5 Minutes

So, here I am, back at it after over 3 months. And what a 3 months it has been. We have had so many milestones and amazing moments that I want to write about and I will. But I have found that I feel overwhelmed with catching up on all of the events over the past several months, so much so that I just avoid getting on here and trying to "get it all out".

So, one of the many weekends that I will remember for a long time is the weekend in mid October that we spent in Albuquerque with my cousins and their families and my aunt and uncle. I have two cousins - Romy and Rachel. Romy is my sister's age and Rachel is my age. Rachel and I actually took the initiative and planned a trip for us (Greg and Landon and I along with Linda and Evi - Cullyn stayed in Denver to run part of the Rock n Roll marathon) to come see them. It was a short visit but great. There is a part of me that feels really connected to the southwest and the Native American spirit, and whenever I am in Albuquerque I get recharged.

Here are some photos from our weekend there:

I love this picture.  Evi is old enough to at least sit still for a picture, and Silver (far right) can't move yet so he has no choice!  But my kid?  He was an expert crawler on our trip and couldn't be bothered to stay in one place - and if I tried to force the issue like I did for this photo, he let everyone know he wasn't happy.  So much for the cute shot of the kids at the Albuquerque Zoo.

Above are some shots of the cousins and their families.  Romy is to the left and Rachel is next to her with Baby Silver.  The bottom photo is of Rachel's husband Joel with Silver, and of course Greg and Landon.

On Saturday night, we had dinner at my Uncle Joe and Aunt Gina's house.  First of all, that is just about as close to my dream house as I have seen lately.  A huge yard with lots of plantlife and even a garden nook, an art studio for my aunt, private offices for my uncle and my aunt and a reading lounge for my uncle, a published author who is working on his second novel.  All the photos above are from this dinner - the kids playing together, my uncle, Romy, etc.  The photo below is a photo of what would probably be my favorite part of the house - books and music side by side!

So, many magical conversations happened this night with my 15 family members.  The one I think that will have the most lasting effect was the one between my uncle and my husband.  Greg has been struggling lately with how to make more time for music and really go for it.  He has a great job but it isn't what he went to school for, and sometimes I think he thinks he sold out, even though he loves what he is doing.  Then there is life - the kid, the wife, the family, the whole bit.  The thing that always gets sidelined is music.  As stated before, my uncle just published a novel about two years ago to critical praise.  It took him many, many years to realize his dream of becoming a novelist.  As I was chasing Landon around the backyard, snippets of their conversation drifted over to me, and the piece that I will also take and grow from is "5 minutes".  Uncle Joe was telling Greg that life does get in the way of art, over and over.  But if you just make it a priority to spend 5 minutes a day on your passion, JUST 5 MINUTES, you will get there.  I thought about my blog and about writing in general.  I love writing - it is truly a passion of mine.  I just need to take 5 minutes a day to WRITE.  It may not mean in this blog - I also have an open letter to my son that I have been writing for 2 years and counting (and will continue to write until he leaves my house), I write in a journal for me, I write in Landon's baby book and in Landon's journal, and I have a grateful journal. 

I figure if I can just allocate 5 minutes a day and take it out of my sleep time, I will be a happier, more fulfilled person.  So, there will be more blog entries here, and hopefully my passion will be reignited. 
I leave you with these last 2 photos - pictures of the car ride on the way home.  Cousins napping together, and Landon amusing himself with a book.  I hope the reading bug lasts.

I Think Landon Reads My Blog

So, the kid woke up at 11:15 today. And he is now sitting on the floor playing with toys. Yes, toys. As in the things we (or others) buy for him to keep him stimulated, versus the things he typically finds intriguing such as the computer on/off button, the papers in the entertainment center and the remote controls. He isn't getting into anything he shouldn't either. I don't know what to do with myself, actually.

It's as if he is trying to make this day blissful so that yesterday is a distant memory. I think he was just unhappy that he was portrayed in not the most positive light yesterday. Actually, come to think of it, he really had little to do with yesterday's crap other than waking up early.

But anyway, just wanted to go on the record saying that today is 180 degrees versus yesterday.

Whew. Thanks for listening.

Some Days are Just Too Much

Wow. Summer is finally winding down and my 5 weekends straight of traveling are behind me (what a great few weeks! Did people say that life slows down when you have a baby? Hmm.... haven't seen that yet. More on my/our travels later).

Today's post, however, is pure, unadulterated BITCHING. WHINING. FEELING SORRY FOR MYSELF. It is one of those days.

L woke up at 8. Yes, 8 is a nice time for a normal baby to wake up, but not my kid. He sleeps until 10, leaving me time to get my coffee and breakfast and get at least a couple of hours of work in. Nope. The condo was hot as hell because of near record breaking temps yesterday, and we weren't home to have the A/C on so the place was a sauna for most of the day today. Then there was the condo showing this afternoon. Yes, this should be a good thing but after countless showings and no bites, we have pretty much lost hope that anything will happen until we take it off the market in the fall and make some small improvements. So even after I stuck L in the pack and play and put on a Yo Gabba Gabba episode from On Demand (yes, I am a bad mother, blah blah blah), I wasn't able to catch up on work because I was scurrying all over the house cleaning for the showing. Those of you who know me know that I am not a cleaning person, and cleaning makes me bitchy. ESPECIALLY cleaning in a hot condo without coffee, knowing that I didn't get jack done for work. I fed L and we hung out for a bit, which improved my mood slightly, and I was able to put him down for a morning nap after a bit of squawking on his part (my kid doesn't typically take a morning nap because the morning is basically over by the time he wakes up!) I was able to get some work done, including hopefully contacting a new group that will be signing up this week, so my mood was improved. G came home for lunch and also scurried around the house cleaning, and he was frustrated too ("What is the point of cleaning when we know that they won't put an offer in.") Good to know that the hot condo pisses everyone off, not just me. We got L and Snap out of the house into the car and then I drove around trying to beat the heat. The prospects showed which was good - I would have lost it if they didn't. L of course has not had an afternoon nap yet, so after the prospects left (I stalk most of my prospects by parking the car across the street and watching them), I get Snap and L and everything back in the still hot condo and try to tuck him in. Screaming for 30 minutes. OK, so much for the nap. I pick him up and wait for G to get home so I can go to the chiropractor. Yeah, I probably didn't mention that my back is having issues. One chiro diagnosed me as having a herniated disc, but then I went to another one who correctly diagnosed me with facet syndrome something or other, which is basically having to do with my muscles (yes, G, you properly diagnosed it, too). So, I run all over the house with L in tow trying to change and pack up and get ready for the appt and then I get L in the car and sit in the hot car waiting for G. This was a low point in my day because I got to reflect on how shitty the day was. We go to the appointment and then to CostCo. Things progress normally throughout the evening, G makes dinner, I give L a bath and then when we get to tuck in time IT happens. He refuses THE BOOB. It is actually perfect timing because I was going to wean him at his first birthday (which is in a week and 3 days! Holy Crap!), but seeing him wriggle and whine about the boob (we are supplementing formula for one feeding a day to get him weaned), was just the cherry on top of the crappy sundae that has been my day. And of course since I didn't get any work done, what usually is a nice Monday night without G after L goes to bed (this is the night where he plays music with two of his friends) has turned into work, work, work. I am usually able to watch crap television and read. So I did watch a little crap television and I drank a beer and now I am blogging before going back to work at almost 10pm.

I have these days every once in awhile - where L seems to totally not have any stability in his schedule (we are so not schedule people but 99% of the time L goes with the flow and lets us have this crazy life), where nothing is going right, where I don't get any time to work which then means no "me" time, and where I get discouraged. Typically, the day after these crappy days I am Polly Positive which I am sure leads G to believe that I need to go on meds. So, I will take a shower, try to work a little, maybe watch something on hulu, and wait for this day to end so I can wake up on the right side of the bed tomorrow.

G, thank you for knowing the perfect mix of staying silent, empathizing and getting riled up with me. I am "reflecting" right this moment, as you l0ve to say.

Good night all.

Drums Along the Rockies

WHAT A CRAZY SUMMER! So much to tell but I just can't sit in one place long enough to post anything, what with our crazy schedule and Landon's increasing mobility!

Let's see.... after the trip out East, we had a chill weekend at my parents' for the 4th of July. Amy and Dave came up and Greg and Dave were able to do some biking while Amy and I were able to do some sitting, our activity of choice for this weekend.

The next weekend was Drums Along the Rockies, the annual drum corps competition in Denver and an annual reunion of sorts for the activity that Greg and I were such a big part of. Last year, due to my overall miserableness (yes, I just made up a word) with being almost 8 months pregnant, I didn't go. This was the first Drums that I hadn't attended since 1989. So I was definitely ready to go this year. And even though I didn't actually go into the show (my typical MO on Drums night), it was one of the best Drums nights ever! So many faces from that past that I hadn't seen in years. Here are some pics....

This is Kimber, my friend from the hornline in 1994 and 1995. I hadn't seen her in 15 years!

This is Char, one of my best friends during the first half of my drum corps years. I haven't seen her in 8 years. We used to write letters to each other when we were in high school (before e-mail and cell phones). I still have them, and I think she does too, so one of these nights we are pouring some wine, spreading them all out on the floor and having a good laugh while reading about our high school dramas! She just moved back to Denver from Chicago so I am hoping I get to see her regularly now!

No Drums would be complete without a picture of the besties. All we are missing is Jenny who wasn't able to attend.

This is a pic of my friends Mike Brown (left) and Jon Eichelberger (right). It was great to see them both! Mike lives in California and I don't think I have seen him since we aged out together in 95. Jon and I see each other now and then - he was YOUNG when we marched together in 95 and I had to do some dance move around him and then fall to the ground and grab his thigh..... I felt a little weird about it seeing as how he was barely 15 if I remember correctly! I felt like a dirty old woman, or I guess what is now called a COUGAR.

This is a picture of Kimber and I and my friend Nicole - she was another really close friend from 93 and 95 and we also went to CU together. She lives in Vegas now, but it is nice that she comes to visit regularly!

Here is another picture of some good friends. Jonette (marched 92-95), Amy and Cristy (no footnote needed!) and AnaLisa, a very close friend (and former college roomie!) that marched with me from 92-95 and has stayed close ever since.

Lastly, here is a picture of me and my friend Allison. She didn't march Blue Knights, but she was a KC girl that was in Pomona's band and we were close in high school.

It was truly a great night. Many pictures weren't taken with people that I really enjoyed reconnecting with. Michelle Watson was the best and not only babysat, but picked Landon up from Drums at 6p (we wanted him to come with us for a couple hours) and stayed until 1am.

It is so great to know that once a year, people know where to show up and they do. It puts the high school reunions I plan to shame. But I think that is because all of us did a lot more than go to high school together. We spent 24 hours a day together and travelled an average of 11,000 miles together every summer. It is such an amazing experience and I am so glad I was a part of it and met so many people there. I met my best friends there. I indirectly met my husband through the activity (we never marched together and we are so glad of that fact, because we never would have ended up together if we did).

So, I will continue on starting with mid July in my next post. Stay tuned!

Just another day....

So, I have hit 36. It's OK. Not too traumatic, really. Yes, late thirties.... blah, blah, blah. I am doing fine with this so far. Ask me in another few months.

The day started with G making me waffles. This is a lovely birthday start, although to be honest G makes breakfast a lot. It doesn't mean I am not grateful, it just means that my husband rocks most days of the year.

L woke up at his usual time (10am - I LOVE that kid) and we then headed out to Colorado Springs. The drive was nice, but hot. We drove to Garden of the Gods, got a map, stuck L in the wonderful baby backpack my sister handed down and off we went. The hike was GREAT other than the fact that a couple that was stopped ahead of us asked if we had seen the Diamondback Rattlesnake that just crossed the trail. Um, no. I would have been perched atop the baby backpack squealing like a child. We took some great pictures and got up close to the Siamese Twins. It was only about a mile and a half and it was an easy hike (slow rises, well managed trails, etc.) but it was great for our first hike with the backpack. L did great in it - he really seemed to like it - I wasn't so sure he would since it was a HOT day and I figured that being in an enclosed space would only make it hotter. But he seemed to enjoy looking out over the countryside. We plan to hike the next three weekends in a row.

We then drove to the Broadmoor where we were joined at the Tavern by my parents and by Linda and her family. A great meal, L did great, and a yummy birthday cake (that said 9 x 4 instead of the dreaded 36, my family knows me well) and ice cream. And did I mention 2 sangrias? Yeah, that too. As crazy and chaotic as meals are with my extended family, I really enjoy them.

My sister gave us Telluride Jazz Festival concert tickets - she won them from NPR and David is unable to go. So we are staying in the condo she won with her and Cullyn and G and L and I will partake of some jazz all weekend - I can't wait! That is in 3 weeks.

We then drove home and had a pretty typical night - watching L play, tucking him in and then watching a B & W movie, one of our favorite things to do on those rare nights where we don't have anything to do after we tuck L in.

Nice, nice.

New York and Connecticut Photos

Here some of the photos from the wedding festivities. Up top a photo of An and I at the brunch the day before the wedding. Also a photo of Suzanne (another bridesmaid and a dear friend) and Antares (the bride!) and me. Next we have Suzanne and me again (right after finishing the choreography for Thriller) and my son at the wedding. As you can see, he is steps away from a mental breakdown. Or maybe you can't see that. But I can. Next is An in her wedding dress that only An can pull off! And then there is Reba and I (another close friend and bridesmaid) and then my three beautiful "Texans" - Becky, Estelle and Suzanne - and me. It was so great to be a part of a bridal party where 4 out of the other 6 bridesmaids were close friends of mine. And the other 2 became friends during the weekend. What a trip!

Pennsylvania Photos

OK, pictures as promised from our June trip. These are taken on my grandmother's lot on the lake. I will post the NY/CT pictures separately.