A Missed Moment and a Roller

This week I had meetings out of town on Wednesday and Thursday. It also happened to be the only two days of the month that my mom was going to be out of town. So I was seriously worried about what I was going to do with Aubrey. But luckily, a friend's mom was willing to watch her - so Aubrey went out of town on a trip with me and spent the days playing with alpacas and getting smiled at while I was in meetings.

When I dropped Aubrey off the first morning I told her new babysitter,

She's pretty content to play on the floor for a while
Oh yeah, she rolls around and stuff?
Well, no. She's only rolled over when she's really angry, but she'll play on the floor anyway.

Then, when I went to pick her up that night she was laying on the floor on her belly.

Oh, she must have rolled over while I was getting the door for you. That's the third time she's done that today!

So - Aubrey is officially rolling! I of course took a video:

A Family Favorite

A Series of Text Messages Between Coworkers

A lady just walked into the backroom, dropped her pants and peed. It's gonna be a great weekend.
hahahaha...i just burst out laughing
was she drunk?
idk. saw the puddle then watched it on video
she literally dropped her pants to her ankles and made a huge puddle. And then stepped in it on her way out.
thats crazy i had a guy shit in my backroom once
haha. we really have the best customers
i had someone roll shit out of their pants in bread area
haha thats classic
i had a drunk guy lay on my checklane and try to take a nap til I had to escort him out.
love it!
i had some write "fuck you" in feces on one side of a stall and then paint the other side with crap

Paul Bunyan

You know those people that are such an integral part of your life you really can't picture what your world would be like without the stories they create. For me, these people are the McKenna's. I've grown up with that family and they never fail to produce a classically good story with minimal effort.

Last night, Aubrey and I went out to dinner with the McKenna's at Pizza Hut in Brockport. Caton was up from Nashville, Betsey was home from college and one a friend of Betsey's and a friend of her friend's all came with us to Pizza Hut.

Since this was my first time meeting Betsey's friend, and everyone's first time meeting the friend of the friend, Mrs. McKenna felt it was a perfect opportunity to tell a story about how much pizza I used to be able to eat.

Mrs. McKenna: So about 8 years ago we went to Pizza Hut in Batavia for Caton's birthday. And Jenna is like Paul Bunyan...
Betsey: Mom, she doesn't know who Paul Bunyan is.
Mrs. McKenna: Oh. Yes she does.
Betsey's Friend: What is he a president? (this might sound unrealistic and random, but given the fact that earlier in the meal Mrs. McKenna pulled three pieces of notebook paper listing all the US presidents and other random presidental facts our of her jacket - it possibly wasn't such a random guess)
Mrs. McKenna: No! You know Paul Bunyan. The Big Blue Ox?
Betsey's Friend: There's an ox? Have you ever heard of the big blue ox?
Her Friend: Yeah. That sounds like something I've heard of before.

oh, McKenna's what would I do without you in my life!

Model Baby

I want to start out with a disclaimer. I am not writing this post in hopes of the fact that some advertising agency will see my darling baby and just have to have her in their ad. I am merely writing it to point out the very obvious fact that Aubrey is more attractive than any of the babies I actually see in ads.

Seriously, pay attention sometime. I never used to, but now that I have my own darling child, well for one, I spend a lot more time looking at products for babies and also, I am also subconsciously comparing them to my own.

And let me tell you, she's a winner. I find myself looking at products all the time and thinking...wow, I really have a cute baby and where did that baby come from?

The Jump Rope King

I've mentioned this before, but talking to my sister-in-law, Ingrid, is one of the things that really makes me happy. Since she up and moved to Germany (I know, I know...great experience. great for the career. awesome place to live. etc. etc. I still maintain she should have up and moved next door to me) I haven't been able to talk to her as much. Our conversations have slowly dwindled from every day when she was in the USA to about once a week now that she's living in Germany. It's just really difficult to coordinate our schedules for chatting.

On Tuesday I was talking to Ingrid after way too long (the previous Tuesday) and she mentioned that she was reading a book about happiness and how she realized that talking to me genuinely makes her happy - a thought that I reciprocate 100%. She also mentioned that in this book they mention a jumprope Olympics? or something of the sort which prompted her to ask if I had ever heard the story of Martin jumping rope. I immediately said no, but then about two sentences into her telling the story I remembered I had actually heard that story before. But, the story is so good I decided not to tell her I already knew it and listened to it one more time just for a good laugh.

You see, when Martin and Ingrid were in elementary school, they had to do a jumproping unit in gym. They didn't do anything crazy just your basic hold a jumprope, swing it over your head, and jump. NO BIG DEAL.  Well, as it turns out, this was a big deal for Martin and he was on the verge of failing gym due to his inability to jumprope. In order to pass the unit you had to jumprope five times in a row without tripping up. The specifications for passing didn't require any crisscrossing of the rope or crazy shenanigans like that. Just five basic jumps. Martin was having such difficulty with this he was actually sent home with both a letter for his parents to sign stating that he was an unqualified jumper and a jumprope to practice.

This is the part where the story really gets good. Martin, who didn't want to be bested by a silly rope started racticing jumping rope in the front yard at every opportunity. Morning, noon and night Martin could be found out there in front of the gas grill all the time getting better and better. As Ingrid describes it, it was like the Rocky Montage. Because he got good. really good.  He got so good he could out jumprope any kid in the class.

And if you were to give him a jumprope now, well he could probably still do it.

Cousins

I'm not sure why I've waited so long to post these pictures because they really are gems (even though they are a month out of date now.)

I love this one because each girll looks so different. Aubrey is almost ready to crack a smile, Kendyll is really hamming it up, and Leigha just looks so pensive.

I swear someone shouted look scared in this one and Kendyll and Leigha readily complied while Aubrey just stood by and laughed.

Clearly something is still very amusing to Aubrey and no one else.

They love each other.

A List

Today is a good day for a list. Mostly just because I love lists and also because my previous inability to create a cohesive thought is continuing. I really need to snap out of this.

1. I love lists.

2. I got an old globe for $5 at an antique store a couple months ago. I love globes. I still haven't found a place to put it yet though.

3. This weather. This cold weather. It's really not working for me.Spring, I need you!

4. I really had no idea being a mom would be so much fun. But I completely treasure everything Aubrey does.

5. I made jumbaleaya on Friday night. It was amazing. I found myself making up meals just to eat more and I might have cried a little inside when it was gone.

6. My brother-in-law, Gabe took Martin and I out to lunch at the Village House in Albion on Saturday. I really like the Village House.

7. A lot of my life revolves around food.

8. I can't wait until Easter.

9. I'm still not sure what I'm doing/which family I'm spending Easter with. Hardest part about being in a relationship: spreading out holiday time.

10. Someday I'm going to avoid the whole split holiday confusion by hosting holiday's at my mythical home for both sedes of the family. I can't wait untill that day.

11. Thanks for reading, even though I've gotten extremely boring!

A Million Directions

My mind is going in a million directions tonight. I have so much to say, but nothing to talk about. Not even the pictures I uploaded have anything to do with each other. The picture above is a made entirely from live flowers. Pretty crazy, huh?

Those flowers are made from glass.

This fountain is set to music and I swear the music reflects the weather for the day. raining = mellow. sunny = upbeat. But that's just a personal theory.

That's my daughter. We're riding with her daddy across the barnyard with a new calf in the back.
Martin: Oh. great. Take a picture. No carseat and a hayhook sitting on the dash.
Me: Yep. Definitely got all that in there.

This isn't really outside. But it's quite magical.

Did you folllow all that? Not much there. But I can't seem to form a cohesive thought.

Checking In

So. I haven't posted in five days. This might be a record for me. I feel like a part of me has been missing. Not letting you in on every single detail of my life.

But, you see, I went to Vegas.

And I didn't take nearly enough pictures (although, in retrospect, that might be a good thing)

 I had an amazing time. I can't even begin to describe the trip. It was insane! Everything you've ever heard about Vegas.

It's probably true.

I think the trip can best be summed up in this text message I sent to a friend when I returned.

Amazing.

I danced my face off.

Drank way too many redbull vodkas.

slept like 4 hours the whole weekend

and have no idea why I'm at work today.

And then a little later in the text message conversation:

After going there I wouldn't be at all surprised if the hangover was a documentary



I Miss This

 I'm in Vegas this weekend.

I'm sure I'm having the time of my life celebrating my college roommate's last hurrah before she gets married in May. But this cutie is hard not to miss.

Martin's Grown Up Moment

A couple of months ago, I posted here about the moment that I first felt like a grown up. Somewhat embarassingly, it wasn't that long ago!

Last weekend, Martin came face to face with his grown up moment when we went out with some friends Martin used to work with and hired a babysitter.

After I picked up our local teenage babysitter, gave her my cellphone number, showed her where Aubrey's things were and directed her to the cupboards and refrigerator for any nourishment she might want, Martin and I left for the evening.

About halfway through dinner, Martin must have been thinking about this moment and said,

Getting a babysitter is probably the first time I've ever felt like a grown-up. I guess if we bought a house that would feel pretty grown-up, but this is the first grown-up thing I feel like I've ever done.

And for some unknown reason,it does feel more grown-up to hire a teenager to watch your child than it does to take them to a babysitter all day long while you go to work. I'm not really sure the reason for that, but I think it probably has something to do with the fact that we consider things that are parents do or did during our lifetime to be grownup things.

Graduating from college didn't feel very grown-up to me because I was never alive when my parents did this.
Getting a job didn't feel very grown-up to me because my parents have been self-employed my whole life
Taking Aubrey to a babysitter during the day doesn't feel that grown-up because my parents' never took me to a babysitter.

But hiring a teenager so the parents' can enjoy a night out...

That's something I can relate to. My parents' did that. Very grown-up.

I'd Don't Know How I Feel

I've mentioned before that I have a fairly recent obsession with decorating magazines. Specifically, Better Homes and Gardens. I really really like this magazine and I am not quite sure why I like it so much.

Last weekend I was on a mission to get the April issue of this magazine.

Me: I really want to stop somewhere and pick up the Better Homes and Gardens Magazine. I was in Target a few weeks ago, but they didn't have it.
Martin: Why do you need that magazine so bad?
Me: I don't know. I just really like it. I'm obsessed with it.
Martin: I don't know what's happened to you. You used to read Cosmo and then Glamour and, you know, magazines like that that are about sex and now you read about gardening. I don't know if I like this change.

Tractor Rides

 

The other day, Aubrey and I went for a ride in the tractor with Martin to dump concrete from the cement pad onto a rock pile down the road. After all her time outside that day Aubrey was pretty tuckered out and the motion of the tractor didn't help to keep her awake. Too bad because the sky looked absolutely beautiful that day. 

Page Finder

Since we moved back to western New York, Martin and I have started going to church. We don't really have a good excuse for never attending church the first three years of our marriage, but now that we have a child we have decided we should attend church.

So we've been going to a church in Medina on Sundays when we're in town for the last couple of months. When we're in church I usually hold Aubrey and don't really have any free hands to hold the book and follow along. Also, I've never really been a follow along type of girl and typically just listen and go with the flow. Martin, however, has both of his hands free and so attempts to follow the pages in the book as we go. The only problem is he is rarely on the right page.

A couple of weeks ago we walked into church just after the service had started and everyone had their books out and opened up already. The woman in front of us turned around to show Martin the page they were all reading off from. Which, of course, was very nice of her. Then as the service continued she decided it was her mission in life to make sure Martin was turning to the right page at every page turning point. While I found the situation hilarious, Martin was getting slightly frustrated.

Last Sunday, as we were walking into church, Martin told me we were going to have to find somewhere else to sit because he didn't want that woman making sure he was on the right page all the time. Ok. No Problem. We sit a couple rows ahead and on the other side of the aisle. A few minutes into church and they are doing a responsorial psalm. Martin is quietly looking for the correct page in the big green book. The woman from the previous week noticed this and walked across the aisle and up three rows to show Martin her book and point to the correct page. I, had a hard time containing my laughter began rocking Aubrey and Martin, in an effort to avoid another helpful hand from the woman decided his best course of action was to stare very intently on the wrong page until the sermon when he had an opportunity to bookmark the appropriate pages neccesary for the remainder of the service.

Spring Has Sprung

 Now that the weather is finally getting better. I can start taking Aubrey outside more.

 This is amazing because being outside just makes me a happier person.

 Also, all the wind really tires Aubrey out so by the time we go back inside she's basically ready for a bottle, bath and then bed. No fuss.

 Mostly we just wander around and watch everyone else work. Every once in a while I attempt to do something with one hand and sometimes if the job is contained to one location, like out at the calf hutches, I put Aubrey in a stroller and actually do something. Aubrey really really likes to look at the calves.

 All these pictures were taken on Saturday when they were jackhammering out the concrete pad that used to have a silo on it. The silo came down a few years ago, but no one ever bothered to take the time blast out the pad. But now due to some new additions this driveway is going to be the only truck or tractor access to that corner of the barn and it needs to go.

Clearly, I didn't really help out with this, but Aubrey and I did go crazy taking pictures of Martin scooping up concrete pieces and loading them onto a wagon.

Tulips

A couple of weekends ago my brother-in-law, Gabe, and our friend, Matt came over for dinner and drinks. I made a chicken pizza and chicken fajitas. And that was when Martin made the homemade tortilla shells.

After a few drinks and dinner, Martin, Gabe and Matt called taxi like responsible adults (and yes, surprisingly there is a taxi service out here) and headed out to the bar to see Savage Cabbage, a popular local band and rightly named because they are also cabbage farmers. I stayed home with Aubrey for obvious reasons. The number one reason being that I have the horrific thought that at some point in my life that scene from Sweet Home Alabama is going to play out and someone will say You have a baby.....in a bar. The number two reason being that it would be quite loud in the bar for Aubrey. And the number three reason being that she would probably sleep better in her crib than in a carseat in the corner of a bar. Although she does sleep like a champ in her carseat.

When they got back from the bar later that evening/very early the next morning Gabe and Matt spent the night in our living room like responsible adults who want to avoid driving after drinking. The next morning, Matt woke up in typical Matt-fashion at the crack of dawn and was off before we even left for church. Gabe, like most people after a night of drinking, was napping on the couch when we headed out the door for church.

When we returned home from church I found a pink napkin folding into the shape of a tulip sitting on the coffee table. Without thinking too deeply into how it could have gotten there, I though Oh, that is so nice. Gabe made us a tulip out of a napkin. And then I put it on Aubrey's dresser.

Fast forward a few days....

I am getting clothes out of Aubrey's dresser to give her a bath and then put her to bed for the evening. And I notice the flower again and suddenly start to wonder, where did Gabe get a pink napkin anyway?

So I ask Martin
Me: Hey where did Gabe get that pink napkin to make a tulip?
Martin: Huh?
Me: This tulip that I put on Aubrey's dresser. I think Gabe made it. He left it on the coffee table last weekend.
Martin: Umm. I'm pretty sure some girl was wearing that between her boobs at the bar Saturday night. Smell it. Does it smell like boobs?

Ready For A Gaggle

So the other day....I briefly mentioned that I might be playing an April Fool's Joke on myself.

You are probably wondering what that joke could possibly be.

In reality, you're probably not curious at all.

But, let's be honest, I'm going to tell you anyway.






You see, I haven't gotten that time of the month in a long time. And I was starting to get kind of worried. Even though I knew it wouldn't be true. Still...there is always that chance. And I was a little anxious. Everytime my stomach moved with hunger or digestion - I was thinking .... there he/she is.


So, naturally, I put off taking a test for as long as possible. Because I knew it was impossible. And then eventually my curiosity got the best of me and I took one. And I won't be having any more babies. at least not in the next nine months.

And then I crawled into bed with Martin and Aubrey to give her her morning bottle.

Me: So. I have this story. I can tell you know because I know the answer.
Martin: What's that?
Me: Well. I haven't gotten my period in a really long time.
Martin: Yeah. I noticed.
Me: You did??? Were you worried??
Martin: No.
Me: Oh. I was a little. But I took a test.
Martin: So are you pregnant?
Me: No.
Martin: Oh.
...
Me: You wouldn't be worried be worried if I was pregnant?
Martin: No.

April Fool's Day

Today is Friday.

And April Fool's Day.

I'm really into stating the obvious here, don't mind me

My brain is not working well.

I wrote a lot of evaluations today

And drank a lot of coffee

And now my brain is hyped up on overdrive and I'm sweating from the excessive amounts of coffee

Anyway. I don't really have any good April Fool's Jokes planned for this year. Actually I never do. I never really came from a family that was really big into April Fool's Jokes.

I have one joke that I might be playing on myself. But who knows. I should probably figure that out soon.
I know that was a very cryptic sentence. More on that later. Maybe next week.

Anyway, the one time I did try to play an April Fool's Joke it didn't work out very well.

You can read about that here.

Anyway.


Sorry this post kinda basically sucks.
I really need to step it up
And probably step away from the coffee.

Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day for posting something that is interesting. or funny. or really anything that evokes any emotion at all.

Happy Friday!