Back

There have been many factors contributing to my radio silence as of late. We traveled to Florida for Thanksgiving and Albuquerque for Christmas, and there was a lot of hectic working, shopping, living, etc. in between. Oh, and sickness. Max brought a cold home to the family in early December, and while he and Jim managed to recover fairly quickly, I did not. Or rather, I DID recover to some degree, and then took a steep downward turn when the cold mutated into a sinus infection and bronchitis. I went to urgent care before Christmas after the coughing rendered me essentially voiceless, but the doctor thought I should wait things out for a while sans antibiotics. So I loaded up on cough syrup with codeine and night and tried to tough it out, but finally lost patience earlier this week and returned to my regular nurse practitioner to get a script for amoxicillin. So now in addition to all the unattractive hacking and snorting I’m sick to my stomach, but I’m hoping to take a turn for the better soon.

The good news is that while I’ve been whiling away the hours with tissues clutched firmly in hand, Max has been transforming by leaps and bounds. He finally mastered the army crawl shortly before we left for New Mexico, and has started pulling himself up and generally running amok with much glee. He has been saying “mama” and “dada” on a somewhat regular basis for a while, and had almost mastered “dog” and “cat” before he recently developed a fascination with the term “dat.” We’re not sure if it’s a dog/cat hybrid (since our pets are the objects that seem to inspire the most enthusiasm and insistent pointing), if he’s saying “that,” or if it’s just nonsensical babble.  Either way, we’re pretty amused. I overhead a conversation between Max and Jim yesterday that went something like this:

“Dat?”
“That’s a LIGHT.”
“Dat.”
“LIGHT. La-la-la-LIGHT”
“Dat.”
“LLLLLLLLLLLIIIIGGGHHT. It’s a LIGHT, little man.”
“Dat.”
“Well OK, then it’s a dat light.”

In other news, despite the faltering economy 2009 is shaping up to be a year of big purchases for us. It’s time to replace my car, and we’re in the market for a new television so we can retire our antiquated, monstrous beast of a TV. We’re also hoping to make our living room more child friendly and rethink the bookshelf situation in the office. This all means lots of comparison shopping and a lot of searching to find furniture that meets our aesthetic requirements AND budget. Not an easy task.

Sandwiched between all the “to do’s” I’m still trying to find time for creative pursuits and reading my way through a stack of books I have in the queue. There never seems to be enough time for everything I want to accomplish.

Anywho, here’s a montage of images from our recent travels, holiday celebrations, first haircut travails, and developmental milestones.

There and Back

I am pleased to report we survived our first round-trip visit to the east coast with Max in tow. We were THOSE PEOPLE with the baby on the plane 4 times, (both legs of our trip had layovers) but it could have been far, far worse. As it was Max and I both woke up with colds on the morning of departure, so I was terrified that his ears would be killing him. And though he definitely had some uncomfortable moments (which were mitigated a bit with bottles and food), he did really well considering.

We spent the first two days of our trip at Camp Hi-Rock in Massachusetts. It was the camp’s 60th anniversary and Jim was able to meet up with friends he hadn’t seen since his camp counselor days. We were lucky enough to get an enclosed room in the infirmary with a private bath. Pretty rustic by most estimations, but luxurious by camp standards. There were probably only 5 daddy longlegs per square foot instead of 10. Luckily we brought a PeaPod for Max, so at least his sleep was happily bug-free. I was a little worried that the enclosed space would freak him out, but we gave the tent a trial run a couple of nights before we left and he wasn’t bothered at all. He’s a pretty adaptable guy and like his mom, loves to sleep regardless of the venue.

There was obviously a lot of feeding and napping to negotiate, but we did manage to take a few walks and a nice hike to Bear Rock, which overlooks a beautiful valley. We saw lots of interesting moss. Yeah, moss. I had to take a picture because it was so cool. It looked like astroturf, but it was velvety to the touch.

Here’s a shot of Jim and the happy camper. The sunglasses lasted almost a half an hour, which was a half an hour longer than expected.

On Sunday we headed to New Hampshire to visit Jim’s parents, brother, sister-in-law, and nephews. A few of his cousins joined us Sunday and Monday, so there was a lot of activity with kids running pell-mell and plenty of food to be had.

On a random note, I continue to marvel at the vast quantity of Dunkin’ Donuts establishments in the greater New England area. I like donuts as much as the next guy, but the abundance in the city of Keene, NH alone is staggering. There are FIVE Dunkin’ Donuts in a city of approx. 22,500. In contrast, the city of Boulder, CO, (population approx. 83,500) has not a single Dunkin’ Donuts, and only 2 other donut vendors that I could locate. So if you do the math, in Keene there is one donut shop for every 4,500 citizens, and in Boulder there is one donut shop for every 41,750 citizens. Insanity! It’s probably a good thing that donuts are in short supply out here because I could still stand to lose a few pounds, but I guess I’m curious as to why people in New England are so happy for the fried, frosted dough. Must investigate.

Anyway, we made the journey back to Colorado Wednesday night, and I’m still in recovery mode to some degree. I have to say I’m very relieved that our next big trip (to Florida for Thanksgiving) will involve a direct flight and only one destination instead of two. Max is pretty adaptable, but it’s probably best not to push our luck.

Taking the left turn

Visiting Albuquerque always makes me feel old. I’m surrounded by pictures of a far more fresh-faced (big-haired, full-eyebrowed) version of myself when I stay at my parents’ house, and it reminds me exactly how long it has been since I lived here.

I would move back to ABQ in a second if I had the chance, but Jim would never go for it. He doesn’t seem to appreciate the charms of this city. His main gripe is the lack of skiing opportunities, but I also think the landscape is a bit desolate for his taste. Too many shades of tan and beige, and not enough green. Well, except the chili of course. Which rocks.

I’m not looking forward to the drive back to Colorado. It’s only 7 hours, but dealing with two furry passengers is more difficult when I’m traveling solo. How can two fifteen-pound dogs be so wily and demanding? In an attempt to soften the blow of the road trip, I loaded up my iPod with new music before I left and made sure I had the latest broadcasts of “This American Life.” But still. There are a few insanely boring stretches that seem to drag on forever no matter how delightful the soundtrack. I can’t help but wonder “Who the hell lives here, and why?” Luckily I have something new to look forward to on the return trip: my sister-in-law provided me with the new Wilco CD, and I can’t wait to check it out. I’m such a sucker for Jeff Tweedy.

I’m also looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and eating a reasonable amount of food instead of endlessly stuffing my pie hole with all manner of unhealthy deliciousness. I have a difficult time curtailing my consumption when I am on vacation, and then I hate myself afterwards for my complete lack of self-control.