An Ode to Man Hair

Ok, that title sounded weird....

Sorry 'bout that.

Anyways... as most of you know, November is actually "Mo'Vember" and its that time of year when men are supposed to grow out their beards in support of prostate cancer awareness.

Neal isn't a huge fan of growing his beard out fully, but several other guys we knew were doing it, so I was all like "yeah yeah yeah!!! Do it do it do it!!!" because I personally like men on the scruffy side.

Ok, so he surpassed scruffy and fell into the "wooly-mountain man-kinda-need-to-start-braiding-that-thing" by the end of November.

I mean, you couldn't see his mouth!

Being the fun guy that he is.. he graciously accepted a "trim the beard" plan formulated by his students. They even drew out how he was to shave it every day:

I mean.. SO excited for Tuesday... right???

So he began:

Monday... shave just the chin, leaving everything else...

Tuesday... shave the sides and rock the Fu-Man-Chu (is that how you spell it??)

Wednesday... shave off everything except the 70's style sideburns and mustache.. he needed some bell bottoms with this look..

I didn't get a pic of Thursday, which was just the mustache.. so use your imagination and take off the sideburns and there you go.

Friday, he got to completely shave and yeah! I could see my husband's face again!

And he could eat food without half of it lodging itself in the beard.

It was a fun and hairy November.

Happy Birthday Neal!!!

Happy Birthday to my most favorite person on this planet!!

You are 31 years young today.. and don’t worry, you don’t look a day over 18 still. Even with the Mo’vember beard. J

When I met you, you were a young pup.. just 25 and not quite graduated from your Master’s program. I thought, wait.. what?? 25? Did I hear that right? 25?? He must mean 29. He can’t be that young.. and he’s still in SCHOOL??? Granted, graduate school… but I pretty much decided “oh hell no” right after I met you.

But then.. then we hung out that night at the bowling alley.. and talked.. and I found out you wanted to be a teacher… and that you loved your family, your friends… and you  had big kind eyes and a hearty laugh.. and well.. maybe.. just maybe… I could date a 25 year old pup and just enjoy hanging out and have some fun.

Well... here we are almost 6 years later...  

I think back on that day all the time Nealo… thank my lucky stars over and over that I decided to go out bowling that night when I was invited.. that I didn't go with my Plan A of “sitting at home watching TV and going to bed…” because my life changed in the flash of your smile and my life was engulfed in your world with that first hearty laugh that came out of your mouth.

I was a goner. Plain and simple. J You stinker.. you were just too cute.

So today I get to thank God that you were born.. my world is better because of it, and countless other peoples’ worlds who have met you, been loved by you, supported by you or felt your kindness and generosity.

Happy, Happy birthday to you, my Goose!!!!

all together now.. "Is that Neal?? wow! He looks sooo much like Austin!!!" :-)

The BBB List

That is Before Baby Bucket List, by the way.

So, the secret that isn’t really a secret is that November is when Neal and I are going to begin the journey to have another kiddo. Anyone who knows me in real life knows that this Fall/Winter was when we were going to start trying again, so that’s why it’s not really a “secret.”

I can understand why a lot of girls keep TTC (trying to conceive, for those who aren’t familiar with the acronym) under wraps, because.. well… anything can happen. It could happen fast, it could not happen, it could happen then not last.. it’s a very personal experience.

Since I feel like talking about TTC on my “journal” here, and I know the handful of people who read my blog, I don’t feel any need to hide the fact we are TTC in November.

If it happens, I’ll write about it.. if it doesn’t happen, I’ll write about that too. I’ve discovered that I enjoy being an open book about my experiences as a Mom, both good and bad aspects.

So now that that has been discussed.. we come to reason for this post.

If we are lucky to get pregnant quickly like we did with Austin, then October is the last month before my body is taken over again. And it’s almost October so this got me thinking about things I want to do while my body is still 100% mine:

-Go on a “downtown” date with Neal.

We’ve been talking about this for months, if not years. How fun it would be to get dressed up a bit, go downtown to a swanky bar and have some quality cocktails. Walk about Portland a bit, enjoy the people and sights and lights. Its been years since we’ve been downtown for anything, and I think we should have our fancy night out soon.

-Eat a ton of runny yolks.

I love Eggs Benedict. Love, love, love. And we all know runny yolks are a no-no when you are pregnant, so I want my fill before that happens! I think breakfast out at least once for some good Eggs Benny is in order

-Eat some raw fish

On that note, it’s been months and months since I’ve had sushi, and its something I craved when I was pregnant with Austin. I did indulge once but felt guilty about it and never did it again. So I want a really good sushi meal with tons of raw salmon!

-Take a hot bath once a week

I’m not a huge bath taker but I know as soon as I can’t soak in hot water, I’m going to want to. They generally frown upon boiling your baby by submerging them in hot water, so baths are a no-no. Ok, well… WARM baths are ok. But I run cold. The last thing I want to do is soak is barely warm water for 3 mins until it turns into cold water. So I’ll be a bathing beauty in October.

-Go to a movie

It seems so simple, doesn’t it? But it isn’t.. going to the movies requires a baby sitter and they usually happen in the evenings, which means we either have to have someone over to our house or Austin has to have a sleepover at a grandparent’s house. Since we aren’t huge movie-goers to begin with, this is all kind of a lot of effort and we just don’t go to movies. I haven’t been to a movie in 9 months.. so… that’s a long time.. I’d like to go just for the heck of it before we have 2 kids and it’s that much harder to escape. Preferably to a theater that serves alcohol, raw fish and runny yolks. And lets you sit in a hot bath while the movie is playing. Oooohhh… there’s an idea!

K is for...

Kah-Nee-Tah!

Which is?

A hot springs resort in Central Oregon, on the Native American Reservation.

And why'd we go?

It was the last weekend of Spring Break, my Mom wanted Austin for a long weekend and we had no baby and nothing to do... so impromptu weekend trip!

For years I'd see friends post on FB that they were going to Kah-Nee-Tah and I totally thought it was actually "Kaneeta" and everyone just enjoyed over-enunciating the name with the dashes.

Nope, Kah-Nee-Tah is really the name!

And the name of the game is... high desert heat, sun, pools, and ponies!

**disclaimer- Neal was photographer that weekend, which is the opposite of almost all our other trips, so instead of every pic with Neal in it, every pic has me in it! Sorry to all those who don't want to look at me**

The view! The glorious view! I LOVE how Oregon is densely forested, then you drive two hours and you are in total desert 

We had an amazing balcony off our room

Hi there! Mirrored glass on our balcony=ok to prance around the room naked. 

Straight to the pool in our part of the resort. The water was warm from the hot springs and we were basically the only ones there! Bliss

A little putt-putt before dinner. 

The sign said "no playing in tee-pee." Well, I'm not technically IN it... 

My favorite guy

After putt-putt we went and had dinner at the lodge's restaurant. I think that was the only disappointment the whole weekend. The resort only has one restaurant and the prices were insane. I'm fine with spending $$ on a nice dinner, but a slightly dry hamburger is not worth $20 in my opinion. Ah well..

Breakfast the next day! See that thing my eggs are on? That my friends.... is authentic, thick, fried-in-lard Indian Fry Bread. And it was AMAZING. 

After our huge breakfast, we took one of the four trails for a hike.

Really couldn't get enough of the views! 

Even dead trees are beautiful out in the desert

After our hike we went horse-back riding! Meet my pal Urkel. He was the slow gentle one in the bunch

A man, a camera, and the back of a horse's head

Ok, so there were some really steep hills on our "trail ride." Let's just say my horse tripped a few times and I almost had a heart attack. 

Just plugging along on my slow-poke horse. Urkel had his own agenda and pace. Which was to stay far, far behind the others. Do-dee-doo....

Proof of how high up we were... see that way down below? That was the other part of the resort, the camping and family area with all the loud children. Which we avoided like the plague. 

After horse-back riding, it was (sigh) time to head out. We only spent 24 hours at the resort, but packed a lot in and came home a little sunburned (whoops- but I refused to pay $17 for sunscreen in their shop). 

Herds of wild horses roamed everywhere!

I think this one is a little lost....

I am so grateful my Mom loves taking Austin for weekends sometimes... he gets Grandma time, and Neal and I get precious marriage time. I am a very strong believer that time away from your kids and focusing on your marriage is one of the BEST things you can do for your kids. Healthy, happy families start with marriages.

Sorry, getting off subject... 

Anyways, it was a great getaway and Neal and I are excited to go back with Austin sometime and take advantage of all the family activities Kah-Nee-Tah has to offer too. 

Till next time desert!!!

Goose and Mav's Awesome 5 Year Adventures

Last week, April 10th, marked 5 years since I went and met a cute (albeit, in my opinion "way too young of a guy to be serious about") guy for a casual date at a pub.

I wore a t-shirt and a ponytail (I wasn't supposed to like him much, remember?) and he wore sweats because he had come from baseball practice.

Well, that "too young for me guy" quickly stole my heart, made me laugh like never before, made me feel safe and beautiful and cared for... and became my everything. Funny how life works like that... and what they say is true. Love will find you when you very least expect it!

Here are some of my favorite moments from our pre-baby years!

Hiking Silver Falls... August 2008. We'd been together about 4 months at this point and Neal was living in Salem (over an hour away from me) because his teaching job was starting soon. We hated living even that distance apart, and on this hike we talked for the first time about moving in (officially) together.

Hiking Mary's Peak in Corvallis.... August 2008. We were going to a friend's wedding that night and enjoyed the hot Oregon day on top of world (or so it seemed)...

Tom Petty concert at the Washington Gorge... September 2008. We ended this weekend by getting my purse and his wallet stolen, and I broke out in horrible heat rash all over my body. Not the best ending to a weekend that was supposed to be fun and relaxing!!! Petty's You Wreck Me will always be one of our songs...

Portland's "Arctic Blast"... December 2008. To people in other parts of the country, this is every typical winter. To Oregon, this was the biggest snowstorm ever and the whole state basically shut down because of a foot of snow. Neal and I hibernated, laid in bed, walked in a winter wonderland and I learned why it is dumb to be vain and wear mascara out in the falling snow.

Trip to Lincoln City... April 2009. Our First Anniversary trip! We stayed in a B&B, ate great seafood, wandered the remains of a military fort (creepy and awesome) and were already living together and planning a future.

Oregon vs. Oregon State baseball game... May 2009. Are we star-crossed lovers because we hail from rival colleges?? Ha. A little sparring makes things fun for us... I remember at this game sitting behind a pretty drunk couple from Eugene and chatting with them. The woman of the couple point blank told me that Neal was going to marry me... she could tell by the way he looked at me. How right she turned out to be!

Prom Chaperones... May 2009. Who doesn't love a good prom, right??? I bought a dress, got mah hair did, and then sat back and watched all the teenagers do, well... what teenagers do at a Prom. Make-out. Grope. Stand around in groups. Walk back and forth to the bathroom 250 times. Cry. Fight. Make-up. Wear gaudy dresses. Act drunk (because they were drunk). And thank God I am no longer a teenager. PS- I love how Neal looks like a member of a boy band in this caricature. :-)

Wrigley Field, Chicago... July 2009. We made the journey to the mid-west for a big Glynn family reunion, including family from Sweden. My name tag designated me as Neal's "friend" (really? that's all I got??) and I got the ultimate girlfriend test... hanging with Grandma, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins for 4 days. Whew. I survived. I just don't ever want to have to eat a Swedish smorgastarta again.

Whidbey Island.... December 2009. The weekend we got engaged. One of the best weekends ever. We hiked, relaxed, shopped, ate good food and I thought Neal was breaking up with me for a moment when he told me to sit down (his response to that... "really? the candles and rose petals didn't make you think MAYBE it wasn't a break-up????). Ha.

 Engagement Session... April 2010. Our friends Matt and Alison did a beautiful job capturing our relationship.. I was nervous before the shoot though and had to take a shot to calm down a bit. I'd be a down-right drunk if I were a model... I remember this was such a fun day filled with a million kisses and hugs and it was the first time I felt like a real bride-to-be with a wedding coming up!

The Big Day.. September 2010. I remember everything about that day.. even what kind of coffee I had, and how I was feeling at every moment. The day was gorgeous, we had friends and family surrounding us, and I couldn't believe he was mine forever. Plus I had a kick-ass dress. We mustn't forget about the dress. :-)

Five years with this really fun, loving guy... many many years still ahead of us (if we survive the toddler years, that is.. some days are questionable!)

But, whether we are up or we're down, we always come back to the love that first attracted us to each other.. and for that I am eternally grateful.

Grateful for a healthy relationship, a loving husband, a devoted father to our child, and the little things that keep us laughing through it all.

San Diego-Last Day

Winding down our trip already... went fast, didn't it?

New Year's day was another very mellow day for us. We slept in (getting home at 2am after a cocktail cruise will do that to ya) so we decided to head down to SeaPort Village, one of my favorite San Diego haunts. 

SeaPort Village is just a little gathering of shops and cafes right on San Diego bay, and everything is stylized all cute like, with pathways winding through the shops which makes you feel like you are indeed in a little village. 

We met my friend Kara for lunch (so good to see her!) since she lives down there now, and wandered around the bay. My only picture from the day was of the little old man stacking rocks. 

Seriously. That is talent, I don't care what you think! He'd take down stacks, then stack them back up to prove they weren't glued or anything. 

You gots skills, dude. For reals. 

I was sad that the end of our vacation was here already, but I admit... I missed my Austin pretty darn bad and was really eager to get back to his sweet giggle and sloppy kisses. 

We wanted to do just a bit more sight-seeing since our plane didn't leave until after 8pm that night, Neal and I and my Aunt headed up to Point Loma lookout and lighthouse.

The weather was gorgeous! Mid-60's and warm and totally clear. The day we were leaving. Of course. But we at least got to soak up a bit of last-minute warmth. 

We also headed up to Mt. Soledad in La Jolla for another awesome aerial view of the city.

Then my husband told me we should walk out onto this canyon ridge thingie to get a better view. And I told him I wasn't interested in dying so that was ok. Then he rolled his eyes and told me to stop being so scared. So I stuck my tongue out at him and hiked down there (partially) and told him if I saw a rattlesnake I was not going to be happy. Then I pretty much yelled at him for wanting to out further on the narrow cliff. Adventurous, I am not.

After getting my husband off the cliff (literally) we drove down into La Jolla and had lunch at Alphonso's, which Neal pretty much claimed was the highlight of  his life as far as Mexican food went. 

So, good way to end the afternoon!

Back to my Aunt's to pack up and then one last dinner at Kansas City BBQ (where they shot the final scene in Top Gun, where the chick starts playing that song and Maverick looks around for her? Yep, that window they kiss in front of was right where our table was!)

I didn't get any good pics at Kansas City BBQ except this one:

Love it. 

And I had another really "smart Jessica" moment as we were leaving the restaurant:

Walking along for several minutes... "oh, hey! So I just figured out why there was all that Kansas and Wizard of Oz stuff in there! Because it's called Kansas City BBQ! I was wondering." 

Seriously. I used to be smart! Really! Like 4.0 student in high school. And now I don't know my own husband's initials, nor can i figure out why a place called Kansas City would have maps of Kansas hanging up. 

I think San Diego had had enough of me at this point!!! On our plane, up and away and then safely home..

Until next time!!!