An ode to my thumb

Dear thumb....I miss you and would very much like to render your services again. So in honor of your current state I will write you a poem...as difficult as this will be without you...

Oh my thumb who buttons little girls pants and zips them up..

who gives me an excuse why I'm wearing sweats and no one seems to mind.

Oh my thumb who used to make buckling up little monkeys a mad dash...

sans your appendage like abilities a harrowing contortionist act is performed.

Oh my thumb that once made driving a breeze now puts all the strain on mr. left...

now upon ice you rest cradled in freezing blankets.

Oh the snow glistening white and gay outside my window wreaking havoc upon the road...

now collected and captured in a clear prison bag, soothing sore fingers.

Oh blood that once ran red and cheery without a nail to be stuck in...

now spewing blue like a volcano releasing it's fiery ash.

Oh thumb that made life so easy, placing on mittens and fixing my hair...

how sorely missed you are for all your practicability.

I promise not to mock and stare if you return as damaged goods. 

All I ask is to you my betrothed to return once more.

OHHHH the snow will come out TOMORROW..

bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there'll be snow. When I'm stuck with two girls in a house all day. I just stick out my chin and say: TODAY TODAY will be so much fun. I'll play the part of teeacher and say:

SNOW DAY!

That's right. a prediction last night came true. D and I took the girls out to see a local production of Annie on Sunday. (Cynara if you're reading this I want you to know that all of NCMA's productions combined trumped this). The cast could have been better, the mics were not well done and the casting was too large and incongruous. Otherwise I was grateful to get out of the house and enjoy an otherwise decent production. The snow was coming down fast and furious yesterday, the big truck we were driving was even having a hard time. D predicted a snow day and snow day indeed did we have. 

                                 

I got a text pretty early this morning that school was delayed two hours. About twenty minutes later I got a text that we couldn't even get Queen Bessie out this morning. There was no point in risking the roads even if I could have gotten the Rav out. So we were snowed in. 

Given that the girls were neither sick nor on vacation the parents and I both felt it appropriate for the girls to work on some homework while we were homeward bound. Who wants to start the morning that way though? So I whipped up some homemade whole wheat chocolate chip pancakes. I think I used the same skillet for all three meals today....yes yes I did. 

I told the girls that if we were gonna be stuck inside today that I was not going to listen to whining, buzzing, whirring, chirping, squawking, beeping, christmassonging, foot tapping,squeaking, general annoyingness for the next ten hours. That got them focused. I got to play the role of teacher today, it was kinda fun dusting those skills off. I found some great worksheets online for the kiddos. They kept focused and when I could tell that they were getting antsy I had them get up and do laps around the kitchen counter. We even squeezed in some yoga and aerobics before lunch. 

After a warm lunch and some more work we had a lovely hour of Skyping with wonderful people back home. The girls got to have a music lesson from my not so little brother, they were curious about his "gross" smoothies, he taught them mallet grips and serenaded them with marimba music. Then they chatted with my friend Crystal and saw her "eat" her cats ear. Cats segued us to my kitty Mango, so we called my Mom. All three of them wanted to know which was Bean and which was Bear, un-prompted. The girls were their chatty selves and got a kick out of saying hi to my family and friends. 

It was nearing two p.m and we were all still in our jammers, so I changed them into snow gear and sent them outside. You honestly can't have a snow day and not go enjoy it. I watched them from the window wade in their chin height snow. They had to blaze trails to get to their swing set. I wouldn't let them wander farther than that for fear of the snow being too deep. 

Whilst they were out playing and the dog was tormenting them I stayed indoors and cooked up a chicken pot pie. Yes, this veg head is capable of cooking up meat.  Snowy days like this back home had my kids pleading for me to make them chicken pot pie. I then donned my snow gear and trudged outdoors. OH MAN. What a gorgeous and beautiful day it was. Just the right weather and snow up to my chest is some places. 

We attempted a walk out on the beach but just getting down the stairs was hard and I was getting stuck in snow higher than I felt comfortable in. So we headed back up and went on a nature walk instead. The girls wanted to check out the chicken coop, so off we went. I made a preliminary scan for any moose lurking in the pen and what seemed clear we headed in. 

Yeah...well the next thing I knew I spun around and was literally nose to nose with a moose. I think I screamed like a little girl, Bear knew what was going on and ran faster that I could blink. Bean was clueless so I scooped her up fast and bolted. My heart was racing. I was honestly just glad to have both girls in my arms and to be alive. I can laugh about it now, but oh man, at the time it was awful.

The day seemed to whiz by. Before I knew it the parents were pulling into the drive way and everyone was back home. D and I sat together and watched the sunset and chatted about our day. The snow man came and plowed the driveway which got me out of getting up at 6 a.m. to carpool everyone tomorrow. Phew. It was a long, busy, but truly unforgettable day. 

Oh...Alaska...

Same ol same ol

I've been busy and a lot has been going on but not worthy of a blog post, a fellow/friend blog poster said it more eloquently than that, but it's true. I mean it's a different week and no two days, moments or seconds are the same. It's the same routine with different kinks and twists. But the same routine none the less. The same roads traveled, the same places visited, I even run into the same people in different places.

Bean and I have been hanging out a lot together, we've gone to the library more times than I count, I've nearly lost my voice from reading so much. We planted some bulbs for the kitchen window. I painted her toes and then she painted WITH her toes and her nose. I've made a big batch of black bean soup, finally figured out the trick to a delicious tofu scramble. B and I chickened out of a large hike and settled for going out for cinnamon rolls. We explored one of the local "malls" where we got lost in a maze of creepy dolls and never ending rooms. We went ice skating for about 30 minutes only to again, quit, and go out for chocolate donuts instead. Bear and I were suppose to go ice skating this afternoon only to be called by B that it was closed. So what did we do...we went out for donuts of course.

I tweaked my neck and the room spun during a hot yoga session. My physical therapist promised not to light my nerves up like Christmas tree. I eavesdroped on conversations at the coffee shop. I've done a lot of time killing. I'm getting mighty sick of it. I'm watching an amazing series on Netflix called Firefly...drool.I started a project to send notes back home to my loved ones. I'm anti-Valentines day but I'm not anti telling people that I care about them.

So you see..nothing all that exciting. Pockets of interesting moments but cumulatively not much to write home about. Speaking of which I'm due to call home..

Ariel

I often pat myself on the back for all the things I can accomplish in a day. Take this morning, I had to get the girls ready, chase the dog who decided to be a cat and eat yarn, do homework with Bear, get Bean to move, get lunch prepped, make breakfast, get myself ready and then get out the door. In an hour. Then come home, Skype-guitar with Michael, eat my breakfast, clean the great room, make dinner, load and unload the dishwasher and again chase the dog from eating the giraffe stuffed animal then back out the door pick up Bear rush to reading class, come home, bundle the girls up and send them back outside until the sun sets.

But then I talk to people like my friend Crystal and I'm put to shame. This girl (saying woman doesn't feel right) has her masters in human anatomy (well according to her the masters isn't finished but I'm gonna say it because she's too smart of a cookie to not have it) , she could probably tell you the names of all the funny bones in your ear and when you break your finger she'd probably correct you and tell you it was a phalange that was damaged.She also has all the responsibilities of having her own apartment, goes to school full time learning how to you know save peoples lives as a paramedic and to top it off she works full time at night as an EMT. She'll correct me if I'm wrong. She's brutally honest like that. It's why we're amigos. Totally OK with being straight shootn.

I was often under the impression that my friends were supposed to be these well rounded packages. They were supposed to provide for me everything that I need my friend to be at that moment. It wasn't until I became just a tad wiser that I realized that my friends are in my life for specific reasons and play certain roles.

Forgive me if I'm repeating mine self here...but in college I used to have these dinner "parties." There was one or two regular guests and then we would rotate in some poor random soul and it almost became some sort of odd social experiment as to how the person would react in our little circle of people.  Crystal would with out fail make the person feel rather uncomfortable at some juncture in the evening. The room would get kinda quiet with this low murmur of wanting to laugh but trying desperately not to until the question was answered or I would inevitably burst out in raucous laughter. Some of my fondest memories...also why I hate washing dishes so much...

Crystal got me through mountain high stacks of biology note-cards, made me want to pee my pants with laughter over translations of our lab assistants barely audible lectures and would buy me waffles from the dormitory cafeteria with her swanky important person swipe card. She introduced me to the world of rugby which to me seems more like the sport where people compete to rack up the most injuries, took me to my first gay bar, peer pressured me into taking my first shot (mom pretend you didn't read that), crochets like a mad woman and taught me how to properly layer tanks. Which thank you I now have realized that I'm wearing the same two shirts in almost all of the pictures of myself...

So I have friends in my life that I have to remind to slow down and take a breather, I have friends that make me laugh, people who listen without fail, teachers, culturally well rounded folk, partners in crime and most importantly who accept me for the kook that I am.

On those busy days where you feel like your brain is more like a cyclone take a moment and tell a friend how much you care about them. We really are blessed with the people in our lives. I know I am.

Love you chocolate cake. ;)

Morning

There is no simpler joy than a warm-home cooked breakfast on a weekend morning. So often our mornings are spent gobbling down bowls of cereal, nuking instant oatmeal or pulling the car into the nearest drive through for a cup of Joe. So when weekend mornings roll around there is nothing that puts a bigger smile on my face than being in my fleeciest sweat pants standing over a warm skillet cooking up pancakes, french toast or waffles. 


When big fat jerk face and I used to live together I would relish those mornings of being in my pj's over a stove whipping up breakfast and then climbing back under the covers of our bed. Curled up together watching a movie. Slurping up bits of syrup and fresh juice.Those were the best mornings. 


It's a little harder to manage when you're living with a busy family of four who are cooking bacon in the oven and re-arranging shelves. The management is a little different and my grumbling belly has to wait a  little longer. None the less my trusty cookbook and I whipped up a batch of ugly looking, delicious tasting whole wheat banana walnut waffles. It brought back fond memories as a kid watching my Mom pour batter into the big waffle iron... 


The feeling of a full belly as we tried to conquer the Everest that was the Belgian waffle. Filling each square perfectly with blueberries or my moms home made peach sauce. The laziness of the morning swirling with smells of cinnamon dashed into the waffles and pure maple syrup warming in the microwave. Mom grumbling about having to clean the iron out and swearing she'd never make them again. So, Sunday mornings were spent with my Papa bear driving to the Dunkn Donuts after church and ordering chocolate croissants with chocolate milk. 


 I munched on my waffles, content in the moment and day dreaming about the past and thinking about future homes and not too far in the distant future kitchens and the smells that would emanate and the smiles it would bring....


**Even though I think that Valentine's day is horribly corny (and it's not because I'm bitter single) I'm gonna start dedicating some posts to some very special people in my life***

This post is dedicated to Jen. She came over to one of the first meals I served to a guest in my first adult apartment. I can still remember us all sitting at the faux metal bar top, eating pancakes together and talking about plans for hikes. She is one of my best girl friends, kept me going after a massive break up, ran with me until my lungs were on fire, camped out under the stars side by side and has always had my back through thick and through thin. I love ya Jen. 

Teacher for a day

OK well really just for a couple of hours. Nonetheless it was a lot of fun. Much unlike my 50 hour plus week. The girls NanNan was in town, there was school functions, extra babysitting, sub-teaching and a visit to my wondertastic ART therapist.  


So amongst the many things I've learned in Alaska one of them is that you simply can't shoo a moose away. You really can't. These are things you don't know about if you've lived in corn fields your whole life and the worse thing you've dealt with is a stray dog or cat in the road. (Unless you count the peacock on back-country Woodstock roads...)


So I've got the car loaded up and we're about to head out and there blocking the driveway is a baby moose. Now this may conjure up some cute image of a cuddly creature. Moose babies are still the size of a grown deer. Long stick like legs and a big ol head. Well I'm prepared to you know just get out the car and tell it to move. NanNan looks at me like an alien and shrieks for me to stay in the car. Using the door as a barricade I start inching the car forward while she makes noises at the thing. We get the gate open the moose runs INTO the yard, NanNan bolts into the car, Bean is wondering what the hec we're doing and I'm panicking that there is now a moose in the yard. When we get home that moose is lying all curled up in the driveway with this look on his face like "well it's about time you got here." 


The next morning I caught him eating out of the chicken feed bin and when we're pulling out he barreled down the gate and was living like a king amongst the chickens. Whom, just looked annoyed that there was a visitor eating all their food. 

So, we've named the moose Oscar and if he doesn't behave apparently he may end up as tacos. :(

Bean has a wonderful pre-school teacher, she's the bees knees. That woman is honestly superwoman. I can remember complaining about taking one grad class, working full time, helping take care of my parents house and trying to maintain a social life. This woman has three kiddos, runs her own school is pursuing her Masters and running a household and I'm sure a zillion other things .I don't know how she does it. Well she called me last week and asked if I wouldn't mind helping out on Friday for a few hours. Of course I wouldn't! A room of  3 and 4 year olds would be cake compared to the 10 ADHD children I used to have to corral. 

So Friday morning I dropped off Bean and ran to my ART appointment. It was so wonderful hearing him tell me how "buttery" my shoulder was. I could feel the difference too. Those sessions are thirty minutes of torturous pain but I'm willing to put up with it. You don't know how wonderful it is to be driving one day and  stop and think that nothing hurts. 


Coming back to the school I was greeted with a room of busy kiddos. After getting everything settled, Mrs. K was out the door and Jill was in charge. Well I think the kids really were. I kept getting all the rules wrong and had to make things up as I went. I finally told them that we were going by Jills rules for the time being because I just couldn't keep track of everything. At one point I turned around and all the kids were neatly lined up on their rugs looking at me with big expectant eyes. Apparently it was circle time. How clueless was I! Well I read them the story which they all enjoyed and we had to take a vote as to whether we were going to read it again. (We didn't)


Now, I thought getting 2 kids ready to go outside was a lot of work. Well let me tell you...how wrong was I. I had seven of them in various stages of gloves, hats , boots, pants and coats. I kept turning around to make sure that everything was put on right. Apparently Mrs. K does her checklist toes up and I went the opposite direction. Woops! 


Outside we played, Mama and Baby, Dragon and Ice climbers. Those 20 minute went by quick. Now, getting them dressed is one thing. Undressing with a pile of wet things , going potty and washing hands is a WHOLE nother ball of yarn.


Somehow I survived the afternoon with a big smile on my face. It really was a lot of fun. 

One of the other Mom's had suggested bringing a couple of the kids over to the food bank to volunteer. I'm always up for the occasion to help out. Those kids got such a tickle out of it. It was heartwarming and nearly brought me to tears.


They had the perfect job of un-loading boxes and stocking the shelves. For three and four year olds it was all just a game. She was beaming with pride by the time we were done and wanted to stay and help more. 


So it's been another hugely loooong week...and I don't feel the slightest bit guilty for losing 2.5 hours to a wonderful nap this afternoon. Lazy weekends are wonderfully rejuvenating. 

(This is the amazing view at 5 p.m. from my back deck!!)

100 Days-Part 2

Well folks it's official...today marks the 100th day of moving to Alaska. What a whirlwind it has been. As promised here are the final 50 musings the past "few" days have conjured up:

(I can't figure out why the numbering is all goofed up so you're just gonna have to be patient until I do..muchas gracias amigos)

  51.   I’ve now become accustomed to driving in snow, slush, ice and fog.
  52.   Christmas music apparently doesn’t cease at the end of December.
  53.   I've become adept at making a goof ball out of myself.

  54.   Even strangers in Alaska will allow you to borrow their car to get home.

  55.   I miss waking to my kitty cats meows.

  56.   It now takes twenty minutes to drive to the store, you better have everything you need or           
          make do.

  57.   The internet is an overrated-addiction.

  58.   I learned how to Contra dance-and plan to go back.

  59.   Never underestimate the power of a stubborn/precocious four year old.

  60.   There is no good cuisine here. NONE.

  61.   The opportunities for outdoor excursions are endless.

  62.   I now apparently like drinking tea.

  63.   Playing on the playground is way more fun in waist high snow.

  64.   I’ve posted 61 blog entries with over 1492 views by all my awesome tacos friends/family.

  65.   Being cold entails eating like a small ravenous pig.

  66.   I was yelled at by a cantankerous yoga teacher who apparently knows my body better than I  
         do.

  67.   Experiencing -20 degree weather is indescribable.

  68.   I had the lovely experience of seeing a mouse run under my bed.

  69.   Coming to the realization that you have a lot of support back home when your photo wall isn't 
          big enough to hold all the pictures of the people that you love.

  70.   My kiddos back home are getting too big too fast….I’ve had to mail them presents and 
          cards…it was odd.

  71.   I feel like doing a cartwheel but doubt my ability to not fall like an arse.

  72.  Jumping zones should not be attempted by adults who don’t want to pull their arm out of their 
          sockets.

  73.   2 medical bills, 1 student loan and 1 credit card all paid off and still change in the bank.

  74.   My morning starts by saying hello to three chickens, one rooster and a turkey.

  75.   Naming your car Queen Betsy makes you the bees knees.

  76.   I had the gumption to apply to Portland State University in the Masters of Social Work   
          Program….fingers crossed until April.          

  77.   My patience has been tested to the extreme during the construction/hell o remodel.

  78.   I’ve learned how to cook spaghetti in the fondue pot.

  79.   Rocking out to the oldies ensues in a car of giggling girls.

  80.   Parental exhaustion has a real world feeling now.   
  81.   I live in a land of Northface, Patagonia, Dansko’s and iPhones.

  82.  Children who don’t watch TV are confused when commercials appear and come running and  
         screaming that the TV is broken.

  83.  I day dream about the day that I come home on the airplane and go running into my Papa’s 
         arms.

  84.   Moose are like the sacred cows of India. 
885.  A dog peed on my bed my first week here.  
  86.  I wrote an entire piece about a shower tile…and you read it.

  87.  Driving home one day I had the moon setting behind me and the sun blazing in full glory in   
         front.

  88.   A favorite childhood movie came to life on Alaskan Broadway it was Beastly Beautiful. 
  89.   I almost puked when walking into the kitchen seeing an entire raw deer leg carcass.

  90.   I can’t be in denial that I’m a kid magnet.

  91.   Being sumo wrestled by a 20 lbs cat at 2 am is not my definition of fun.

  92.   I’m a glorified taxi driver.

  93.   There was a moose in my backyard and I did the smart thing and went outside and stood five 
          feet away and took a picture. Of course.

  94.   I’m grateful when my 4 year old decides to take a nap.

  95.   I live in Smart wool knee high socks and long underwear.

  96.   My chocolate peanut butter cookies still make people smile.

  97.   I’ve turned into an old fart that goes to bed at 10 p.m. if I’m lucky. Or at least I’d LIKE to be in 
          bed at said time.

  98.  There needs to be a handbook for live in au-pairs. Or at the very least accounts of all the 
         awkward situations you can be stuck in to make other au-pair’s feel better.

  99.   It’s amazing what you can discover when you take the time to find it.

  100. I have the world’s coolest, most supportive, awesome taconess friends/family on the planet. Thank you to everyone who reads this drivel, who sends me texts, gets hand cramps writing me letters and who is eagerly anticipating a visit home. I love and miss you all more than I can describe. I’ll be home in August and can’t wait to see all of your beautiful faces. Much love and peace…thank you for helping me reach this milestone.

100 days-Part 1

Tomorrow marks the 100th day of my move. So I'm going to share with you 100 musings. 

1. I moved 3,691 miles away from home to Kenai, AK.
2. Holy crap I'm living in Alaska. 
3. Working, living, eating and breathing in the same environment is as hard as my Papa Bear said it would be.
4. I've gone skiing for the first time and didn't die.
5. Skype has been a blessing for keeping in touch. 
6. As old fashioned as it may be...pen pals are amazing. 
7. Roads get closed due to avalanches.
8. I've almost hit a moose three times.
9. Being a vegan in a fishing town is tough.
10. I live in my boots. All the time. 
11. I conquered my fear of the treadmill. 
12. I can still take up guitar lessons via Skype. 
13. More people are from somewhere than they are native to Alaska. 
14. Cloudy days are the majority around here.
15. I live on a beach and can watch amazing sunsets/sunrises out of my window.
16. Solitude is a blessing and a curse.
17. You have to get creative when having to kill time in a small town.
18. The librarians know us...well. 
19. I've made a friend with another au-pair.
20. I'm completely OK with taking myself out to dinner.
21. Exercise now involves snow-shoeing on said beach.
22. After 5 years of pain I finally found someone to make it better and who believes me.
23. People here eat road kill. 
24. They also eat bear, moose and deer.
25. I cooked moose tacos. It was odd.
26. I've moved, packed, un-packed and re-packed more times than I care to count.
27. The nearest "big" city is a 3 hour drive away. 
28. I miss my kiddos back home terribly. 
29. 30 degree weather is balmy.
30. I ordered TIME magazine to stay somewhat abreast of the world's news. 
31. Forest preserves are called refuges here.
32. Blowing snow on the roads are a given constant. 
33. I'm addicted to chocolate. 
34. It costs 100 smackaroonis to fly 20 minutes to Anchorage from Kenai...one way.
35. I've slept on a lot of strange beds over the past few months. 
36. I spent my first Christmas away from home. It was a lot tougher than I thought.
37. I miss the pace of a regular job but not the grind. 
38. I'm never owning a home or having kids.
39. My brother can still make me pee my pants with laughter even over the inter-webs.
40. I conquered my demons for my new years goal. 
41. I'll never again doubt the sheer awesomeness of high speed internet. 
42. I don't breathe well in minus anything weather. 
43. I learned how to Contra dance. 
44. My creative juices were opened like a tap left on. 
45. I get to see mountains every day.
46. I can hear waves at night as I fall asleep. 
47. I read more now than ever. 
48. I have two little munchkins that make me laugh every day. 
49. There is no proper job description for being a live in au-pair. 
50. Life here isn't easy and I have my good days and my bad days, but I'm grateful for the experience and the opportunities it has afforded me.

(Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow!)

Balmy Snowshoeing and Lost Princesses

With her eyes closed she could hear the glasses clinking, the sounds of friends laughing and dominoes being placed on the table. The sound of the acoustic guitar filling the small room. Everyone intimately seated next to one another. Wafts of soups and warm teas swirling in the air. If the people from the dictionary were ever looking for a definition of small town, they only needed to take a seat here in the cafe. A sense of familiarity painting the walls. Here alone in the sense of lacking true company she began to dance through the memories the past week had held....


Once upon a time in a land covered in snow, where trees bowed under the weight of their heavy white load, two little magical creatures came crawling out of their chariot. Cloaked in cloth from head to toe with only little eyes peeping out from their fur covered caps. The old magical witch carving footprints in the waist high snow. Behind her came the fairy princess and sea captain. Ducking under the entrance to their kingdom they scoured the land for their new home. Through icy forest and under buried cave they explored, finally making camp in an abandoned lodge. 

It was here that news of a captured princess came by way of courier owl. The love struck prince has lost his betrothed to a hungry pack of wolves. The sounds of their cries coming closer and closer to the lodge door. With scurried feet they were setting off for far away kingdoms. Onto the boat they climbed with their captain at the helm. Through rocky waters they swayed until the great steel tower rose in the horizon. Down slippery green tunnels they slid as the wolves nipped at their heels. Magical potions cast to quell the sea of lava at their feet. The fairy princess spoke her magical language in her forest to call upon her friends in their time of need. On soft wing they flew until the evil lair was before them. Heavily guarded by bears and watched over by swooping bald eagle. The captain deftly led the way until the princess was safe in hand. It was back to the kingdom they traveled with no less amount of danger in their way. Once home safe, the prince reunited with his one true love they were rewarded with great sums of money. Money they spent buying the lodge to house weary travelers.....

It occurred to me the other day that I was living in Alaska...I know this sounds silly but it's true. It occurred to me while out on a snow shoe hike at the local refuge. Which I kept calling the preserve and blamed the slip up on back home speak still being stuck in my head. 

D was able to "rescue" my snow-shoes from the house, (we were back staying at the friends while the re-model was wrapping up) so that I could go for a hike with B. 

The weather has warmed up tremendously over the past few days. It's now a balmy 30 degrees and I couldn't be happier. It was perfect weather and the perfect day to get out and go on a hike. Plus it was super bowl Sunday so the place was nearly deserted. 

The sun was nestled behind clouds and hanging low but still shinning in the most magnificent way. Words and pictures can do no justice to beauty of the hike. Every where you looked trees were covered in perfect piles of snow and when the crunch of our shoes quieted you could hear birds were humming. 

B makes the perfect hiking partner. She takes breaks often, sits, takes pictures and makes for interesting conversation. We also plan out all of the trips we're hoping to take this summer. We swap stories from our nanny arsenal and tricks to make things a little easier. 

We counted B tripping but not falling at least 8 times. I made a grand tumble and arse of myself by catching myself the wrong way. A slew of kid approved swear words came out of my mouth seemingly all at once. Thankfully B was in front of me and didn't notice the kerfluffle occuring. 

On one of our breaks sitting and admiring the sun hanging over silhouetted trees we counted two bald eagles swooping over head. 

We got to a cross roads and the decision to take a short loop versus the supposedly hilly route and neither of us knew what to do. Deciding we had nothing else to do and both feeling sound in mind and body the adventurous road was lain before us. Now, let me just tell you that the trail was marked with 3 steep hills. We kept waiting for them. Until we realized that we'd probably gone over at least 10 of them. Stinking liars. Towards mile 2.5 we both began to wonder if the trail was ever going to end. We peered around each curve hoping to see the parking lot or at least some sign indicating we weren't going in circles. I was never more grateful to see my car. By mile 3 my hip was aching like a geriatric in a nursing home and my sciatic nerve was on fire. 

(We came back and did a shorter version out onto the lake the following week. Neither of us feeling like tackling the longer loop we had done the week before.)

B had mentioned going to a restaurant to watch the big game. I invited her over to watch at the friends house since it was probably the only time I was going to have a TV with cable. We wandered the grocery aisles, B buying the required junk food for such occasions and me sticking to my Cliff bar and Odwalla juice combo. Back at the house we laughed at the ridiculous commercials and watched the big game unfold. I usually have no idea what's going on and just pretend like I do. I usually pick a color jersey to follow or the underdog and root for them, never really caring what the outcome is. 

Well it's been a tumultuous week. I've never packed, un-packed and re-packed so many times in my life. I'm plum sick of it. Needless to say we are finally back in our house and I'm pleased to say carpenter free! The couches were retrieved from the storage unit today, carpets laid down and cabinets re-arranged. It feels so nice to have some modicum of normalcy back again. I even cooked french toast this morning, whipped up chocolate pudding and have scores of recipes to go through. 

On a funny note I came upstairs this morning to fix my breakfast...at I dunno 10:20ish this morning. My four year old came running at me and my 6 year old followed me around like some rock star. They were both concerned that I had left this morning to go do something without them. Their mom had to explain to them that I DO indeed have a life outside of them. :)

Well in just a few short days I will be "celebrating" being here for 100 days. Wow. Well I better rest to keep these juices flowing. Love and peace everyone. 

(BTW-I took myself out to dinner tonight-that was the reference from above. As I walked out the door the owner came running out to wish me a good night. Talk about small town!)