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October 6th, 2008

01:49 pm - Joining the Army -- the Army of Women Well, I survived -- and loved -- another 39.3 miles of walking, dancing, and trudging through the streets of NYC this weekend. Altogether the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer this weekend had over 4,500 walkers and raised over $11.5 million for the fight against breast cancer. ($11.5 MILLION!!!!) A big thanks to you for all your support and work for helping me get there and get through the miles! At the Opening Ceremony, I was thrilled to hear Dr. Susan Love talk about a new initiative, An Army of Women. Her commitment, and the commitments of hundreds of researchers around the world, will help shift the locus of research into finding out why this horrible disease strikes one in seven women. When you sign up, you are registering to be available to help researchers who are working to find the causes and cures for breast cancer. They may want a bio, they may want a blood sample, they may want a urine sample. You can choose to say yes - or no - to any requests. They are looking for women who had cancer, who haven't, who are high risk, who are (as far as they know) low risk, and every age and race. Since its launch on Thursday, nearly 150,000 women have already signed up to be part of this Army of Women. Please be the next! Current Location: home again, yay! Current Mood: hopeful

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May 20th, 2008

07:03 pm - It's no fun to live in The House of Sick But at least they're cute. Current Mood: exhausted

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May 1st, 2008

02:08 pm - Well, that explains it! Back mid-October I started doing Weight Watchers online. Sure, I had lost 20 lbs since Charlotte was born but since she was 8.5 pounds of it and since it had been 3 months of exclusive breastfeeding without weight "just falling off", I decided I would make a conscious effort. (I was just getting back into my pre-pregnant pants post-Cyrus, although still 10 pounds above the weight I started with, when he was about a year old; just in time to go into maternity pants again!) So, I have slowly but surely been losing weight, just over 20 lbs so far. But these last couple weeks my weight has been steady, or creeping upward, without eating more and with the addition of walking several miles a week. Grr. How annoying! Then it dawns on me. What else has changed in these last couple of weeks? Charlotte has been going crazy with the solids. And, since a baby pretty much takes in a set number of calories, regardless of their source, all that avocado and cheese was displacing breastmilk calories. Sure enough. The number of "points" that weightwatchers would give me for "not breastfeeding" is 21 -- vs the 32 a day I had when I had the "breastfeeding" ticky box selected. I'm sure the right number is somewhere in between, since she's still nursing, just not as much. But, wow! That's a big drop!!! At 30+ points a day, I could mostly eat what I want and just watch portion sizes. Now I may actually have to think about it. Current Mood: hungry Tags: navel gazing, weight watchers

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April 10th, 2008

01:10 pm - Thinking about birthin' in Bangor No - I'm not pregnant!!! But, I did just take a 3-day training for doula-hood. (For those not into the birth scene, a doula is hired by the birthing couple to be there to support the woman and her partner throughout labor and birth. A doula can provide physical support, such as massage, emotional support, and information when needed. She doesn't do clinical stuff and doesn't replace the midwife, nurse or doctor - or her partner!) The opportunity to take the class dropped in my lap and I'm mostly glad I did it. I am a little overwhelmed by how few options, it seems, that women in this area have for controlling their own birth experiences. I need to do a lot more thinking and research on this subject. Even though we're only about 100 miles from Portland, it's a completely different scene. The path to doula certification (through DONA International, which used to be Doulas of North America, and is generally the most widely recognized and rigorous certification) is a long one. In addition to the training class you also attend at least three births and do a lot of reading and reflection. I may start the reading portion of the certification process soon, but it will likely be a while until I attend any births. My two kids, not to mention my husband, aren't really ready for me to drop everything and disappear for unspecified amounts of time to attend to someone else. I have four years from the training date to get certified, if I go that path, so I don't need to rush. The biggest issue I'm trying to get my head around is if I can, in good conscious, support births at the local big hospital that are more than likely going to offend my sense of the birthing mother's rights. I will probably try to attend a birth there with the doula that ran the training as a next step. Maybe it's not as bad as I fear... Current Mood: contemplative Tags: doula

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March 26th, 2008

08:41 pm - When the temp hits 40, a girl's thoughts turn to ... Walking 39.3 miles in a weekend to raise money and awareness in the fight against breast cancer! ( Why, what did you think I was going to say? ) This year, I'm walking for my mom. I'm walking for my friends and family who haven't been directly impacted but know someone who has been. And, I'm walking for you! Because breast cancer can impact all of us and it is only by better diagnosis and treatment - and hopefully a cure - that we can beat this disease! If you can, please support me in this huge undertaking. I need to raise a significant chunk of change for the walk, and I need to log a lot of miles between now and then to get ready (thank goodness I can do it during a Maine summer this time, and not a Houston summer!!!). Current Mood: energetic Tags: avon, breast cancer

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March 7th, 2008

09:53 am - Winter Surprises Or, Hidden Static Treasures I love it when you're making a bed with infrequently used (flannel) sheets and you find a trove of missing wool or fuzzy socks stuck to the sheets. Score! Current Mood: cheerful

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January 3rd, 2008

11:09 am - My Heart Bursts with Cuteness Seeing #1 in my slippers, his too-short pants, with a backpack full of letters slung over his shoulder. Looking back from the hallway and whispering, while waving, "bye." And then, to top it off, turning around and seeing his shadow on the wall, so stopping to wave to it, too. Current Mood: touched

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December 19th, 2007

01:14 pm - Do you know what sucks? Days without naps suck. Current Mood: cranky

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November 27th, 2007

01:51 pm - Gazing Some people navel gaze. I gaze at my children's navels. Just sayin'. Current Mood: enthralled

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July 24th, 2007

09:54 am - Welcome baby girl! (aroraborealis posting for razil and blivious) Welcome to the world (as yet unnamed) little girl Blake! Baby was born at 7:27AM July 24, 2007 after 4 1/2 hours of labor and 7 minutes of pushing. Mama and baby are doing well. Baby is 8 lbs 8 oz, 18.5 inches long, and was born with brown eyes and lots of brown hair. Hooray!

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August 23rd, 2006

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July 20th, 2006

12:04 pm - Cyrus likes and dislikes Dislikes: Anything pureed Boiled carrots Avocado Rice cereal Likes: Palak paneer Chicken Peas Black beans Scrambled eggs w/cheese Cheerios Except for the cheerios, I think Cy's going to skip baby-type food entirely. Current Mood: enthralled

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November 18th, 2005

09:21 am - It's a boy!! This is aroraborealis posting for razil with the big news! At 2:26 this morning, razil gave birth to her and blivious's son, Samuel or Cyrus Reed Blake. He was 8lbs, 4 oz, 21 inches long, and has sandy blonde hair like his dad. Mom, Dad and Baby are all doing well. blivious sounded very happy and not-too-exhausted when I spoke with him! Hooray! Current Mood: joyous

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August 10th, 2005

06:33 pm - A brief rant. I hate fruit in this country. Why can you never find anything that is locally grown and has flavor? I guess it will soon be blueberry season, so we'll have a few weeks of those - and then apples... But, still. It has probably been years since I have had a peach, nectarine, or plum with any real flavor. (Not to mention mangoes, papaya, and other yummy things that grow far far away.) Of course, maybe it's my own damn fault for living in Maine, state of the short growing seasons. Current Mood: hungry

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July 18th, 2005

04:00 pm - And, now, back to reality... We had an absolutely fabulous time in Nova Scotia, with brief stops in St. John and Fredricton, New Brunswick on the way there and back. Photo highlights of our trip are here, which make it seem like we did nothing but visit parks and look at the water during the two weeks. This is, actually, a fairly close to accurate description of our trip. It was great! There are certainly plenty of things to see next time we go back; we learned that one can never really tire of the term "tidal bore" and we have yet to see a famous Cape Breton Island moosabou. We were a bit on the lazy side, so although we did take several short and medium-length hikes, we weren't overboard on the adventure travel side of things -- no sea kayaking with the whales for us. It was wonderful to get away, the weather was pretty cooperative, and the cats were happy when we got home. All in all, a great vacation. Which was just what I needed for a good frame of mind when I got back to work on Monday and my boss freaked out about the lack of funding for our project and decided to cut my job. The timing was a bit of a surprise, but the lack of funding and thus the probability of the project's plug being pulled was not. All in all, it's a relatively good thing for me, although a real shame for the project. Less stress, more time to finish unpacking from our last move and prepare the house for a new arrival, and hopefully in the near future some voluteer time so I don't drive blivious crazy. And, with that behind me, I can enjoy naps on a hot summer's afternoon, welcoming a new L-Baby to the world, taking pre-natal yoga during the day, volunteering at NPR during their fund drive this week, going to the gym any time I want, shopping during off-peak hours, and increasingly frequent and recognizable baby kicks. Pretty cool, huh? Now, if only we could get our bedroom A/C fixed... Current Mood: hot

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June 24th, 2005

09:55 pm - We got digits! Not the same kind of digits that mr_privacy got last night, but ten little fingers and ten little toes! Very cool to see the images, and we have the obligatory Skeletor face shots to freak out our parents. The little heart is *beat-beat-beating* away, which was awfully fun to watch. Now, we just have to wait for another five months to see what those toes look like on the outside. That seems like a really long time. And, we're off for Moxie's first international trip - to Canada we go! We've already been on airplanes; we need to add boats to the mix. Current Mood: cheerful

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May 26th, 2005

09:53 pm - Yeah, what he said. So, those of you who know blivious know that he's been a slighly more regular poster than I have. You will also know, then, that we are expecting. We are super excited, and just a little wide-eyed (even though we've had a while to get used to the idea, it's still a pretty major brain shift). (That, by the way, is an understatement.) We're motoring into the 2nd trimester, though, and all my procrastinatory techniques are finally falling by the wayside. Now, I just have to find some comfortable jeans. (PS, moominmolly: You're right. Fujis have totally saved me over the last few weeks. Yum! And, I bought some Braeburns the other day to try. Whee!) Current Mood: bouncy

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April 13th, 2005

04:44 pm - How do you maintain your long distance friendships? I am fortunate that five of my best friends stumbled into my life my freshman year of college. We have had our ups and downs, as individuals and as a group, but overall these friendships are among the most important in my life. Across oceans and time zones, new and dissolving relationships, marriages and babies, new jobs and professional uncertainty, these five women have been a source of strength, inspiration, humor, and reflection. It has been almost twelve years since we left the little community that had sheltered and fostered this friendship, and in many ways I would say that our friendships are stronger than ever, forged by real life experiences, disappointments, joys, and challenges. This weekend, we will gather for a weekend together, a weekend to focus on us, our friendship, who we are and who we have become. No partners, no babies, and as much job stress as we can handle leaving behind. When it is way too easy to take ourselves and our friendships for granted, when picking up the phone or dropping an email seems both insufficient and too much trouble, I am thankful that we have the means and the love for each other to put aside this weekend, fly across the country, and spend some time remortaring the bricks that hold our friendship together. Other than weddings, though, this is the first time in almost 3 years that the six of us have gotten together for some deliberate "us" time. How do you maintain your friendships and relationships across distance and time? Current Mood: optimistic

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November 11th, 2004

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October 7th, 2004

06:07 am - Conspiracies! They're Everywhere! OK. Apparently with less than 4 weeks to the elections, I'm getting a little riled up. I noticed this funny looking lump on Bush's back at the debates last week, but didn't really think much more into it. Then I hear this: So apparently it's an open secret within media circles that Bush is often wired (i.e. he wears a tiny receiver and gets fed his lines by a handler off-stage) for speeches and occasionally interviews, and this is why he often mutters inanely before blurting out something completely different (and probably how he managed to use "vociferously" correctly in last week's debate). My question is, if he is repeating something someone else is saying offstage, why is what he says still so inane? Check out the photos from the debate and some backstory on www.isbushwired.com. Soon, I will go back to writing about Alpacas and Apples and the Queen Mary 2 and other fun stuff! Current Mood: anxious

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