shebeest...

I miss this space

2011-04-12T21:25:00.002-05:00

In the process of taking a brain training course, I came across a question asking if I write on a regular basis. At first I thought, "Of course, I write. I have a blog." And then I realized I haven't written at Shebeest in ages. So, here I am.

I'm ready to start being creative again. I want to paint and write and grow and expand. Spring always brings renewal, and I feel this refreshment coursing through my veins like sap in a tree.

Spring has sprung, and so have I.

grab a broom

2010-08-08T19:16:00.003-05:00

Relationships are a lot like houses. When you first move in, everything feels new. You excitedly open every cupboard door and stuff the closets full of experiences.

Over time, your home fills up. You forget where you left your special shoes, and never use your fancy china. Later, you start to notice the cobwebs near the ceiling and the cracks in the foundation.

Just like a home, a solid relationship takes work. You need to poke around and see what you've forgotten about. And sometimes you need to grab a broom and clean up the mess that's been sitting there, unnoticed.

an anniversary

2010-06-30T09:07:00.002-05:00

Sonnet 116 - Shakespeare

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

setting sail

2010-06-26T22:23:00.005-05:00

The fog licked at the water's edge as we arrived to sail this morning. We hopped aboard the boat, and headed out into the south channel.

Elliot excitedly settled in for his first sail. Five minutes out of port, he decided he wanted us to turn back. Meanwhile, Alden helped steer. We hope he eventually learns how to hold a line because he currently has an...interesting...tiller technique. And by interesting, I of course mean wobbly.

We motored on, hoping Elliot would start to enjoy it. Once we set the sails, he and Alden went below for a little lunch.

Post face stuffing, the boys came back on deck to count all the sailboats they could see. We sailed toward Long Island, then tacked across to Madeline.

The fog rolled back in as we came about, and Elliot started to fuss. With the wind shifting and funky waves, we decided to call it a day. Elliot fell asleep in my arms as we motored back to the marina. All in all, we had a successful first sail!

spicy curry dining room (in progress)

2010-05-03T20:47:00.004-05:00

We painted the walls and added our new stained glass light to the dining room last week. The woodwork needs to be stripped (or replaced), and then this room will be temporarily done.

You can see the awesome chalkboard in this pic. I can't wait to strip off all that white paint!

Paint is Spicy Curry from Ace Hardware.

Stained glass light is from Overstock.com.

a day in the woods

2010-05-02T19:51:00.006-05:00

We headed out to geocache around lunchtime today. After a quick trip to the IGA for sandwiches and Leino's for a forest parking sticker, we wandered into the woods.
First cache: Long Lake. Alden led the way to the microcache on the other side of the canoe launch. Meanwhile, Elliot scrambled after him, tripping and talking the whole way. We saw a badger den and a couple of geese and a man with no shirt standing by a pointless fire.
Second cache: Valhalla. AJ forgot to add this cache to the GPS, so we hiked our regular ski loop trail. The new maple leaves gleamed in the sun. Alden and Elliot rustled and raced through last fall's detritus. They looked through their holes (Alden) and ate them (Elliot). Alden also decided to fashion a bow out of a crooked stick, which he used to shoot the "enemy bad guys." I also found a cool seed pod that looked like a small balloon.
Third cache: Big Rock. We should have known the place would be crawling with people on such a warm spring day (especially during opening weekend). All the muggles prevented us from hunting for the cache, so we just enjoyed a quick look at the river, then drove home.
Cache count: 1 for 3. We'll try to bag the two we missed another day.

10 things for 2010

2010-01-05T08:54:00.004-06:00

I want this to be a big year, with months filled to overflowing with activities and accomplishments!

1. Family - I want to spend more time outside with my family. We need to go sledding more often this winter. Summer should find us exploring some new places around the area (maybe going east, instead of the typical west). I also want to meet my nephew before he gets too big and visit my sister and BIL once they move to Michigan.

2. Friends - I want to hang out with more people in person, rather than through the computer screen. Ideas in the works include a cooking club and monthly parties. I just need to schedule something!

3. Photography - I need to learn how to shoot with the manual settings on the camera. I also want to learn more about composition and lighting. And I definitely need to take more pictures to practice.

4. Cake decorating - Krista and I have talked about taking a cake decorating class for ages. This will be the year it finally happens. We signed up for the beginner course, and start in February. Who knows how far we will take it.

5. Gardening - I need to make a reasonable plan, that includes planting dates. Weeding and weed prevention have to be top priority, too. I also want to build a greenhouse/garden shed, but need to get some salvaged materials to do it. Anyone know somebody with some extra 2x4s?

6. House - Gutters, paint (inside and out), garage doors, basement, etc. I need to make a plan and schedule the work.

7. Studio - I need to realistically analyze all the stuff in here and get rid of the things I won't ever use (I'm looking at you, upholstery fabric!).

8. Sewing - I want to finish one quilt and start another one. I think scheduling the time to do it will be the key to actually doing it.

9. Organization - I'm pretty scattered at the moment, so I need to organize my things and my time. Focus on what should go where and mark down when things will happen.

10. Travel - We don't have a big budget to travel this year, and we already plan to spend most of it on our Christmas trip to Syracuse. I do think we can swing one weekend trip every now and then. Maybe a trip to Madison, Milwaukee or Door County will work.

Bonus Resolution: I miss blogging, so consider this a notice that you'll be seeing more in this space soon!

4th of July Parade

2009-07-04T15:25:00.004-05:00

Alden and I went into Ashland for the 4th of July Parade. He became obsessed with going to see it after we saw a picture of a parrot watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. (Don't ask!)

Waiting for the firetrucks!

Seems like the whole town came out.

What's Independence Day without a random gorilla?

Playing in the fire hose spray.

Post-parade playground fun!

Mother's Day treasure hunting

2009-05-10T21:01:00.006-05:00

Even though we are all a little under the weather, we decided to do a little geocaching today. We got a late start (after noon!), so we only went for one cache at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center.

Oh, no! Where's the cache?!?

We started down the path, and the cache came up as close by. As we went farther down the path, the cache got farther away. It had to have been right at the beginning, but we pressed on.

Wonderful woods

The main path makes a loop back to the center. As we approached where we started, the cache got closer again. AJ spied the cache (an old ammo container), so we got to work fishing it down from its perch.

A googly-eyed memento from the cache.

Since this cache is a travel bug hotel, we had hoped to find either a bug or a coin to bring to the beach with us. No luck, but Alden snagged these groovy glasses!

Bye-bye bug!

AJ gifted me with several bugs for Christmas, so we placed our first one today! I can't wait to see where it goes.

A boy and his cache.

All of us started to feel tired, so we hid the cache and headed up to the center. Alden had forgotten about the mine exhibit. By the time we left, he had detonated several charges of dynamite...hehe!

web design trends

2009-03-09T08:02:00.002-05:00

As I learn more about designing for the Web, I have discovered several current design trends. It's always good to be up on the trends in your industry, especially because it may take a while for them to filter down to real-world clients (read: those with smaller budgets). Here are the top five Web design trends I have noticed:

Retro: Bold 70s stripes with more modern color combinations (think brighter oranges and greens, rather than the burnt orange and avocado of that era). Other eras come into play, but the 70s seem to be the go to period at the moment.
Grunge: Torn paper backgrounds, splotchy ink stains, and distressed fonts.
Botanical: Green color schemes, with silhouettes of plants. Especially popular for environmental sites.
The Stage: A hardwood floor background with a "curtain" header. The header usually doesn't look like an actual curtain, it simply implies the idea of a curtain. These are everywhere right now.
Minimalist: This is the Web 2.0 look. The background is usually white, and the logo has a subtle reflection under it.

february funk

2009-03-03T21:46:00.003-06:00

February flew by, with nary a peep from me. Truth be told, I've been sucked into the time vortex that is Facebook. Even though I cumulatively spend about an hour each day on there, I feel like that is my writing/playing/socializing time. So, my poor blog has suffered. Here's a quick update, and jeez, I hope to have some real crafty/artsy/thrifty commentary to follow in the weeks to come.

Shredding hit a snag in early February, when we all successively battled a week long stomach bug. Now, we are dealing with The Cold That Never Ends (this is week three, if you can believe it). I plan to get back on track with the "30 Day Shred" tomorrow, even though it is going to kick my ass. My cold is finally gone and I don't have to work, so I'm out of excuses.

On the home front, I am gearing up to clear out a lot of accumulated junk. We have baby stuff, clothing, and household stuff that is just taking up space. My biggest question is: Do I sell it or donate it? I'm leaning towards donating anything worth less than $10. That way, I don't spend a ton of time selling lots of little stuff.

As for crafting and thrifting, I haven't done much of either. Thrifting has been put on hold until I clear out what we don't use. I also need to be careful about my purchases, and only buy what we actually need. Crafting has taken a backseat to organization of this chaotic mess. I will feel more capable of being creative in a clean space!

That's all the incoherent babble you'll get from me tonight. More, soon...

Q&A: Elliot is one

2009-01-21T13:21:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday, Elliot Dashiell!

just a few hours old

six months old

a few days before turning one

four generations of Van Beest men-folk

1. How much did your baby weigh as a newborn and now?
then: 7 lbs 5 oz now: 23 lbs

2. What was his/her length then and now?
then: 18 ½ inches now: 30 inches

3. Is your baby weaned from the bottle/breast?
Nope. He is still breastfeeding.

4. Is he/she walking yet?
Yep! He started taking steps at ten months, but just started walking full-time last week.

5. What size clothes is your baby in?
12-18 months. His growth has slowed a bit.

6. What is your baby's favorite toy?
His brother!

7. What is your baby's favorite food?
Whatever is in front of him. LOL Seriously, the kid loves to eat.

8. Looking back over the past year (whether you are a first time mom or not) was it easier or harder than you expected?
Easier. Elliot is so mellow compared to our first son. He just slipped right into a comfortable spot in our family.

9. Describe in one sentence how your life has changed since the birth of your baby.
My joy and love have doubled.

10. Think back to when you were pregnant...is your baby anything like what you imagined?
I thought I was going to have a girl. I’m happy to have two boys, though. They’re so much fun!

11. What are your plans for baby's birthday?

We went to see trains and to the children’s museum on Saturday. Tonight, we will have a small cake, with just the four of us. Since all our birthdays, and many of our friends birthdays are in December and January, we will have a big party for everyone in February.

12. What was your Due Date and when did you actually have your baby?
I was due February 14, and Elliot arrived January 21.

13. What was the first thing that crossed your mind the first time you saw your baby?

OMG! Another boy! A lot of people, including me, had guessed we were having a girl (we kept it a surprise).

30 day shred challenge: day 2

2009-01-02T21:35:00.002-06:00

Holy Hannah do I feel like rubber. I didn't feel too sore today, which surprised me. After tonight's workout though, my arms and legs are screaming "WTF!!!!!"

And yes, more interesting blog posts will be coming soon.

30 day shred challenge

2009-01-01T20:57:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year! I've decided to set real, attainable goals for myself this year. One of the things I want to do is get in better shape. (Who doesn't, right?) I'm already below my pre-pregnancy weight, but I definitely could lose a few more pounds and tone up. More than that, I feel sluggish and have a hard time keeping up with the boys. I know exercise will be an all-around help.

For Christmas, AJ bought Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred" for me. I put it on my wish list after one of my favorite mommy bloggers talked about using it (along with kickboxing) to get back into shape after her son was born. She and I had the same due date, but I neglected to jump on the fitness bandwagon after Elliot was born.

This blogger has an older son who is about the same age as Alden. She manages to work part-time, be a mom, keep her house clean, and exercise. The exercise part is where I have been failing, miserably.

That all changed tonight. I just finished "shredding" for the first time, and let me tell you, I'm tuckered. I can barely type. Yes, this workout is so good that I can barely move my fingers! I shudder to think about what tomorrow will be like, but I look forward to coming out the other end of these 30 days a whole lot stronger!

lumps and bumps

2008-12-22T08:55:00.004-06:00

It's been a bummer of a couple days here.

First, I discovered I left a bag of gifts at the Target in Duluth two weeks ago. I didn't notice it until yesterday because I threw all my shopping bags in a pile to keep them away from prying little eyes. When I went to wrap everything, I couldn't find the bag of stocking stuffers.

I called Target, and they said everything would have been reshelved. They have a record of it in their computer, so it wouldn't be a problem to pick stuff up. I can go back to the store to get everything at some point, but is it really worth it when it's about $20 worth of stuff?

Second, we ran out of propane last night. This happened despite signing up for the Keep Fill program, which they now say we *didn't* do. Grrr! We also have a -30 degree windchill today, so our house is getting colder by the minute. The fuel truck should show up soon, and then our furnace should get the house back up to temp in a couple of hours.

These have been a couple of ugly little bumps, but I still think this week will end on a bright note. I can't wait to see the boys open their presents on Christmas!

hello, December

2008-12-01T22:39:00.002-06:00

I started on the great holiday craziness today. Alden and I put together garland for the entry, and I'll create my annual wreath tomorrow. This will be the first time since we bought this place seven years ago that we will put lights up for the holidays. (I'm really looking forward to stringing some up on the arbor my mom presented me for mother's day.)

Besides decorating, I'll be baking and making all this week. We have pumpkin pie waiting to be tossed in the oven. That, and chocolate chip cookies should keep us sugar-loaded 'til the holiday gift baking happens this weekend. Then, I'll be putting together my ornaments for the Holiday Ornament Swap. I want to send them out on Saturday, so I needs to get crackin'.

What are you doing to welcome the holiday season?

still

2008-11-22T21:40:00.002-06:00

The house is still,
No bouncing boys or babbling babies.
It sits in silence, softening the day.
And, still.

he has teef

2008-11-16T21:53:00.002-06:00

mr. teeth

Elliot cut his first tooth on Saturday. It poked through his gums with some suddenness, although he had been fairly bitey and fussy this past week.

Tooth Number Two won't be far behind. I can feel it sitting just below the surface, and it seems to be giving him more trouble than the first one did.

if I had a head like a bowling ball...

2008-11-13T22:28:00.005-06:00

my little comedian

Today, the boys and I met up with Krista at The Black Cat for coffee and visiting. Alden loves playing with the goodies in the toy room, and today was no exception.

At one point, he gathered a group of MegaBlocks together and proclaimed them to be bowling pins. (He has been fascinated with bowling since we started playing it on the Wii.) I asked him what he was going to do for a bowling ball. After a moment of hesitation, he place his hands palm-side up under each side of his chin and pulled toward the ceiling.

I laughed, and asked him what he was doing. He replied, "I want to use my head, but it's stuck and won't come off." After which, I laughed even harder...

A little comedian, this kid is. =)

welcome, Nora Ann!

2008-11-12T21:46:00.002-06:00

My new niece arrived at 2:02 a.m. Both mom and baby are doing well, and hopefully I will get some pictures to share soon!

baby pictures

2008-11-11T23:15:00.003-06:00

My sister Melanie is in labor right now. I'm on edge, waiting for the call that tells me I'm an auntie. In honor of the impending arrival of my first niece/nephew, here are a few baby photos for comparison.

Me at around 3-4 months old

Me and Melanie when she was around 2 months old

Alden at 5 months old

Elliot at 2 months old

I can't wait to add the newest little one to this mix! Looks like I'll have to stick it out until the morning to find out, though.

exterior home plans

2008-11-10T23:16:00.005-06:00

We've made some small changes to the house over the past six months. We finally have a new furnace (no more wood mess in the basement - woohoo!), new electrical, some interior paint, and even made some aesthetic choices that we haven't finished yet (ripped out the carpet in our bedroom, and removed the paneling off the living room walls).

Now we are contemplating a larger transformation to the house. We would really like to add another bedroom and bathroom to the upstairs. We also want to move the stairs into a tower on the front of the house.

To help us change this house into the home we really want, I have been saving images from all over the Web. Here are a few of my favorites for the exterior of the house.

Cedar siding and wood trim details for dormers.

A tower with wraparound windows. Check out the ornaments on the corners!

More wood trim details for the dormers.

A dormer design for our bedroom that includes a balcony!

I love this dark green cedar siding with a darker green trim, but I also love natural cedar (with clear coat to protect the rich, warm color).

the butt doctor

2008-11-09T21:52:00.003-06:00

Alden, self portrait - September 2008

Alden, after a playful swat on the butt: "Ow! Now I have to go to the doctor."
AJ: "Really? Why is that?"
Alden: "Because doctors are for fixing butts!"

making a list

2008-11-08T23:48:00.003-06:00

I decided to start cleaning up our library space today. This room, formerly the dining room, has been the catch-all place for about a year. Besides the books, which are supposed to go there, piles of random junk sit in the middle of the floor.

While sorting through a box of papers, the contents of which were assembled in 2001, I stumbled upon an old notepad. The notes scribble on each page contained what I did on any given day that year. From household chores to writing tasks, they were all there.

It was amazing to think that I used to accomplish so much in a day. As I paged through each list, I had an "Ah ha!" moment. I used to list everything I wanted to get done in a day, and then I actually did what was on that list! With the date duly noted and each task itemized, I didn't feel overwhelmed by possibility, I felt empowered by probability.

So I'm starting to make lists in my little notebook again. Let's see what's next...

photo Friday: new specs

2008-11-07T22:01:00.003-06:00

I picked up my new glasses today. They are the same brand (Nine West) as the last pair I had, but they have a little more cat-like look to them. Love them! Next up, a new haircut!

around the house Thursday: surprise ending

2008-11-06T22:32:00.006-06:00

colors splashed across the sky at sunset - November 6, 2008

It began as a dreary, gray day, with rain threatening to pour from the sky at any moment. I spent the morning playing with the boys and trying to usher in a sense of purpose for the hours that lay before me. Finding nothing other than piles of laundry and dirt dishes to wash, I dug in to my regular household chores.

The grayness clung in the sky like a child who does not want to go to bed. As the afternoon approached, the light grew dimmer. It almost seemed as though the sun took one look at all the clouds and decided to call it a day. The drumbeat of raindrops started sometime around the hour Elliot finally nodded off for a nap (that being 2 p.m.).

With my chores mostly done, Alden and I set about baking some cookies to pass the time. We happily munched on our goodies (with tall glasses of milk, of course). Then, we read a book about the Mighty Bulldozer digging large holes and moving massive amounts of mud.

As we sat quietly enjoying more cookies, there was a sudden shift in the light. The back of the front that had brought us all the rain sat on the western horizon. The sun peaked below it, ready to set. It's as if the light was trapped inside a cloud prison, and upon its release, it hurried to bathe the world in a golden brilliance.

Elliot squawked from his crib, so I scooped him up and brought him downstairs. Then, slipping my shoes on and grabbing Alden's hand, we all slid out into the yellow, gauzy light. On the front stoop, we looked up and saw a rainbow peering down at us. I ducked back into the house to find a camera to capture it before it floated away on the coattails of the front that was headed to Michigan.

The dismal dawn had held no hint of this colorful finish. I had started the day dreading the hours of tedium that lay before me. Each gray-filled moment had compounded itself, until I felt completely weighted down.

As we enjoyed the last rays of the sun sinking over the horizon, I let the heaviness of the day leave with it. Tomorrow, I will look for another surprise ending.

let's do this together

2008-11-05T21:04:00.002-06:00

When he gave his concession speech last night, I felt we were seeing the real John McCain again. This is a man who stands for something other than the mudslinging that went on in his campaign; he is an honorable war hero who deserves respect and admiration. His dignity and grace cemented my appreciation of him, even though I don't agree with some of what he believes in.

That feeling of understanding I felt last night now extends to his supporters. Even though we may have disagreed on who was best to lead this country at this moment, we do agree that change will be for the better good. Now that the election is over, it is time for us to come together, as one people, to make a difference. We need to heal the slights that have happened in this election, and work together to move beyond petty partisan politics.

To start the healing process, blogger Ze Frank has started a photo project. He has invited Obama supporters to reach out with gestures of reconciliation to McCain supporters. Several photos have already come in (including one from a McCain supporter, who also offered conciliatory comments). I hope to add my own when I get a spare moment.

We might not agree on everything, but I bet we will agree on a lot of things. Yes we can!

hope&change

2008-11-04T22:40:00.004-06:00

These two, oft-repeated words have really hit home for me tonight. I feel real hope that our new president will unite this country toward common causes, and I will definitely be part of the change that needs to happen to make my community, this country, and our world a better place.

sketchbook Monday: bits and bobs

2008-11-03T20:49:00.002-06:00

I did these sketches back in August. At one point, before Elliot was born, I sketched every morning. It's time to start that again. I would love to have the time to improve and digitize these drawings to sell them as illustrations. Just another little dream of mine... =)

the great family visitin' tour of '08

2008-11-02T19:23:00.005-06:00

Alden the Tiger at Como Park in St. Paul, MN

Over the past couple months, we have taken several trips to visit family and friends. Through it all, I have tried to capture the spirit of each person we saw and every event we took part in. Check out our flickr account for more pics of our fall family travels. We'll be adding even more pics throughout the week.

so much to say...

2008-11-01T13:01:00.003-05:00

First snowfall - October 26, 2008

The last several months have been so full. Each time we have done something new, I have thought, "This sure would be a good blog post." This stuffed-to-the-gills schedule has made blogging nearly impossible, though.

Now that fall is here, and our house fixin' shenanigans are slowing down, I feel the need to reconnect with the world. So, stay tuned...

Elliot at nine months

2008-11-01T10:55:00.004-05:00

I have so much to say, but I'll start with where our little-big man is at.

At nine months old, Elliot can stand for short periods of time, without holding onto anything. He is cruising along the couch, and really wants to take a step. He can even get down to sit on the floor without falling.

Elliot's language is starting to take off. He's making all sorts of sounds (dadada, bababa, gagaga, and even a little mamama). His favorite thing to do is call to his brother, and it almost sounds like he is saying, "Alden". It's lots of "Ahdah, Ahdah!" when Alden is around. He also recognizes a bunch of words. We can ask him to dance, and he'll wiggle around. He'll look at Mommy, Daddy, Alden, the doggy, or the kitty, if we ask him where they are.

He still has a gummy grin, with no teeth in sight. He drools off-and-on, but we don't see any indications that his teeth will be appearing any time soon. As you can see from the picture, his eyes seem to be turning hazel (like mine). They are still bluish on the outside, but I think he will end up looking more like me than Alden does. =)

Size-wise, I'm not sure where he is at. He is mostly in 12-18 month clothes, and he weighs over 23 pounds! We will have a better picture of just how big this little bugger is when we go to his check-up on Monday.

All-in-all, I can't believe how quickly these last nine months have gone. I have a feeling he will be walking on his own next month. I really hope this winter gives us all time to slow down and enjoy the little moments that make babyhood so memorable!

*UPDATE 11/3* Elliot weighs 22 lbs. 9 oz. and is 29 1/2 inches long. He also has anemia and an ear infection. =( We have meds and iron supplements, so he should be better soon.

amazing transformation

2008-09-17T11:12:00.002-05:00

As a PhotoShop aficionado and graphic design wonk, I know how much you can change photos to fit your needs. Still, this video blew me away. Besides the fact that the Shopper has mad skills, I can't get over how much they change an already good-looking woman into something so different. I mean, did they really need to make her eyes bigger and add two inches to her neck?

random Wednesday: bizzy

2008-07-30T22:38:00.003-05:00

I feel like I've been asked to juggle a hatchet, a running chainsaw, and butcher's knife all at once. And I can't juggle...Heh! I am designing again, and have one client who is throwing a bunch of (much-appreciated) work my way as she sets up her business. We are also preparing to get a loan to put in a new heating system. With an appraisal coming in less than two weeks, we need to finish a bunch of house projects to make our numbers a little better.

Here's what I have on my to-do list for the next two weeks:

Design three website comps (two done, one to go)
Design three logo comps (brainstorming done, computer designing now)
Tutor a few hours (maybe only two?)
Move my giant cabinet to my studio
Stuff all my stuff into said cabinet
Touch-up paint in the bathroom
Touch-up paint in the upstairs entry
Clean the basement
Repair plaster and paint the entry walls
Repair and paint living room walls
Repair and paint trim upstairs
Clean whole house, top-to-bottom

I feel like I'm on Design Star. My time starts...now...Yeeehaaaw!

around town Tuesday: Duluth Airshow

2008-07-22T10:33:00.005-05:00

It's time to end my blogging hiatus. First up: the Duluth Airshow!

A-10 Thunderbolt

We decided (last minute) to head up to Duluth to check out the airplanes last Saturday. After waiting in line to park for 45 minutes, we looked at a map, and realized it would be faster to bypass the line we were in. After a quick stop to grab lunch, it took us only ten minutes to park using the other way!

Within a few minutes, we found a decent spot to watch the airplanes do their tricks. Alden asked for the remote control (he's been flying airplanes on the computer), and was slightly disappointed when we told him he couldn't fly these airplanes. I mostly wanted to see the stunt pilots, and we made it there just in time to watch Patty Wagstaff flip, spin, stall, and fall. She's an amazing pilot, and an inspiration, too.

Alden flies his new FA-18 Hornet Blue Angel

After Greg Poe (another stunt pilot) did his thing, the military birds took over. We saw an A-10 and a P-38. The A-10 made us glad we bought earplugs, although Elliot managed to sleep through the whole thing. Once the A-10 and P-38 finished their heritage fly-by, the main reason we came took to the sky as the Blue Angels trotted out their precision flying tricks.

First up, the piggy C-130 (dubbed "Fat Albert") demonstrated a steep, jet-assisted take-off that had me feeling the Gs by just watching it. Alden got antsy, so we went over to the Coast Guard C-130 to poke around in the cockpit. The plane shook as Fat Albert did a fly-by.

Sleeping with the Blue Angel

It started to rain in earnest by the time the FA-18 Hornets took off. We felt the jets' power in our chests as all six rumbled into the sky at the same time (four in one direction, two in another). While we shivered in the rain, the Blue Angels danced in the sky. I have to say it is one of the more awesome things I've ever seen, but Patty Wagstaff still took the cake for me.

six months!

2008-07-21T23:48:00.000-05:00

Time is really flying...Look at this little guy:

Too tired. Must sleep.

Cheeky monkey

Can you believe how big he is? He will be moving up to 9-12 month clothes in the next few weeks. It looks like his growth has slowed a little, which is good, since the next batch of clothes we have are for winter!

More soon...

five months: chunky monkey

2008-06-19T07:42:00.005-05:00

Feast your eyes on His Royal Nominess (and his loyal brother and mommy):

Dontcha just wanna nom those cheeks?

Future comedians: These boys spend hours cracking each other up already.

Elliot's first day at the Lake. Note ominous clouds that chased us
off the beach immediately after this pic was taken.

Our little big guy will be 5 months old on Saturday. He's grown so much in the past two months that he's about to move up to a bigger car seat. I think he'll be walking by August. lol!

We had his 4-month check-up a few weeks ago, and the doctor was so surprised at how big he's gotten that she stopped short when she came into the room. Elliot weighed in at 19 lbs. 8 oz. and measured 26 1/2 inches long. That's off the charts and the 95th percentile! He's also in 6-9 month clothes, but that doesn't look like it will last long.

Elliot has been having a milestone-filled month, too. He had is first taste of rice cereal, and loves it! (Have you ever tasted that goo? It tastes like warmed-up, watered-down cardboard.) He started grabbing objects AND manipulating them. (Amazingly, he can pass objects hand-to-hand and turn the pages of books.) He also rolls half-way over from back to front. (This is backwards from how other babies usually start rolling over. The doc said he probably won't make it all the way over for a little while because of all his pudge.)

These boys keep me busy, so blogging will be light for the foreseeable future. I'll try to get some images up on Flickr for your enjoyment, though. =)

quilts, quilts, and more quilts!

2008-04-15T14:17:00.005-05:00

What a trip! Krista and I had a great time browsing the quilt galleries and exhibitors at the International Quilt Show this weekend. It was inspiring, overwhelming and just a little intimidating.

We made it to the show by 10 a.m. Friday morning. I decided right away that I would only be able to handle one day lugging lil' chunky butt around, so I only paid $10 to get in. It was more than worth it, and I would love to go back again without a babe to carry.

Highlights from the show include:

Actually getting to touch a lot of the fabrics I have lusted after after seeing them around blogland, including designs by Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett, Amy Schimler and Sandi Henderson.
Learning the lingo: I now know what fat quarters, jelly rolls and charm packs are.
Seeing several detailed quilts designed and sewn by guys (one using 1/2 inch squares and the other using rough-edged appliqué to create feathers).
Buying a jelly roll of Wee Play to sew my first quilt.

Highlights from the trip include:

A wonderfully relaxed baby, who slept most of the day on the drive and at the show.
Standing in the Target parking lot, looking up at the bellies of planes as they came in for a landing.
Starbucks!
Chicago pizza so good that Krista and I nearly finished an entire pie by ourselves.

I'm not sure if we will go again next year, but I would like to go to at least a couple of art or quilt festivals a year now that I know what to expect and what to do. Like writing down the names of the quilters who sewed the creations I take pictures of...doh!

April (snow) showers and a quilt show

2008-04-10T09:17:00.004-05:00

A massive winter storm (blizzard?) is heading this way. Fortunately, Elliot and I leave this afternoon for a trip to Chicagoland. Why?

Quilts! Quilts! Quilts!

Krista and I are going to the International Quilt Festival. Since we are leaving early to beat the snow, we have an extra day to view all the fabric beauties. We'll get in tonight. Tomorrow, we head over to the convention center, where 500 quilters, crafters and artists will display their goods.

I will not miss the snow, and even hope to see a little spring down south! I'll post a full report when we get back.

thank goodness for these...

2008-03-31T21:30:00.002-05:00

They more than make up for the mountain of poopie diapers and messy outfits I changed today!

twins...three years apart

2008-02-29T22:30:00.007-06:00

Elliot looks so much like Alden that I've been having flashbacks. Here's a little game for you. Guess who's who!

suspicious stares

Baby A

Baby B

*****

sleepy smiles

Baby A

Baby B

February photos

2008-02-29T22:20:00.005-06:00

February flew by with nary a peep from me. However, I have been taking pics for your enjoyment. Peruse with pleasure!

Two weeks old and sooooo tired.

Extreme close-up!

Snuggling a blankie in the sun.

So little, yet so strong.

Brothers: A taste of things to come?

just for fun: my celebrity look-alikes

2008-01-28T22:39:00.000-06:00

Elliot Dashiell is here!

2008-01-24T15:37:00.000-06:00

Elliot Dashiell’s birth story

Stats
36 weeks 5 days - 12 hours of labor from first contraction to birth
Date: 1/21/08 Time: 5:28 a.m. cst
Weight: 7 lbs. 5 oz. Length: 18.5 inches

Elliot Dashiell

I had been having prodromal labor since Sunday, January 13 and felt so tired of contracting two minutes apart, every evening. I decided to be a little more proactive at helping things along, even though I really wanted the baby to be in there as long as possible. On Saturday, January 20, I spent the afternoon shopping and running errands with Krista in the hopes of helping the baby descend and getting my contractions to do something.

At 5:30 p.m. Sunday evening, my nightly contractions came on like someone had flipped a switch. These contractions felt stronger than anything I had had so far, but I still wasn’t convinced we were going to see a baby soon. I did decide to have AJ time them, and he also kept track of how strong I felt they were compared to each other. This is the only way to tell if anything is happening when you have an irritable uterus like I do. They came 2 minutes apart right away. The contractions started out alternating medium-hard-medium hard, and then settled into every one being hard.

AJ and I decided to go into the hospital, even if just to have the baby monitored. He called Krista to come watch Alden, and she made it to our place in record time (amazingly, she even managed to eat dinner and pack some stuff for the evening before leaving home). Once she arrived, we headed off to the hospital.

We had been listening to the Packers/Giants game while timing contractions and immediately turned the game on when we arrived at the hospital. The doctor on call stopped in and was glad to see we had the game on. He jokingly said if we hadn’t had it on, he wouldn’t check me. He did do a quick internal exam then to see if things had progressed and I was 4cm and 70% effaced. Definite progress from the 2cm and 50% I had been the week before! So he called my doctor (they like to deliver their own babies at my clinic, even if they aren’t on call) and we all watched the rest of the game until she came.

My doctor arrived and she checked my progress just to see for herself where I was at. A loose 5cm and 80% effaced with the baby still floating. At this point, they moved us from triage to our LDPR room. AJ and I spent some time getting our labor stuff prepped and then I decided I wanted to walk laps around L&D to try to bring the baby down.

"Yes, Dad, I am in labor!"

I walked laps for a couple of hours, and felt really good. My doctor decided to go to sleep, since it looked like things were going well with the baby and it didn’t seem like my labor would go too fast. As I walked around, I called my parents to tell them we were having the baby. My dad said, “You sure don’t sound like you’re in labor.” I laughed, and assured him that I definitely felt contractions; they were just really manageable at the moment.

After all that walking, my legs and back became sore. I decided it was time to get in the tub. I was still in a really good mood, and couldn’t believe how great I felt. I knew transition was coming, though, so I wanted to save up some energy. The nurse drew a bath and did another NST. The baby looked great and she couldn’t believe how active he was as she checked the strength of my contractions.

I hopped in the tub, hoping the warm water would ease my back pain. It suddenly occurred to me that the baby might have changed positions again (he had started the day facing my back on the left side or LOA (left occiput anterior), and I worried that he had turned posterior. AJ decided to get some sleep while I hung out in the tub. I did a lot of thinking and breathing in there. When I started to think, “I can’t do this. This is crazy. When will I be done?” I realized I had probably hit transition and it was time to get checked again to see how things were going with the baby.

The nurse did an internal, and I had hit 6cm and 90% effaced. I was a little disappointed because I thought for sure I would be closer to 8cm. At that point, the nurse convinced me to take a break in bed. So I dozed between contractions for about an hour. Then I got up to walk for another hour, and joked around with the nurses at their station. The doctor on call came back around to see how things were going and to wish me luck.

I started to feel worn out again, so decided to get in bed to rest. At this point, I couldn’t even doze off between contractions and started to feel some pressure. I got up to use the bathroom and felt like I had to push. That made me so excited! I called the nurse in and told her the news. She decided to do another internal to see if we should wake the doctor up. I had made it to 9cm and completely effaced, but I had a lip on the right side (this comes into play a little later). My water bulged with each contraction and she thought it would be smart to have the doc break it, if we agreed.

I told her I definitely wanted to talk to my doctor about what she thought, so the nurse went to wake her up. At 4:30 a.m., my doctor came in to do another internal (yuck!). I was 9.5cm and complete except for that lip on the right side. The baby still hadn’t engaged, so we were a little concerned about cord prolapse. His head pressed right up against my cervix though, so the risk was minimal. We agreed that she could break my water since it didn’t look like it was going to break on its own and the baby was having a hard time descending.

At this point, we knew the baby wouldn’t be long in coming, so the nurses started to prep the room. My doctor grabbed an amnio hook to break my water, and told me it felt like I had a leather purse up in there, so she wasn’t sure how much force it would take to break the water. As it turned out, she snagged and opened it without much trouble. The sweet release of pressure inside quickly changed to a desperate need to push after just a couple of contractions.

The doctor wanted me upright to help the baby descend and turn. He had turned LOP (left occiput posterior), so was facing forward. I ended up having a lot of back labor, but my breathing and visualization really helped me manage it. I began pushing by using the squat bar. AJ and my nurse helped me get into position for every contraction and I leaned back to rest between them.

During my labor with Alden, the nurses had me hold my breath. AJ became alarmed at how purple I turned. After doing some research, I found out this type of pushing leads to decreased oxygen levels for mother and baby that can cause complications after birth. So I had decided to vocalize during pushing this time around. Each time I pushed, I let out a guttural growl. I laughed and joked in between contractions because the mood during pushing seemed so terribly serious!

The doctor said she wanted to check me because she noticed things weren’t progressing as they should have with how well I was pushing. It turns out the lip on the right had been caught around the baby’s head, so he couldn’t descend any further. She reached in with both hands to maneuver the head around the lip. The pain made me try to climb up the bed behind me, but AJ and the nurse helped me relax enough to let the doctor finish.

I began pushing in earnest then. Finally, after several large heaves, the doctor told me to reach down to feel the baby’s head. I did, and it was so encouraging! She also told AJ to come down to the end of the bed to help deliver our baby. Just as the head began to fully emerge, amniotic fluid sprayed out in a wide arc, coating AJ, the doctor and a good portion of the floor. We all laughed; even me, mid-contraction!

This part gets a little hazy for me. I know the baby’s head came out and they had me blow through the rest of the contraction to check for a cord around his neck. Then, I remember closing my eyes, and feeling a lot of pulling as the doctor and AJ worked to gently deliver the shoulders and body. Then, AJ popped the baby up on my belly and said, “We have second son!” A boy? What a surprise!

It's a boy!

His cord was really short, so my doctor clamped it and had AJ cut it right away. The doctor checked me for tears. None! Then, they let us continue to hang out together while we waited to deliver the placenta. It took only about 10 minutes before it came out in one easy push, and I was with it enough to look at it this time (I didn’t get a chance to with Alden’s birth because I was pretty out of it).

By the time they were ready to do the newborn procedures, we had hung out for about half-an-hour with our quiet little son. AJ finally announced his name as Elliot Dashiell, and then they took him for testing and measurements. We knew he was big, but my jaw dropped when they told me 7 lbs 5 oz! He weighs almost a pound more than his brother did at birth, even though they were born at the same gestational age. He is also an inch shorter. What a little chunky monkey!

The whole family together for the first time.

Speaking of his big brother, Alden has been absolutely amazing about this whole thing! When he came to see us in the hospital the morning after Elliot was born, Alden climbed right up onto the bed to see his new brother. I asked him if he wanted to hold Elliot's hand, and he said a quiet, "Yes." He reached out for my fingers first, and then gently tucked his hand under Elliot's tiny digits. Elliot immediately grasped Alden's hand and Alden let out a squeak of delight!

We are settling in with our newest family member, so updates to my blog will be few and far between in the next few weeks. Pictures, however, will be plentiful. You can see them all at AJ's Flickr account.

rewind: Christmas wrap-up

2008-01-05T21:14:00.000-06:00

Alright. I know it was two weeks ago, but I still want to briefly recap Christmas in photos, darn it. (No words because I'm too stinkin' tired.)

2007 balsam wreath
(The only decoration I managed to make this year!)

Alden says, "Look at all those sparky lights."

I'm a present!

The great Christmas haul of '07 -
All in one place for about two seconds!

I'm 34 weeks 2 days and...

2008-01-05T21:08:00.001-06:00

*WARNING!! I am about to discuss the goings on in my nether regions. If you prefer not to find out what's happening down under, please discontinue reading now.*

I lost my mucous plug! Yucky, I know, but I wanted to document it for posterity. At my last doctor's appointment, I was also 2cm dilated and 50% effaced. I'm almost exactly where I was with this pregnancy as I was with Alden...Does that mean Bunny will be here soon? I think so! Best make your guess in the poll below, before it's too late.

guess what?

2008-01-03T21:40:00.000-06:00

Since we have just a little over a month until my due date, I thought it would be fun to do a little baby pool! Click on the banner above to make your guess on when Bunny will arrive!

beginnings

2008-01-01T17:02:00.001-06:00

ornament swap 2007

2007-12-28T14:00:00.000-06:00

1. felt owl from Laurie 2. felt mitten from Jill 3. felt birds from Patrice 4. beaded wreath from Shannon 5. felt pear tree from Melissa 6. beach glass flower from Katy 7. polka dot felt mitten from Laura 8. Danish-style paper garland from Anna 9. peace pillow from Jessie

These are the ornaments I received from the cake+pie and freshlyblended Holiday Ornament Swap 2007. It's so fun to see what people come up with each year. I'm looking forward to next year already!
And here's the ornament I made for the swap - a wire star with bead wrapped around it. Each dangly center bead said something different (hope, peace, believe, etc.). I had so much fun making this, but I need to get started a little earlier next year!

33 weeks: it's crunch time and a wish list

2007-12-26T11:47:00.001-06:00

We have about a month until Bunny shows up. Yeah! Everything has settled down quite a bit, so I'm fairly confident we will make it at least to 36 weeks (the minimum we need to be at to deliver at the local hospital). I'm hoping s/he hangs in there until 37 weeks, since there should be virtually no problems at that point (Alden had trouble keeping his temperature up and a bit of jaundice, but was otherwise fine at 36 weeks 5 days).

With Christmas happily and successfully celebrated, we are now shifting gears. We'll be focusing on readying the house (and Alden) for the new baby. We have some more cleaning to do, and need to set up the crib(!) in our bedroom. Also, AJ's parents delivered our new car seat for Christmas, so that leaves just a few more items to buy before baby gets here.

Which brings me to my next item...I feel really weird about doing this, but since so many people have asked what we need, I thought I would share our short wish list here. We need:

0-3 onesies, pants and tops in unisex colors (white, red, yellow and green are good) - We have a bunch of jammies, but I gave away nearly all of our 0-3 clothing because we weren't thinking about having another bambino anytime soon. BTW, we sent the clothes to Hurricane Katrina victims. Those ladies definitely needed that stuff more than us at that point!
Bundle Me Baby Bunting in Graphite - This is a car seat cover for keeping baby warm.
SwaddleMe Infant Wraps - We have a lot of blankets, but I know from experience with Alden that wriggly babies can kick them off. These wraps come highly recommended from a bunch of other moms.

If you are so inclined, you can see these items and a list of other things we'd like to get the baby (some more fun than blankets and clothes!) on my Target Wish List. You can find it under "Meagan Van" because Target doesn't like my two-word last name. =) Also, please ignore all the house-related stuff on the list. I've put those things there for my reference.

A Christmas rewind post is coming soon...

happy holidays

2007-12-25T16:01:00.000-06:00

things that make you go "wah?"

2007-12-19T22:10:00.000-06:00

"...things have escalated downhill..."
--from a comment on syracuse.com

a trip to the hospital, but not for me

2007-12-19T07:57:00.000-06:00

We had a chance to test the route to the hospital last night.

Alden has a bad, barking cough that started Sunday and worsened Monday night. I took him to the doctor to get checked out early yesterday morning, and all was well (no fever, no breathing issues, still an energetic 3-year-old). The doctor said it was the croup and gave me a few tips on how to manage Alden's symptoms. He even said, "If he's like this when he's sick, what's it like when he's feeling good?" Alden had that much go-power still.

In the afternoon, Alden suddenly took an immediate turn for the worse. It was like someone flipped a switch that sent him from coping well to terribly ill. He gasped for breath and struggled to play with his trucks. Every time he tried to stand up, he'd lay right back down again. He was also shaking and his eyelids drooped. It was sooooo scary.

I called the on-call doc, and he sounded alarmed when he heard Alden's coughing and breathing. He told me to bring him in right away. So that's what we did. They worked him through triage and into the urgent care facility fairly quickly. He had a nebulizer treatment with epinephrine (which sent his heart rate over 200 beats per minute - another scary moment) and some steroids. He also spiked a fever while we were there, but they were able to get it down with just a little Tylenol.

All told, we were there for about three hours, which isn't bad for an ER visit. They checked him over again before discharging us. His breathing had eased and his temp was down, but I think the real reason they felt he was ready to go home happened when he started to run circles around the bed. He was definitely feeling better!

Notice anything different?

2007-12-13T23:00:00.001-06:00

7 week belly shot

31 week belly shot

outtakes and good ones

2007-12-09T23:05:00.000-06:00

We did our first-ever holiday photo shoot today, and man was it fun! AJ managed to snap some super cute pics of Alden in front of the tree. Then we took a few of the whole family using our side table and a pile of books as a tripod. What you can't see in these pictures: Alden spinning wildly in circles between takes; AJ trying to get the timer to go long enough for him to slide in place without a goofy expression on his face; Meagan attempting to stretch her neck up high enough to avoid a double chin!

Ever since we went to see Santa a week ago, Alden has said, "CHEESE!" whenever a camera gets pointed in his direction. Much hilarity ensues when you're trying to get a little less CHEESE! and a lot more Cute Boy with Santa Hat.

Behold the power of "CHEESE!"

And finally, here's the winner for our first Christmas photo card. I'm so glad we were able to get a decent photo, and can't wait to get these babies printed up.

I designed the card using digital scrapbooking supplies (a first for me!), and I'll be having them printed at the local photo store. I'll share the card here once we send them out (I don't want to ruin the surprise!).

o, christmas tree!

2007-12-04T11:16:00.001-06:00

We wandered out into the freshly fallen snow on Sunday afternoon to find our Christmas tree.

After a quick, slippery jaunt into Farmer Lee's Woods, we found a lovely little Balsam to call our own. AJ picked out several Charlie Brown trees before we spotted a fullish one (Remember our tree from last year? This is a little fuller than that, but still "open" and "airy"...lol).

Alden had a blast in the snow, running and flopping as quickly as he could. He kept losing his mittens, so he finally gave them to me. Boy, were his hands cold!

On the way home, Alden ate part of a candy cane Santa had given him the day before. The peppermint smell mingling with the Balsam scent was pure Christmas!

around the house Thursday: a new use for pliers

2007-11-29T22:50:00.000-06:00

This is the state of my living room floor right now. I had two busy days of house cleaning, and then two busy days of recuperating from said house cleaning.

Yesterday, while in recovery mode, I laid down on the couch to try to coax The Boy into napping. This has been working great for the past few weeks. Besides offering a no-fight way to get him to sleep, it also gives me a chance to just lay down for awhile. I usually don't sleep when I take these afternoon breaks. Instead, I feign sleep until Alden dozes heavily enough for me to get up and do some housework.

But Alden didn't want to take a nap yesterday. I, on the other hand, feeling the serious effects of two strenuous days of scrubbing and two insomnia-laden, bathroom-trip-filled nights, passed out as soon as I closed my eyes. As he happily dug into his toy box, I drifted off into La-La Land.

My blissful sleep was interrupted by a funny sensation that didn't quite seem right in the context of the dream I was immersed in (picture a warm, sunny day on the deck of a sailboat in the Atlantic, and then proceed). I carefully opened my eyes to see my clever son looming over me with a serious look on his face and his toy pliers carefully pinched around my schnoz. His eyes widened as I opened my own, and then he whispered, "Excusee, Mom. I got your nose."

Excusee, indeed.

baby, it's cold outside

2007-11-18T21:24:00.000-06:00

My new favorite sweater and angora cloche -
look at that belly grow!

It's finally snowing regularly in this neck of the woods, something I always look forward to. I just wish the white stuff would stay around for longer than a day. I can't wait to build a snowman with Alden - he keeps begging to do it, but we haven't had enough snow yet. We get about an inch in the morning, and the sun melts it into oblivion by the afternoon.

Snowin' 'n' blowin' in the backyard.

With winter and baby cocooning about to begin (we're still going to the playground, but it sure is getting cold!), I've been making a short list of projects to tackle BB (Before Baby). I'm about to deep clean our bedroom in preparation for Bunny. Oh, the excitement! I'm also going to finally get my studio organized. I want to get some sewing done, so this is a must. Thankfully, these tasks follow my restricted activity rules. (I'll be good, Mom. Really.)

I'm also about to get my craft on again. I joined the same ornament swap I did last year, and can't wait to get started on my ornament. Remember last year's fabric star? I'm sticking with the star theme this year, but it will be in a completely different medium. I'm going to try my hand at some wire and bead work! I'll post pics after my swap group receives their ornaments. (I might do some sneak peaks, but don't want to ruin the surprise!)

So, this post is completely lame, but I wanted to write something... Hopefully more entertaining fodder will follow shortly.

how the bun-bun hat was born

2007-11-13T07:35:00.000-06:00

A few months ago, I was unexpectedly invited to a baby shower. We were told not to worry about gifts, but I really wanted to give my friend a little something. My mind scrambled for a quick project that I could do in my still-unfinished studio.

After wondering what she would like for her little one's first winter, I thought a cozy hat might do the trick. First, I needed a pattern. The one infant hat pattern I have is just a couple of semicircles with a brim - way too plain to be something special. I've always loved those little top-knot caps, so I got to work designing a couple of styles, based on some pictures I found around the Web.

a soft, little bun-bun hat

Then, I moved on to the material. I have been playing around with recycling T-shirts for a variety of sewing projects. The local thrift stores usually have plenty of gently used ones, and they often have bag sales ($2 or $3 for all you can stuff into a brown bag). This seemed like a great project to use up a couple of colorful Tees that had been hanging around, waiting to be used for something. I grabbed a couple likely candidates (a red, green, blue and yellow stripe and a soft, buttery yellow), and started cutting.

My first attempt, with the striped fabric, ended up slightly wonky; the stripes didn't want to meet at the seams, thwarting my every effort to pin them into submission. I finished it, but set it aside. The second hat, made with the soft, ribbed yellow, came out perfectly. I had made a bunny hat, with little ears that could be left long or tied into two knots, like pigtails.

I wanted to call it something a bit more original than Bunny Hat. Thus, the "bun-bun hat" was born.

I can see myself making many more of these for my babes and other little ones. Alden loves the stripey dud I created with my first try (he calls it his pirate hat - "AR!"). And little Bunny will have a bun-bun hat of his/her own, which I plan to sew up this week. Yeah! I'm finally back into crafting!

snowy goodness

2007-11-06T22:19:00.001-06:00

We had our first snow today. Alden wanted to run out into it with just his diaper on! He's suddenly Mr. Naked, and doesn't wear clothes for longer than he has to. (I tried to get some pics (of the snow, not Alden), but my camera was being uncooperative.)

I'm really looking forward to the winter because: a) it means baby is closer to being here (yes, I am both impatient to meet this little person and worried about not having enough time to get things done :P) and b) I love that the whirlwind holiday/birthday extravaganza is about to begin. Now that the gardening season has ended and I have a lot of indoor time on my hands, my priorities have shifted. I need to decided what to focus on during the off-season over at The Gardening Journal. I want to get some crafting done for gift-giving and nesting, too. This here blog also needs some attention. So, expect lots of activity over here from now on!

25 weeks down...10 weeks to go?

2007-11-03T23:00:00.000-05:00

I went for a regular check-up on Friday, and thought it would be another in-and-out deal. Nothing bad happened, but it definitely wasn't brief.

The doctor told me we could start doing my pre-term labor monitoring as soon as necessary. As you all know, I have been having contractions. Lots of them. Some of them have been mildly painful, and I have had four in one hour (the cut-off for pre-term monitoring). After hearing all this, the doctor seemed to panic. She decided to start doing testing right then. So, I got to strip down and get a good, old-fashioned, legs-in-the-stirrups exam. And, I get to do it again. Weekly. Until the baby is born.

The good news is, all is well in Bunny-land (this babe's nickname, just so's y'know). The baby is still high and everything down yonder is closed-up tight. The test I am getting done should tell us when the baby will be born (within one to three weeks, actually). So, if we end up with a positive test before 35-or-so weeks, I'll more than likely get shipped off to the nearest hospital with a NICU until the baby is born or I get to 36 weeks (the cut off for delivery at the local hospital).

My doc also doled out some stricter guidelines for my activity, too. I can't walk or do any other load-bearing exercises (weight lifting, stair climbing, etc.). She also told me to stop lifting anything heavier than around 10 pounds. When I asked her what I could do, she smiled and said housework would be ok (as long as it didn't involve lifting, of course). Thank God I get to do something...hehe!

As near as we can tell, I'll end up giving birth around the same time I did with Alden (this estimate comes from some statistical information and my doctor's best guess given my previous history). That means we could see Bunny as soon as 10 weeks from now (or s/he could hang out for 14 weeks, so we make it to term *fingers crossed*). Ten weeks seems like so little time. Thank goodness we have the holidays to keep me occupied, or I think I'd be going nuts! I have so much I want to do, and these early restrictions are cramping my style (um, no pun intended).

*ETA: Since I received a comment telling me to relax, I thought it might be a good idea to clarify a few things. So, I've edited this a bit. I am not freaked out. Really. =)

tongue-tied & brain-twisted

2007-11-02T18:49:00.000-05:00

Once again, pregnancy has robbed me of any brains I used to have (or at least pretended to have). I have trouble thinking linearly, and get easily distracted. This has made my tutoring job interesting (although, I think I pull it together fairly well for that). Mostly, though, it has meant that I intend to do one thing, and end up doing something completely different.

Last week, Alden and I met up with some friends we hadn't seen in a month. We went to the playground together for a few hours, and then headed our separate ways. I decided it would be good to stop at the store to "look at toys." Alden loves to just check things out. Thankfully, he hasn't figured out the beg-and-whine routine.

We headed to our neighborhood discount store with not much in mind other than looking. Alden loves those dancing, singing, light-up, stuffed Christmas whats-its, so we watched those for awhile. We also looked at the dog toys, 'cause they're fun, too. Then, after a brief eyeballing of Thomas & Friends, we headed out the door for some lunch and a nap.

Later that day, I recounted our morning to AJ. Here's how the conversation went:
AJ: So, you picked up some dog leads while you were there, right?
Me: *blink* *blink*
AJ: Remember? You were going to go to the store to pick up dog leads because Molly's
tie-out broke?
Me: Oh, yeah. That's why I went to the store. I mean, I knew I had to go to the store, but
once I got there I didn't remember that I had to go to the store or what I had to buy.
AJ: *rolls eyes*

Yeah. So, I've been making lots of lists. The only problem is, I've been making so many lists that I can't remember where I put the one I need right now.

halloween review

2007-11-01T22:33:00.000-05:00

We had a fairly relaxed Halloween. Alden and I went to a party at the playgroup we go to each Wednesday, and then headed to a couple of businesses before heading home for naptime.

I put together a quickie engineer costume for him. It included a little signal lantern made out of aluminum foil, construction paper and a butter box. Hehe! He loved it, but wouldn't sit still for a portrait. =)

trick and treat

2007-10-31T13:55:00.001-05:00

rewind: vehicle extravaganza!

2007-10-29T16:40:00.000-05:00

I have really felt the need to get in as much "only child" time as possible with Alden before the new kid arrives. To that end, we have made every effort to (over)indulge his love of vehicles of all sorts, with a bunch of special, vehicle-centered trips nearly every weekend for the past month!

Alden points out a coal carrier on Chequamegon Bay

Early one morning, AJ called to let me know a coal carrier was on its way into the bay. I hopped in the car, and took Alden to one of the observation points that dot the lake front. We watched the boat for about an hour, and Alden couldn't stop saying, "Look, Mommy. A gig ship!"

Big wheels keep on turnin'

Let's go on the firetruck...again!

Can I plow your driveway?

That next weekend, we spent several hours downtown at the library, where the city had examples of all it's vehicles for kids to climb in. Alden loved the firetruck, and would have spent all day in there. He actually managed to turn the wheels on that thing (it was up on braces because they had the ladder extended on the back). He managed to get in an ambulance, a dump/plow truck, a gator with a plow, a police SUV and the firetruck (twice!). He talked about it for days afterwards. He still looks for the firetruck when we go to the library.

All aboard!

We're chugging off to Lester River

What do you see? "Treeses."

"Buh-bye, Train!"

Perhaps the best, and most anticipated, trip was our train ride in Duluth. We chose the shorter, hour-and-a-half ride.

rewind: weekend hiking

2007-10-27T08:46:00.000-05:00

*note: I really want to document everything we've done in the last month, so you'll be seeing a bunch of catch-up posts.

Way back in September, we managed to take a beautiful hike into the woods with the Bloomquist clan. The maples were in full-dress at the time. With cloud-free skies and a warm sun, we hiked to one of our favorite spots in the national forest: the Marengo Valley Overlook.

Driving into the woods on sunny back-roads

AJ & Alden at the Marengo Valley Overlook

Dropping rocks into the Marengo River

Hangin' in the sun, watchin' the river

Ridin' in style: Alden gets a little help on the way back to the car.

The hike is just a short little jaunt (only a couple of miles to the river and back). Alden impressed us all by walking nearly the entire way. If we haven't taken you on this hike yet, we'll gladly do it the next time you're visiting!

22 weeks down, 18 to go

2007-10-11T15:21:00.001-05:00

We're on the downhill slope of this pregnancy ride, so I thought I'd share a just-over-half-way there pic. I got a big ol' belly bump going on!

The coffee-contraction connection

2007-10-11T10:07:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I didn't have my regular morning cup of coffee. I noticed I didn't have any contractions all morning, but just kind of wrote it off because I had had a good night's sleep for a change. I've been having between half-a-dozen to two dozen Braxton Hicks contractions a day since around 16 weeks. No matter how much water I drank, they still seemed to be there. This was a nice change!

When I ran errands in the afternoon, I decided to stop by The Black Cat for some yummy, warm coffee. An hour into my trip, I started having those pesky contractions, and the light bulb finally went off. Duh!

So, no more coffee for me. *sigh* At least my last cup during this pregnancy was a good one. I had Turtle Nut Roast (caramel and pecans), and it was delish.

rewind: Chicago & St. Paul

2007-09-21T15:27:00.000-05:00

AJ asked me if I wanted to tag along on his trip to Chicago for a Web design conference. With so few opportunities to head out of the Northwoods, I jumped at the chance to go.

We stayed in the Marriot, right on the Miracle Mile. This put us within walking distance of all sorts of things, so we brought the stroller to cart the boy around in. It worked well, and we all ended up putting many miles on our feetsies.

On Monday, Alden and I started the day at Millennium Park. The size and design of the park simply amazed me. Alden and I really like the Cloud Gate sculpture (below) and the Lurie Gardens (you can read more about our adventures that day at The Gardening Journal).

Cloud Gate at Millennium Park

Alden under the Cloud Gate ... Oooo, shiny!

We managed to wander back down to the park in the evening for burritos (from Chipotle!) and music by the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic. Alden didn't want to sit still, so we wandered around, looking at the gardens and playing in the water fountain. Amazingly, you could still hear the music throughout most of the park.

Tuesday, Alden and I walked down to Navy Pier, which turned out to be a lot farther from the hotel than I thought (so that's why they have free trolleys). The weather wasn't too hot, though, and we had a good time meandering through the park waiting for everything to open. The Chicago Children's Museum opened at 10, so we headed over there. A nice lady covered our entrance fees with a free admission ticket she had, and then we spent about two hours bouncing around all the exhibits (an ambulance! a firefighter! boats! a bus!). I loved the place, and would have gladly stayed there all day if we didn't need to both eat and nap.

Navy Pier in the morning light

That night, we decided to walk down to Navy Pier again for dinner. I had seen a little Italian place that looked promising, and it completely lived up to my expectations. Then we walked down the pier, and decided to hop on the giant ferris wheel. Alden loved the slow ride up, and really wanted to stand at the gates to the gondola. Yikes!

On the Navy Pier ferris wheel - Let go, Daddy!

The only bad thing about our trip to Chicago was a missed meeting with our friends Matthew and Mandy. We were all recovering from a wicked cold and they ended up with a stomach bug, so we nixed plans for fear of transferring maladies. This is the second time we've had to ditch a visit, so hopefully the third time will be the proverbial charm.

After a packed couple of days in downtown Chicago, we headed down to AJ's grandmother's for a brief visit. We went out for more Mexican food and got to see his Aunt Sue and Uncle Dan's house (complete with backyard tiki lounge and hot tub!). We then packed up and headed over to St. Paul for a visit with his folks.

We cut our stop in St. Paul short because we were all cranky and overtired. However, we did make it over to the "Great Minnesota Get-Together" on Friday. The state fair was everything I had hoped for, but too much for us tired folks to keep up with. I did get to eat a deep-fried Snickers bar (why they decided to wrap the thing in yucky white cake, I don't know), and we saw several piglets born.

I had hoped to get Alden on another ferris wheel, but we didn't find one that looked jump-proof. He did go down the giant slide with Grandpa Palmer, and then again with AJ. He's still talking about how awesome it was!

Cruisin' down the Giant Slide

So, after a stuffed-full week, we hauled our hides home to rest and recuperate. I loved Chicago more than I thought possible (I mean, it is a city, but the people were so nice and the gardens were so pretty), and I would really like to go to the Minnesota State Fair again when: a) I'm not pregnant; b) the sun isn't blazingly hot; c) we haven't already walked and driven for miles and miles. Maybe next year!

BAM! It's September!

2007-09-10T22:21:00.000-05:00

Whoa! The last two weeks just up and walked away from me. We went on the Great Midwestern Tour of '07 (to be retold in verse and image at a later date), a new friend had her baby Labor Day weekend (appropriate - although word on the street has it that she only pushed once) and I managed to start the Great Kitchen Overhaul (one full garbage bag of mystery food - some with dates as far back as '97, when we didn't even live here - from just two cabinets).

Now, it's five days from mid-September. I'm almost at the midpoint of my pregnancy. Man, this is going to go faster than I thought. I better find something to hold onto.

It's a...baby!

2007-08-25T19:14:00.000-05:00

Okay, I'm sure most of you know we won't be finding out whether we're having a boy or girl until the little one shows up, but I've been having fun looking at old wives' tales. Almost all of them say I'm having a girl, and this "psychic" on a site I visit gave me the following reading:

Madame Zaritska, our resident clairvoyant, wants to help you prepare for the arrival of your child. Here she does her best to predict certain aspects of your labor and birth experience.

What she senses for you
The day you deliver, outside will be cloudy. Your baby will arrive in wee hours of the morning .

After a labor lasting approximately 7 hours, your child, a girl, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 7 pounds, 3 ounces, and will be 19-1/2 inches long. This child will have green eyes and a lot of hair.

I guess we'll see how right she is in February!

speechless

2007-08-18T15:15:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here, watching the radar. A gigantic storm formed in the Dakotas last night and has proceeded to march across Minnesota and Wisconsin today. Are we getting any of it? No!

Nearly the entire southern part of Wisconsin is covered in green, rainy goodness, and there sits our little northern sliver, as brown as it is in real life. The northern bit of the storm actually disappears as it heads toward us. It's surreal - kind of like we have some sort of anti-rain forcefield around us.

For the record, the last time we had any measurable rain was on July 26. Only one more week and we will have gone an entire month with no significant rainfall. I'm starting to hope for a ton of snow this winter, even if it turns mud season into need-a-boat-to-reach-the-road season.

wawafault

2007-08-14T14:22:00.000-05:00

This past Friday Alden and I went on a hike to Morgan Falls. I wasn't sure how it would go with me being his only minder and him being a crazy water-nut. I figured it couldn't hurt to try, so we made the short drive.

The hike in went really well. He absolutely loved the falls, and it didn't take much time for him to jump in the water. At one point he tried to climb the rockface like some older kids who were there, but I convinced him to climb a downed tree instead.

We met a couple who had hiked in with a 3 1/2-year-old girl, an 18-month-old boy and a newborn girl (maybe less than two months old). They carried the newborn, and the other two walked most of the way. Morgan Falls is near a beautiful overlook called St. Peter's Dome. The woman asked me if they would be okay hiking up there with their kids. I suggested she wait until they were older since there are a couple of steep rock falls you need to clamber up to get there, and the dome itself is a cliff that falls about 75 feet or so. Not exactly a toddler safe place, and they didn't have anything other than their arms to carry the kids with.

On our walk back to the car, Alden and I unintentionally played tag with the family, with one of us getting ahead and then stopping to look at a butterfly or interesting leaf. The other group would then catch up, and we would trade off who led the way out of the woods. At the very end we said good-bye, and then I let Alden wander down to play near a bridge (the kid loves bridges!) and in a small stream. He scrambled under the bridge, and looked back at me with a grin of sheer joy.

I guess that means things went well, right? Hehe. Believe me, we'll be doing it again as often as possible before the snow flies.

Critque me, baby!

2007-08-10T21:25:00.000-05:00

Alright, folks. I really need your opinions on The Gardening Journal Web site. I'm not getting a lot of traffic yet, and I want to make sure the content is good before I go whole-hog trying to drag people through the door.

So, git thee over to The Gardening Journ al, and tell me what you think. Do you like the designs I have in the shop? Do you think my tone is casual and humorous in the journal? Too much advertising? Easy to navigate? Not enough content (I know the articles need work - I have several in draft form right now)?

Thoughts, comments and criticisms are all welcome. Thanks!

Over there, over there, there's a bear, over there.

2007-08-09T21:31:00.000-05:00

The dogs had been barking on and off this evening. I wandered outside the first time to see a rabbit nibbling grass in the front yard. After a bit of shooing, it ran away.

The second round of barking came after sunset, but with a wee bit of light left to still see. All the dogs faced the chicken coop as I went out to check on things. Thinking a deer had meandered in for a drink at the pond, I went to shoo it away, too. Instead of the regular whitetail, though, I saw a small black bear lumbering off through the trees.

Yep. We now have a bear frequenting our yard. I'm glad we don't have a bee hive up yet, and I'm a little worried about the chicken coop because bears have been known to break into them and run off with both chickens and eggs. The dogs should be safe, (I've been Googling like mad, and everything says bears will more than likely leave dogs alone.)

So, I guess this means we need to clean up the spilled cracked corn, cover the compost and secure our garbage cans. We'll also need to hold off on feeding birds until late winter. Hopefully our little bear friend will save us some trouble and go over to eat from our neighbor's garbage instead.

Plans for house & garden

2007-08-06T16:20:00.000-05:00

I'm gearing up for a ton of gardening in August. Current plans include digging the herb garden (which has been fallow for three years), digging the northeast entrance bed and laying out a couple of rain gardens to hold our roof run-off water. I also need to drag a large tree out of the garden (it fell during a storm we had a week-and-a-half ago). Then, I'll be fixing the garden fence to keep out the pesky rabbits (who managed to wait until everything was ready to harvest to venture in there this year). So, there's a fair bit of work to be done.

We have some rather ambitious plans for our house, too. Stage one starts this month with a fix to the dormers (new windows, siding and paint). Then, we'll move on to finishing the paint on all the wood work. September will be loaded with more painting inside, and I have high hopes for redoing the entry way (money and time will be the deciding factors, here).

This past weekend we made a road map of sorts for what we will do and when. I'd really like to write it all down, so I'm thinking of starting a home renovation notebook. I'll include these paint chips, which I finally managed to pull together from a mass of them that I've had for years. Here's a color key for you: Hot Ember and Honey Pot will be our new kitchen colors, Flagstaff will greet visitors in our entry way, Flower Pot is just a lighter, gentler shade to tone down the Tequila Sunrise orange currently in the entry hall, Song of Summer will be the color of our living room and dining room and Eucalyptus will be in the bathroom.

And, yes, I am still pregnant. Can you say nesting?

Catchin' rays and catchin' up

2007-08-06T16:06:00.000-05:00

We've been at the beach for 11 of the past 15 days. Yep, we're lushes. We've squeezed these trips in around some temp work I'm doing at The Daily Press and a bit of house work. So, so good!

blast furnace

2007-07-26T09:02:00.000-05:00

Whine, whine, whine, hot! Mutter, mutter, mutter 90 degrees at 8:30 in the morning! Blah, blah, blah, humid!

(Is it me or do I sound like a bitchy Henrietta Pussycat from Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood? More later.)

crabby

2007-07-18T21:40:00.000-05:00

I don't remember being this bitchy when I was pregnant with Alden. Perhaps I was too busy with work to notice. Either way, I'm finding all sorts of little things to be irritated with tonight: my Web site, the cats, my computer. It really is a little amusing if I stop to think about it.

Here's hoping my sunny side shows up tomorrow. Meh.

strawberry pickin'

2007-07-15T20:37:00.000-05:00

We made our annual sojourn to Don's Berry Patch today. Right during lunch and nap time. It was a slightly abbreviated trip.

I picked the bulk of the 10 pounds of strawberries we came home with because AJ had to chase Alden around the entire edge of a 40 acre field. Yeah, it was like that. AJ managed to wrangle The Boy long enough to pick some berries with me, and then we headed home - for lunch and a nap, of course.

I planned to make some strawberry jam with all these berries, but I ran out of pectin. So, I'm flash freezing them. Maybe I'll jam next weekend.

Back from another blogging break and BIG NEWS!

2007-07-13T14:13:00.000-05:00

Well, nearly a month later, I'm getting back into the swing of things. As promised, I have big news to share, but first I want to tell you all about our 4th of July, wedding celebration trip.

Before we left, we managed to head up to Corny Beach for our favorite fireworks display. What a great way to celebrate our anniversary. (It was on June 30, and we celebrated 6 years of legally bound togetherness for anyone who wants to know). Alden chanted, "Fireworks! Fireworks! Fireworks!" for the entire time we were at the beach. He loves the light AND the noise.

"Fireworks boom! Fireworks pop!"

Once our car was fixed (the fuel pump broke) we hit the road, off on our whirlwind tour to see my little sister get married. AJ drove the whole way there and back because I wasn't feeling well and didn't feel comfortable driving in all the traffic. He's such a rock star!

A sleepy traveler with a water bottle pillow.

We had some last minute things to prepare, then my sister whisked me off to Mirabeau Inn & Spa. I'm definitely going back there, if only to sleep on their foot thick mattresses and eat their to-die-for veggie and cheese frittatta with fresh croissants (in my bathrobe, of course).

The gardens at Mirabeau Inn & Spa

The first of many calls from the groom on The Big Day.

Both weddings were lovely, but I only have a few pictures from the castle wedding because, while I wasn't in that one, my camera batteries died moments into the ceremony (jeez!). The castle loomed large as we arrived by boat, and the grounds held surprise after surprise (a mini-castle built for the kids that included a bowling alley and a stage!).

Boldt Castle outside of Alexandria Bay, NY (photo by AJ)

All in all, it was one busy, crazy time. I have plenty of other stories I could share, but I'll leave it here in the interest of not boring you, dear reader. We're definitely glad to be home, and I'm happy my sister is finally hitched to a pretty decent fellow.

MY BIG NEWS
I have been furiously working on my Web site since the whole job fiasco back in May. What might surprise you, though, is that it's not my art site. My art site needs a lot more work, and I really had to create something that could bring in some money sooner rather than later.

So, it is with great pride (and a little trepidation) that I announce my new Web site, The Gardening Journal. It has links to gardening sites all over the Web, how-to garden tips and reviews and news from the gardening world. I will be adding a shop (T-shirts, books, journals, old gardening stuff), a newsletter and some book reviews in the near future. It definitely will be growing a lot more this winter since my time won't be sucked up by my own garden.

I hope to use this site as a portfolio to gain magazine and newspaper writing gigs. I'm also hoping to get some money from advertising revenue. I still have a little tidying up to do before I really go public with the site (press releases, forum postings, business cards), but I'm so excited about finally getting something out there. What do you think?

Oh, and one more bit of news. Sometime in June I saw this:

That's right! We're expecting Beestling 2.0 sometime around Valentine's Day of 2008. It's going to be a busy year ahead, but I'm really excited!

poof

2007-06-20T22:30:00.000-05:00

I'm stepping in to say I've been terrible busy, and am so sorry for not keeping you all up-to-date. See, I've been doing a lot of this:

Normal posting will resume in July, with a couple of BIG announcements for you. (Oh, the drama! The suspense!)

Say hello to Merlot

2007-05-30T16:46:00.000-05:00

We added a new member to our family this week. I'm still swooning. It's not animal, vegetable or mineral. It is, however, a Volkswagen Passat!

Meet Merlot! (We name all our vehicles, and Merlot was an easy pick for this girl.) AJ says she's peppy, and fun. Now I just need to relearn how to drive a stick to see just how peppy and fun she can be.

Sadly, this means our big, blue Nellie has been put out to pasture. While I'm glad to have a new car, Nellie has been through a lot since we bought her in 1998.

We found her in Wadena, Minnesota, when we lived out thattaway. She came back to Ashland with us, and ferried us to New York (twice), the Twin Cities and to the camp where AJ's dad used to work. We put nearly 140,000 miles on her.

One of my fondest memories of the old girl is letting Cobalt out of her cat carrier on long trips to ride up on the big rear dash. Cobalt stretched out in the sunshine, and watched the world whiz by. Talk about a great way to travel!

random Wednesday: wonderful weekend

2007-05-30T16:30:00.000-05:00

Okay, I know Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, but we had such a great time, I thought I would share some pics.

Saturday I spent 5 hours in the garden. It's a third planted, and I hope to finish the vegetables this week.

Sunday we went over to Dan and Krista's for a BBQ. We got to catch up with our friends from Missouri, and Alden had a chance to ride the "tractor."

Monday we went car shopping, and then hit the beach. Alden loves the swings in particular.

Alden also loves throwing stones into the lake. We've been going to one particular playground that's right on the waterfront. He dips his toes in the water no matter what the weather.

It was a busy, lovely weekend. I think we've finally recovered from a whirlwind of activity this month, so normal posting will resume this week.

random Wednesday: diggin' in

2007-05-23T13:02:00.001-05:00

Blueberries in waiting

I just spent the past half-hour in the garden digging and weeding. The blueberry bushes I bought a few weeks ago seem to love their spot under the pine at the edge of our plot. Upon inspecting last year's untouched patch, I found dozens of tomato plants (good thing I just bought some yesterday!), garlic I managed to not harvest last fall (a bonus, since we didn't plant any replacements!) and flowers on my strawberries (only a few weeks until harvest!).

We have had rabbit problems in the past, but it appears we now have two strays taking care of these pesky leaf nibblers (along with the trucks on the highway - I just discovered the bunny I saw just a few mornings ago has taken the fast way to that great lettuce patch in the sky). Thankfully, we haven't had any deer problems. The dogs keep them at bay.

I hope to have the entire plot planted by the end of this weekend. Our seed list has stayed pretty close to what we actually eat. We'll have watermelon, tomatoes, lettuce, peas, carrots, beets, cucumbers, pumpkins and some herbs, and I can't wait to bite into the first pick of the summer - yum!

around town Tuesday: hanging with Joy and Finn

2007-05-22T12:33:00.000-05:00

Alden and I wandered down to visit with Finn and Joy today. We had a great time playing in the creek and running around in their huge yard. I forgot to take any pics, so you get Mr. I-Can-Drive here. More later.

muddle puddle poodle noodle

2007-05-14T21:29:00.000-05:00

I'm afraid I've made a mess of this job business, but it has all turned out for the greater good (or, rather, my greater good).

In sum, I was offered the manager position at a local cultural center. When I asked about a raise in starting salary (since I'm their top-candidate, and have everything they are looking for and more), they told me I could expect a $1 increase after a three month performance review, but the job would never pay more than $15/hour. Not a totally unexpected response, but I wasn't left with much to negotiate after that.

I found out in my first interview that the hours would be Monday through Thursday from 10 to 4. I spent the last two weeks (since applying for the job and being interviewed) trying to figure out how to set up child care and afford it. After getting their offer (and having no movement on the salary), I asked about changing to three 8-hour days instead of four 6-hour days (which were the hours I was told initially).

Tonight, the board secretary called to ask for my decision. She told me the board agreed to my request for changing the job to three days per week temporarily (it would go to four days after three months). I told her it wouldn't work for me that way because I would be paying for full-time child care on a part-time salary.

She went ballistic when I declined the job offer. I was flabbergasted! A simple, "I'm sorry we couldn't work it out. Thank you for your time. Would you be interested in volunteering with us?" would have been great. Instead I received an earful about how I should have never applied if I knew I might not accept the job. She just went on and on about what a terrible thing I had done to them.

So, here's a draft of a letter I am sending to the board, since I really wouldn't mind doing some volunteer work for them:

Dear board members,

Thank you for offering me the Cultural Center Manager position. I know you have very hard jobs as volunteers, and I can appreciate all the time and effort that went into this process. I am sorry that I am unable to accept your job offer at this time.

I’m sure my decision caused some confusion (and possibly anger) considering what I said in my interviews, and I hope you believe me when I say all my interactions with you were both truthful and sincere. Until this weekend, I still felt I could accept this position by coming up with a solution to meet all our needs through negotiations and some creative juggling on my part.

As I mentioned to A. on the phone, I am still interested in donating my time and skills to the cultural center. I would love working with you to redesign your newsletter or to create any other promotional items you might need. Please call me if you are interested.

Thank you again for all your time and energy. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to accept your offer, but I hope we can work together in the future, and, as I said in my interview, make the cultural center bigger, better and stronger.

Sincerely,
Meagan Van Beest

###

I've learned a couple of things from this process. First, this experience has made me realize I can't work for other people (aka "The Man") unless they communicate well. Second, I need to find a real work-from-home job because I'll be done watching Finn in September.

I am picking up writing again since that seems like an obvious solution. However, the real gift of this whole fiasco has to be that I am finally going to start my art marketing business. For real. I have the domain name, a business plan and all the ideas. Now, I'm going to take the leap.

Stay tuned, and watch me fly.

A happy Mother's Day

2007-05-13T22:07:00.000-05:00

I had a glorious day today (and a fabulous weekend overall). Before going to breakfast with the boys this morning, I opened the door to find this greeting on the stoop:

Makes you smile, doesn't it? (Of course, it doesn't. It probably makes you want to hurl, but please play along to protect my fragile sanity, m'kay?)

Anyway, this weekend, I spent many hours in the garden as a treat to myself (c'mon, don't you find manual labor relaxing?). The flower bed on one side of our entryway needed some tidying after I unceremoniously threw some plants in that general direction last year. I dug in, and managed to finish everything except the new gravel drainage area that goes under the eaves.

I added a brownstone walkway to make it easier to weed, and moved a bunch of the plants around. For once, I really thought about plant pairings, including leaf shape, plant size and flower color. I am a landscape rock star! (Oh my. That was a terribly unexpected pun. Sorry about that. If you don't see it, please move along now. There you go.)

Crabgrass ate nearly all of this area last year, so I also laid down some cypress mulch. (It smells heavenly, but I'm going to look for a local product since we're trying to be more sustainable-minded in our purchasing habits - you know, "Save-the-planet! Cut me down some trees and shred 'em up so I don't have to weed every stinkin' day.") I hope to spend more time enjoying the garden this summer, and less time avoiding it because I can't stand the sight of all that crabgrass (It makes me feel lazy. I know that I am, and I don't need my garden to point it out to everyone who passes by.)

Tomorrow, I'll have a longer update, with news about some big changes coming up for me. (I got a job offer! I'm not taking it! I'm still "getting a job." No, I don't know what that means, either.) Hope all you moms had a lovely day! Me and my parenthetical phrases are going to bed (no, really!).

(lack of) april showers

2007-05-01T20:20:00.000-05:00

Hi there. Remember me? I took a nice, loooooong blogging break. It was planned. I didn't tell you. Sorry.

The month of April tends to be a hard one around here, and I didn't need to whine about it on my blog. Fortunately, April turned out to be superiffic in so many ways, and I want to post (almost) daily from now on.

April didn't bring much rain up here, so our fire season might turn out to be a doozy. A forest fire burned about 1200 acres just south of us. AJ and I tried to chase it down on our way to our friends' house for dinner. We would have had to go another 20 miles or so to see flames, but here is what it looked like about a mile from our house on Sunday.

This past weekend we saw the Bloomquists twice - at the park for brats and beer (I made a delicious strawberry trifle, but didn't get a pic), and then down at their place for grilled pizza and kite flying. The guys have been learning to play guitar, and managed to fit in a jam session just before sunset on Sunday.

We have had lovely temps, and my flowers dig the warmth and the little bit of moisture we have had. Here's the first blooming perennial, a bergenia. I just love these plants - they're evergreen and bloom early.

As for crafting and thrifting, I haven't really been doing either. Thrifting has mostly yielded summer clothes and toys for The Boy, while crafting has taken an indefinite hiatus because of the never-ending studio redo (I will say that the end is in sight, but I've been the procrastination queen when it comes to the one thing that will finish it up - painting my cabinet). With garden season in full-swing, I'm not sure how much of either I'll squeeze in this month.

Hope you had a lovely May Day! I'll leave you with today's sunset.

magazine giveaway

2007-03-20T09:44:00.000-05:00

As part of my still ongoing studio redo, I have been sorting my magazines. I started with over 400, and have looked through maybe 300 so far.

I have about 150 magazines (with more to come this week) that I need to get rid of soon. I could easily put them up on Freecycle or Craigslist, but I thought it might be fun to see if anyone here would want any first.

The majority of them are:

House Beautiful
Country Living
Better Homes & Gardens
Cottage Living
Country Home
This Old House
Old House Journal
Martha Stewart Living (taken)
Real Simple (taken)
Midwest Living

I also have a bunch of random magazines about gardening, country crafts, decorating, remodeling, fashion and family life.

All the magazines have been well-read (meaning they might have torn covers or coffee spills). Plus, while the majority still have all their pages, I did rip some articles out here and there. They date anywhere from the 90s(!) on through to last month.

If you'd like any of these magazines, leave your email address and which ones you want in a comment here. We'll work out the details from there.

Update: I found a large stash of Midwest Living, so I added that to the list. Also, when a specific title gets taken, I'll post that so no one needs to wonder. Thanks!
Update #2: All of the magazines have found new homes. Thanks for all the interest!

tag sale tales: thrifting with little people

2007-03-19T14:38:00.000-05:00

Another new post over at tag sale tales. Go check it out.

spring fling

2007-03-19T14:08:00.000-05:00

Now that I've (almost) finished tackling my studio, I've been contemplating changes to the rest of our house. I feel like a mama bird about to tidy up her nest - ha!

Our kitchen could really use a facelift (an understatement if ever there was one). Between the faux-brick wall paneling and the dark, nearly-black-but-not-quite cabinets, I'm ready for a change. While we can't afford a dramatic overhaul, we can afford some paint and other fixes. I present to you my kitchen inspiration:

(photo from Pottery Barn, Holiday 2005 catalog)

I'll paint our cabinets red for sure. And the cheesy 70s brass cabinet pulls will be exchanged for some brushed nickel ones. As for the wall color, I think I'll choose something on the creamy, yellowish side. The beige just won't fulfill my color lust. All the trim and the ceiling will get bathed in white. In the picture here, you can see a little bit of the ceiling beams. We have a similar ceiling, but it is that same dark-brown-to-the-point-of-nearly-being-black. (Did I hear a collective gasp from those of you who love our ceiling? Sorry, but I can't stand the darkness anymore!) I guess the only thing still to be determined are light fixture changes. I'd like some pendant lights like the ones in the picture, but that might be out of our budget right now.

Then, there's the living room. I found a beautiful wool rug at Target for cheap. It's a lovely green Persian with red accents. The walls are a greyish green. It's starting to look like moss grew all over everything in there, so I really want to warm it up. Here's my living room inspiration pic:

(photo from Home magazine, May 2004)

I have a lovely, old rocking chair that reminds me of the chair in the pic. Right now it has (surprise!) a green upholstered seat. That will be an easy fix, and I'm sure I can find a mix of fabrics for the pillows. The big stumper right now is the rug. I can't find it (although I'm sure it's a Pottery Barn rug from 2003 or so). I did find a similar one in the current Pottery Barn catalog, so that's what I might get if something closer doesn't turn up when I'm actually ready to buy.

Finally, we have the dining room (sorry, no inspirational picture for this room). The green rug from the living room will move into the dining room. The walls will get a covering of paint called "Spicy curry." It's a deep red that matches the bricks in our chimney. I think I'll spiff up the light fixture, too. It needs a coat of matte black paint, and some little lamp shades instead of the etched glass globes it has now.

I'm hoping to get a lot of what we need (besides paint) either second-hand (thank you craigslist!) or deeply discounted. I'm really excited to get going on these fixes, but I won't be able to start until maybe May or June. So, stay tuned!

daffodil days

2007-03-14T22:11:00.000-05:00

I had a doctor's appointment on Friday, and noticed bunches of daffodils everywhere I went. Their yellow goodness tempted me in the waiting room, at the bank, in great big bunches for sale at the grocery store. But I resisted them all. I resisted because I know that my yellow daffies will pop awake from their winter slumber in just a few short weeks. I know this because I saw their green tips poking through the ground yesterday. So, I will wait.

It's been feeling springy here ...

2007-03-12T21:10:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd give my blog a fresh look for spring. It might start changing more often now that I can find my way around code a little bit (and now that I've found a layout I like!).

What do you think?

oh snow!

2007-03-02T21:33:00.000-06:00

Things have finally settled down here, but oh what a ride we've had today! It looks as though we've had about two feet of snow in the past 24 hours. All of that has drifted in places to three or four feet deep.

To pass the time, we watched some movies, played with trains, read some books and tried to do some sledding. The snow was too deep for Alden's little sled, so he and I ran around the yard a little bit.

The northeast winds have created several cornices on the back of our house. They look as though they'll topple off at any minute. Amazing and beautiful!

there's a lion at my door

2007-03-01T18:27:00.000-06:00

Rawr! Happy March!

We're all hunkered down, riding out an amazing blizzard with wind gusts of 50 to 60 mph and a couple feet of snow expected before things settle down tomorrow. Have you seen this monster storm system?

(map from intellicast.com)

We have the head of it, and these storms always dump a bunch of snow on us. The tops rotate counterclockwise, picking up moisture from Lake Superior and then dropping tons of flakes on us with a stiff northeast wind. Nor'easters also tend to linger a little longer than other storms. The snow started late last night with just a few flakes, and is expected to be heaviest tonight. Forecasters expect things to finally settle down sometime Saturday.

Remember that warm-and-melty sunset pic I took the other day? Here's the same vantage point at about 3 p.m. today:

White out, baby!

We've been watching this storm trek here since earlier this week, and I went into prep mode yesterday. Besides fresh water and canned food and matches and flashlight batteries, I made sure I had these:

I picked up a couple magazines at the store, and then came home to several more in my mailbox. They're all decorating/how-to types with some inspiring ideas for the remodeling we've been planning. I grabbed a cuppa peppermint tea and browsed through these while the boy napped.

AJ will probably take off from work tomorrow. They closed the highway he usually drives to and from the courthouse, so he needed to take an alternate route home. We will truly have a snow day tomorrow.

What do you do to pass the time when you're housebound? I think we'll be watching movies and then going out to play in all the snow. Maybe I'll even get some crafting done, and perhaps we'll play some cards and games. Any other ideas?

random Wednesday: a little bit of sick

2007-02-28T14:37:00.000-06:00

We're in round 5 of sickness here in the Van Beest household.

Since New Year's Eve we have had ... ahem ... stomach flu, then sinisitus, a nasty case of conjunctivitus, then stomach flu (part deux), and now an icktastic cold virus (if I wasn't so sick, I'm sure I could come up with some sort of song and dance number for this list).

Here's the boy at 10 a.m. on Monday:

Sleeping! My crazy, run-around-til-you-hold-me-down-to-go-to-sleep boy has been taking two naps a day because he can't manage a full night of rest, what with the hacking cough and faucet-like nose drippage.

AJ stayed home to nurse us yesterday (it was apparently his turn not to get sick). When I peeked out the front door at about 7 a.m., I saw this:

Ice fog! It coated every little branch with frosty, icy whiteness, and filtered the morning light so beautifully. I almost forgot I was sick, and wanted to run out to snap some pics.

In spite of all the moping about, and hacking, and wheezing, I have had a decent week so far. Besides the goodness that was calzones on Sunday night, and massive amounts of sorting as I put my studio back together, I also received several things that I ordered from Target. The last one arrived in my mailbox today:

Notice anything, um, similar? I'm not sure why, but I seem to get on these color kicks, wherein I collect things in one particular shade. This vase and bowl match the Japanese mugs I keep going on about. Come to think of it, they also match a piece of artwork I did last year for the 12x12 show held by the local arts council. Maybe I'm just lovin' this color.

(By the way, Flea Market Style was just thrown in there to hold up my bowl, but it is new. AJ presented it to me for my birthday. I highly recommend it if you like thrifting, and want to incorporate your finds into your home.)

How has your week been so far?

tag sale tales: the start of something good

2007-02-24T22:11:00.000-06:00

I forgot to mention I posted something new over at tag sale tales the other day. Go. Read. Now.

a great find!

2007-02-23T21:20:00.000-06:00

You all know I love finding things, especially unexpected miscellanea from the universe. I hold onto these gifts (lost earrings, pencil nubs, buttons, etc.) for some unknown future project.

I've found my share of paper bits, and was happy to discover a place for people like me over at FOUND Magazine today (via a blog I can't remember ... one of these days I'll write these connections down!). Go take a look. I spent a good amount of time browsing through their find of the day archives, and think I might have some things to share there.

I hope you find something that makes you smile!

what did I say about sunsets?

2007-02-21T18:46:00.000-06:00

Wednesday, February 21, 2007. 46 degrees. My backyard. Melt water pools. Spectacular colors.