Western Swing & Texas Natural Festival

We enjoyed a festival a few weeks ago, held on the lawn of our town square.  We live about a quarter mile from our square, and I pass it nearly every day when I walk to run various errands.  Jon and I were walking home from the Activity Center (spin class), and stopped to listen to the music.  Then we saw all the fun, free kids activities and called Jonathan to walk over and join us.  We ended up eating lunch at the pizza place on the square and made a day of it!  A wonderful, unplanned family day : )

A stagecoach that the kids were actually allowed to play in! (Under the watchful eye of a historical society docent)

Painting a cowboy hat

Listening to the Western Swing music.  Willie Nelson was not there...

Never thought I would miss...

running and washing dishes.  But today I enjoyed both of them! 

Some of you know that I (maybe) tore my right ACL in December.  Walking over a baby gate while holding Jon.  NEVER walk over a baby gate. Ever.  Just my advice : )  After 6 months of rehab at home, doing strength exercises, water aerobics, Zumba, and Spinning classes, I think my knee may be as good as it's gonna get.  I ran about a mile a month ago with another library mom, and most of that run I was huffing and puffing to keep up with her.  This morning I ran about two miles with my husband, and it felt great!  I ran the whole time, never felt like I had to stop, and didn't feel even a slight twinge in my knee.  Yay!  I never thought I would miss running so much, but being forced to stop definitely made me appreciate it.

Our kitchen plumbing also backed up on Friday (we are on the ground floor of a three-story apartment building, so everything that our upstairs neighbors put down their drains ends up in our kitchen plumbing).  It being a long weekend, we went four long days without a kitchen sink or dishwasher.  I prepped as much food as I could at home, but we also ate out about once a day.  I got pretty bent out of shape by having to pile up dishes on the counter.  Some of you may find this hard to believe, as you have been over to my apartment PLENTY of times when dishes were stacked up on the counter ; )  But I honestly have been doing much better at housekeeping this past year, and one of those things is washing dishes promptly.  So to have that taken away from me for four days was no fun.  A wonderful plumber came out today, used a zany machine, and our plumbing problem was gone.  I actually enjoyed washing that huge pile of dishes!! 

Weekend getaway

Last weekend, I had a fun getaway with my college friends to Nashville.  One of us was getting married, so we came from California, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, and West Tennessee to join in the festivities!  We had so much fun!  I will post some pictures soon, but for now, here are some highlights:

1. Sleeping on the plane!  Really, the entire experience of flying without a 2-year-old was amazing : )
2. Seeing the sights in Nashville - we went to the capitol building, the Parthenon, Vanderbilt, a hipster record store, and even some random public housing...a wonderful walking tour of the city : )
3. Getting dressed up!  I don't think I have worn that much make up, taken as many showers, and straight ironed my hair so much in a 48 hour period as I did last weekend : )
4. Of course, the BEST part of the trip was just hanging out with my friends!  We were simultaneously silly and intellectual - the best combination!  Thanks Becky and Crystal for putting up with me and my constant toddler stories : )

Reading like a grown up

I have never been much of a reader. I left that up to my big sister, who seemed to always be reading a book when we were growing up. Rather, I've never been much of a reader of books. I have always enjoyed reading the newspaper and magazines, and good grief, I spend hours these days reading articles on npr.com, slate.com, nytimes.com, etc. Most books that I read are YA novels - Harry Potter, Peter and the Star Catchers, etc. This year, I have tried to read more like a grown up. The library has helped with that, since I go there twice a week for story time with Jon, and I don't have to pay for the books : ) I read Tina Fey's book and Mindy Kaling's book...I know, I know, not really adult books. Then I tackled Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Ughh.... About twenty pages into it, I called Becky and asked if this was what all grown up books were like. I hated it, but of course I read the whole thing. Then Charles Dickens' 200th birthday came around, and everywhere I was reading about what a fantastic author and legend he was, and I felt guilty for my skimming of A Tale of Two Cities in 11th grade. With Great Expectations set to air on PBS on April 1st, I checked the book out of the library with the goal of finishing it before I watched it on TV. Hah! I made it until Pip finds out the truth about his expectations, and by then, I was tired with the writing, I was yelling at Pip to leave London, make up with Joe, and marry Biddy! Why didn't he marry Biddy?! I had absolutely no patience for Miss Havisham or Estella. So, I watched the Masterpiece version before finishing the book, and I am glad I did. Seeing it on screen made me feel a bit of empathy for Estella, which I don't think I ever would have if I had just finished the book. With the due date upon me, I skimmed the rest of the book, as if cramming for an English Lit test, and dropped it back off at the library yesterday. What I am left with is a great sense that Charles Dickens wasn't such a fantastic author after all. Am I alone in feeling like all of his books have the same plot? Orphan, new found riches, wait - being rich isn't that great, now I'm poor again but happy? Maybe that's just the books that have been made into PBS television shows...

Any tips on what I should read next in my quest to read like a grown up? The Hunger Games have been suggested, but that's just more YA!


**After writing this, I must add that I read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society last year while on vacation. Very good! Highly recommended!

Vote. Give. Grow.

Check out this video to learn how easy it is to support Youth Villages! I used to work with a lot of these folks, so it's fun to see them in the video : )

Still here!

I've been out of the habit of regular blogging, but since I check the blogs of my long lost friends daily, I thought I should at least add my own info : ) Life continues on at its usual pace! Jonathan is immersed in the job hunt for the 2012-2013 school year as well as teaching the high school kids by day and the college kids by night. Jon is a typical 2-year-old with all of the joys and challenges. And I'm trying to keep up with everything involved in keeping a household running. Dinner is always on the table, cookies are usually in the cookie jar, laundry is folded, bills are paid, plants are watered, bathrooms are cleaned, and sometimes the floors get vacuumed! In all honesty, I do not know how families with two working parents do it! When Jon was a baby and I was working full time, Jonathan was home during the day (he worked at night) and took care of a lot of the household stuff. Now that he is working full time, and I'm just part time (my job is from home), I take care of the household stuff. If I was at work away from home all day, there is NO way we could get all of the everyday stuff at home taken care of. I just don't have that much energy!! Kudos to families who make it happen!!

Here are some pictures to share of our adventures over the past few months:

Spring Break with the Hulgan family:

Jonathan's father and grandfather looking out at the cows on the Hulgan family homestead in Alabama. (Note: we will never get this...I think it's going to a 2nd cousin or something...)

Jonathan had to hold Jon, because there was an electric fence, and Jon kept wanting to pet the cows!

Playing with G-Ma (Jonathan's mom) in the front yard in Chattanooga.

Back in San Marcos, enjoying a trip to the park.

Jon is looking at an ant here. When we walk anywhere, he has to stop and pick up sticks or rocks and look at ants and butterflies. I love it! Although it did take us 30 minutes to walk to preschool this morning (when he is in the stroller, it takes me about 5 minutes!)

I used to think I had unlimited patience with Jon - nothing seemed to rattle me too much. Then...he turned 2! I have learned that whining is my mama weakness - it grates on my every nerve, and it makes me a mad woman! Two times this week, I have had to leave the room and calm myself down before intervening in one of Jon's whining tantrums. If I had a dollar for every time I say, "Jon, I cannot understand you when you whine. Please speak like a normal person," I would be rich! I suppose I should stop telling him to speak like a normal person, but it is usually what comes out of my mouth. The funny thing is that when he does repeat his request without whining, it is like robot Jon, "May-I-have-more-grapes-please-Mama!" with each word punctuated. Oh well, I would take Robot Jon over Whiner Jon any day : )

Still sleeping in his crib. We contemplated getting a real bed for him, especially after he slept in one at his grandparent's house. But I must admit that it is nice to still have him penned in a little, so we're holding off on the 'big boy bed' for now. I'm sure by the summer, we'll have him switched over.

Rolling dough! I let him play with some scraps from a pie, and he had a lot of fun : )

Jon learned at school to say 'cheese' when taking pictures. Now I can't get a shot without him making his 'cheese' face! I prefer his 'real' smile, but I'll take what I can get : )
(ignore my recycling pile behind Jon's head!!)

Now that I'm 30...

My 30th birthday has come and gone, and I'm still here. My dad reminded me over the phone that even a milestone is just another birthday. Part of me knows that, but part of me was still a bit bummed about turning 30. I think that to me, 30 means that I have to stop pretending to be a kid and just start acting like an adult. My retirement portfolio update for the last quarter came in the mail today...and it's pretty depressing...is this what adulthood means?

Enough of that! The past few weeks have been very fun, with Christmas and (yes) celebrating my birthday, and having my sweet husband home : ) Teachers may not make much money, but it sure is nice to have "Daddy" home for three weeks! He did do a lot of work planning for the coming semester, but he usually did his work during Jon's naptime and after bedtime, so we had a lot of fun during the day. We slept late most mornings, either stayed at home doing random stuff or went outside for walks and errands. Today was our first day of reality, with Jonathan back a work, Jon back at preschool, and me back on a normal routine. I feel rested, relaxed, and optimistic about the coming semester, which is a very good way to feel : )

Here are a few pictures (we are not picture taking people...thankfully our parents are documenting Jon's growth!!)

Below: Enjoying "Tuba Christmas" on the South steps of the Capitol building in Austin. A grand Pollock tradition to attend this amateur concert every year, and I'm glad Jonathan has embraced it. Note that he is in short-sleeves. I think it was around 65 that day! We even convinced some friends (in the background of the pic w/ Jon & Jonathan) to join us.

We had a post-Tuba Christmas lunch at Stubbs, like we did last year. I wish I had a picture of Jon at the table from last year! I must start taking pictures of these things! We enjoyed our barbecue, but it is nothing like a good, Memphis-style pulled pork sandwich from Central BBQ.

No pictures from Christmas : ( Again...I think my father documented. We enjoyed a lovely worship service at church, came home to a Christmas brunch with a couple of friends, then had naps (all of us!), and opened presents in the evening when my parents came in town. I think I actually prefer that set up over getting up and immediately opening presents. I received a much-needed new pair of Chacos, which I am slowly breaking in, a fun new cookbook (Make the Bread, Buy the Butter), and several other fun gifts. Jon is up to his eyeballs in new toys (only a kitchen and a block set from his parents I might add), and I am seriously going to have to put some away in closets because his toybox, toy basket, and shelves are literally full. There are trucks and stuffed animals lined up on the floor in my living room, and I need to remedy that soon.

Below: For my birthday, my sweet mother-in-law and grandmother-in-law came into town to watch Jon while Jonathan and I had a little mini-vacation in San Antonio for a few days. It was so nice to go out to adult restaurants, see a movie, and enjoy the company of my husband without having to worry about taking care of a 2-year-old. We really appreciate our family coming in town to help us out! Below is a picture from a restaurant on the Riverwalk. It was still decorated for Christmas, and all of the trees with lights were absolutely beautiful!

On Saturday, I had an afternoon at the salon where I enjoyed a mani/pedi and a non-soccer mom haircut. (The last time I had my haircut, I was appalled at how dated it was...this time, I went to a salon where a very sweet, very tattoo-ed girl with blue hair helped me pick out a new style. I think it worked). Below are my ruby-slipper toes to celebrate my birthday : )


So now we jump into 2012 and all it has to offer - hopefully continuing to build friendships in Texas while hanging on to our friendships in Tennessee, enjoying our toddler and laughing to ourselves even as we put him in his 5th time out of the hour, and tackling yet another higher education job search. Although 2011 had its stresses and heartaches, I do believe I grew over the year and I am so thankful for my family that I am with every day.