Saturday, July 10, 2010

Another pearl of wisdom from my one-a-day mommy calendar

I hope that my child
looking back on today
remembers a mother who had time to play.
Children grow up while you
are not looking;
There'll be years ahead for
cleaning and cooking.
So quiet down cobwebs;
dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and
babies don't keep.
- Author Unknown

In my 13 1/2 months as a mother, by far the most overwhelming part for me has been keeping up with the chores. The role of house manager is not one I was raised to fill and when I lived alone, even when it was just Mike and I, messy was ok. Every now and again it got out of control and Mike and I would buckle down and spend a weekend excavating.

But once Myki arrived, clutter and mess became unacceptable. Especially once he started moving around and absolutely anything on the floor was something to taste or trip over. It seems silly I'm sure, but I obsess over how much I hate cleaning and how one-sided the task seems to be.

But this poem says it all. I can plop Myki in his highchair with TV and Cheerios as his companions while I spend hours on the house or I can spend that time with Myki and settle for the reality that my house is not worthy of a Good Housekeeping spread but my son is having a blast!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Photos from Texas

Flowers at the wedding - made by the mother of the bride

Posing for a picture at UT-Austin. It was so gorgeous.


Chuck Taylors at the Texas State Capitol Building

Photo Message from the Babysitters - Myki and his empty lunch bowl



My favorite Austin locale - home of the Texas-sized donut - 5 lbs of deliciousness




Sunday, July 4, 2010

Everything is Bigger (Maybe Better?) in Texas

I did it! I cut the cord and let Myki stay in Florida while my Husband and I enjoyed some much-needed adult-only time. I think we agree that there’s no need to make a habit of the separation but, it was healthy and dare I say, fun! So an annual babyless trip might be in our future. It was Mike and I’s first time in Austin, my first time in Texas at all, and we spent four days there in celebration of the union of Jessica Lynd, one of my best friends, and Dante Barros, her Peruvian fiancĂ© who can best be described as one of the warmest and genuine people I’ve ever met.

We arrived in Austin a bit groggy at 11 AM on Thursday and went straight to the hotel to jump on the king size bed and make a game plan for the trip. We headed downtown where I drank my first alcoholic beverage in almost two years; a mango margarita….it was divine. After lunch, we went our separate ways as I headed to the bachelorette party. It was only my second bachelorette party (my own being my first.) Jessica has talked to me about all of her close girlfriends forever and although I’d met some of them briefly and went to school with others, we had never all spent time together. It was actually really wonderful, and especially good timing in my life as my daily interactions are with a 12 month old. I told my husband afterward that I was mutually inspired and intimidated by what all of the bachelorette party attendees had accomplished! Law school, Fulbright Scholars, marriage to the perfect man, working abroad, assisting those who most need it, rubbing elbows with political elite, extensive travel…..it was amazing.

After good conversation and an amazing dinner, we headed to Austin’s 6th Street – the bar and lounge capitol of Texas! On top of not drinking since before being pregnant, I hadn’t been out dancing in something like three years. I never would have imagined years ago that I’d get to the point in my life where dancing was not a regular event. Jess has always danced like no one was watching and that had not changed. I, on the other hand, had trouble moving beyond the bouncing around I do with Myki in my living room. By Saturday’s wedding, I was a bit more loose but as Hannah Barr said, I think I have better moves hiding somewhere within.

Friday morning I headed back to the hotel and despite big plans for the day, I ended up going to sleep and waking up just in time to witness horrendous thunder storms that are NOT conducive to tourism by foot. The rain let up and our little group ventured to Polvo’s Mexican where I gorged myself on some of the best fish tacos I’d ever had…so…much…flavor. I will be trying to recreate them in the coming weeks! And then off to Graham’s Central Station to learn to two-step. Let me tell you that although two-stepping sounds easy, navigating through a roller rink like circle backwards among 100 dancing couples is no easy feat! I am in awe of all the spinning and lack of collisions those authentic cowboys were able to muster.

Saturday brought a homage to the Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food. After wondering around the UT-Austin campus, touring the beautiful State Capitol building and sucking down some 7-Eleven slurpies, Mike and I convinced our entourage to venture almost 40 minutes away to the world famous Salt Lick BBQ, an open pit BBQ restaurant known for its brisket, smoked sausages and pork ribs. These people are serious about their meat! No cornbread or mac and cheese, no fancy cole slaw or sweet baked beans….just some simple sides and bread so you didn’t have to eat the meat alone. It was definitely not what I expected but so delicious!


After rolling out of the Salt Lick, we headed to Round Rock donuts, another world famous locale and home to the Texas-sized donut – a handmade donut in the Texas tradition and literally weighing 5 lbs! They were warm when we got them and quite literally melted in your mouth. Saturday, July 3, 2010 was most definitely a day that will go down in my personal culinary history books! I think I ate more food on this day than I ever had before…and it was all delicious.

After a mad dash back to the hotel and the fastest showers in history, we finally arrived at the main event! The mere sight of the venue knocked the wind out of me. It was so beautiful and the thought and effort that went into every detail were amazing. The guestbook, the flowers, the fans, the seating arrangement, the ceremony, the lighting of the candles, the music and dancing, the dress, oh my god, the dress. I was absolutely in awe of the entire thing and felt so honored to be a part of it. The tears came, of course, but I regained control of myself. It was amazing.


I completely identified with Ellie when she said that compared to this, her wedding was like candy corn, like bracelets you could eat. When I got married, I just couldn’t have fathomed making so many different components happen. I mean, amazing, it’s really all I can say.

I am sure Jess and Dante have an incredible, adventurous, loving and successful journey ahead of them. And reflecting back on this weekend, I am thankful to have witnessed their union and for all of the benefits I reaped from my time in Austin. I reconnected with my husband, commiserated with an incredible group of women, realized that I will not disintegrate if I leave Myki’s side…I was inspired to move out of my comfort zone – maybe I should go to law school, relocate to Texas, get my Ph.D. at UT-Austin, really try to get into the Foreign Service and most definitely, go dancing on a regular basis.