Pumpkin Diving

I have a great husband. He reminded me of that on Saturday night. We had gone to a friend's house for dinner and we spent the evening together. These friends live out by Wal-mart (it's the edge of town and really far from everything else--we're talking a good two miles!). So anyway, we had some things to do at Wal-mart so we decided that we would just go when we left Khalid & Reem's. While Jon had other things in mind, the main thing on my list was pumpkins. I have finally pulled out the fall decorations and was in desperate need of some pumpkins for the front porch. I get to go "all out" this year since we have company coming for Thanksgiving. I am really considering a small bale of hay for my pumpkins to rest on, but that is still in the works. So anyway, back to the story. We did our shopping and then ended up in the produce section of the store. I slyly made my way over to the rather large container of pumpkins just to "look." Jon gathered a few other things while I continued to scope out the pumpkins. Finally, Jon came over to the pumpkins. I began talking about how big some of these pumpkins were. Like that one there, in the middle of the container. There were only about 30 pumpkins separating me and the perfect one in the middle. I didn't even need to ask. My dear ole' hubby just started pulling out the pumpkins. He would lift them out and set them on the ground around him. A few short minuted later (maybe 10, who knows) he pulled out my pumpkin. It was perfect and quite certainly one of the largest in the box! Then I saw the next one that I must have. Actually there were two, but the second one was quickly rejected (not by me of course). It was just too close to the bottom and I would simply have to settle for the second best one. To get to that one, my ingenious husband would merely need to shuffle the pumpkins. No more would have to be removed. I must say that I was quite content with my two pumpkin purchases, although I did vow to come back for the last of those perfect pumpkins. May next week, when a few more of the pumpkins on top are purchased, and I have my hay bale. For now, I am happy with the purchases and look forward to cleaning them up tonight and making them shine!

Exciting Few Months Ahead

The next few months should be pretty exciting for me. I am really starting to look forward to it. It's all official now too. I have taken off of work, plane tickets have been purchased, and hotels are booked.

The first thing is that my mom, sister, and sister's boyfriend are coming to visit in November. They were supposed to come for Thanksgiving, but due to certain events, ended up booking air travel for the week before. It all worked out nicely because no we will get to do lots of shopping, cooking/eating, and decorate for Christmas a week (or two) earlier! And I will take the whole week off of work (well four days) while they are here. Mom and Shelly really love the holidays as much as me, so we will have a great time kicking that off. The next week Jon and I will head to Thermopolis for Thanksgiving with his side of the family. Always a good time and will most likely be followed up with more shopping. Also, we should find out sometime in the midst of all of this what the sex of our baby will be!

About two weeks after Thanksgiving, I will be heading to New York to hang out with my sister (who lives there now), mom and Aunt Cynthia. I have always wanted to go to New York at Christmas. Jon and I went a few years ago with his family and had a fantastic time. I suspect that this trip will be just as good. We'll get to see the big Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center and I am sure that we will be eating in several of the delicious restaurants in NYC. I will be there for 5-6 days and really look forward to it!

Then a few weeks later (again) will be Christmas. We are going skiing outside of Denver. Okay, okay I won't be skiing this time, but I will be enjoying the beautiful mountains, hot chocolate, and snow from the comfort of the lodge. I may have to at least go tubing or something...we'll just have to see how big my belly is by that point! We will be up skiing for a couple of days and then will head to Denver for a couple of day for our Christmas celebrations.

I will leave from Denver and drive to Oklahoma the day after Christmas to see friends and my dad if he's in town. I already have heard rumors of friends that will be "home" for Christmas from the many places that they live now, and I am so excited to see them. I'll be there for about a week and then will be back to work (finally right?) by the new year! Exciting huh? At least it is for me!

Kennedy Peak

So my friend Michell is a serious hunter. She's the one I was going to go hunting with, when I was going to go hunting. We work together, actually just next door. We often email about random happenings and sometimes even talk on the phone. I know, I know, she's just next door, but it's so convenient. Usually if one of us needs a break or has a really good story, we actually get up and go to the other person's office. Today was one of those days.

Back to hunting. Michell and her husband go out hunting every weekend in the fall. It starts in the middle of August and doesn't end until the end of October, maybe November. Her husband, Eric, goes and scouts out good hunting places pretty much all summer long. He loves it. Being the serious hunters that they are, they are very hesitant to share their secrets. Fellow hunters and even hunters wives will ask them about where they got their deer, elk, antelope, etc. and often the response is Kennedy Peak.

This is not actually where they hunt, and I know this because she tells me where they actually get their kills. I am in the inner circle of trust...plus I think she knows that I really couldn't tell another person how to get to their locations anyway. All I know is that it's in the Snowies (which is quite vague). So anyway, Kennedy Peak is about the worst place to hunt, not because there aren't great animals there. Apparently there's a ton of them, it's just incredibly difficult to access. The terrain is straight up and down cliffs and the good animals are usually found deep in the woods. It's steep and rocky.

She always tells people that they hunt Kennedy Peak because she doesn't want to tell everyone where they go, or there will be no animals left for them. Also, she thinks it's really rude when people ask you where you got your animal because they put so much work into it. I mean remember, Eric scouts out spots all summer long.

So, today...our boss goes into her office and starts talking about hunting with her (that is a story in and of itself, which I will leave for another time). He mentioned that he used to go hunting in this one spot and brought his neighbor with him and it was such a good spot. Well the next year, the neighbor brought some other people, and then those people brought other people. The spot now is apparently overrun and not very good hunting (hence the Kennedy Peak answer that Michell gives). I guess they had talked before about where they hunt and she told him Kennedy Peak. He confirmed that today, and said that he would probably go there.

I got so tickled, because while yes it is lying, I think it's all pretty comical. Michell had me come to her office to share the absurdity with her, and then we laughed, thinking about someone actually going there. I cannot wait for the day that I hear the story of someone actually hunting Kennedy Peak...perhaps this will be the year. She swears it would take days to pack the animal out. I can just hear it now...great hunting, but man it took us forever to get out of there! So anyway, that was just my afternoon laugh and I thought I would share it.

No More Books for Me!!

I have been reading lots and lots of books these days. I am a big reader, so I figure that the more I can read, the more prepared I will be for the big changes coming up, aka, having a baby! So I am finishing up one book that has actually been enjoyable, while reading fifty others while also searching the internet. There is so much information out there and I have realized that it is quite overwhelming. I realized this in hinds sight of course.

I had a mini breakdown this weekend. My doctor gave me a couple of books and is already pressuring me to do things that I hadn't planned on doing. When I asked her about some of the questions that have been weighing on my mind, she pretty much (in my non-dramatic, definitely not over-emotional state) said that I couldn't do what I had been planning on. That's really when I began researching and feeling inadequate. It's never good when your doctor pretty much opposes your ideas. I did find out, from a friend at work who saw the same doctor with her last baby, that this woman is a specialist in the field and that she pretty much always thinks that any way but her way is bad.

I felt better going into the weekend, until I started reading the books that the doctor gave me. I began to freak out. Seriously freaking out. Not only did I find most of the things in the books stupid, but I also felt that this was just another way to pressure me into doing something that I didn't want to do. Pressure might not be the correct word...perhaps a better description of what was going on here was that the book was trying to guilt me into it. It worked. I became so frustrated with the whole thing that I started crying. I tried to talk to Jon, but he just didn't understand why it was such a big deal. We had made a plan, and I shouldn't let the doctor or her recommended reading mess with me.

After several hours of crying and thinking and trying to sort all of this out, I began to realize that Jon was right. The thing that I didn't like, however, was the fact that these books were telling me that basically if I didn't do what they were telling me, I would not be a good mother. I realized that the reason I was taking this so hard is because I was doubting that too. I, like any mother-to-be, want to do what is best for my child, but I think there are limits. Some stuff just sicks me out totally, and I am no super human or anything.

So in the mean time, I decided that Jon and I are going to have to come up with a plan to combat the doctor so that we can stand firm on the decisions that we have made. I am pretty sure I will be mean if the situation calls for it. She should be used to the fact that most pregnant women are a little crazy, so it probably won't be anything out of the ordinary. Plus, it's not like we are making an uninformed decision here. We had researched this stuff and decided on it long before we even got pregnant. So there!

So this mini-breakdown that I had on Saturday has proven to me that reading all of these books and gathering every bit of information is not going to be the best idea for me. Especially considering my, apparently fragile, state of mind. So for now, I am switching to Jane Austin. That always lift my spirits!

10 Weeks 4 Days today-It's Official!!!

So I had my first baby doctors appointment today. It was so exciting and yet exhausting at the same time! I am pooped out after all of that information! It was great though...we got to see Baby Haddy and hear the heartbeat! Jon was so cute and excited about that part. And he insisted that the baby was boxing and was totally shocked by it at the same time. He said he didn't picture it to be moving so much. It was very active and if that is an indication of the coming months, I will be getting a lot of action once I start feeling it! My offical due date is April 9th, 2009. The doctor said that we should expect a late March/early April baby! Here's the photos that we got, and while they aren't the best posses, you can see the arms and head if you look closely (I think you can click on the picture and it will enlarge). Baby Haddy is on his/her way! Woo-hoo...we are so pumped!

I'm Free!!!

The two weeks prior to the start of school and the two weeks after it begins are by far the busiest weeks of the year in my job. I usually work long hours and am in desperate need of a vacation when they are done. This year has been particularly busy and it feels so good to be done! Of course I am not done, done and there is always stuff to do, but I have hit the slower time where I can get caught up on other things.

I am also looking forward to the fact that I probably will not have to go through that again. Jon is starting to look for jobs right now and will probably be starting in August or September of next year, which means that we will most likely be moving. Of course this is all assuming that Jon gets a job, etc. Just I am pretty confident in his abilities. So the one month of the year that I pretty much hate my job won't be occurring anymore! That makes me extra ecstatic to be finishing up now.

The best part is that I do get to take a little "mini" vacation, or at least a couple of days off at the end of the week, because my dad is coming into town. Perfect timing pops! So I am anxiously counting down the hours that I have left to work and can't wait for Thursday afternoon!

Camping Trip Gone Bad

Jon and I had been planning our Labor Day camping trip for several months prior to it's arrival. Jon's whole family would be heading down to Chama, NM to celebrate a cousin's 50th birthday (it's actually Jon's mom's first cousin, so his second). We got a save the date card back in March and have been planning it ever since. We reserved a camp site, Jon's parents reserved a cabin, and we were set to go. Chama is in North Central NM, which means that we would basically just be driving through Colorado. Jon, being from New Mexico and traveling often to Wyoming, was familiar with the route from here to there, although I still did a mapquest just in case. I thought that perhaps it would be faster to take the interstate instead of the mountain passes, but I got overruled. Plus, Jon said it would be much prettier than the interstate. We compromised and decided that we would take the interstate home so that we could do some shopping along the way.

We decided that we would leave work around noon and be out of town by 1:00pm, and we did. Right on time. We made great time to Denver, which is usually about two hours, but took us 1 hr. and 45 mins. That's where it all began. 2:45 pm. We got pulled over. We were pulling our pop-up camper on the back of our new SUV, and were informed by the police officer that our lights were not working. We freaked out. Jon had just checked them two days earlier and they seemed to be working just fine. We had already planned to stop at Sams for some food items for us and the family, so we thought we would be able to find an auto parts store close by. The cop just told us to make sure they are working before it gets dark, to which Jon's response was, "we shouldn't be on the road when it's dark anyway, but I will make sure they are working." So we did find an auto parts store after taking several unsuccessful exits. We replaced the bulbs, thinking that the actual bulbs must have been bad. Negative ghost rider. They were doing the same thing. We finally gave up and decided that we would just figure it out later...we needed to get on the road before rush hour. 4:30pm.

We have now managed to kill an hour and half between our speedy trip to Sams and our not so speedy trip to the auto parts store. Traffic is starting to get heavier, but we don't panic...until we see a sign stating, "accident 36 miles ahead. Expect major delays." At first we thought, how bad could it be? It's a four lane road all the way, so it's probably just slow. As traffic began to travel more slowly, we began to doubt our choice, but we drove on. 5:00pm. Traffic stops in a small mountain town. Literally stops. We weren't even moving an inch. I told Jon that we should probably get some dinner, thinking that we were close to the accident, and didn't know how long it would take. We ate dinner and became increasingly nervous due to the fact that a truck with a boat did not move almost the entire time that we were eating. This is the truck that we were behind before dinner. I started asking people about the accident and quickly found that we would need to change our plan. The accident happened near a town that was "down the road about 15-20 min." And it was backed up that far...I'm guessing we were a minimum of 15-20 miles away from the wreck. 5:40pm.

We got directions for a "back route" from some locals that wouldn't require us to go all the way back to the interstate. We decided to go for it. Big mistake! This was a winding, two lane mountain road. Speed limit, 35 at times. To make matters worse, we were the only people on the road other than the mondo sized RV in front of us that was having major trouble with the turns. Actual speed, 20-25. 6:40pm. We finally get off of this road, and have traveled a grand total of 30 miles. We are approaching a rather large mountain. Which mountain might that be, you ask? Pikes Peak. We are facing the northwest side of Pikes Peak. Are you kidding me? The problem with this is that the other side of Pikes Peak (northeast) is about five miles off of the interstate. At most we were 10 miles from the interstate! Did I mention that the speed limit on the interstate is 75? In utter frustration, we decide to try to enjoy the view, as I have never seen Pike's Peak before.

We continue on. There is so much traffic, we seem to be moving at a snail's pace. The roads have finally become straight and yet we are still barely moving. The speed limit is only 55! So we are driving along and decide to put on some music. We are jamming out, trying to make the best of the fact that we should be in Chama by now, yet we are still four hours out. The road is pretty flat, but there are mountain ranges on either side. As we approached one particular mountain range, it has finally gotten dark, approximately 8:00pm, we notice a storm brewing at the top of the mountain. The closer we get the darker the clouds get and the brighter the lightning gets. Shortly after that it begins pouring down rain. We expected it because scattered showers were predicted in Chama all weekend. Rain, thunder, lightning, and more rain.

9:00pm. The rain stops along with much of the "drama" from the trip thus far. We are traveling at a good pace, there isn't much traffic at all, and we still have at least three more hours...make that four (although we didn't know it at the time). We keep driving and are getting tired. We decided that we would stay at a hotel in a small town, Alamosa, for the night. It would be 10:30 or 11:00 when we got there. We would just stay the night and finish the trip in the morning, since we were both getting tired. 11:00pm. Arrive in Alamosa. Pull into the Holiday Inn and the sign hanging on the glass says, "No Vacancy." Jon goes in just to double check because this is a small town in the middle of no-where, how could there not be vacancy. While I was waiting in the car I began looking around the parking lot, and then in the parking lot of the hotel that is next door. Classic cars everywhere. I mean there were at least ten right in front of the hotel. Come to find out, there's a classic car show in Alamosa all weekend, hence the no vacancy. No vacancy anywhere in town!

So now we have to come up with a plan B...actually this is more like a plan J, but that's obvious by now. We decided that we would have to keep driving. Chama is no more than an hour to an hour and a half from here, so we will just do our best. 11:15pm. We called Jon's cousins to see if we could coax an invite out of them to sleep at their cabin that night. We woke them up. The entire family was asleep at 11:00! The family consists of three "kids" all in their 20's, all with their significant others present, and they were asleep. Later, we figured out that we should have just come out with, "can we come to your house," but we didn't want to impose on them if they really didn't have room. So Darcy (the mom) just gave us directions to our campsite and said we would be able to check in there.

Plan K, our last and final plan, was that we would have to just set up our pop-up at 12:30 or 1:00 in the morning when we arrived, because we were pretty sure that no one would be there to let us check into Jon's parent's cabin. 12:30am. We see the "Welcome to Chama" sign. Finally! 12:31 am. It begins pouring down rain. We found our campsite after a while and after several thoughts of staying at the Bed & Breakfast in town (although it was probably booked). 12:45am. We arrive, 12 hours after the start of our trip, it's still pouring down rain, and we can't put our pop-up camper up because it would get ruined if we tried to do that in the rain. We sat in our car frantically trying to come up with some kind of brilliant idea (psyche--told you there wasn't another plan but there was), when we had one. I'm not sure which one of us it was, but we decided that we would just have to sleep in our car. We could pull out one of the mattresses from our camper and put it in the back of the car. That way we would only have to open the camper enough to pull that out and move the stuff from the car to the camper. Brilliant!

We were so happy, in a strange and it is far too late to be logical way. There were so many things that could have gone wrong, but didn't. I mean really were we sure that the mattress would fit? What about all of the coolers and camping gear in our car? It all worked out and I am not really sure how long it took us, but we could see that indeed we were going to get some sleep that night. The mattress ended up being a perfect fit, so we changed out of our wet clothes, got our blankets and pillows, and cracked the windows (so that we wouldn't suffocate). Somewhere around 2:00am. While it wasn't the best sleep I've ever gotten, it was good sleep and well deserved.

The next morning, 8:00am, we get a call on Jon's cell phone making sure that we made and to see if we would rather sleep or go fishing. We chose sleep, although we ended up just getting up and showering. Of course, we found out later that morning that we indeed could have slept in Jon's parent's cabin (they didn't arrive until Sat.) because there was a box at the front office that said, "late check-ins pick up your key here." Nice. We decided that while Chama had not made a very good impression on us so far, we would try to enjoy the rest of our trip, and we did. I would like to add though that we took the interstate home. Six hours flat.