another poll!

This is my living room. I've been desperate for a new coffee table for over a year now and even though I haven't been able to commit to one, I know it will be round. It used to be for purely asthetic reasons, but now it's also for safety! I can't be having all those sharp edges with a kid in the house, now can I?!

I had envisioned something like this little beauty, but after much thought, I'm just not sure it will go with my existing furniture. My couch & chair are in the beige/camel family, and my entertainment center is a cream/sagey green treatment. I love cottage style decorating & have been slowly moving towards that direction, but I also love a warm look, and I think it's tricky to achieve both.

My other dilemma with a pedestal table is that I'm used to having the underneath part of my coffee table. And where else would I put my many, many magazines? And when the baby comes, where will I put the basket of toys? On the flipside, maybe the pedestal without the underneath part might make my teeny tiny living room less crowded?

My other option is something like this. A nice wood table with an underneath part to collect all my crap. It's a little rustic, which is also appealing to my I-want-to-live-in-a-farmhouse-in-Vermont side.

So these are my two options, and I need you lovely ladies to help me decide! One, two, three, go!

weekend getaway

Adam & I spent last weekend in Anchorage, which is north of Juneau, but I believe it is considered “south central” Alaska. At a population of approximately 279,000, it is by far the most populated city in the state. (Compare to Juneau with a population of about 35,000).

Friday night we had an early dinner at a restaurant near our hotel called the Glacier Brewhouse. They had several IPAs on tap, (Adam’s favorite beer) so he was thrilled. For a moment, I thought maybe I ought to leave he & the waiter alone to discuss the virtures of the perfect IPA. The meal itself was so not worth the $75 tab, but I figured ~ what the hell, we're on vacation. I even commented to Adam that baby-brain hadn't totally kicked in, as I was still able to calculate the tip. Leaving the correct amount of money, however, was another matter. Instead of pulling out 4 twenties and a ten, I only left 3 twenties and a ten, causing the waiter to chase us down the street to collect the rest of his money. Whoops. We stayed in the rest of the night & watched Oceans 13 on pay-per-view, which was a good movie, but we did have a hard time following it. FYI, if you ever watch Oceans 13, pay very close attention in the beginning or you’ll be lost for the rest of the movie.

We stayed in bed pretty much all day Saturday, which was really, really nice. The anxiety of everything I should be doing while I was lounging in bed would prevent me from ever doing that at home. Whatever happened to the good ‘ol days with nothing but pure relaxation & lounging about watching sappy movies on the Lifetime Network? Responsibility, that’s what. And sometimes it really stinks.

We did eventually leave our hotel room to walk down to the 5th Avenue Mall, which normally would have been heaven. You ladies in the lower 48 probably don’t understand what a thrill it can be to be in a MALL. Where they have clothes. That you can TRY ON before buying them. In Juneau, we rely heavily on internet shopping & then have to deal with the hassle of returns when things don’t fit.

Sadly, that particular Gap didn't carry maternity clothes, so my only option was the Motherhood Maternity store. It was strategically placed next to the kid's clothing stores, like they purposefully put us as far away as possible from all the "hip" shops. Hmmph is what I have to say to that! The only thing I bought was a pair of jeans and some new “maternity” bikini underwear, as mine are getting awfully tight in the hips. (By the way, when I got my new underwear home & opened up the package & saw how big they were, I thought there was no possible way those were going to fit me. Imagine my horror when they did! Yet another shocking pregnancy moment) Anyway, after being thwarted & obviously not cool enough to shop in this mall, I wasn't really in the mood for shopping. Not even the sight of the Coach store could cheer me up. Honey was a trooper, though, and didn’t complain once about being dragged around from shop to shop. So, it was back to the hotel for another nap before my holiday party.


The holiday party? Not so much fun when you only know 5 out of 67 people, and you can't even have a glass of wine. All the ladies were in gorgeous party dresses. In nice pants & a top, I just felt like I looked fat & not pregnant. Even Honey in his suit was dressier than me! Don’t we look cute in this photo, though? (taken in our hotel room after the party, using the camera’s timer) Oh, and the gift I won at the exchange? A gift set of Crown Royal, complete with tacky etched glasses. I would have traded for something else, but I figured if I kept the Crown, at least that would save us some cash at our next trip to Costco. We left pretty much right after the gift exchange, and I think we were asleep by 10:00 or 10:30 at the very latest, once again proving how very uncool I am.

Sunday we rented a car & drove south to Girdwood and the Alyeska resort, and a bit further south to Portage Glacier. You can't actually drive to the glacier like you can at the Mendenhall here in Juneau, but it was gorgeous scenery just the same. The mountains dwarf ours; it would be like having the Chilkats in our backyard. I realize this doesn’t mean much to anyone who hasn’t been to Juneau or seen the Chilkats, but they are a large mountain range waaaaay off in the distance.



We had dinner with our friends Sherrie & Ryan; glacier guides that used to come down for the summers & work at Temsco with Adam. They took us to one of their favorite spots, the Moose’s Tooth, which was on Carrie’s restaurant recommendations in the comments a couple posts back. The pizza was de-lish, as were our side salads. And at $49 for dinner for 4, it was much better priced than the Glacier Brewhouse!

We arrived back at Thrify Car Rental just as the girl was closing up shop. Adam & I both swear that the sign on the door said they closed at 8:00, not 6:00, but whatever. About one second before I was about to totally lose it, she said we could just return the car at the airport, and luckily the airport was easy to get to from where we were. I was worried we were cutting our time short, but by the time we checked in, we had nearly 45 minutes before boarding. I've gotten very anxious about flying & having enough time at the airport in my old age. I used to be the queen of getting there “just in time” & was perfectly okay with it, but now I need to be there in plenty of time “just in case”.

My friend & former co-worker Mikaela was on our flight, with her one-year old Elijah. While we were chatting on the plane as people were boarding, Elijah reached out for me to hold him, and then proceeded to snuggle into my chest. Talk about cute! Mikaela used to bring him into work, but I haven’t seen him for a couple of months so I was surprised that I was still familiar to him. Or maybe he’d also reach out to a total stranger.

We arrived back in Juneau to the bitter cold, and trust me, it’s no easier for us to handle than it would be for you Southerners! It's always good to come home, but even nicer when your mom brings you over leftovers & fruit because she knew you wouldn't have any food in the house!

After spending the weekend at my mom & Mike’s house, Porter seemed very relieved to be back home, and equally relieved that Adam & I hadn't abandoned him. He smothered us with kisses in the car ride home, but once home, he crashed out like he hadn't had a good night's sleep in days. It was as though he could finally relax ~ his people were home, he had his chair to curl up in, and life was good. Don’t get me wrong, he adores going to my mom & Mike’s and loves to play with their dog Sadie, but there always comes that time in the day where he's ready to be home. Just like his mama.

why Doodles doesn't get a walk tonight

I know, I know, I live in Alaska, right? But this sort of crazy-low temperature is not normal for Juneau. Add to that 60 mph winds, and Doodles can just forget about getting a walk tonight.

holiday poll

I've started writing a post all about the wonder that is the Christmas season, but for now, I'm just going to post this little poll: I'm curious what are your favorite holiday movies & albums. Every year, I try to purchase a new movie or two, and perhaps a new cd, but I'm running out of options! I've got all the old standbys, & am starting to branch out into some random titles.

Some of my favorite holiday movies aren't necessarily "Christmas" movies, but may just be set around the holiday, like The Family Stone. Now, if you have not see this movie, I insist that you do. I love it more & more each time I watch it. I don't think I own another movie that evokes so many emotions. I started out hating Diane Keaton (like it's even possible to hate Diane Keaton!), to realizing she just loves her kids with all her heart, and that sometimes parents really do know best. Okay, I'm not going to say anymore; you just have to see it for yourself.

Also in my collection is A Christmas Story, National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, which I usually watch at least one other time throughout the year, It's a Wonderful Life, The Holiday and a couple other random movies that I've bought from Amazon but can't remember their titles. I also love Home Alone, which I don't own, and I'm sure I have others but am drawing a complete blank.

What are your favorite movies? Maybe they're just movies you associate with the holiday season, like Sleepless in Seattle or You've Got Mail?

And the holiday music ~ the stuff that makes me happy just thinking about it! At the top of my list are Harry Connick's two albums, but my favorite is When my Heart Finds Christmas. Putting aside that it's Harry Connick & he's just plain dreamy, that album has both an orchestral & a jazzy quality that I love. The best song is I Pray on Christmas, which to listen to properly, must be turned up very loud. There are certain songs that move me to tears or produce goosebumps, and this is one of those songs. It makes me rethink my attitude about Christmas & life in general whenever I hear it. When Adam reads this, he's going to think I'm nuts, but I don't care.

I also love Christmas with the Rat Pack, the Time Life Treasury Collection, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Trans Siberian Orchestra, Manheim Steamroller, and one of my new favorites is Ray Charles' Christmas album. (most of these have been purchased on Amazon) The Ray Charles album has the song that plays in the part in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation when Clark gets stuck in the attic & is watching old family movies ~ you know that part? And it also has the version of (I think it was) Jingle Bells from When Harry Met Sally, where Sally is trying to pick out a Christmas tree and Harry watches on in frustration. (PS, that would be the equivalent of me trying to pick out just the right tree while Adam is hoping that this one is the right one, and we won't have to make another trek up & down the isles of trees) Anyway, I know I have other Christmas albums but since I don't have them in front of me, I can't list them all.

I'd love to hear what your favorites; the things that you can't go without watching every year, or the album you look forward to listening to first. And by the way, am I the only one who loves the "24 hours of a Christmas Story" that they play on TV every year?

8 random things about me

My mom tagged me to write 8 random things about me so here goes!

1. I like to put chips in my sandwiches. Not sure when it first seemed like a good idea, but it's something I never really outgrew. The weirdest thing I used to eat as a kid? Boloney & sugar. How gross is that?!

2. I must have the shower curtain closed, as well as all drawers & the hall closet doors. I know this isn't really so odd, except that when you have a husband who is constantly leaving drawers open, it's an ongoing battle. What bugs me the most is the shower curtain, though. If I don't close it right away, I can feel that open space just staring at me.

3. Except for driving through Canada on two seperate road trips to the lower 48, I've never left the country. No Mexico for spring break, no romantic trips to Europe with Honey. Someday.....
Oh wait! I just remembered! We went to Nassau in the Bahamas for our honeymoon! I didn't need a passport ~ does that technically count?

4. I love, love, love Audrey Hepburn. I can still remember the first time I watched Breakfast at Tiffanys, and how much in awe I was of her beauty & grace. I think that she was a kind person in real life solidifed how much I adored her. I think I've seen most everything she's been in, but Breakfast will always remain my favorite. Honey bought me "How to be Lovely" last year for Christmas; we could all learn a thing or two from Miss Hepburn.

5. I am very competetive, but hate sports. Bucky teases me about how pissed off I get when he plays dirty at Uno. I know, I know, you're supposed to play all those nasty Reverse & Draw 4 cards, but I can't help taking it personally!

6. I am both a planner & a procrastinator. How is that possible, you ask? I make lists. Lots & lots of lists, and I plan ahead for things that I know have deadlines. And yet, I'm still always waiting until the last minute to finish them. Even in college, I was forever writing my papers up the last possible moment. There's just always so much to do and never enough time, you know?

7. I'm not quite as picky about how things go into the grocery cart (although I do start at the back & work forward for obvious reasons) but I HAVE to place my items on the conveyor belt according to type. Fruit & vegetables, frozen, cold-case, canned or boxed, meats, personal hygiene, miscellaneous. My reason for this is that the baggers generally don't know how to bag my groceries properly. They'll toss canned green beans right on top of my caged-free eggs! Or ground beef on top of apples! So, I try to help them out & make it fool-proof. It helps my anxiety by not feeling the need to correct them. It's really a good system! Even better? Honey has now adopted my system and will also group our groceries on the conveyer belt. I am a proud wife.

8. I hope that our baby gets Adam's sense of balance & coordination. Physically, he's good at everything, and I am, arguably, the most uncoordinated person on the planet. I've never been comfortable in my own body, and I will never be one of those willowy women who saunter down the sidewalk while men look on. Actually, you can generally see me staring at the sidewalk so as to not trip on a crack or step in dog-poo. Classy, huh?

So that's it. Eight things you didn't know about me.

Adam & I are heading north to Anchorage this weekend for my office's holiday party. The company pays for airfare & one night at the hotel, so we just have to pay for the second night & we get ourselves a mini vacation! I've not been to Anchorage in years, and Adam's never been. I believe our hotel is right downtown, so we'll be able to walk to restaurants & shopping. Or maybe we'll be taking taxis: I checked the weather forecast this morning and the high temp is forecasted to be around 26 degrees with lows in the teens. Brrrrr.

Hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving :)

sometimes, I'm just that stupid

A few months back, my bathtub drain was clogged. The problem was quickly resolved with a bottle of Drano. Within that same week, we gave Porter a bath, which is an entirely different, and much more amusing story, and my bathtub drain became clogged once again. Ever since, I have been calf-deep in bath water everytime I take a shower. Forget about taking a long, leisurely shower on the weekends, because my bathtub would have overflowed. I have spent close to $50 on various drain-unclogging products, all to no avail.

This weekend, Honey went into the crawl-space to take apart the pipes and remove the source of the problem. I just hoped he wasn't going to show me whatever he found. He came back from under the house only to announce that the plastic pvc piping was glued tight. Having to hire a plumber simply to unclog a drain was so not on my list of things to do. My anxiety level was already running high because I had finally gotten the last of the body work done on my car from my accident last spring and my car was still making noises it ought not be making. These are things that Tracy-on-Zoloft could handle. Tracy without Zoloft, not so much. I don't do well with things like this ~ multiple things happening at once, things that are out of my control although easily solved with a simple phonecall to a professional. They just seem so out of my reach, you know? I'd rather curl up in my chair and not attempt to find a solution.

Honey, on the other hand, in a uncharacteristic moment (he usually gives up, too), took the one wire hangar I had; one from the dry cleaners with the felt covering it to protect our fine garments, and shoved it down the bathtub drain to loosen the massive hair glob. Except that he couldn't. The hanger would only go so far before it stopped against something metallic. It was at this point that he called me into the bathroom.

Honey, have you tried putting the drain stopper down?

Of course, I'm thinking, no, I did not try putting the drain stopper down. I was so stunned at my stupidity, however, I literally couldn't say anything. I could have been stubborn, I could have been indignant & said I never put the drain stopper up, because I hadn't. Instead, I just stood there & grinned like an idiot. And was thankful as hell we hadn't gone through the humiliation of calling a plumber.

More importantly, I love that Honey can still surprise me. Yes, it was a simple fix, but like I said, he normally would have given up, too. It's like now that I'm unable to deal with certain things, he has realized that we have to have at least one person our household that can cope, and for that I'm very appreciative.

Oh, let's see....what's been going on.....

Friday night Honey & I attended a banquet & auction for S.A.I.L., a non-profit providing assistance for people with disabilities. I used to work for them & still volunteer for occasionally at their fundraising events. Anyway, I had a couple dresses that were a little too big that I thought I would have no trouble fitting into. HA! Shocking that I was surprised that an extra 15 pounds makes that big of a difference, isn't it? Ummm, yeah....

So I squeezed into the lesser of the tighter two dresses, and with my favorite black sweater from Anthropologie, it didn't look too bad. Plus, have I mentioned (this week) that I have cleavage now?

We arrived at the banquet, were shown to our table, sat & visited with some friends for a minute, and since we arrived 30 minutes late, we got there just in time for dinner being served. Being pregnant & starving, I waited only an obligatory minute or so before we made our way to the fast-forming buffet line. And here's where I experienced another pregnancy-first: when I stood up, my tights rolled down my belly like a little old lady with knee-high stockings rolled down at the top, you know?

I'm sure there will be many more pregnancy-firsts, but this one took me by surprise.

And here's your token cute-pet photo. Adam fell asleep on the couch Sunday night with the cats. That would be Riley-cat on Adam's belly, and the fat, black blob on the cushion is Mendy. Porter couldn't leave them be & had to come for some kitty-lovin'. He was actually being quite gentle with Riley. He so wants to play with the cats but hasn't figured out that he's too big & obnoxious for that to happen. They just look at him like, DUDE, what are you thinking?? We're small!!

I've been crafting a bit, but not nearly as much as I'd like. There's never enough time in the day, is there? This notebook was a custom order for my mom, and I just love the retro holiday paper. I wish I had bought more than 4 sheets of it. I think this is one of my favorite creations; there's nothing about it that I don't like. Usually I can pick apart my designs & find a flaw or two, but not with this one! I love that I finally used the tiny holly leaf buttons that I've had for a few years now. I'm trying really hard to be good & not buy loads of crafting supplies until I start using up what I have, but with so many cute things out there, it's not always easy! Please tell me I'm not alone in rationalizing not-necessary craft purchases.

Lastly, I've got a question for all the mamas out there. Next week, Honey & I have our next OB appointment. It's the one where they'd do the genetic testing, if we were inclined to do so. My feelings are to pass on the testing, that I have enough to worry about as it is without worrying about false-positives. I'd much prefer to go on believing my baby is perfectly healthy. Honey wants to do the testing because he used to work with disabled youths, and if our baby has anything wrong (I hate to even use that word) with it, he wants to know so we can be prepared. My mom has a cousin who has an autistic son, and that's the closest relative I have with any form of disabilities, mental or physically. Our doctor said that's far enough away from me that we don't really have anything to worry about. She said they also test for spina bifida, but I've been taking prenatal vitamins with folic acid since before I got pregnant, and I know that's supposed to be a big factor in preventing that.

So, I'm curious what your thoughts are. Did you have the testing done? Did any of you have false positives? Did you & your spouses disagree on whether or not to do the testing? Adam said if I don't want to have it done, we won't have it done, but I'm still considering it for his sake. I just really don't want to spend the next 6 months worrying about something else, you know?