July, July!

WOW! It has been such a busy two months. Here we were, looking forward to a relaxing summer...not even close. Don't get me wrong, we have had a great time, but we're almost as busy now as we were during the rest of the year. Here's what we've been up to...

Anna is keeping us on our toes. She is now running everywhere, climbing on everything, getting in to whatever she can get her hands on...and chatting at the top of her lungs. This one is a firecracker. She now says "bye-bye", she can identify most of her caregivers by their names (my siblings and Becca and Addy Curzon), she can almost say "diaper", she says "stop" when she's tired of something...she's amazing. She has been in 12 month clothing for a while. It's hard to believe that over 11 months ago she was in preemie clothing...she has since QUADRUPLED in weight. Incredible. One thing we appreciate about Anna is her ability to entertain herself. She walks around, plays with her toys, pretends to read and will stash things in her little corner in the kitchen. She also loves to drum with Daddy.


She will do something, scrunch her nose and start laughing. What a character! Here's what our "little" girl looks like now:



Speaking of drumming-- we have also been busy with Tim's band, Groove Thief. What I thought was just a fun opportunity for the guys to jam has turned in to a full-blown project. Summer concert season is upon us and the band is booking up faster than any of us expected. The band is in the studio and have laid down two tracks already. They are a part of a rock festival that has received some excellent press, including write-ups in the Statesman, Oregon Live!, and Salem Weekly as well as on-air promotion on KUFO. The band has also been played on KUFO to promote the concert...what an awesome experience! Anna loves being around the music--we take her to shows and she wears her little noise reducing headphones. I never thought I would be a band wife, or be someone who would hear her husband rock out on the radio. My life is far and away what I ever imagined it could be, and I love it!

Other than chasing Anna and rocking out, this summer has been one for re-arranging furniture, cleaning like crazy, and taking a few field trips. I'm on a new exercise regimen that has helped me lose inches in a matter of weeks. Sounds like an infomercial, but really I'm just working hard. My clothes are getting big, but I'm not quite at the point where most of my pre-baby clothes are starting to look right. I'll get there...

Time

Oh man, what a month! We have been way too busy to even remember what we've been doing. Tim will be done with school (until next September) next month, thank goodness. One year down, so many more to go... Tim made the Dean's List again last term. He plans on keeping that up, and make the President's List next year. I'm so proud of him and everything he is doing. All of that homework, work and music ventures make for precious little time together but we have this summer. We'll both still be working, but our evenings will be a little more free.

Anna is kicking the butt of every milestone she reaches, and a few beyond her age. She's amazing. She's taking a few steps at a time, clapping the whole way, then gets so excited that she loses her balance and falls. I think it would help her if she stopped walking and standing with her toes curled. She's talking so much now. She says "dada", "momma", "baba" (Tim's mom), "yeahyeah" (my mom), "papa" (Tim's stepdad), "dada (in a whisper)" (my dad), "dat" and "teetee" (cat), "lala" (hello), "Nana" (Anna), "dayday" (thank you), "yum"...I'm sure there are a few more. She blows us away every day. Poor Hemi, though. She thinks kitty brother is her toy. The other day she was bugging him and he raised a paw to her, she thought he was trying to give her a high-five and was very excited. I had to pull her away before he high-fived her face, claws first.

I've been setting some major goals for myself lately. I've been on a major self-sufficiency kick lately. I challenged myself to learn to bake from scratch, which I have been doing. Cupcakes have been in our home in abundance the last few weeks, and I made my first loaf of bread on Friday. Sewing is also on my list. I'm going to make pillowcases in Enrichment next week--I haven't sewn in years. My cousin also gave me the awesome idea of making cloth napkins to cut down on her disposable napkin and paper towel waster. I need some fabric and my mom's serger. This all feels very Holly Housewife, which kind of freaks me out, but I really do like doing this. I've also felt the need to completely clean my home. I got the impression that in order to better feel the Spirit in our home we need to create a better atmosphere for it.

ALSO, I signed up for my first triathlon. I'm not a runner, I don't own a bike and I can't swim, but I've been offered a lot of help. I want to start a team so we can relay it. I would happily take the bike portion if I had one, so I guess I'm stuck with running. It's something I've been meaning to do anyway. My weight loss has plateaued again and I'm struggling with that. I need something to kick my butt and get my metabolism back in gear. It's frustrating. This should help, though. 5 months of intensive training and watching what I eat. I can do this.

The last couple of months have been one minor disaster after another. For instance, we can't drive our car right now because the driver side window is broken. Awesome. Work is tough for us at present...and most of the time. Minor disasters and major disappointments aside, we're surviving. It's like Mother Theresa said, "God only tries those He loves the most. I just wish He didn't love me so much." Amen, sister, amen. :)

Here's hoping for a better summer!

Good Day, Sunshine

Today I was talking to a co-worker who said our boss asked someone in an interview what makes them happy, and the girl they were interviewing couldn't think of anything (maybe she couldn't think of anything "interview-y" enough). That is an interesting question. What make me happy? I put some thought in to it and while some of these things sound silly or simple, they truly do bring me joy.

Happy things:
*Anna's silliness
*Sun on my day off
*Sprinkles on just about anything
*A good yoga workout
*The beach
*When Tim brings me flowers and I don't expect it
*Realizing I'm making progress on something
*An ice cream cone in the summer -- especially from the Fruit Stand
*A good book
*That feeling you get when you finally lie down in bed after a long day
*Anything with curry (including chocolate)
*Watching people sing in the car
*Singing in the car
*A great concert (at the moment "Starlight" by Muse is playing and bringing back some great memories)
*Songs that bring back happy memories or remind you of what's going on in your life
*Roadtrips (planned and unplanned)
*Trying something new and loving it
* http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com

Also, I rediscovered this song and it made me happy. I kind of love it more live.:


Silverchair straight lines
Uploaded by benjam-s. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

This hasn't been a good week in the least, but truly thinking about what does make me happy and realizing that I need to put on my big girl panties and get over my hang ups seems to be helping. Now if I could just get a nap...

Now I pose the quetsion to you, my friends, what makes you happy?

Fresh and Clean!

One thing I love about spring is that everything feels fresh. Fresh air, fresh flowers, fresh start... And as much as I dislike it, spring cleaning is a big part of that as well. This may sound silly, but I love the feeling of a clean house. No, I haven't gone all Hannah Housewife. With the help of my wonderful brothers my kitchen, living room and bathroom are all clean and I'm caught up on our laundry. It was a long time coming, but at last our home is presentable again. As much as I may resent spring cleaning, it makes such a difference.

I have decided I need to take time off from school again. School, work and a baby is not the best combination in the world. It also makes a difference in that my grades caused me to not qualify for financial aid this term. That sort of sealed the deal for me. Those grades hurt my school nerd soul. They were the worst in my academic career and they made me want to cry. Last term I had to choose between spending time with Anna or having people watch her for even longer during the day so I could do homework. Under normal circumstances I could have handled that courseload and a job, but I have a new "normal" now. As sad as I am to not be able to continue my education until probably some time next school year (with luck), I am relieved in that I can spend time with my pumpkin with out feeling homework hanging over my head.

Also, again with the Hannah Housewife stuff, I have decided to take up baking and sewing. For years I have fought against the so-called "LDS housewife" stereotype and have resisted trying anything like scrapbooking (I still can't get in to that, but it's out of a lack of patience and an inability to cut in a straight line), baking, sewing, enjoying decorating my home...things like that. Call it the tomboy in me, I have always had a hard time with those things. This Christmas I started baking...a lot, and I started hand sewing again and even MADE Christmas gifts! Could it be that I've discovered my domestic side after almost two years of marriage?! Maybe. I've decided to make it my mission to make cooking, baking and even sewing cool. I love unique things, so if I sew something it's because I want an original and customized piece of clothing. Yeah, that's it...

The Squeaky Wheel

After all of the drama surrounding the new car dying, getting it fixed and reimbursed (that hasn't happened yet, but it should today.) I am so ready to be done with all of it and go on with our lives. This is a well-deserved weekened. Too bad it will be spent working on finals. The car experience has actually been an empowering one.

In the past, mostly before I was married, if there were any kind of issue that involved persuading someone to see things my way, complaining, or any sort of confrontation...I would ask my parents to do it. This time (with the exception of a letter writing campaign spear-headed by my dynamo mother-in-law and papa-bear father-in-law and my own formidable mother) we handled things ourselves. Last night I talked to the head of sales about what had happened with our car, the salesman who said it would be fixed and how much they were willing to pay for. Originally he offered to pay 50% (which he said is standard procedure)...by the end of the conversation he offered all but $70. After the guilt trip of a letter I sent them I hope it's more.

This experience has taught me that I can do things for myself and that I can make things happen. Also, I learned that my dear husband's super powers are perspective (I have been freaking out) and making cocky salesmen feel incredibly akward. I love that man.

Update: They're paying us IN FULL for the repairs we had to make on our car. The moral of the story: the squeaky wheel not only gets the grease, it gets the CHECK.

Pancakes and Not-Quite New Car Smell

Tim and I bought our first car together on Wednesday! It's a '92 Camry and other than smelling like smoke (hopefully that will come out while they're detailing it today) it's in fantastic condition and runs smoothly. We were planning on going the Craigslist route and had a few cars we were going to check out with a specific price in mind. We ended up, on a whim, going to a dealership. We didn't think they would have anything in our price range but kept an open mind. Immediately a salesman invited us in and talked specifics. He asked what we were looking for, price range, etc. and said that he had a few things in mind but they were at their other lot in Keizer. So he loaded us up, we plugged in Anna's car seat and it was off to Keizer for us. He was of the same mind as I was in that we need something big ENOUGH, but not too big; and it has to be fuel-efficient. I liked him. :)

That morning I had simply prayed that we find somethng that will suit our needs now, something that is reliable and safe and a good value for what we are able to spend. The two cars he had in mind were OK, then he went back in to the office to see what else they had available and came across the Camry. It had just been traded in this weekend and came highly recommended by the manager. It looked great, and we tried to hide our excitement (salesmen can smell enthusiasm like a dog smells fear) After a successful test drive and some back and forth with the salesman and GM we decided to see how much this would set us back (a detail they witheld until we were hooked).

Before that we were looking at safety ratings and such on the Blue Book site and Tim and I had noted the listing price. The dealership was asking for $200 over Blue Book. That just wasn't happening as it was $300 over our limit...and there was no reason to mark it up. Being my father's daughter I know to never accept a first offer. Being Irish, I also don't pay full price for anything unless I have to. I told our salesman that we couldn't pay any more than --- and gave him our price, which was below Bluebook. He came back and said "you must be living a clean life, they'll accept it!" Ah, the power of clean living and Irish shrewdness.

The moral of the story:
*PRAY - It helps to pray with something specific in mind.
*BE OPEN-MINDED - We (mostly Tim) were looking for something bigger and ended up with a mid-size sedan that more than fills our current needs. And it gets crazy great gas mileage.
*NEVER ACCEPT A FIRST OFFER - Settling, especially in a situation like this, is not the answer. People can be more flexible than you give them credit for, and the worst they can say to your counter-offer is "no."
*PAY IN CASH - We were blessed to have a windfall of late financial aid when Blue Steel crapped out and we didn't want to be trapped in a car payment. Dealerships seem to be more amenable to negotiation if you can give them their money right away.

So, YAY!

We also discovered that day that Anna loves peanut butter and pancakes. The night before I gave her PB for the first time and she reacted like so:



All in all, it was a very successful Wednesday.

Baby, you can drive my car...

We're reaching one of those marriage milestones...the first "new" car together. This will officially be our largest purchase as a couple. Our current car, Blue Steel, is slowly giving up the ghost.

As much as you think or say you agree on things sometimes, when it comes down to it, you realize that you aren't always on the same page. Turns out, we have very different ideas about the size of car we need at this point in our lives. Tim is planning far ahead (which is normally something I really do appreciate) and wants something with 3 rows of seating. I, being of a more liberal turn, don't think we need something that large as we would be guzzling gas and would have excessive space in a car that would be transporting only 3 people for at least a couple of years. I believe we have reached a compromise in the form of a mid-size SUV (5 seats and more room to haul equipment), and while it's still bigger and less fuel efficient than I would care for...at least it isn't a 9 seater Suburban. Our other option is a minivan-- and as practical as it sounds on paper my pride won't appreciate driving one at such a young age. And with only one child. We'll see what happens. Tomorrow is our big car shopping day! Heaven help us...

Lately we have been buying more "us" stuff for our home. Tim lived in our apartment for a couple of years before we got married, and for a long time it felt like *his* place. Not through any fault of his own, it's just that there was still furniture and decor that was left by previous roommates and we spent a lot of time over there when we were dating and engaged. We've replaced almost all of the furniture and such they had left behind with things that we picked out. It's amazing what a difference that sense of possession makes. I believe I have been successful in de-bachelor pad-ing our home once and for all. It only took me a year and a half. We hope to move in to a 3 bedroom apartment soon. Ours is just too small for Anna and our stuff (mostly Tim's equipment, let's be honest here). Then we will have "our first place." We're excited.

It's funny...with all of these major changes and milestones we're feeling more like a legit, grown-up, married couple. If that makes sense. On top of all of this we have Anna getting older, bigger and more mobile. We're truly realizing just what we're doing. :)

Our Little Rockstar

Anna loves drums. LOVES them. And any percussion. She has since she was baking in my belly. Tim couldn't be prouder. Her new favorite thing is to hit the snare that he left on the floor and use his drum sticks to hit anything she can find. Today, at the store, she started drumming on the counter. So it begins...

Bob Loblaw's Law Blog

Because I didn't think we had enough to do, I decided our family needs a blog to update friends and family with the latest goings-on. Why? Bandawagons are for chumps, right? RIGHT. As I have come to find out I am, in fact, a chump.

So, the latest:
Tim and I are both going to school full time, while working full time, and taking care of our adorable and hilarious almost 7 month old (what?!?!) daughter. Tim is also a volunteer drumline instructor at North Salem HS with some old line buddies from high school, he does orchestra at least one season a year with the Portland Mormon Choir and Orchestra and though his band (Crossing 13th) has recently disbanded I know another project will soon present itself. Other than school, work and Anna I try to find time to keep my writing skills sharp with various projects that I never get around to finishing (I need to follow up on that local magazine thing...)and am slowly giving in to the fact that I enjoy small and non-cheesy craft-type projects.

Everyone always asks, "how do you do it? I thought *I* was busy!" I get that at least once a day. In all honesty, we have no idea. We don't even maintain a calendar. If we did it would look ridiculous and we would have to use very tiny writing. We're both from the school of "if there's something we need to do, we just do it." Yeah, it's stressful and there are some nights when we don't get a chance to talk until right before we go to sleep after midnight, but we know it isn't a permanent situation. Maybe. I hope it isn't. We find time to have a date night, play Wii, or just watch a couple of hours of whatever we have on DVR. We make it work.

Our life in a nutshell: hectic, but we love it.

H's and K's,

Mary (and Tim and Anna)