Road trip!

Last week we drove to Nebraska, in part for my aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary. In spite of a tanking economy, increasing job insecurity, my new status as a stay-at-home mom, and general reasons to freak out, a road trip is still a beautiful beautiful thing. Especially when we got to see friends with new babies, like this gorgeous gal:



And we got to catch up with some (young) old friends for a break from the drive:





Of course, the drive was pretty arduous, and led the bug to sleep in some unusual positions:



Reaching the grandparents in Omaha provided numerous opportunities for high-quality grandchild time. This unsurprisingly led to some new perspectives on the world:



Cousins also played a meaningful role in the weekend. First, the bug and monkey got to hang out with their cousins:



Then we headed north, and cousin-wise I saw relatives I hadn't seen since before Matt and I were married. Our extended family is even cooler than I remembered. The anniversary party was up north in the town I grew up in, South Sioux City, at the Knights of Columbus Hall. So, further driving led to travel back in time as I revisited the scene of my eighth grade graduation dance. Mom had also been to her share of dances at the KC Hall, but never before with so uncoordinated a dance partner. At least he couldn't step on her feet:



And here are the amazing couple. I should really write another post at some point about my Aunt Jo and Uncle Ray, but their family of three kids and multiple grandkids and their love for each other are really inspirational. No joke. They love each other so much and have stayed really close to their kids and grandkids, which is a beautiful thing to witness. It's hard to capture them in a brief post, but my aunt is the kind of person who could never let a stray kitten go to the pound, and my uncle is the kind of guy who is patient when a 7-year-old terribly uncoordinated girl is just learning to play pool.

Here they are opening their present:



In short, a lovely weekend was had by all Beasleys, and we returned to Colorado much refreshed. Thanks and love to everyone we saw along the way!

Bug entry, stardate 10.4.08.

I'm sending a big email. No, not that kind of email. A different kind of email. I want to blog. Mom, I have to type it. I will try.

vniey4687yn7n5n785yy7u8yttunyiujtnigujorgoutjrdli hbbifhgiuyhrtunfknesr4feshiuysfsdshrhdfu

How do you cross out? How do you get away the line? Delete it?

Oh, that button is how you do it.

I want to write something and you're not letting me to. You're not being nice. This is not yours.

[time out threatened] Oh, okay.

crocodile. stop picture.

mouse.

I'm spelling more words after crocodile and mouse. I want you to help me spell them. Up there where we already typed.

Mom, I don't want to think about the words before I type them. I want my own blog where I don't have to do what you say. Or think.

All for a good cause.

Last Sunday was Left Hand Brewing Company's 15th anniversary.  For those of you who have not visited us since our move back to Colorado, this is our neighborhood tasting room.  It features around eight types of beer, some of which rotate seasonally; water or Izze for the bug; and free pretzels.  The bug LOVES Left Hand, largely because of the pretzels.  They have take-home growlers which can be refilled at a slight discount, so it is not only very good beer but very reasonably priced.  And they are also a major sponsor of the Colorado Shakespeare Festival...so you can see the multiple family connection points.

Anyway, last weekend they sponsored a marathon, of sorts, and a charity fundraising event.  Matt ran the marathon, which consisted of drinking 26.2 ounces of beer before, during, and after a 5K.  The proof, as taken by our friend and volunteer photographer/ fellow beer drinker Niall:

Exhibit A: The pre-race 9-ounce beer, at the starting line prior to the run.

Exhibit B: The second 9-ounce beer, with a slightly less enthusiastic and slightly more sweaty runner mid-race.

Exhibit C: Matt, mid-run, nearing the finish line.

While I can't document the moment of his historic finish, he mentioned finishing in under 20 minutes, which kept him in the top quartile overall. If you know anything about local footraces in the Boulder area, you know this is where the Kenyans train for the Olympics, so EVER finishing in the top quarter of any footrace in the county is quite a feather in one's cap.

After his accomplishment, he kicked back to listen to some local bands for a few hours before swapping out with me so I could work the Colorado Shakespeare Festival's charity booth.  Left Hand invited all the local charities to which it donates to sponsor a booth at the event.  Everyone who came in got a bottle cap that they could use to vote for their favorite charity, and the charity with the most bottle caps at the end of the day got the biggest cut of the proceeds.  Unsurprisingly, the Humane Society was the day's big winner (darn cute puppies!), but CSF did walk away with quite a few bottle caps and some charity cash as well. We gave away t-shirts and mugs, and emailed people digital photos of themselves in Renaissance costume.  This of course required us to display at least a token garment or two ourselves:

It's amazing how fast people let you cut in the beer line when you're carrying a sword. I'll have to remember that if they host any large events in the future.

Now, spit.

While half of my immediate family came by use of this phrase professionally--that is to say, two of them have a dental background--I'm becoming acquainted with it roughly every three to four hours. Personally.

The monkey really likes to spit up. It doesn't seem to bother him; perhaps one or two spittings a day catch his attention for longer than it takes for a "Who, me?" look to cross his face. Occasionally the fluid comes up with some speed and force, say, enough to barely clear his own shoulder while being burped. Other times he just leaks from the side of his mouth. Quantity is relatively limited, say between a teaspoon and tablespoon per episode. Weight gain is great, diapers still contain liquid so no dehydration...the really serious stuff is not happening, for which I am thankful.

Too much information, you say? Given the wonders of Google and the incredible number of anxious parents who want to know what is normal, when they should take the wee one to the doctor, how to make it stop, and so forth, I now know that our baby could have:
1) pyloric stenosis (unlikely, poor match for his symptoms)
2) food sensitivity, most likely dairy (I'll be investigating this over the next few weeks)
3) tummy bubbles due to insufficient burpage (unlikely, I feel like I wallop him for several minutes during and after feedings)
4) gastroentereal reflux disease (GERD--rhymes with "nerd," what I feel like for spending too much time today worrying about if there's enough spitup to qualify as problematic, and wondering how I could measure the exact quantity, really, except for holding my baby over a measuring cup for several hours to get an estimate.)
5) nothing at all, really, it's just part of growing up. Unsurprisingly Matt backs this one. He is always one for the inertia/ least complicated explanation is the most likely answer. He also gets spit up upon much less frequently than I do, so is willing to take the "wait and see if he grows out of it" approach a bit more cavalierly than I am.

And that's just the first fifteen hits. From reliable sources, of course, as opposed to overanxiousmommiespanichere.com. My fave is the source that admits, "There's really no way to figure it out except through trial and error, and waiting it out." As I start my fourth load of laundry today, due to emphasis on error over trial apparently, I'm seeking a clarity that is probably impossible to find. That is, no one's going to be able to answer this with a "Here's what's going on and here's how to fix it" answer.

I realized as I type this how odd it is that I would expect one. There's still an element of sorcery and divination in how I think about modern medicine, and judging from the parent message boards I am far from alone in this respect.

Anyone have song suggestions for a spit-up soundtrack? I'm going to buy some new tunes with a gift certificate next week and it would be a distraction from the gagging noises. Parenting suggestions also appreciated (FWIW he's already sleeping in the bouncy seat to remain more upright).

First tub bath!

Now that the umbilical cord is a little fallen-off piece of the recent past, Matt and the bug assisted in cleansing the monkey a few nights back. Matt's concentration indicates the solemnity of the event. The monkey, on the other hand, looks rather bemused if not actually pleased by the damp turn of events:

As the monkey and his father discussed politics, gun control policies, and other issues of the day, the bug looked on, with interest: (Note the strategically placed rinsing cup.)

Her interest eventually progressed to sheer glee when she got to "rinse" him by soaking him with copious amounts of water: (Again, note the unintentionally yet strategically placed rinsing cup.)

It was a really warm day in Longmont so we had the windows open and the fans going upstairs. The little one was probably relieved to get in the tepid water and out of the relative heat.

I considered titling this post "Hot nekkid pix!" but realized I would get all kinds of unfortunate internet traffic if I spelled that correctly, so went with direct descriptors instead. Still, it's nice to know these pictures may be floating around on the internet when they're both in junior high and will be hideously embarrassing at approximately that time.