Accompanist Woes

Okay, so many of you may not understand the severity of this rant, or why I'm even really upset, but I need to vent...

I volunteered to serve as the accompanist for a sweet, amateur Jewish choir made up of Jewish refugees in their 60s-90s from Russia. I did this volunteering before even moving to SLC, but while in preparation for the move and all too conscious of my need for musical sustenance in some venue or other. I figured - one hour a week, no problem - plus, I was used to playing for the Charbonneau Chorale weekly and knew I would miss them all...

Since moving I've gotten to know these dear people a little bit better, have been educated and amused by their love for food and celebrations, have learned a few Russian words and have suffered through many, many horribly unorganized, semi-mutinous, very off-key rehearsals. Some weeks I deal with it really well and focus on being an aid to a group of people who love meeting with each other and find joy in singing together. Other weeks I truly suffer through rehearsals, wishing I didn't have a degree in music or a perfectionist's temperament.

The biggest struggle throughout my experience with this choir has been their lack of music. Due to a very tragic accident, all the previous accompanist's music was lost or destroyed. Therefore, I've had to extract each piece of music here and there when the choir suddenly decides they want to sing it. Now, my personality dictates that if something like this happened and I had a new person who was coming in to help the choir (whether singing or accompanying) I would try to pull together all the music I could find to be able to hand them a folder of as many pieces as possible...

So, each week, I wait to see what "new" piece of music they are hoping to practice that I don't have - and the worst part - what different key they really want to sing it in than the one miraculously pulled from a choir member's folder. Then, we struggle through the music for a few minutes before the choir director finally tells me, "Down 1 step. Transpose. Next week." I generally sigh, nod and tuck the music away, knowing I will be fairly grumpy about doing the transposing during the week and will put it off until the following Tuesday night, or lunch on Wednesday before choir.

Now, the first couple of times I needed to transpose something it was okay. Heck, I even enjoyed it a little bit. The problem is, it really feels like it's now almost every piece, the pieces are getting more intricate, I have less patience and for goodness sake, we're talking 1/2 a step to a 3rd lower! Pretty much, that's nothing!!! So, why do I have to transpose it again? Why can't the choir practice enough to be able to reach high C? Plus, most of the time, I spend time doing the transposing and then we don't even practice the song again for several more weeks!

Okay. So, now you know where I was emotionally and psychologically when I went to choir last night (except you need to also know that this week almost anything has made me want to cry - again, thank you hormones). When I got to choir, I found out they will be performing at the re-opening of the state capitol building here in SLC on January 5th. This time, they did have a list of possible songs we might sing at the concert (hallelujah!). Upon the list, however, was "The Choir of the Slaves" from Verdi's Nabucco. This is a beautiful piece and I had the music, but we'd never practiced it together before last night. It's written in F# Major and I'd learned it as written... only to be told as we began to play, "No. No. Too high. Too high." She told me to take it down 1/2 a step. 1/2 a step! Essentially nothing. And, the director assumes one can just cancel out the key signature and still play it as written. Yeah right! There are accidentals all over the place and flats to play that aren't written in... AHHHHHH.

So, ultimately frustrated, I tried to stand up for myself (something I'm not always good at doing). But, due partially to the language barrier and partially to a very stubborn choir director, I was ignored. Here's where I'm still rubbed wrong: this choir cannot sing on pitch, therefore does not have good harmony, cannot hear when things are off or wrong, and doesn't know the concept of counting. So, why exactly should I transpose an entire opera chorus orchestration down 1/2 a step to accommodate them? Why can't they accommodate me in this situation and let me play it in the key it's written?

Anyway, the night ended with me dissolving into angry and frustrated tears in Seth's office, which gave me a headache that sent me to bed instead of getting to frost the cookies I'd made for a special presentation Seth had at work today. Sad, but not the end of the world. Hopefully I'll get to do some frosting tonight. :) Plus, I have a whole week before I have to face the chaos again...

P.S. I think the hardest thing in all this is that I don't want to be frustrated. I really do want a place where I can play for people. I really do like the choir quite a bit - they are sweet people who love to sing. I just feel stretched way too thin for the level of music we are really producing.

21 Weeks

So the tummy has emerged. Amy Arnold was right - it happens miraculously quickly all of a sudden. For me, it happened to be Friday afternoon, some time between noon and 6:00 pm. I had a doctor's appointment early in the day - no tummy. (Things look to be going really well these days). When I got home from work and changed into comfortable clothes, though - wala - tummy.

Freaky Fridays

Okay, so last Friday was the gunman scare at the office. This Friday was a witnessed accident on the way to work. Ahhh! Life certainly comes in waves.

So, here's the story:

Seth and I were on our way to work, around 7:35 am. It was a rainy, blustery morning and still pretty dark. We had just turned right past the high school by our house and were preparing to take a left hand turn onto 1900 E. We were stopped behind a silver Mazda and began to turn just after she did. Mid turn, both Seth and I realized there was a bicyclist in the crosswalk, crossing 1900 E. Thus, we watched this Mazda completely plow straight into the guy on the bike! I saw the car hit him, clothes and limbs went flying and I covered my eyes. I really think it's the worst thing I've ever seen.

We pulled over right behind the car who hit him and Seth hopped out to help. I must admit, I was a wreck and just sat in the front seat, crying. It turns out the kid is okay; he was a high school student on the way to school. He may have had a slight concussion, and he was afraid his ankle was dislocated/broken, but his parents ended up coming and taking him to the hospital - he didn't have to go in an ambulance. His bike was pretty well mangled and we had to stick around to give a statement, but it turned out as well as could be expected.

Now, I would hope that in stressful situations like this I'd have a straight head, but today I just completely melted. I've kind of processed it, though, and I think it's because I had so little control in the issue. It was like watching a movie, but knowing that it's real life and knowing that it's horrible and still not being able to do anything to stop it. 

After the event, taking the bike over to the school to try and figure out who the kid was and get in contact with his parents, giving a statement, etc. we were already really late for work. So, Seth decided we should go out to coffee to chill out and process together a little bit. This helped a lot, but I'm still a bit shaken up. The kid had dark clothes on, didn't have any good reflectors on his bike... neither Seth nor I had seen him, either, before we began to turn... it's just such an easy thing to have happen...

Seth and I have the VA Christmas Party to go to this evening. Hopefully it will be relaxing and fun. Pretty much, though, I'm once again really ready for the weekend. Snow is predicted and I'd like to decorate our Christmas tree... maybe I'll make York-a-Like Peppermint Patties... anything non-stressful, anti-anxiety provoking and calm.

First Snow & Second Snow

These are pictures of the 1st real snow we got here in SLC from the front of our home. The trees are my favorite!

These are from the backyard, the 2nd time it really snowed (Dec. 1). We waited until the evening and the sky was really pretty. Evidence of these 9-10 inches still remains and it is supposed to dump on us again tonight. Seth is excited to get to snowboard again this weekend.

Finally some pictures...

Here I am back at week 12.

Here I am back at 13 weeks. I wanted to document this day because it was the last time I figured I'd wear that shirt for a LONG time. It has plenty of room in the tummy, but the rib cage was feeling mighty tight. :)

Here I am this week - week 19. I feel "thick" these days, but everyone tells me I still don't look pregnant. I'm just waiting for pleasantly "round!"

Baby Tippin

Here's a sampling from our ultrasound earlier today. We thought this profile and arm were pretty cute. Things look to be going well. The kiddo is weighing in around 11 ounces and my predicted due date is April 28th. We chose not to find out the sex.

Melancholy

I'm feeling lonely today. Hopefully it is an emotion that will pass quickly - and I expect that it will, seeing as we have a holiday party here in the office today and Seth and I get to go see our mini-kiddo through an ultrasound this afternoon. Anyway, I've been reading blogs all morning and made the mistake of checking out North Valley's December newsletter... it just made me really miss everyone at home and made me sad that we don't have a church home here yet. It also made me feel really removed from our old life...

So, everyone back in Oregon, you are missed! And, all those who have moved this past year, too, and are scattered around the country - I'm thinking of you, commiserate if you are feeling lonely and miss you, too!

CRAZINESS!

Well, I'm starting this post all over again because for some reason it decided not to show any of the text...

I suppose that is probably good, seeing that I wrote it while high on adrenaline and a little bit worried. But, I am annoyed that I have to tell you about it all over again. (And, I'm sorry Laura, that I worried you by having a nuts title, and no information to go along with it!)

Today (Friday) was full of drama, suspense and frustration. I'm still a little bit angry at the situation and how badly it was handled...

At about 10:30 am this morning one of my supervisors came in and said, "Have you heard anything about the situation over in architecture?" The two of us present here in the office said no, puzzled. She went on to tell us that that Architecture Department was in lock-down and had been since sometime yesterday afternoon because there had been a student with 3 guns over there, threatening to shoot a professor. We were, of course, shocked, but more than that, confused that our department would not have been sooner notified. Where were the emails? Phone calls?

Now, here's the thing: the Architecture department and the Art department are in the SAME building! How is it possible for them to be on lock-down and we don't even know there is a "situation?"

About 15 minutes later, the same supervisor came in again and said, "Okay, here's the real story..." She said, sometime yesterday afternoon, the police pulled over a man driving erratically on the freeway. During this traffic stop they learned four key things: the man was an architecture student here at the U, he was drunk and angry, he was threatening to shoot an architecture professor and he had a gun. (Later, 3 guns were mentioned.) She also said he had been present on campus yesterday afternoon, so the Architecture department had been locked down and everyone sent home. (Again, we're in the SAME building... why didn't we know??) As of the morning, they didn't know where the guy was, but Architecture was still in lock-down.

So, here we are, sitting in front of two sets of windows that look out on the courtyard between us and the Architecture office. Bridgett and I were trying not to feel too freaked out, were relieved to know the guy probably wasn't on campus at the moment, but were still asking thinks like, "Why hasn't there been a larger email sent out? Why are we just learning of all this now? Is there something we should be doing?" Other staff members began to trickle into the office then asking if we'd heard about what's going on... saying things like, "Why don't we have a description of this guy? Why hasn't a picture been sent out? Where are the emails from campus security? Didn't anyone around here about Virginia Tech?"

The day moved on in this manner for a couple of hours. Many staff members felt like they were, "Living in the twilight zone." We continued to deal with disgruntled faculty members, our worried selves, and the questions, "Should we be locking up and going home or is this really just a scare?" I kept thinking, "Gosh, if Architecture is in lock-down and the guy is out to kill someone, won't he just come over here once he finds out that person he's looking for isn't around?" (Not helpful thinking, I know).

Around 12:15 pm I got a phone call from the Dean's office. The receptionist said, "Hi. We just wanted you to know that the suspect has been apprehended. He is currently in custody. Please carry on as normal unless you hear anything differently from us." Okay. Great. Situation resolved, right?

Then in marches a group of faculty members who were having a meeting up on the 2nd floor. Out the window, a couple of them saw the police out in our courtyard (yes, the beautiful view from my office) chasing this guy around the building. They watched the whole chase and say the police catch the guy and arrest him. Now here's the thing: HE WAS REALLY HERE, ON CAMPUS, IN OUR BUILDING THE WHOLE TIME! And, again, why did we not get this message?

Luckily, the situation was taken care of, no one was hurt and we all went home happily at 5 pm. We'll see if I get any more information about the actual events today (Monday).

Needless to say, this past weekend was one where I did a lot of relaxing, a lot of house cleaning and not a lot else. It did snow 10 inches Saturday morning, though, and it was nice to usher in December with a fresh blanket of white. Hopefully I'll get to post the pictures we took sometime tonight (the camera is a t home).

Blessings to you all. Hopefully today will be much less "exciting."

A Winter Wonderland and More Movement

Yesterday afternoon it started snowing. We've been waiting for it - the ski resorts were moaning about not getting snow for their usual Thanksgiving traffic, people in the office where I work were quizzical about the lack of precipitation, the city water supply was concerned with the warm fall and slow start of winter, Seth and I were hoping for a couple short walks in the snow during our little break...

But now it has come! And there is no sign of it really stopping. When I looked out the window this morning at 4:30 am, just before I let the cat out, the backyard was beautiful! There is a pear tree right outside our back door that I've loved through the summer and early fall, but was looking weird and stark since it's lost all its leaves. It turned into a beautiful silver spirit last night. Happy happy. We got somewhere between 2 and 4 inches. It's supposed to keep snowing on and off for the next couple of days and then dump again over the weekend. Most predictions said we wouldn't get any snow here in town, it'd just be in the mountains, but we're glad they were wrong.

I just loved looking at all the frosted trees on the way to work...

And the other excitement last night was that Seth got to feel our baby move for the first time! I've been feeling little flutterings and bumps for the last couple of days, but it was moving quite a lot last night. I mentioned it and Seth said, "I wonder if I could feel it." I doubted it, because they've been pretty faint little movements, but he waited a little while and I pointed to where I was feeling things... and then all of a sudden there was a huge kick (or backflip or something)! We both kind of jumped in surprise and then dissolved into giggles. He felt some smaller rumblings after that, too and then convinced me I should feel it from the outside. Now, it's kind of weird to realize there is something quite independent of you, moving inside you... and somehow even stranger to feel your abdomen involuntarily move from the outside. It is all very special, too, and my mom is right, I'm sure I'll remember feeling this little one move for the first time for the rest of my life.

Slowly, slowly I'm getting rounder. I guess I still don't look "pregnant," but I'll try to post a picture or two here soon. I'm definitely bigger in the belly than I've ever been before.

Hey! It's snowing outside again! Have a great day.

Thanksgiving Weekend

I’ve enjoyed reading about folks’ Thanksgivings over the last couple of days – everything from joyful family-filled get-togethers to small trips away for the long weekend to couples in other countries who are thankful but missing their families.

Our Thanksgiving was both traditional and completely different from anything we’ve ever done before. Seth had to work at the VA on Friday, so we settled in for a cozy Thursday in Utah. I got up early, was grateful for morning energy, and began cleaning and baking. I just adore pumpkin pie, so making the house smell like it at 9:00 am was bliss. ☺ We spent the rest of the day enjoying a day to rest, a warm cozy house with the oven going, good food and time to spend together.

I found myself most thankful for:
1. a loving husband and wonderful marriage
2. a warm house
3. yummy food (turkey, cranberry sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans and pumpkin pie)
4. naps
5. cell phones (so we were able to converse with our far-away families in Oregon and Iowa)
6. the joy and anticipation of our growing family

I must admit, the rest of the long weekend continued on our Thursday’s lazy trend. There was lots of football, reading (Bethany) and playing computer games (Seth). We braved the stores Friday evening and were pleasantly surprised to find the crowds gone, but some sale items still available. (I’m very excited because I was able to purchase Chutes & Ladders, Candy Land and Memory for $4 each!)

Towards the end of our weekend, however, things took an exciting turn (in comparison). I was able to purchase a darling, simple, oak rocking chair off Craigslist for $40. It is lightweight (and thus movable from room to room), small (and thus fits in our tiny home) and comfortable. I am very excited about it – our first baby-related purchase.

Ski season opened in Utah this weekend – even though we don’t have any snow. So, Seth and I took a fun drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon to Brighton Ski Resort where Seth has an unlimited season pass. He is super excited! I am super jealous! The resorts are currently blowing “snow” onto their main runs. We were surprised to see how many people were actually up there skiing and snowboarding. It was really weird because it’s cold, but not cold enough to really need all your gear, so people were skiing in t-shirts and stuff! Plus, a lot of the ground is still brown and all the trees are green. Anyway, Seth finished up all the official paperwork, got his picture taken and was issued his pass. It is supposed to start snowing here this week, so he’s hoping to make it up to the mountain with his snowboard next weekend.

On the way up the canyon I think I felt our baby moving for the first time! The feeling came and went throughout the day after that. Very strange, but really exciting, too.

I was also able to muster up enough energy and motivation to actually clean up our living room and pull out my sewing things again. Thus, Seth is happy because I finally finished some curtains for his office that he’s been waiting for since August ☺. Plus I finished up some really easy mending and worked for a while on a cute top I started back in August, too. I’m excited for the top because I think it is big enough I’ll actually be able to wear it for a while longer. It’s really close to being finished. Unfortunately, however, the most “exciting” part of the weekend happened just as I was beginning to attach the left sleeve…

Our computer monitor blew up. Seth was printing some important papers for work, getting ready to write a bunch of reports, and the monitor just turned off. After a short period of him messing with it and me getting anxious, he started making phone calls regarding it’s warranty and if it was something that could possibly be repaired. It turned into me melting into a pile of tears (even though I wasn’t really all that concerned about the computer – thank you hormones) and him beginning to tear our newly cleaned office apart – looking for computer parts and accessories we haven’t used since we moved.

The good news is, the computer itself is fine, so we were able to hook it up to our desktop’s monitor. The bad news is, we have to decide if it is worth fixing or if we should just buy a new laptop. Seth spent the entire evening pulling all his files off the laptop and backing them up. I decided more cleaning, a trip to the library and sitting and reading a brainless book was in order. Meanwhile, we watched the Eagles/Patriots game.

The most frustrating elements of the evening were 1. Our laptop is having problems AGAIN, 2. My newly cleaned house will no longer be clean for Monday, 3. My crying escapade left me with a pounding headache and 4. I feel as though I will never know where everything is since moving… before we have to move yet again.


But, on a cheerful note, I woke up this morning ready to get back into a routine. I’m fairly happy to be at work – there’s actually some stuff to do. My headache is gone, it is still sunny outside and Jenni has pleasant Christmas music playing at her desk behind me.

Blessings upon all your weeks.

In your opinion...

Well, we had another appointment with our midwife on Friday. It looks as though everything is going well. Our little alien really likes to hide him/herself though, so getting Doppler heartbeat readings continues to be a bit of a challenge.

I’m supposed to schedule my “fetal anatomy” ultrasound today – for sometime during the 1st week of December. Seth and I are still really undecided about whether or not we want to know the gender right away or if we want to wait until birth. We’ve always said we’d like to wait, and I think in theory we still do, but it’s pretty hard to wait when we know we could find out in a couple of weeks if we choose.

So, I’m wondering, all you readers out there… both those who have previous experience having little ones and those who are still just thinking about it… would you find out or would you wait? Why? If you are one who waited – are you glad you did? Would you do it differently next time? Does it really make that much of a difference from a planning and preparing standpoint? If you found out, did you feel you were better able to bond with your unborn child?

Baby Facts

Well, by all accounts, I’m now officially into my 2nd trimester! Hopefully, just like the books say, I’ll be regaining some of my lost energy and starting to feel less queasy. I’ve put off writing here because Seth and I have had several slow, uneventful weeks. The last two weekends we’ve seriously just lounged around the house – lazy bums! Our weeks are full of work, occasional social encounters, food and lots of sleep.

The other reason I’ve held off on writing, is because I keep thinking I’ll soon have pictures to post of my pleasantly rounding tummy. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it) we’re still waiting for the roundness to make itself known. Some days I think I can see the progress, but everyone else around me still thinks I look “normal” and very un-pregnant. I’m definitely wearing all the same clothes I always have.

So, instead of fun pictures, I’ll just have to give you all some fun facts. Our little one is around 4 inches long this week and weighs about 2 ½ ounces. All the baby development books we read like to compare our “alien’s” size to fruit. This week he/she is the size of an apple. He is also sensitive to light now, so technically if we shone a flashlight at my belly, baby would move away from it. She also has the capacity to suck her thumb by now. All baby’s features and organs are now formed, they will just continue to develop in size and function from here on out.

It’s still pretty strange and amazing to me that a little human is living inside me and soon I’ll be able to feel it. In some ways, I’ve felt very pregnant over the last few months, but in some ways I’ve had trouble believing it’s totally real, too. Some day relatively soon I guess I’ll be able to feel the little one moving around and my belly will start to protrude – then I won’t be able to ignore it!

Pictures!

Hey all! Like I've said before, Seth and I get pretty lazy about taking pictures. Luckily for us, Amanda took some good pics of our last trip up to Jackson, WY a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy.


The beautiful Teton Mountains.



The largest Elk Horn Arch in America!



Birthday presents!



And more birthday presents!



Snuggling. It seems I'm still tired ALL THE TIME...



Cute kids.



More cute kids.

Relax, Refresh, Rejuvenate

This past weekend was incredible. Nothing exciting happened. We didn’t travel anywhere. We didn’t have friends over or company in town. We just stayed home. Well, I did. Seth went fly fishing all day on Saturday.

I decided, sometime around 4:30 am Saturday morning, that I would treat my Saturday as though I was at one of those spa retreat centers. I slept in, took a long, warm bath in the morning, made sure I ate healthy, yummy food, did an hour or so of yoga, went for a walk, watched the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, did a prenatal Salsa workout video (super funny, but really fun) and took a nap. Amazingly, in the evening, I even had enough energy left to make muffins.

Every once in a while, one gets the chance to look back at a day and say, “I spent that day just exactly as I should have.” Saturday was one of those glorious days. (And, I must give my wonderful husband credit – it was possible because he spent Friday evening, after I’d gone to bed, cleaning the house! I woke to everything straightened, dusted and cleaned!)

Sunday, Seth and I spent a lot of time together, going to church, getting groceries and shopping for fingerless gloves for his next fly-fishing adventure. He even watched part of Pride and Prejudice with me! Later, I watched the Boston/Cleveland game with him. It, too, was a fun, relaxing day. For the first time in quite a while, I feel like I was ready for Monday.

A Sweet, Sweet Sound to Our Ears

Yesterday afternoon Seth and I went to our 2nd prenatal doctor's appointment. We've chosen to go with a midwife who works in a clinic alongside 2 other midwives and 2 Ob/Gyns. The clinic is out of the hospital that is closest to our house, and it happens to have the best Women's Clinic in SLC.

We really didn't know what to expect with this visit since it was just a follow up to our traumatic appointment a couple of weeks ago. It did set our nerves quite at ease, however, as everything looks to be going really well now. We were able to hear the baby's heartbeat within seconds of the midwife starting the doppler. A strong 152 beats per minute.

We've heard from other couples that hearing their baby's heartbeat for the first time was a really emotional moment for them. Unfortunately for us, it wasn't that huge of a moment since we'd gotten to see the kid bouncing around on the ultrasound a couple of weeks ago. Now, that was amazing!

The best part of the afternoon for me was that the appointment was really quick, so I got to go home and take a nap!

Also, we discovered in the car on the way home that Seth is eerily good at making the doppler heartbeat sound with his voice. It is really good to laugh.

Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

We woke up this morning to a couple of inches of snow. Very pretty, but starting to drip. We've also begun to notice a strange phenomenon. Most people have carports in our culdesac (just like us). Lots of people also park on the street. When it frosts, freezes or snows, our cars gets caked with ice or snow. (This morning it was a couple of inches of icy snow). No other cars on the street have nearly as much weather related matter on them. What is it with our particular driveway?

At this point, this particular phenomenon is not a problem. But, it makes me wonder what it will be like in a month or so...

Tomorrow it is expected to be back in the 70s, sunny and clear.

Moody weather, crazy people, hormones & more Russian birthdays!

Yesterday was the strangest conglomeration of feelings and events... I woke up at 3:30 to our cat scratching at the window above my head, begging to come in. When I opened the door, sheets of rain came blowing in, the cat (looking like a drowned rat) snaked past my ankles and lightening flashed above our apple tree. I hurried to shut the door and crawled back in bed. Sleep refused to come, however, and I lay awake listening to the rain and thunder. I think I was able to sleep after that, in approximately 15 minute segments, between more thunder cracking and the cat wanting in or out. At 5:00 Seth's alarm went off. He snoozed it 3 times before turning it off and then promptly fell back asleep. I did the dutiful thing and didn't let myself go back to sleep, but forced him to get up. Then I got up. And started practicing random Hebrew and Russian songs on the piano.

The rest of the getting ready part of the morning was normal.

As soon as I got to work, however, the phone rang. It was one of our models for a Figure Painting class. She sounded horrible and informed me she had been hit by a car while riding her bicycle on Monday afternoon. Since then she'd been in and out of the emergency room with a head injury. She figured she probably shouldn't come to work this morning because she was feeling worse rather than better. Then she added, "Plus, we really got all we needed accomplished with the pose on Monday. They don't really need me." Now, forgive me for being skeptical, but this gal always has the strangest excuses for things. Usually they involve her bike and they always come on Mondays or Wednesdays when she's scheduled to model for our 8:30 am class. She informed me on Monday that she and her boyfriend had just moved last weekend, so she was swamped with unpacking. Regardless, what it did was leave me to 1) inform the professor that she's not coming and is potentially seriously injured, ii) frantically start calling our other models at 8:00 in the morning to find a replacement, C) try to decide if we should ever hire this girl again and IV) try to figure out if I felt bad for her or if I really didn't believe her and was just annoyed. Not my idea of a great way to start off the day.

From there I moved on to some completely assanine tasks involving department statistics and college/university website and mailing information. On the latter, I'd already worked for 2 days on adding schools with art departments who had a certain percentage of minority faculty members. I was only half way through California, having started with Alabama and working in alphabetical order. I was already pretty sick of these projects, but halfway thankful that I actually had work to do, when my brain totally stopped functioning. I seriously sat, staring at my computer screen for minutes at a time, blank. I don't remember this happening before. I guess I was tired... and I felt ridiculously like I was going to cry - for no reason of course - thank you pregnancy!

Then the hot flashes started. Seriously. Weird.

Just about then, it started raining again, hard. As I watched people dash for cover outside the office window, I answered the phone over and over again - and the questions (and people) were really strange. Now, I usually get a few odd calls a week, but these were extremely concentrated. Plus, I had absolutely no patience for it. These people were making no sense! (One of the drawbacks to working in an Art department is that aphabetically, it comes first, and somehow that means that people calling the University in general end up calling us looking for some totally different department altogether. Instead of asking for that particular department, and letting me transfer them easily, they generally launch into some intricate tirade about this thing or that, I get completely confused and have no idea what they are talking about, and finally 5 minutes later we figure out they had no intention whatsoever of calling the Art department and need X department (of course, it would be nice if they listened to the fact that I answered the phone, "Department of Art and Art History, this is Bethany").

Next I started sighing. This was in order to keep from crying. People in the office kept asking if I was okay. Some of the ladies even went so far as to say, "If you get teary, we understand." Blasted hormones!

As lunchtime neared, we each made our preparations to leave, planning where we'd like to spend our hour of freedom. Just before the first person left for lunch, however, it started hailing outside. Huge hail stones! Like just shy of a centimeter in diameter. We decided not to venture outside. It was kind of fun to watch the accumulation of white pebbles in the flowerbeds, however. Students kept walking in, drenched and frowning.

The afternoon continued like this, outside dark and gloomy, alternating between rain, lightening and hail, and the rest of us dealing with grumpy students and our grumpy selves.

When I left the building at 5:00 I was more exhausted than I've been in a long time (and that's saying a lot these days!). But, it was time to meet up with my lovely, frustrating, totally unorganized and wonderful Russian choir friends. I've never so violently wanted to call them and tell them I'm not coming. But, I had to go - this was the meeting to celebrate my birthday! And at 5:10 the nausea hit. Horrible, no good, very bad day!

Thankfully, by 6:00 I had myself pretty much put back together and was seated on the piano bench. By 7:00 the party was all set up and we joyfully gathered for sweets, juice, cards and flowers. We were also celebrating Itsaak's birthday. He is the "baby" of the choir (only in his 60s rather than 70s, 80s or 90s). He is also a really funny guy. He usually tells Liz or I he likes to sit by us because it helps him feel younger. Mini Milano cookies and Mint Brussels raised my spirits a bit. Thank God for cookies!

When I got home I fell immediately to sleep. My bed is my absolute favorite place these days. Plus, I was smart and wore earplugs. The cat was out all night. :)

Jackson Hole, WY

Seth and I took another trip up to Jackson Hole, Wyoming this past weekend. Again, we met up with Amanda and Kayli, but this time we stayed in the Coyboy Village Cabins. Amanda and Seth were participating in a psychological conference and Kayli and I got to play. Jackson is a great place for the 4 of us to meet because it is pretty much halfway between SLC and Sheridan. The other perk of the Jackson/Grand Teton area is that it is the current home of Aliesje King, another of my dear friends.

We made the trek up to WY Thursday evening, right after work and arrived around 10 pm. A cute, almost 9 year old wearing adorable purple Tinkerbell flannel pajamas greeted us with exuberant hugs and energy to envy.

Friday we all got up early, partook of a delightful continental breakfast (haha), and headed off to our respective duties. Amanda and Seth were in conferences all morning and afternoon. Kayli and I took a rousing trip to the Dollar Tree and K-Mart for coloring books, crayons, markers and nail polish. We then wasted away the day watching CMT while coloring and playing Polly Pocket. Kayli painted her nails a very festive black with orange sparkles (and I think convinced Seth it would be a good idea to paint his nails, too). Mostly, I wished all day to take an extensive nap!

Saturday and Sunday were pretty much the same, although we were able to explore Jackson and the surrounding area a bit in the evenings. We did some window shopping and visited a candy store, Seth and I went out and visited Aliesje for an afternoon, I found a pair of really cute stuffed elk to continue my Noah’s Ark animal collection and we all went out to (pretty horrible) Thai food.

All in all, it was a good weekend, but a tiring one. I still haven’t fully adjusted to my body’s need for extra sleep and total lack of energy…

Thanks to all who called over the weekend to wish me happy birthday. It was fun to talk with you.

The folks, shopping and Park City

This weekend, Jon and Ruthie came to visit from Iowa. They rode the train overnight Thursday and all day Friday, arriving in SLC around 11 pm Friday night. We met up with them early Saturday morning. Seth took us all to this really funky diner for breakfast called Ruth’s Diner. They had the strangest assortment of breakfast foods available! But, we all seemed to find something that satisfied. The whole place was decked out in pink flamingos, too. (Amanda, we thought of you a lot!) Again, I really wish we had used our camera!




Then, we all headed out on a car tour of good ol’ Salt Lake City. The weather happened to be terrible, cold, rainy and so overcast one could hardly even see the mountains, so taking our tour by car seemed to be the best option. Then we all headed back to our place and let them check out our new home. It was a pretty nice and relaxed day. I’m always amazed, however, how many things there are to talk about when you haven’t seen your friends and family for 3 months.

Later Saturday afternoon, Seth and Jon headed out to electronics stores to find a new digital camera and Ruthie and I went in search of maternity clothes (not that I need them at all yet…). All in all, it was a great day, but a tiring one. It ended with Mexican food at our favorite restaurant. We certainly couldn’t go wrong with that!

Sunday we all headed out to church and celebrated a fun World Communion Sunday. I always love to see so many different country’s flags lined up together. The service was full of different languages, both in written and sung form. It was fun.

Sunday afternoon we decided we should take advantage of the fairly clear sky and headed up to Park City. It turned out to be a beautiful, but cold day in the mountains. We walked, talked, ate and found a fun Sunday market to check out. Seth and I had a great time choosing artsy picture frames and beautiful, handmade mugs. (One of the down sides of not having a dishwasher is a larger collection of broken dishes. Our mug collection has been dwindling lately).






Today, Monday, I’m back at work. But, the rest of the gang is probably still asleep. Seth has the day off as a federal employee and Jon and Ruthie will board the train late this evening for their trip back to Iowa. I’m trying to decide if I want them to come take me for an extended lunch or if I want to take the afternoon off to play some more. Time off is kind of tricky right now as I only earn one day a month and I’ve worked here just shy of 2 full months. But, an extra afternoon to play sounds oh so good…

Tuscany

Seth called me at work sometime mid-week last week and said, “Ask your coworkers if they know of any really good, fancy restaurants. I think you need a couple of excuses to wear some of your fancy dresses before they no longer fit.”

Fun stuff. So, of course, I asked around and came up with a great list of places to try. We decided our first fancy date should be Friday, after our doctor appointment, so we could celebrate.

Here’s what I found:





I really wish we had actually used our camera because the inside was so beautiful! It really felt like being transported into northern Italy. The food was fabulous, too. We had really great, crunchy hearth bread and salads topped with pesto vinaigrette to start. Then, Seth ordered a pulled pork meatloaf served over garlic mashed potatoes and I got pesto encrusted salmon served over couscous. We hardly even touched our entrees because we were already so full! (And, I must admit, I was saving room for dessert). The salmon was very good, however, and we were especially impressed because we had heard you can’t get good seafood here in Utah.

When the time came to order dessert, I was excited, but it turned out to be a REALLY hard decision! Normally, I look over dessert menus and pick the one thing that sounds good. This time, EVERY SINGLE THING sounded good. We finally decided on the banana cream pie served in a coconut shell, topped with brulee sugar and drizzled with chocolate and caramel sauce. It was heavenly.

Pokes, prods, but no heartbeat

Hey friends – sorry it’s been a while since I’ve written, but Seth and I had a really busy week. It culminated with a trip to the doctor to check on our little fetus and (hopefully) hear his/her heartbeat. Unfortunately, our little kiddo apparently likes to hide deep down inside mommy, so we didn’t get to experience that particular joy this week. Unfortunately, too, not being able to detect it worried the midwife, so we were sent off to get an ultrasound. Now, this was worrisome to us because we knew it wasn’t standard procedure at 10 weeks, but it turned out great! We got to see our little “peanut” jumping about and see his/her little heart beating like mad. The best part for me was that Seth was standing at the foot of the bed, watching the ultrasound monitor the whole time. About 30 seconds into the whole thing, he got this really great, huge, goofy grin on his face. We both got to watch once all the measurements and tests were finished. It was a time for which we are really grateful.

Sleepy

Today is a tough day. It is friday - which can mean so many different things! Today it means work is even slower than usual, I am unfocused and I've already looked at the clock 750 times. All I’ve wanted, all day, is to take a nap.

Last night Seth and I were up late due to a friend’s car trouble.

Seth and Charlie decided to take a trip up to a shop where Seth could purchase fly tying materials. (Charlie has promised to teach him how to tie flies). This particular shop happens to be in Ogden, UT, which is an hour or so north of us. On the way home, Charlie’s car lost all power, so the boys found themselves stranded in Clearfield, UT. They hung out in a Chevron parking lot for a good part of the evening while arrangements were made for towing, mechanical service and a way home.

So, I was having a great, relaxing evening at home, just about ready to put on pajamas and settle into bed (wondering a little about Seth’s expected arrival home) when my phone rang. It was not without some grumbling, therefore, that I was alerted to their being stranded in Clearfield (which I’d never heard of before) and that it was my duty to come pick them up. Now, I don’t want you to get entirely the wrong idea about this situation… I was grouchy about my bedtime plans being disrupted, but understood their predicament and didn’t really mind heading out to get them.

Approximately an hour later I arrived in Clearfield, expecting them to be ready to jump in the car and head back into good ol’ SLC. Instead, we three waited for the tow truck to arrive. An hour or so later we were on our way. An hour or so later we were dropping off Charlie and 20 minutes later Seth and I were pulling into our driveway. This now puts us 3 and a half hours past my bedtime… and me miserably nighttime sick… and it all cast a definite shadow over today. (Now that I say that, though, I feel poorly because I’m not the one with a non-functioning car!)

Seth and Charlie will head back up to Clearfield this evening to pick up the now fixed vehicle. Hopefully they’ll get home a little earlier tonight. ☺ I’ll try out the bus system again and pray that it doesn’t make me sick. I’m finding that moving vehicles are my greatest enemy these days. Without them my stomach feels yucky but does not act upon its feelings. With them I’m miserable.

On the bright side of this situation, however, we got to spend more time with Charlie. He is one of Seth’s fellow interns at the VA and a really fun guy. He has this super dog, too, named Leo. I’m thankful for getting to know more people here in SLC.

It must be time...

for another post.

Nothing super exciting has happened this week... so I've felt a little bit silly about writing. I guess when one announces something so big as having a baby, then everything else just seems ordinary and mundane. But, since I spend so much of my time at work reading other people's blogs, and hoping they have posted new information (no matter how mundane) I figure it's time for something new.

The other hump I need to get over is the feeling that I should have pictures to attach to everything. Alas, I'm truly bad at taking pictures, especially of everyday things.

It snowed in the mountains this past weekend. They looked so beautiful! But, it has warmed back up this week, so the mountains are now right back to their old brown and red selves.

Last night was the 3rd meeting of the Russian Jewish choir that I'm accompanying. I say "meeting" instead of "rehearsal" because we've spent much more time eating together than singing together so far. I've been assured this is not the normal way of things, however.

Yesterday was a really special night. We celebrated the birthdays of 3 choir members - Yacov, Fema and Yuri. They were turning 90, 85 and 80 this week! Three very important ages. I knew we were having some festivities, but understood they would be after rehearsal. I also imagined the traditional American cake and ice cream, possibly accented by balloons. Well, I was in for a surprise!

Since family members of the birthday boys as well as representatives from the Veteran’s Association were there to help us celebrate, we nixed rehearsal altogether and headed for an amazingly stocked table. There were cards and flowers and balloons, meats, breads, cakes, traditional Russian dishes that baffled me (the greatest being “herring under a fur coat”), salads, drinks and ice cream for dessert. They started with ceremonial presentations of the cards and flowers and then moved on to toasts. Food was next, but no one had warned me that Russian tradition teaches it is rude to fill your own plate. Therefore, your neighbors heap your plate with whatever is close by. (Imagine me trying to communicate and explain, knowing absolutely no Russian, that I avoid wheat and dairy – and now meats like salami – so I can really only have the orange juice!)

While the mad shuffle of neighbors filling each other’s plates was happening, people were also trying to speak to the group. There were stories, jokes and toasts going all evening. It was a fun filled time, joy being echoed all around the table, but it was also strange and a bit uncomfortable. I’m sad I was unable to try much of the food, but mostly because my table-mates were so concerned that I was starving. ☺ Of course, since I had assumed only cake and ice cream, and thought it would be served an hour later than the meal actually began, I had eaten before coming to practice.

Liz, the coordinator for the choir, is a young twenty-something who spent time in Kurdistan learning Russian. She is a great translator and very fun herself, but she found it difficult to translate much of the humor happening last night.

The best little tidbit of information I learned, though, is that anyone over the age of 80 may ski at many of the ski resorts in Utah for free! And even better, Yacov, the 90 year old, is an avid skier! He was even teasing us about his learning how to do aerials out at the Olympic training stadium. I hope I look as young (and act as young) as he does at 90!

Life's Little Miracles

Hey guys -

Seth and I have some great news... we're having a baby! I'm 9 weeks along now, so our little one is due at the end of April next year.

We're experiencing a lot of changes and I'm having a bit of trouble adjusting to my body's need for so much sleep! Things seem to be going well, however, and we'll keep you posted. We have a doctor's appointment scheduled for Friday, October 5th where we will get to hear the heartbeat, etc. At the moment, I'm just trying to stay awake at work and keep my appetite strong.

We've had fun getting books from the library and finding out how quickly our embryo is growing. He/She supposedly looks mostly human now and is about an inch long. Up until now, as we've looked at the developmental pictures, we've referred to our little one as "the alien." Endearing, I know. :)

Does anyone know anything about the United Church of Christ?

Hey everyone -

Seth and I are having an interesting time trying to find a church where we're comfortable here in Utah. I say "interesting" because at times it has felt like an adventure and at other times it's just felt difficult. We've tried 5 or 6 and the last one we tried we've now gone to for 3 weeks. It's called Holladay United Church of Christ. Their website is www.holladayucc.org if you'd like to check it out. We like it okay, but we're wondering if okay is good enough? It stands miles above the others... but is that enough reason to stop looking?

One of the things I was really looking for in a church was the opportunity to join a small group and this church has some, but it isn't feeling really easy to get connected. They also don't really have adult sunday school. They do have a lot of musical opportunities, however, and Seth is fairly interested in seeing if we could both join a worship team. I'm not sure, however, that I want to jump into such a responisibiity so quickly.

We like the services in general. And, I really like the pastor. We've also felt like the people in this congregation know how to make new people feel welcome and comfortable. Plus, we found this church by going to a David Wilcox concert and a congregation that appreciates David Wilcox is a wonderful group of people. :)

Seth and I find ourselves really liking Salt Lake City and finding that almost everyone we meet is friendly and kind. We find, however, that although there are copious amounts of LDS wards, the other church denominations are only scantily represented. Our landlord, who is also our next door neighbor, said, "I'm sorry I can't help you find a church very well. I just don't really know where the non-LDS churches are. All my friends who live here who aren't LDS just don't go to church." It really feels like that is true. Some of the churches we've attended have big, beautiful buildings, but then hardly anyone is there.

I think the hardest thing right now is that we've been here long enough we no longer feel so nakedly new and that makes us more ansty to settle somewhere. We're ready for deeper relationships with people and feeling like we have some solid friends. Seth has formed some good relationships with the other interns at the VA (especially his fishing budding, Charlie), and it's nice that I have gals to chat with at work, but we're ready for some friends we've gleaned from a wider circle.

Boring...

I’m so tired of reading books online, hoping friends and family have written new posts on their blogs and surfing the internet for who knows what. Someone once told me that intelligent people never get bored. I don’t believe it.

So, for several hours I’ve been thinking I should write, as it would be therapeutic to my bored self. But, I’m afraid everything I write will be boring, too!

And why am I so bored, you ask?

Well, I took this great job at the University of Utah. I work the front desk in the Art and Art History Department. Theoretically, I get to work with funky, fun, creative people. I get to help students, answer the phone, sort the mail and do anything else that seems to be needed. When I interviewed, the other gals in the office acted like they really needed someone who could multi-task. They also acted like their days were overwhelming, everyone having entirely too much to do – they really needed someone who could work efficiently and could easily handle a job with little down time. So I jumped at the chance. I figured an academic setting would do me good.

Unfortunately, they were talking about their own jobs, and not at all about this position. Apparently, I’m the receptionist. Of course, that’s not how it was marketed or I’d never have taken it. I will the phone to ring.

I’ve taken to reading books online, writing letters to myself, answering any email that comes my way on a weekday in record time and truly appreciating any tidbits of news I can glean from the blogs I read. I look forward every day to the 30 minutes or so, around 2:30 pm, when one of the other girls in the office steps out for lunch. It usually sparks some conversation between the third gal in our office and myself. We happen to be the same age and have similar interests. I don’t know why we don’t chat as much with Jenni here, too, but the atmosphere changes drastically when there are only two.

I guess I probably blow all this out of proportion, but I just need to keep busy! It feels like wasting time, and the minutes go by so incredibly slowly. Every once in a while I am assigned some bigger project, or there is a day here or there where students come by constantly with questions or needs, but those fly by so quickly. I’d guess that’s only one day a week. The rest of the week I do about 2 hours of work during an 8 hour day.

The people I talk to around here tell me I should just get another job. I guess that seems sensible in some ways, but they didn’t just go through the whole crazy job search thing a month ago! They probably also don’t have the crazy, yet fierce sense of loyalty I do. I don’t know why, but I despise quitting things.

So, if you write me an email any time between 8 am and 5 pm, don’t be alarmed if you get a quick response. If you write to me any other time, don’t expect to get a response until I’m back at work, willing the phone to ring.

Pumpkin Muffins

So, my cousin Hannah recently posted a whole bunch of amazing food pictures along with recipes for a fabulous meal she cooked... and for dessert, she made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. Well, I've been craving pumpkin chocolate chip muffins for the last 3 weeks or so. I've only held myself out for them because it hasn't quite felt enough like Fall yet. Until the blog post. That night I made an enormous batch of them.

The last couple of mornings have therefore been fabulous!

And here's the recipe in case someone else is having autumnal pumpkin cravings:

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups pumpkin
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 36 muffin cups or line with paper bake cups. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. Combine eggs and sugar in large bowl. Add pumpkin and oil; mix well. Stir in flour mixture until moistened. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched. Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes.

The Obsession Continues

So, yesterday, I was feeling antsy and wanted to get outside and get moving. Seth wanted to fish. We compromised by deciding for him to bring his fishing gear along on a hike. We drove up to Little Cottonwood Canyon (only a few miles from our house) and hiked along the Little Cottonwood Creek. It turned out to be a lot of climbing over rocks, trees and logs and not a lot of traditional hiking. But, eventually we did find a nice trail to walk that wove back and forth between strictly forest and bordering the creek. Now, I call it a creek, because that's its name, but this is the biggest creek I've seen in my life!

Our camera wasn't working during the time Seth was actually fishing, so I missed out on getting pictures of him, but we did get a few of the landscape and a few of the strange ruins we accidentally happened upon. We're really curious as to what they were - I mean, obviously a building, but to what purpose? Seth did some research on the internet when we got back, trying to figure it out, and found other pictures of the ruins, but nothing that told us what it was. We figure it had something to do with the mining community, which was huge in the canyon for years, but the strange thing is its architecture.

Anyway, Seth was feeling adventurous, so he found a way to cross the creek (definitely a river at this point) and wandered through the building, taking pictures. I stayed safely on the other side and enjoyed watching. Actually, I wish I had followed him, but I really wasn't in the mood to get wet!


This evening, as I write and clean and relax, Seth and Charlie are fishing again. Maybe they'll bring me a nice late dinner. :)

Fly Fishing Adventures

For a couple of years, Seth has said he wants to learn how to fly fish. I've known he's serious, but he hasn't really had the chance to go out on a river with someone else who is experienced and willing to teach him the basics. Plus, he's been busy with school and our old house that had to be worked on all the time...

Then we moved to Utah. Something about this place just totally set him off. He's talked of fishing over and over and over again. (Not in a bad way, just in a passionate way). Luckily, he's also made friends with one of his fellow interns at the VA, Charlie, and Charlie happens to be an accomplished fly fisherman. So, several weeks ago now, Seth and Charlie and another intern set out for an afternoon of fishing. Seth came back with three fish! And, a determination to learn everything he possibly can from Charlie.

So, they've taken outings to get Seth all the gear he needs as well as several fishing expeditions. These pictures are from a week or so ago when they explored the Strawberry River. It is north of us, about 2 hours. They didn't come back with any fish, but each caught a couple during the afternoon.

Labor Day Trip to Wyoming

Well, I know it's a little late to post about Labor Day, but that's pretty much the last time we did something fun and exciting.

Seth and I took a little trip (5 1/2 hours) up to Wyoming to visit our friends Kayli and Amanda as well as check out the Grand Tetons National Park. It was a beautiful drive with bright blue skies and amazing views. The changes in the scenery from Utah to Wyoming were breathtaking. Utah is full of browns and reds this time of year, but Wyoming was green.

We camped inside the national park at Lizard Creek Campground Saturday and Sunday night. Sunday we took a trip to the Visitor's Center so Kayli could get all the materials to become a Junior Ranger, and then we went hiking. Kayli learned how to skip rocks during the weekend, and had a great time fishing with Seth.

The drive back was also beautiful, but I must admit, I slept through most of it. :)

So it's been a while...

Goodmorning friends. My intention was to set up this blog before Seth and I made our big move. That way, you'd all be able to keep up on the crazy changes taking place in our lives.

Then life got busy, and other tasks prevailed.

Now, I'm longing for contact with old friends and family. We're feeling settled here finally. We both have jobs. We like our little duplex unit. But, we have yet to find a church (not from lack of trying) and the one couple we really knew who was living here is moving back to OR tomorrow. We're longing for new relationships and miss the old ones.

I've appreciated keeping up with other people's lives through their blogs. I hope you will feel the same about ours.