless hours. Day turned into night. Some of our class came and went out on different airlines. We stayed in airport purgatory. Eric and I were too exhausted to really get upset. Instead we went to that strange place of sleep deprived hysteria, you know what I am talking about, the place where you can go from maniacal laughter to big teary sobs in a matter of seconds.

Eventually we just gave into the process of waiting. We didn't fight it anymore. We just quietly sat on the floor near the desk and waited. I am not sure how long that lasted; we had gone to a place well beyond time and space. The wait did end. We later figured that we could have rented a car and driven to Missoula and half way back to DIA in the amount of time we spent at DIA, but that's not really the point of this tale.

We got onto our flight and made it home only to fall into a deep sleep in our warm bed, just filled with gratitude that we had FINALLY made it, in spite of all of the seemingly endless hours we spent hoping that our time was just around the corner.

So, today I submit to the process of waiting...

Kindness Bandit and Pregnancy Update

Well, it has been a while since I've done a Kindness Bandit post. Lately Eric, the baby and I have been on the receiving end of so many kind words, thoughts and gifts. I can't help but feel like I should start to spread some of that around. People have given us so very very much to help as we settle into our new life with a baby.

Complete strangers have actually given us gifts. I can't even begin to express how touched we are at the absolute outpouring of generosity for our little girl! All of the gifts we have received are absolutely being put to good use and are treasured. We are so very thankful for all that has been given. However, I noticed recently that there were a few duplicate gifts and decided that instead of exchanging the gifts we would share them. So, I am packing a little bag of our extras and taking it with us when we finally head to labor and delivery. I am going to ask the staff nurses to pass the gifts out to mothers who look like they could really use them. Of course we are not giving away anything that isn't a duplicate, because the gifts were all chosen with such care and love. I just want to continue to spread the kindness.

Now for the pregnancy update...
Yesterday I brought my crew with me to the doctor's office and what will hopefully be my last check up. Eric and my Mom were there to hear the good news that something is FINALLY happening. The doctor said ANY DAY NOW (which of course could mean much longer, but we're optimistic)! Can you believe that!?!?! Then last night it seemed like any day now would be any second now, but things have since cooled off. Anyway, it feels as though things are starting to happen. I can't believe she'll be here ANY DAY NOW!

Also, we asked the doctor for a guess on her possible weight. He suggested between 5 and 15 pounds...so that wasn't particularly helpful.

Finally, Eric has taken one final pregnancy portrait if you care to see it you can click here.

This and That

Well, today is going to be a bit of a mixed bag of blog posting so bear with me.

First of all, in case it's not obvious, I am still not in labor. I have a doctor's appointment today and hopefully he will give me some news of progress. I'm sure that the appointment will go something like this:

1. I will make some weird medical jokes as is my normal practice.
   
2. He will laugh and the nurse will chuckle politely. Hopefully they just think "Man this pregnant lady is going crazy."
3. He will say something weird about my progress (the last two times he has called me locked and loaded and also made a reference to Timbuktu).
4. I will leave in a foggy confusion trying to decipher his strange way of talking.

I will keep you posted.

The last days of Summer have felt a lot like Fall for us here in Wyoming. What about where you are? Last night we got a nice loud storm. There was hail. The whole storm passed quickly through town, leaving piles of hail and shredded leaves. So, last night we broke out the quilts and enjoyed a snugly sleep. I don't know about you, but I sleep infinitely better when the temperature is a bit cooler. Not that I am sleeping all that well at this point in pregnancy, but compared to recent nights I woke rested and ready.

Today there is snow on the mountains and I can see my breath outside. I love fall!

Last night we spent the evening with my parents and youngest brother. We had some dinner and played with my parent's newest obsession, the Wii.

The photo above is an action shot of me (taken with my mom's camera phone) playing along in our family Wii bowling tourney.

Also, Eric just finished his most recent album and has sent it away. It will soon be on itunes. I will keep you posted!

Today I am sending out my thesis proposal. Wahooo! It's about time.

Anything new going on with you?

I May Have Forgotten to Mention

I don't think I have told you about the cool project Eric and I are busy at work on. Our friend Andy Mason has hired us to complete a series of music videos for his children's album. The idea is that the videos will all be released on DVD in 2010.

What? You don't know who Andy Mason is? Well he is our talented musician friend. He is successful as both a children's musician and with his solo career as well. You can check him out here.

Our first project was for his popular song ZYX which is an alphabet song. We decided to use signage to get our images and now I can't stop looking at different signs and their font.

Anyway, I will keep you posted on our progress and let you know when the DVD is released.

What are you up to today?

A Moment in the Sun

Bumblebee and Mia have had an uneasy relationship since they became adopted animal siblings. Thankfully Bumblebee is not aggressive or anything, she prefers to whine and tattle on Mia. If Mia hops up on a chair that Bumblebee feels belongs to her then Bumblebee will run over to me to tattle (that's code for whine). Not that I do anything to intervene, the cats rule the house.

Generally the cats just try to ignore Bumblebee and by and large they are quite successful.

Yesterday Eric snapped this photo of Mia asleep above Bumblebee on the couch, both enjoying the warmth of the sun. I just thought it was too cute and as I am swimming in a soup of pregnancy hormones I assume my readers would allow me to indulge in my sappiness. Enjoy.

Inquiring Minds Want to Know

Good morning. It's 8ish here in WY. For Eric it is the weekend and he's sleeping in. I am trying to let him get any length of sleep while he still can. I've been up and productive for a while already. I always feel my most productive in the mornings, ready to take on the day. I am one of those people who is wide awake and happy in the morning. I close the bedroom door and let my husband enjoy the quiet morning in way I never could, sleeping in.

I have poured myself some OJ and taken care of my morning duties like feeding and taking Bumblebee out to...well you can guess.

Then I wandered around just sort of randomly picking things up and putting them down, looking for a purpose. Suddenly it struck me that we hadn't had pancakes in a small eternity. I decided it was high time to get on it. I use the recipe from our friend Sarah Kramer's cookbook How it All Vegan which, incidentally just was re-released for it's 10th anniversary edition. Do you have the book? I'm just saying...

As I was making the pancakes I began to wonder if there is a difference between pancakes and flapjacks? Is it just a regional thing? What do you call them? Inquiring minds want to know.

Well, Eric just got up I think maybe the smell of pancakes pulled him from his reverie. He has wandered in and started his cup of coffee and is ready to eat.

Bags Are Packed...Now What?

My suitcase is packed, ready to be tossed into the car for our drive to labor and delivery. I have even packed a bag full of snacks and reading material for Eric and of course a small bag of stuff for the baby when she finally arrives. I have even put notes on my suitcase reminding me about last minute items like camera and cell phone. I have gone over my list of things to accomplish before the little one arrives. I keep cleaning and cleaning. Menus are planned for the next several months (overkill I know). So, now what am I going to do to occupy these final few days or weeks (please not weeks)?

Yesterday I got a little crafty and made myself some earrings from buttons. First I smoothed out the back. Next I used a little paint to age the buttons and give them a bit of an antique quality. Finally I affixed them to some posts and that was that. It took about 20 minutes and when I was done there was still no baby on the way. Can you tell I am getting a little anxious to meet her?

Do you have any suggestions for ways to use my time instead of being obsessive about meeting my little girl, because that is all I am doing at this point? I am just so excited!

Horses

Like many a little girl before me and many a little girl to come I was obsessed with horses. I am not quite sure when or where it began, but it was certainly perpetuated by popular children's shows like Rainbow Brite and She-ra who had magical horse pals.

I remember daydreaming about a flying horse that would come down to me and open a magical world of...well I don't know what, but I am sure it would have been magical. I even recall being around 5 or 6 and wishing on a star for a horse of my own.

Since I can remember I have always tended to think of myself as some sort of intermediary between the human and animal world, although neither humans nor animals seem to see me in the same light. When I was just a wee little girl I had the opportunity to be near a young horse. I was warned not to walk behind this animal, but since I was the authority on all animals I knew that any rules about horses could not possibly apply to me. I walked right up behind the horse and was kicked in the face. Don't worry, I survived. I don't really recall my thoughts or feelings about the incident beyond these two facts 1)that I was given a butterfly band aid and I was greatly disappointed that it didn't actually look like a butterfly 2)and that I bled onto my mom's killer 80s shirt; it was white with a grid and had all sorts of geometric shapes on it. She was able to get the stain out and wear it with pride after the incident.

A few years later, we were living in Montana and I discovered a horse nearby. I began to visit him regularly. I pretty much just pretended he was my horse. I would bring him food and just gaze at him, willing him to talk (because in my mind all horses could/can talk). The horse was just fine with my visits. He was happy for a nice pat and some free treats. OK, in full disclosure it was a little creepier than I care to admit...I actually rode the horse and once I even braided it's hair into my own. Don't you judge my childhood fashion choices.

Now, twenty years later, I am still in love with horses. Something about their smell and the look in their eyes. I don't think I would ever ride a horse again(unless it asked me to), but I would love to rescue horses. I should also mention that I happen to love gentle donkeys as well.

I guess that's all I have to say about horses today.

A Wonderful Day

Yesterday was a really good day...well with the exception of my doctor telling me not to count on a baby this week. His actual words were "She's still in Timbuktu." I am not really sure what that means, but this is coming from the "You're locked and loaded" guy, so I won't really try and break down the meanings of the strange things he says.

Anyway...

Yesterday was quite lovely. My parents called me late in the morning and invited me on a picnic at the waterfall. Truthfully they invited Bumblebee, but she couldn't go (she was in trouble) so I went in her place. My parents seemed to accept the substitute, although my dad was visibly disappointed to miss out on any Bumblebee time.

My beautiful mom on our picnic.


My dad managed to have a nice time even though Miss Bumblebee wasn't there.

The weather was perfect, not too hot and not too cool. The only distraction came when we could hear the trail maintenance folk pumping the outhouse...and they were gagging. Thankfully it was out of sight and happened after we'd finished our meal and were just chatting.

After lunch I went for a little drive with my mom and then ended up back at my house. Eric got to work from home in the afternoon. When Bumblebee heard our car pull into the driveway at an earlier than usual time she sprung up and went bolting to meet Eric, but she'd been asleep and didn't quite have control of her body. She went flying across the linoleum in the kitchen and rammed into the cupboards, but it didn't phase her. She was at the back door eagerly wagging and waiting for Eric to enter.

Later we decided it was time to take Bumblebee for a walk by the river right at sunset. It was absolutely beautiful, the sun was setting, the clouds of mosquitoes glittered (OK that maybe was a bit-o-sarcasm). Once we dodged the mosquitoes it was quite a lovely evening.

We spotted this abandoned boat along the river's edge.


Here I am showing off one of the three outfits that still comfortably fit me, this is the infamous maternity muumuu.


My handsome husband. I love him a lot!


It was just a perfect kind of day.

A Few Thoughts

Fall is sneaking up on us here in WY. Last night as I lay in bed I could hear the wind blowing through the trees. In that place of half sleep it's easy to think that I am by the ocean, the wind seemed to be blowing over us in waves.

I gave up on sleep sometime before it was light out and Bumblebee and I sat on the couch listening to the wind and thinking about fall. Well, Bumblebee probably was more concerned with the cats who had the audacity to drink out of her water dish in front of her. She whined at me like a little tattle tale. I, however, was thinking about fall.

I love this time of year when things start to cool down a bit. I love when people have rosy cheeks and noses, layered clothes, hot tea and of course the vibrant colors as the leaves begin to change. I am so excited for a rosy cheeked little baby to fill up to adore this fall!

We're Famous

OK, maybe we're not, but we were on the news yesterday! Let's begin at the beginning. Yesterday morning Eric, my mom and I went to the fire station to have the car seats checked. My mom has a car seat for her car too; isn't she a good grandma already? We pulled into the car seat check line and saw that a news anchor had his camera shooting directly into the back seat of my mom's car. Eric and I made googly eyes because a) we couldn't believe that we were sighting yet another newscaster b) we thought maybe they'd like to interview us and put us on the news (then invite us to their newscaster lair).


My Mom (or part of her head), me and Eric

We were not really featured on the news so much as flashed on the screen for about 1 nanosecond. We were so thrilled that we watched it at both 5 o'clock and 10 o'clock. We played it cool, this isn't the first time we were on the news (see our 7 year anniversary post).

Then, after our car seat was properly installed we were out for coffee and had another newscaster sighting. It has been suggested that the newscasters have started to stalk us...

End of the Golden Era (No More Newscaster Spotting)

OK, so last night we went to the ball game again. It was the last game of the season and we knew that it would be a newscaster sighting extravaganza.

So we went to the game. It turned out to be surprisingly chilly night so we didn't make it through the entire game, but we did hit newscaster gold. Eric spotted this newscaster huddle and took a little picture.

So, we knew that until next summer we're going to be in a bit of a newscaster dry spell. Unless we find their winter nest.

We noted that this was the hangout for one of the local stations, but there is another local station and we still haven't found their den. So, I guess the hunt is on. Wish us luck.

I wish I could tell you how great the game was, but I spent most of my time chatting with my Mom and Eric and staring at newscasters while we were huddled under a quilt.

What did you do last night?

****Update***
This morning as we were getting the car seat checked at the local fire station we ran into a newscaster and we may or may not end up on TV, they were filming us!

After the car seat checks we went out to coffee with my parents. We were sitting outside along the jogging trail when yet another newscaster made an appearance. He jogged by us twice. This town is swarming with newscasters!

A Few Things That I Will Miss

Before I was on this road to motherhood I looked at women who had children with a sense of awe because they had embarked upon this mysterious portion of womanhood that I had not discovered. I could hear about it from friends and family, but of course I couldn't really understand what these women meant. I don't know if it's something about our society or just the way that life generally is, but there is this cloud of mystery surrounding the whole process. Now that I find myself nearing the end of the pregnancy portion of motherhood I understand why some of the things go unsaid. Some of those quiet moments between mother and child, between the father and mother, between family and friends cannot be described in words, only experienced.

Lately a few people have mentioned that they will miss me being pregnant. I am not sure what this means for them, but I can tell you that there are some things that I will miss about being pregnant.

I will miss feeling her wiggle around inside of me and being filled with a sense of awe about the fact that I have no control over those movements, someone else has started to live inside of me and her presence is so deeply felt.

I will miss talking with Eric about all of the possibilities and guessing details. The mystery is just so much fun.

I will miss quiet moments when I can just focus on being exactly where I am.

I will miss knowing that she is so protected and safe. The world is an amazing and beautiful place and I can't wait to share that with this little girl, but the simple protection of my body is something that I will never be able to offer her again.

I will miss the knowing smiles and words of wisdom (which I am sure I will continue to receive in a different format) from other women. While the advice may or may not be helpful it's really given me a sense of being connected to other women and their lives and to a larger degree to being human in general.

I will miss the physical part of this whole ordeal. I am one who tends to live in my head and it has been quite a change to be so focused on every twinge and every movement of my body. It's so easy to take for granted, until you are busy cooking up a whole person.

I will miss laying on the couch with Eric and watching my belly, it's just really entertaining.

Anyway, that is by no means a comprehensive list, but I just wanted to write some of it down as soon I will be experiencing something entirely different.

Day in the Life

I have been carefully studying Bumblebee's schedule and realized that she has it pretty much all figured out. Man alive this girl has a serious routine to her life. Today I thought I'd give you a picture of a day in her life.

6:30am-ish Wake up and run to my side of the bed. She tries to lick my face and paws at me with her wonky foot. After making sure that I am awake she runs into the living room and does a full body wag waiting to gleefully greet both of us. If it's the weekend she may repeat this process several times as we may sleep in a bit later.

6:45am She goes outside for her morning business, followed by her breakfast of vegan dog food.

6:50-10:20am Nap time after an exhausting morning. She likes to lay on pillows. Needless to say I wash those pillows a lot.

10:20am Wander around feeling anxious about going for a walk, even though she is taken on a walk every single day rain or shine, blizzard or scorching heat. She likes to sniff our clothes to determine if we're wearing outside or inside clothes. Seriously she can tell the difference between pajamas and normal clothes, it's freaky.

11:30am Return from walk and get a drink of water, then stick rear in the air, rub face in carpet and bark joyfully.

11:30am-3:55pm Afternoon nap.
*Occasionally her afternoon has the surprise treat of visits by my family. When this occurs she nearly loses her mind as she is overcome with joy. Seriously, you have never been to a better welcoming party, this girl makes her company feel well loved.

4:30pm Dinner. She always sits patiently and waits for her meals. Although a tell-tale pool of drool often marks her place. Not fun to slip in it.

4:32pm After inhaling her meal she likes to begin her lookout for Eric who is soon to come home.

5:15pm Eric returns and Bumblebee races around joyfully. Shenanigans often ensue.

5:30pm Sit on the kitchen floor and rest while dinner is prepared. She is quite well behaved about the process, she doesn't beg. She just sits there hoping against hope that some scraps of food will fall her way.

6:30pm An optional walk or outing often occurs.

7:30pm Evening nap. She likes to try out every bed or piece of furniture in our home throughout the course of the evening.

10:00pm Last call for evening business.

10:02pm Bedtime. She puts herself to bed, sometimes sighing in annoyance that we don't share the same bedtime as her.

Locked and Loaded

Yesterday I went in for my regular doctor's appointment which has become pretty routine. I am getting so anxious to meet this little lady. I am tempted to commandeer the room with the ultrasound machine and give it a whirl on my own. I probably won't do that as they frown upon such things in most doctor's offices. Sigh.

Anyway I jumped through the usual hoops. All is well and the countdown is on. When the doctor came into the exam room he prodded my belly as I lay on my back, feeling not unlike a sad bug that can't roll over. He discussed the usual details that I have come to expect and then he said, "She's locked and loaded." Sure, it was a weird thing to say, but it got me all jazzed.



So, now I am in the any day now category. It could be several weeks or just a few days. I have everything ready or nearly ready to go and now I am just spending my time trying not to obsess (with little success) about meeting this girl. I also wanted to mention that if there are a few days-o-blog silence you can be certain that something finally happened.

Come on out now! We're ready.

Some Things About Being a Western Girl

I am a thoroughly western girl. Sure, I love visiting new places and the idea of traveling abroad makes my heart beat a little faster. I envision sipping wine and eating fresh fruits and hearty breads as I watch an Italian sunset, from my private villa of course. I love to wander around museums and galleries until my head spins and my feet are begging for mercy, but somewhere in the heart of me the west will always be the place that excites my heart the most.

Why, you might be asking? Well, partially because I have spent nearly my entire life living in the west. Montana, Wyoming, Washington, New Mexico, Colorado are all places I've called home. I also lived in Minnesota for a total of two years in my childhood, so my Western streak isn't entirely unbroken. Either way, I think you get the point that the west is just the area that is most familiar and most comfortable to me.

Last night I was sitting in the rain at a ball game, watching our local team lose, but not really caring because the experience was mostly just about chatting with my family and people watching. I had a moment when I was wondering just what it is that I find so comfortable about living in this part of the world. Here is what I have come up with:

1) Yesterday at the game I saw a full on cowboy doing the robot (a dance move for those of you who aren't in the loop) to Mr. Roboto by Styx. I was really impressed and even mentioned to my mom that this would probably make it into my blog. My brother mentioned that he had recently seen a cowboy riding something like a non-motorized segway. A lot of people talk about all of the strange juxtapositions you see in cities like New York, but I find people are pretty comfortable mixing past and present right here in small town Wyoming.

2) Vast expanses of uninhabited land make me feel like everything is going to be OK. After living in a city for the past few years my eyes were thirsty for landscapes that didn't have a city skyline. I love just looking out and seeing nature. I like realizing that people aren't as big and important as we think. Deadlines and pressures don't matter much when you look out onto the world and take a big deep breath.

3) I have family that actually homesteaded out here! Can you believe that?! My great grandmother, who is still living in WY, homesteaded with her family here. I just think that is phenomenal in a day and age where people are not as connected to the land as we once were. I love having a little history tied in with the land.

4) People wave at each other when we pass on the highway, even if we don't know each other. I like the sense that nobody is really a total stranger. I think this probably gives people who aren't used to it a little bit of a fright, but it's just a courtesy that takes place in this part of the country.

5) I don't mind being the weird one. Here in the small towns of the west Eric and I are the weird ones. With our vegan diets and the clothes we wear and the music we listen to. I don't mind it. When I was a little lady it wasn't my most favorite thing to be the weird one, but now it's just become part of my identity.

Necessary Machines?

My sleep has been broken up in strange new ways this late in pregnancy. Sleeping through the night isn't an option, but I am kind of enjoying the late night wakefulness. I think it helps that I don't have to worry about work or something first thing in the morning. It seems that I wake up each night at around 4am and have some weird random thought to ponder.

Last night, after dreaming that I quit a job because they wouldn't let me wear a cheer leading uniform (????, let's not investigate the deeper meaning of that dream), I woke up. After a few moments of puzzling over my dream my mind began to wonder about all of the necessities in my house and what is actually necessary.



First my mind ran over things like the fridge, the washer/dryer, the oven, the cell phone, the computer. All of them are not necessary, but they really do make my life a lot easier and I would truly miss these items if they were gone.

Next I began to wonder about the secondary items. Things like the microwave, blender, toaster, etc. I think that I have spent more time in the past year moving these items from one home to another than actually using most of them.

Finally I think that there are many items that I could completely do without. For instance the TV. I really don't need it and I am happier when it's off. Eric and I do enjoy watching movies, but we could do that on the computer. The curling iron and hair dryer I think I use maybe 4 times a year tops, yet I still keep them. I was also wondering about the microwave. I use it, but not very much.

What could you easily do without?

Morning Calm

It is early morning as I write this. My house is quiet and peaceful. I woke up and took Bumblebee outside. I could still see the full moon even though the pinks of the morning sunrise were coloring the clouds.



My sick husband is asleep in the bedroom, hopefully when he wakes up he will feel better. The cats are passed out, Bumblebee is asleep on a pile of pillows. For now I am just really enjoying this moment of calm and quiet. I can sit and just feel the baby move around, drink some orange juice and have some time with my busy brain. Mornings seem to be a good time for this. I have a lot I plan to accomplish today, but none of it seems important right now.

Do you have a time of day or a place that feels as though it belongs to you?

Our Day

Yesterday I mentioned that Eric and I were going on a pre-baby date. We have no doubt that my family will make great babysitters in the months to come, but we wanted to get one good date in before we take on life with a little one.

Eric has been fighting off a head cold, but insisted that we make this day a great one. We did. Here are some photos of our delightful date day.

We started off our day by taking Miss Bumblebee on a walk along the river. We start every day off by taking Bumblebee on a walk.

After dropping Bumblebee off for her afternoon nap on the couch we headed to the art museum. The art museum has this great little program where they invite a musician to come and play for an hour at noon. Most people bring lunches and just sit and enjoy the performance. The musicians this week were an oldies cover band. They played a lot of Dion and it made our day!!!

We held hands.

After the show we wandered around the museum, which was free for the day. Then we headed out to lunch. We had veggie burgers and they hit the spot. We took our time eating and having a wonderful conversation.

After lunch we decided to drive up and over the mountain. About halfway up there is a place where you can get out of the car and look at the view. I am afraid of heights so the fact that I didn't throw up was really the accomplishment for me.

We found ourselves way back on a dirt road that my mother had shown to me last fall. We agreed that there is something lovely and wild about Wyoming that really grows on a person (though it's not Montana).


After our adventure up and down the mountain we decided to go out for coffee (decaf for me). We sat and enjoyed our conversation. I am so thankful that I married my best friend.


Oh and I was able to use my belly as a table. I felt pretty cool about that.