Boogie and the Big City (and other thoughts)

It is a delightfully rainy morning in Lubbock. Boogie is with her friends and Parent's Day Out and I'm settled in a comfortable chair at Starbucks enjoying a grande non-fat white mocha (no whip-thanks to Snit for turning me on to this drink) and a bowl of oatmeal. I have lunch plans with some women I met at church. It should be fun, and I am ready to meet people.

We took Boog on a week of vacation. First we took her to her Pawpaw's house in Palestine for 3 days. Then we went on down to Houston for 4 days. It was such fun showing her off to everyone at home. The Bellz were regrettably absent for some of that time, but let us use their empty house, complete with nursery, swing, crib, changing table and privacy! I did get to give Miss Mag some hugs and kisses before she went off to Dallas. We're hoping that she and Aunty Lu will be able to visit us in Lubbock next month.

We got to have lunch (El Meson! The stuffed dates we ate are worth a post of their own. They are on the tapas menu. ORDER THEM) with David & Sara before they took off to tour college destinations with their daughter. We visited with cousin John and friend Jake at Lupe Tortilla. We bothered/harassed Dr. Farnie and Dr. Yetman in Pedi clinic. We walked around the Galleria (and bought nothing but a coffee!). We played bridge. We had breakfast with Whitney and Tiffany (breakfast tacos from La Mexicana! Made me miss working at the Beacon...). We spent an afternoon with Aaron & Kelly (lunch at Escalante's, shops at Meyerland), and bought Boogie some Fall/Winter clothes at Old Navy. We went home to church at SWC where Boog promptly threw a fit and wanted to eat but was then content to be passed around and loved on by our family there. We left immediately after church and hit the road, making it to San Angelo in 6 hours for dinner with Jeremy's mom (only making one stop in Llano to feed). After dinner we drove 3 more hours home. Baby cakes did so good in her seat for such a long time. We all slept like rocks and are glad to be back in our house.

Postpartum issues seem to be waning for the time being. Or, at least I feel as if they are. I'm still way too tense and unnecessarily hard on my husband. My point of view seems so clear when I'm trying to communicate with him, but then gets muddled and I am unable to verbalize what my point is...which results in petty arguments that often end with me in tears. I've started going back to meetings. As far as OA is concerned, I'm starting over I guess. I'm taking better advantage of the tools this time and some of the women in my group have offered sympathy and support that was unexpected yet needed, and full of grace. Jeremy never looses patience and always seeks to calm the situation. I'm thankful for him, even if I show it poorly.

Musically I've been playing records lately. About this time last year my mother-in-law gave me a record player that is in excellent condition. The speakers work fantastically and even the needle is in good shape. On heavy rotation is Blood, Sweat & Tears, Carol King, Pink Floyd and The Beatles. I've got a few other LPs that I only enjoy one or two songs from. I'm kind of selective about the LPs I buy, seeking mostly things that were in my Father's collection that I remember. One day, during a particularly harsh round of "I'm feeling crappy because I'm blind," my dad gave a lot of his records away. I don't know who he gave them to or where they went, but DAMN! I wish I had been into it then. So, I'm having a bit of fun piecing his collection together from what I remember, and adding some things I like in there too. We've got a cool joint here in LBB called Ralph's. They've got a lot of vinyl.

Reading is going okay. I'm re-reading Life of Pi (I hear there's going to be a movie? How? That book is too existential for film). I'm keeping up with my New Yorker subscription, and recently read an interesting article about the NIH and the head of the stem cell research department being a Christian. It was good. Here's the link. (For some reason it won't underline. Mouse over and click "here's the link." Hee). I'm still reading Pride, Prejudice and Zombies. I'm reading my OA literature and even found a copy of the Big Book for Kindle. I've had two recommendations for Anne Lamott, so that may be next up (thx, Whit and K).

Crafts are going strong right now. Some friends here in Lubbock have decided to put together a networking/craft fair once a month until Christmas. I sold some of my cards! Made 12 whole dollars! HA! But, lots of people took my business card and that is encouraging. I was not at this one due to being in Houston, but thank Crystal and Rachel for setting up and working my table. The next event is in October, and I have two in November. Still working on a logo for my Etsy store, but it is time to get that up. Need to figure out how to take some good photos of the cards. I installed Photoshop Elements for Mac, but it doesn't seem to be working properly. I really want to use it to edit and crop photos. I still need to get shelving and pegboard hung in the basement (where the crafts are) so I'm not working in a giant mess, but it is coming along. I'm also trying to crochet some hats for Snit to use for a project of hers.

So, that's all for now. I'm glad fall TV is on. I'm watching Project Runway, Glee, NCIS, NCIS LA, and a new show on HBO called Boardwalk Empire (set in Atlantic city in the 30's...Monopoly anyone? And starring Steve Buschemi. Yes, please), and two shows on Sci-Fi-Warehouse 13 and Eureka.