May 2008

I am trying to start a new tradition of doing monthly updates on our life as a way to better chronicle the goings-on of Courtney, Kevin, Delaney and crew. I also plan to write more letters specifically to Delaney so that one day she can open them up and ask "why and the heck did mom write me all of these trivial details of my life?" :)

May was an exciting month for our family. First and foremost the weather got nice in Boulder. And as it usually happens I am soon overcome with an overwhelming desire to live the rest of my life in Boulder. Check back at posts in February and you'll see how it wasn't all that long ago that I was clamoring for California. Since I have been a west coast native my entire life, the phenomenon of the spring melt is still fairly new to me. I know others from the northeast and midwest are familiar with how things COME ALIVE in spring and early summer. Things turn green that have been dark brown all winter. Flowers start to bloom, the daffodils come first and are soon followed by the Columbine, Iris and Lily. Nurseries come alive with colorful plants, hanging baskets aplenty and vegetables that I will continue to put into the Colorado clay in the hopes that one day I will get to eat a pepper that I grew myself.

People come out of their houses and the sense of community blossoms along with the flowers. Acquiantances we haven't seen for five or six months are now people we see every other day as we walk down the street or they walk down ours. Have I mentioned how much I like that people walk places in Boulder? You'd think I'd love the privacy of seclusion but I relish in the fact that I can sit on my living room couch and watch the odd person walking (or running, or cycling) by my house at least every 20 minutes. I think this is more the norm for our neighborhood than others in Boulder, but regardless I can't say how much I love that warm weather brings socializing.

The month started with Delaney's two-year birthday fiesta, which was low key by most standards with the exception that it seemed like we celebrated for about three straight days (at her school, barbeque at our house, quiet celebration with Nana and Pop-pop, brunch with Mom's group kiddos). While we have been keenly aware of Delaney's ability to throw an exceptional tantrum over the last year, the frequency, intensity and sheer ridiculousness of said tantrums have magnified exponentially in the last few months. I am torn about these tantrums. Part of me wants to go buy a bunch of books to get a few tips and tricks for understanding and managing them. The other part of me wants to trust my instincts and do what feels natural. I will say that if they get much worse I will probably resort to buying a few books. Kevin has more patience with her than I do but at the same time he also bends the rules more when I don't think they should be bent. Probably when all is said and done we have a pretty good balance of parenting skills. I admire the father in Kevin more than I can write in this update. His love for Delaney is greater than anything I have witnessed from him in our 10 years together.

(As a sidenote, Kevin and I had our 10-year anniversary of meeting each other in early May. We met at the Wildflower triathlon in early May of 1998. At the time I was dating someone else and he had crazy wild afro hair. It was fun to have a toast to knowing each other for a decade.)

We received visits from every grandparent in May which was a real treat. Delaney is always thrilled to see any of her grandparents and we feel very blessed to have such active, caring and loving parents that are in our (and our childrens) lives. All four of her grandparents are very different and she seems to welcome each one of them with equal enthusiasm. She might like saying "Pop pop" more than the rest but it's fair to say she appreciates them all equally. From a high level, she relishes in the awesome enthusiasm of Nana, the warmth and flexibility of Pop pop, the creativity of Moma and the teachings of Grandpa. Each one is happy to share a meal, read a book or get served a cup of tea. It's no wonder she likes them all so much... when they are with her they completely shower her with attention and love. You'd think we spend all day ignoring her by how excited she gets for this attention.

Our long time next-door neighbor, Alice, moved out this spring and the house went on the market in March. The house sold a few weeks ago and we are relieved to know that another older woman is moving in with very few plans to change the tiny and quaint nature of the cottage. Since we share a driveway with the future owner of this house we are extremely curious to meet her (and her dog) and hope that we can develop a relationship similar to the one we had with Alice. We received a wonderful visit from Alice the other day, and I must say she still looks wonderful for being NINETY-FOUR. I hope I am doing as well as she is at 94.

Preparations have started for the upcoming arrival of the baby boy this September/October. The other night I started having one of my typical OCD meltdowns about not feeling prepared and ready, and Kevin astutely pointed out that it appeared we were "moving into THAT STAGE". To which I defiantly replied "by whatever do you MEAN?" and I was kindly reminded that we went through something very similar about four months before Delaney arrived. I mean come on, doesn't he realize that if I don't stress about it, NO ONE WILL? It is when I am about to have a child that I realize just how anal retentive and compulsive I can be, much to my benefit and detriment. Is it crazy to tell you that I have already bought (or received as hand-me-downs) most of the baby boys clothes for the first year? The baby boy will have a surfing/fish theme in his room and I have already purchased 3/4 of the decorations. We have yet to decide on a name, and at the risk of being untraditional, I will share that some of the top considerations are Liam, Everett, Garrett, Grayson, Carter and Larsen.

We are full swing into converting our guest room/office into Delaney's room. We are worried, especially given her staunch resistance to change, that she will meet the move into this new room with much dismay. (We have started calling it the big girl room and building it up as something very special that only special girls get to do in their lives.) As a result we might be going overboard in making this room as wonderful and special as it can be. I have decided on a garden theme, complete with a picket fence surrounding the room, and Kevin is toying with the idea of doing a killer set of built-ins around her window. We are trying to find a way to do that given that Kevin will be gone a lot of June, July and some of August.

My dad finished a bunch of projects on the house this month and we are nearly done with landscaping and finishing our backyard. One of the wonderful benefits of summer is the fact that we dine outside nearly every night. Ribs and caprese salads become weekend staples for us. I love outdoor living. I have a dream about a house that has nearly as much outdoor living space as indoor living space, completely with dining room, outdoor shower, firepit, and so much more. That will have to wait until our next million comes in the door.

I made a brief trip to the bay area to attend the memorial of Kevin Perry, as well as see family and friends. It was wonderful to catch up with a few people and get my first weekend away from the homestead since Delaney was born (by myself). Given how many weekends I spend alone due to Kevin's work travels, it feels like I should have a few more of these coming.

I have been feeling the baby boy moving a lot since about 15 weeks and it feels like some days he's awake all day. I still feel great with this pregnancy, with the exception of the odd fatigue and exhaustion at the end of a weekend day when I've been going non-stop all day long. My feet are starting to hurt and I am also having the occasional case of insomnia, but those seem pretty insignificant since I feel generally very good. All the more reason to start cranking on those preparations before I get roly poly and unable to be productive for more than 3-4 hours a day.

All in all May was a wonderful month for us and I look forward to June being wonderful as well.