A Bit Sad

As of last Wednesday, before Thanksgiving, I was 10 weeks pregnant. Sadly on Thanksgiving (after a lovely dinner) I suffered a miscarriage. I was in very capable hands, with an obgyn cousin of the Hub's at dinner with us, and another emergency room doctor cousin at the hospital 7 miles away. I did end up at the hospital, but was discharged after a few hours and sent home to rest (relatively) comfortably back at Aunt Madeleine and Uncle Matt's house.

So we're all okay now, albeit a bit sad. One remaining hurdle will be to explain to Jackson that the baby that was growing in mommy's belly is no longer there. So, because of the situation, all I can say is that I am especially thankful for my wonderful husband, the amazing family I married into, and my sweet little son. Wishing everyone a cozy weekend of quality family time.

Moving On...

I am trying to move past the drama and angst here at casa hulahoop. So I have done a wee bit of knitting. So wee in fact that it won't fit its intended recipient, Tank Boy. Good thing I know of a few babies comin' round the bend nearby. Perhaps it can warm a baby noggin for a month or two...



And yes, it is rather similar to a previous project. I can't imagine any scenario where the two recipients would ever meet however, so I think its okay.

Eventually Her Baby Will Earn An Income

Some of y'all might remember my friend Karel. But some of you may not know that she had a baby almost two months ago (because she's a terrible blog updater!) And furthermore, I'm pretty sure y'all didn't know that I got to go up to Reno and hang out with them over the weekend of the 4th. Notice the festive 4th of July outfit on the wee one...


We managed to get Karel a little more caught up on sleep while I was there,


go out to get our hair cut together, (Note the crazy prom hair!)


...and even made it on a short hike!


Thanks lady for sharing you beautiful new babe with me for the holiday!

Something else that is almost two months old is the Women's Thursday Evening Climbing Club that I've been organizing each week after work. Now I'll admit here that attendance hasn't been record breaking, so it has been more like "Come and Go Climbing With Suziehulahoop on Thursdays Club", but I'm not complaining! I've had at least one person show up every time, and that's all you need to tango, or climb! So yay us, we're out there making it happen! Thanks to my regulars, hope to see you all at one time perhaps!

Bright Copper Kettles...

Hey Blogosphere! Did ya miss me? I was on quasi-vacation, house sitting in the always stunning Yosemite Valley! Witness the glory that was our home for nigh on a week!



And while the Bub and Hub were laying on the couch Sunday (watching the fabulous HUGE television) feeling a little under the weather, I got to go out climbing all day! Oh so fun! And being so close to the soaring walls of the valley meant that I was home in time to cook a nutritious dinner for my ailing men. I can bring home the bacon! (Though evidently I can't take any pictures worth posting, rats!)

And on the subject of things that don't suck I would like to share a few items with you! This first item is a public service announcement to those friends of mine who find themselves to be on the slighter side of the cup. I have searched high and low for an adequate small-cup post-nursing bra. (The girls need quite the structured boost these days.) And I have to say that the pickens have been rather slim until NOW! But no longer! This is the world's most comfy contraption, and it makes the girls look just FABULOUS! So run out and buy one, and get an extra for me, because I have never loved a bra before, and this one is like a firm reassuring hug for your boobs!

Next is some random handmade goodness from Etsy, these and these are totally awesome!

For you knitters out there, these are super duper dual duty groovy!

And a list of my new favorite things would not be complete without a little Toddler flavor...

Couldn't you just nibble them up!?

Vectors and Jumpers

And in the fine tradition (started just yesterday) here is yet another illness symptom followed by healthy days of yore...

Our newest addition to the contagion family... pink eye! (His right eye is red and swollen here, and was crusted completely shut when I went to retrieve him from baby jail his crib this morning.)


And now healthier happier times: Two weeks ago we were at Squaw Valley for the Hub's alumni ski race and benefit dinner, and the ski resort happened to have this crazee contraption set up for the kiddos. It consists of trampolines and bungee cords, and seeing that Tank Boy is really into showing off his jumping skills everywhere, it was the highlight five minutes of his entire life!


Just this past weekend, before the onset of the plague here at the ranch, Tank boy and his wee adorable girlfriend had a lovely afternoon jumping off rocks in the valley (um, Yosemite Valley for you non-locals) after the moms took a short jog...


Evidently Tank found it so awesome he had to break out into the Classic Travolta.

Alright, wish us luck at not going completely stir crazy!

Rosy and Rhinitic

If you look closely at these snappies of my wee one's nape you'll see teeny tiny red bumps. Everywhere. (You might be able to click the pics to make them bigger, I'll check as soon as I publish this...) Poor boo has the bumps from stem to stern. I called the midwife yesterday, as soon as the rash crept out of the diaper area, and it is her firm belief that it is a viral rash to accompany the runny nose and cough that he has come down with (yet again).

And now we're also watching his right eye, as it seems a bit gooeyer than usual, and there is a very real possibility that he has rubbed some of his boogers into there and given himself pink eye. So we're at home this week, in Casa Contagion. Drop on by if you want to put your immune system to the test!

Here's a picture from the recent past when everyone was actually healthy, and Tank Boy looks more like Sleezy Stock Broker Boy trying to sell me some junk bonds in this new internet startup. He's so handsome I'm thinking of throwing in the whole nest egg...


Molly Cat approves of the at home domesticity. Here she is making sweet sweet love to my knitting projects. Hope the recipients aren't allergic to a wee bit o' cat dander!

Iridescent Viridescence

The holiday weekend couldn't have been more picturesque here in the Sierra Foothills. The Tankster participated in his second and third egg hunts of the season. I had one too many mimosas at the Saturday hunt and therefore didn't take one picture. But for those in the know, check out the Hub's page and you'll find a whole slew o pic's, many of which contain me and my drink in hand! Wheee!

On Sunday I was a bit more saintly, and managed to remember how to operate the old point n shoot! The Hub couldn't believe I was really planning on dressing our offspring in a baby blue seersucker shorts suit. But now that he's seen the pictures, he knows why parents dress their kids funny, because they are SO DAMN CUTE, that's why!



It was a gorgeous day at a friend's gramma's house where they've been holding the family egg hunt for over 35 years now. These folks are serious. They own 10 acres, and put out eggs for kids and young adults alike, with prizes that range from three jelly beans and two nickels to crisp $20 bills! They make up baskets of toys for the little kids and ALSO give out prizes after the egg hunt too! Its a win win win situation for all hunters!




By the end of the day, many participants were plum tuckered and ready for some serious lounging...



And on a similar greenery note, I would like to take a moment to document a stage in my son's life. He likes salads. Eats whole bowls. I'm not counting on this lasting long, nor on people believing me. So here it is, Tank vs. Salad, with salad losing big!

Heh Heh, She Said Keister!

Hello there! You'd think with all the sick, sitting-around-the-house I've been doing, I'd of gotten to the blog update sooner! Not so! The pesky thing about sickness is that it demands an astonishing number of hours of sleep. During good useable daylight hours! The nerve!

So despite the mind crushing sinus infection I've been enjoying, I muscled my way through my very first solo road trip since the Tankster arrived. I drove up to Tahoe for a bit of skiing, outlet shopping and (mainly) a baby shower, yay! It was such a great experience. That teeny tiny taste of your former life, that not only puts a spring in your step, but also shows how much you miss your family in two short days! (Remind me to show you the sparkly red patent leather ballet flats I got at 65% off!!)

Before the trip I'd been furiously knitting away at this...



...for the baby shower, but alas, it was still one sleeve and a collar shy of complete. But the baby still has another month before he's scheduled to arrive, so I might still make the REAL timeline! Lets hope...

This weekend I was finally feeling well enough to attempt the least athletic of all outdoor endeavors, gardening. Evidently our garden got sick of waiting for us to clean up last year's litter...



and was doing its best to make due!

Today was a funny day, as it was St. Patrick's Day, but also our weekly playgroup's early Easter celebration too. (Or Fecund Rites of Spring, for the un-Jesusy among us, like me.) So there was much green wearing, yet also the egg dye...



And the egg hunt! Notice Tank Boy clutching a found egg here. I was so proud of him, he even actually found one all on his own!



I can't express how cool this play group is, it is held at a completely enclosed playground with areas of both shade and sun, there is a pond nearby with very curious, mostly friendly, ducks and geese, and it is run by a local gramma who brings not only toys and buckets, but also a (relatively healthy) snack for all the kids! Today she also brought all the egg dye, towels, and paper bags to decorate for "baskets". I don't know of anywhere else, big city or small town, that has such a nice amenity! It makes us both very happy.



Happy Patric Keaster Day!

Experiments In Communal Living

Hi there folks! (Folk? Is there more than one of you? Have I lost all of you in my neglectful absence?) We have been off galavanting around the state for a bit, up to South Lake Tahoe, out to Kirkwood ski resort and back home again. We made the trip extra exciting by driving during a huge rain/snow storm last Saturday. But it was all worth it because the friends we stayed with Saturday night had already hired a babysitter for their kids for Sunday morning (who was kind enough to accept one more) and we all got freshies (um Dad, getting freshies means skiing in fresh powdery snow...) at Heavenly until our little legs could take no more. (Which honestly was about three hours, but a very fun three hours!)



Then the Tank Family continued on to our fancy resort condo for a two night stay with another wee sporty family. Their daughter is only two months older than the Tankster, and they got along great! We took turns watching the kiddos and skiing for the next two days, enjoying lovely snow and perfect weather. It was kind of neat having four parents and two kids around. One couple could cook dinner, while the other two kid wrangled. One person could bathe both tots while the other three cleaned up from dinner, showered, or even read a book! Aside from the other tot having a terrible cold (that I hope we do not get) and not sleeping much during the three days it was perfect!



Flash through the trip home, the hurried unpack, the even more hurried rush out the door this morning, and a long day at the office, and we arrive at our third experiment in family dynamics. A close friend of ours just had her second child 6 weeks ago. For the first time since the birth her husband had to be away for two nights. I called on my way out the door from work to see if she needed anything from town. Turned out what she needed most was to get out of the house. So we all converged on our post-trip-disaster of a house. Chaos! But honestly it was giggling rollicking chaos!

Tank Boy and Train Boy had so much fun running around, bonking into each other and bouncing off the walls. The noise level was a notch or two above the regular din here at the Hoop Ranch, but it would have been criminal to squelch their fun! The new wee one was alert and cooing and scrumptiously sweet...



So the burning (and itching, can you feel it itching?) question that comes about from all of these recent experiences is this: To procreate, or not to procreate? I have heretofore been convinced that one tot was plenty for me, why would I need to make it harder on myself? But that rusty door that I thought I had sealed shut long ago is creaking open to the idea of the possibility of the potential of possibly having another kid in our lives. And I can't even believe that I'm saying that! Do you remember how miserable I was during the first six, no maybe nine, no maybe 12 months of Tankster's existence? The no sleep the sore boobies, the vulva of mashed potato! What am I thinking?

Or better yet, what are you thinking? Environmentalism, zero population growth, adoption, siblings, rivalry, heck have a whole hockey team? Lets hear it!

If You Can Dodge A Wrench...

Hey there! This is a really random assortment of events from the past week... Hum an inspirational tune to yourself and think of it as a photo montage, mkay?

Tank Boy enjoyed playing in puddles of all sorts...



I made an awesome quiche with local organic collard greens, fresh dill and eggs, store bought onions, goat cheese, and cheddar, that was the rockin'est quiche I've ever made, but they boys pretty much couldn't have cared less, so I had to eat the whole thing myself...


I got Tank Boy to grudgingly model yet another Foliage hat...


Have you guys seen this shot from The Drudge Reportof McCain nuzzling Bush? Poor kids, had their awkward slash tender moment forever caught on the digi!


And a quick snippet of our Sunday evening. Poor Tank Hub had a wrench sort of slip while he was yanking on a pipe and kind of smack him in the zygomatic arch (aka cheekbone). Ouch! One CT scan, some laceration irrigation, an ouchy shot or two, and four stitches later we were back at home eating pizza.


How was y'alls week?!

Cloistered

I have been home a lot lately. In some ways this is lovely, in others its getting old. See I've been almost constantly sick since Christmas. I have officially been coughing for about a month now. Some days worse than others. (I've been to the doc and there is no walking pneumonia, don't panic, Dad.) So I've been working from home a bunch, and of course entertaining myself in the home as well...
So I knit this hat a wee bit ago, and it was really pretty, but unfortunately it fit me like this...

So I knit another!

And I still love it and the yarn is wonderful and soft and squooshy. But now I need to find someone to adopt the first hat and give it a loving home. Anyone out there have a slightly larger than normal head (or whopping loads of hair) and love the color olive green? I'm thinkin' women only, its a bit twee for the menfolk! Did I mention how squooshy it was?

And speaking of guestimating sizes, here's the result of trying to cram a large log into a small wood stove. Yep, that's an exposed burning log hanging out into my living room. Good thing the fire was hot and it burned it down to a feasible size in minutes flat.

And one more noggin: the cheese covered, noodle bespattered, perfectly round one of my Tankster.

And while home these days I have been volunteering with the Obama campaign, which means calling registered dems and independents. Its a bit scary for me to phone total strangers, but it hasn't been nearly as bad as I thought it could be. I try not to call during dinner hours and am achingly polite, and for the most part almost everyone else has been polite too. I don't think I've changed anyone's mind, but I have given lots of good general voting info, such as "yes, independents can vote in this year's California Democratic primary." And "yes, it is too late to get a absentee ballot, but if you can make it to the parking lot an attendant can come out and you can vote from your car."

I know very well that he might not win, but as of today we have about a 50-50 chance! But it feels good to be involved in the political process, and be backing a candidate that I actually feel good about. It has taken a while to revive any political hope at after the last (zillion?) years of election fiascos. We have less than a week until the (horrendously named) Super Duper Tuesday. So at least this part is relatively quick.

Wishing y'all warm hats, cracklin' fires, cheesy babies and political hope.

Look, winter! It's About Time!

We finally had our first snow day yesterday (continuing today!) and Tankster loved it! There was much romping, rolling, crawling, and tongue-snowflake catching...





It's Thursday again, so its a pretty big day, as I try to get a full day o' work, then drive an almost unreasonable distance (with two major road construction jams) to struggle into full body armor, to play a fast, furious, and sometimes scary game of co-ed hockey, then drive the same almost unreasonable distance home just in time to miss Tankster's bedtime ritual, scrounge some food, clean up and get ready to start again tomorrow. Thank goodness The Hub is so supportive of my ridiculous adventures!

Edited to add: The storm ended up way too ferocious for any extended driving, so I had plenty of time to futz around on the internet today. And I have to add that this is awesome!

Vacay Recap

So we did make it back from vacation/sick leave! Sorry to leave all three of you hanging, we were only sick for 24 hours! Aside from the aforementioned illness the trip was lovely. It was warm and sunny in the beginning so we got to do some hiking...



Even lil' Tank Boy put in his fair share of foot travel!

And then it snowed! And before and after bouts of illness we all got out on some cross country skis!

Some parts were more exciting than others...


And for those of you in the know, The Hub's site has many more (and most likely better) pictures of all of the fun parts of the vacation! But alas, he won't let me link it here...