I Don't Make Promises I Can't Keep

Okay, so I didn't get the pic at 6:15am, but I got it!

Check out this uniform ... is that not one of the cutest oxymorons you ever did see??



and this one's going in the record books for obvious reasons. Makes me happy just looking at it.

My Pledge of Allegiance

It's Memorial Day. Have you thanked the service men and women in your life lately? I have. Please look at a couple of those precious heads years and years and years ago...



And when I say YEARS ago, I mean it. They're coming up on their 2nd child, 6th wedding anniversary, and going on 10 total years together.



This is a photo of Brooke pinning Max - I think it was a "thank you in advance for putting up with my shit" pin. I KID I KID.

Speaking of funny things. My goal is to wake up at 6:15 tomorrow morning to snap a pic of Brooke in her maternity uniform as she makes her way into the office (not for much longer!!). Just imagining her barking orders at sassy men all day in an empire waist camo jacket that hardly hides her delicate situation is enough to make me smile. The least I can do is share it with you.

I Have the Talking Stick, So Shut Up

I can't help my inherent negativity today, people. I didn't get coffee this morning and I feel like I'm being punished for years of good health. How can this be?!?

I was the first of many ACL reconstructions on our team in 2002, then broke my foot in 2004. Both recoveries were painless, with -0- complications. But here we are 8 years later and my body is SCREAMING its revenge. I haven't been in this much pain since watching Leonardo DiCaprio kiss his poorly chosen Juliet in '96 (I sincerely hated Claire Danes for at least a year...... ahhh to be 13 again.......)

But the last month has been a game of injury tag between my left knee and my left foot. Now I'm the first to admit my self-control was put on the developmental back burner somewhere around the discovery of Teen Night at Red River, so when my head says "hussy, Body is pissed, take a week off", my other head says "GROSS. YOU ARE GROSSSSSSS. Move. Be active. Do something." The latter of the heads is a bit more assertive than the former. So I go workout - then I ice my parts with frozen corn - then I wake up in the morning unable to move - then I get to lab and write about my body falling apart and how terrible it is to be 28.

Seriously though, the only thing worse than being me right now might be being my sister right now. Girl's been dilated 3cm for a week!! She's all belly, but HUGE. Alyssa and I laugh at her a lot when she waddles to another room and asks us if the ice box she calls a house is too cold. Can't blame her though, it's 90 degrees outside and she's just about 9 months pregnant. We're all eagerly awaiting the arrival of baby Avery, placing our conservative bets on when she'll make her appearance. I put my money on this weekend. Mostly so I won't be so bitter that I didn't get a Memorial Day vacay. BUT ALSO BECAUSE I just can't hardly wait to scoop her in my arms and love the shit out of her.

Thinking about this little, precioushead baby girl, suddenly I'm not a NegativeNancy anymore (and my 800mg ibuprofen is kicking in)

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder, Right?

So apparently it's safe to assume I'll take a blogging hiatus between February and May every year... let's call it a "spring cleaning of the monkey mind", a necessary evil to spur creativity. Or just precious time needed to keep my head above water with school. Even if finals are over, competency exams are not :( This means I should probably be studying everything I've learned since August, but alas, I choose to break my blogging seal of silence instead. A sacrifice for the greater good. And also a byproduct of my ADD.

So Brooke recently went through my blog and extracted every entry about Vincent to put in his baby book. She printed upwards of 30 pages chronicling his first year+ of life! It's apparent I love the crap out of the kid even though he treats diaper changes like a WWE match. AS IF WE ENJOY IT EITHER, SON. But seeing all those entries printed out and being a self-professed advocate for middle children nationwide, "helping fight second child adversity one birth at a time", I have a DUTY to Avery to make my way to a keyboard and chronicle her life too.

I mean, she expressed to me not long ago through a sort of heel-to-belly Morse Code that she's a little worried about it. It's understandable that she wants to be a priority too. Can we blame her for that? She doesn't ask for much - mostly breastmilk, a clean butt and the occasional gawdy pink bow. Despite her mother's efforts, Alyssa and I will make sure the bows happen, but picking up my blog again is really for her. Avery Brooke will get her 30 pages of content in the next year..... because middle children UNITE!



So what's been going on the last 3 months? Oh you know, in no particular order, a gradually growing sister soon to pop, a new house, raising a boy, school, New York, school, Chicago, lab, NASCAR?, school, learning how to nap out of necessity. The usual.









I really wish I had some pictures of lab or studying so my life didn't look so damn fun, essentially making me look like a liar that this semester has been rough..........................I swear. Ask my mom. I haven't talked to her since February.

Anyone seen Father of The Bride II where they keep the house at -30 degrees and everyone except the preggos are walking around in scarves, hats and gloves? That's kind of what it's like here. So I'm headed to make some hot chocolate and curl up in a blanket. In May.

Until next time...