The Last Getaway

The Last Getaway, the "babymoon," the "final trip you're going to have just as a couple before you get saddled down kids." We had been talking about taking this kind of trip for quite some time now, and because circumstances afforded that we could NOT just jet off to Jamaica again (dang!), we opted for another, short getaway that we both love to do: camping!

(reader's thoughts) Wait! Stop. Seriously? Alyssa, are you nuts? Aren't you, like, really pregnant right now?

Answer: why yes, yes I am really pregnant now. Here's the obligatory weekly update to prove it.


Ah! It's growing!

But camping is something that Jake and I try to do at least once a year. Now, it's only ever been once a year even though we say we're going to go more often, and I just couldn't fathom the thought of not even making it out ONCE this year. So on the first free weekend we've had in ages, I said, "Honey, let's go camping!" And so we made our reservation for a campsite at Raccoon Creek State Park, one of my all-time favorite hiking destinations (and Mom, don't worry, it's only about an hour's drive from Pittsburgh, so if I would have gone into early labor, we would have been just a short ride away!).

One of the things that Jake and I love most about camping is cooking over the campfire. We pride ourselves on cooking some pretty fabulous, scrumptious meals while we're camping (a skill taught to me by my Dad--Happy Father's Day!). So for Friday night, we had a version of "taco in a bag." For those who've ever been to a small-town fair in MN, you know exactly what I'm talking about, but it's taco fillings stuffed into a personal size bag of Doritos. Scrumdidliumptious. Only this time, I tried to be "healthy" and got the baked Doritos instead (never mind it still is laden with MSG and artificial colorings), so we ended up making giant taco salads using some frozen taco meat I had stashed in the freezer.

Taco filling turns into...

gigantic taco salads!

Then on Saturday morning--campfire coffee, fried ham and eggs, and toast. We used a half stick of butter for the meal, just to give you a gauge on how good it tasted!

And then, oh then, came the best part of this meal. The bananas I had brought with were almost all destroyed by various things being thrown on top of them. So I salvaged what I could, fried them up and put them on toast. Next best thing to fresh banana bread that I can think of. They were so sweet and caramelized!

And on Saturday evening--homemade brats, cheesy potato packets, and baked beans. Nothing more classic than that!

And for desert: a twist on the S'more using Mr. Goodbar instead of Hershey's chocolate. I think it's my new favorite thing!

Jake and I also love to go hiking. So even though I worried about sending myself into pre-term labor, I couldn't resist taking Beau out into the great outdoors, letting him offleash, and seeing the beauty of nature. Our first hike on Saturday ended up being considerably longer than either of us imagined. Close to 6 miles and 3 hours later, we finally returned to our car! Sunday morning's hike went much quicker, although in some ways it certainly wasn't easier. It started off with a huge ascent (let's just say I didn't stop sweating after that point), and then it went down into this valley with a babbling brook. It was quite serene and beautiful. Here were a few pics we captured from our hikes:

Ferns, ferns, everywhere! It makes me feel like I'm in The Land Before Time.

A random old oil barrel in a stream...

We saw these flowers everywhere! Don't know what they are, but they sure are pretty!

Happiest puppy on the block :-)

Water droplets everywhere. I bet the humidity was at least 85% the entire time we were there.

Shoo, dragonfly!

At this point, Jake goes "Geez, it sure looks like you're having fun!" I was just trying to keep the little, pesky gnats out of my eyes!

Another cool thing I personally enjoy about camping is how easy it is to set up a little make-shift "home away from home." And undeniably, it's pretty easy because I have husband who knows what he's doing in that department!

Jake tending the fire with his poking stick (insert funny comment here).

Jake with his hatchet, trying to divide some of the wood...

...and hatcheting in action!

Relaxing in the sunlight.

And laughing in the breeze :-)

Even when it means protecting me from wild animals, like this young raccoon who came wandering over to our campsite before dinner on Saturday.

Can you spot him?

There he is!

So while it wasn't a glamorous babymoon to an exotic location, we both had a wonderful time basking in each other's company without a care in the world. That being said, we're already talking about how we can bring Baby Girl camping next year. We're going to start her off young around the campfire :-)

I love fall...

I love fall because

• the leaves on the ground have this deliciously sweet-smelling rotting fragrance that Yankee Candle will never be able to match
• the cloudy days that make the colors on the trees "pop" against the sky are just as great as the days filled with streaming sunlight and cloud shadows that pass over the wooded hillsides
• thick, sugary apple cider is local, homemade, and fresh
• candles can be burnt again because they provide that little bit of extra warmth to the room that the crisp air necessitates
• pumpkin and squash are acceptable main/side/appetizer/soup/dessert dishes 
• soup becomes hearty with grains and root vegetables and actually fills up my husband
• the sun on my back is just enough to keep me toasty while sitting on my front porch knitting in mid-afternoon
• the weight of the blanket(s) at night provides the same comfort as a mother tucking in her child--all warm and cozy
• my senses are on overload...but in all the best possible ways!

Slowing Down: Picking Grapes

I realize that I write enormously long posts.  To help off-set that, I'm going to start a series of posts called "Slowing Down" that will be interspersed with my more verbose writings.

Picking Grapes on the Melby farm

From the windmill, vines high and low

Into the egg basket

For some homemade wine!

Morning-time Stretches

I have always liked the idea of yoga.  As a longtime dancer, anything that gets my body stretching, bending, and twisting feels amazing.  I distinctly remember my first introduction to yoga.  I was at my neighbor Barb's house.  Her husband at the time had a book about yoga.  I must have been 7 or 8, and I tried to read all the words--including the Sanskrit names--but really the pictures were what floored me.  I tried to contort my body into the positions, try them out in any order that I like, but more often than not, it hurt and didn't really feel that good at all!

Only later in life, after many a theatre warmup with sun salutations and an official yoga class here and there, have I begun to understand the philosophical and physiological underpinnings to yoga that make it what it is.  I don't practice a particular style of yoga (more out of ignorance than anything), although what I do is probably most akin to Hatha Yoga.  First and foremost, it's about breath.  This was obviously one aspect that went right over my head when I was younger.  Second, it's about slowing down and going deeper.  Each breath brings you deeper into the pose.  Third, yoga shouldn't hurt.  Even now as I push my body further I have to remind myself to pull back and listen to the signals my body is telling me.

I've begun to practice yoga every morning on our newly finished back porch.  There is something magical about doing sun salutations as the sun is peeking over the rooftop.  Although you can't see it in this picture below, you can imagine how cool it would be.  And I even saw a rainbow this morning!  Beautiful...

I get to listen to the sound of birds chirping delightfully (and the occasional chainsaw from a neighbor who is up and at it far too early).  If the wind is blowing just right, the chimes blow and add their own soft mellow music to the mix.

Pentatonic-scaled wind chimes.  Ethereal...

At first my goal was to do 20 minutes of yoga every morning.  I managed to do that and much more as time seems to whiz by.  Although I had to stop during my recent illness, I just jumped back into my routine, and I feel great.  I start with breathing and centering, then gentle warmup twists and forward bends (usually seated).  I move into cat and cow pose to warm up my back, then child's pose for a rest.  Next I do sun salutations--12 simple flowing moves that get my body all warmed up and aligned.  I typically do between 3-6 sets of sun salutations (a set is two times through, one on each side of the body).  Sometimes I stop here.  Other times, I go through more pose sequences.  And I always always always end in relaxation pose.  Even if I can't stay there for very long, going forth into my day relaxed and calm is the best feeling in the world.

A face-down view from my yoga mat.

To find out more about the poses (and their Sanskrit names), go to www.yogajournal.com.  They even have a cool "build your own sequence" application!

And after yoga?  I enjoy a freshly brewed cup of coffee.  I start the coffeemaker before I go out to the porch each morning.  It's my treat to myself for morning-time stretches done well :-)

(Home)Sick

Anyone see a theme??  Still physically ill, so it should come to know surprise that my spirits are also feeling a bit dampened these days, brought on by my equally unwise decision to accompany my summer camp kids on their field trip to Moraine State Park yesterday.  3 hours outside in 90 degree heat left me feeling exhausted and slightly more tan, which is to say it did nothing to help my cough.  But it wasn't just that.  It's that the ride there, while we were there, and especially on the sad tired trip back into the city--it just all reminded me of home, Minnesota.  From the trees to corn to the pastures to the farms that we saw, from the disproportionate number of vehicles heading out of Pittsburgh with campers and rooftop carriers attached who were headed on vacation "up north" to the way the air tasted crisper and fresher, besides the hills, it all felt like home.

I miss Minnesota for many reasons.  Number one being family, two being friends, and three being the scenery.  When I was at Arts High (Perpich Center for Arts Education), my chemistry teacher gave me a book about Minnesota's ecological systems and history.  A dry read, I'll admit, yet I devoured it.  What other state could you find such a diversity of ecosystems, from prairie to wetlands to lakes to forests and with three different watersheds?  I was amazed.  And still am.

I count myself lucky that I now have family living in three different areas: my mom in south-southeastern MN, my dad "up north" in lake country, and my husband's family in southwestern MN.  While driving in between all three places--a triangulation of 3 hours to each place--is a nightmare, I love seeing how quickly the earth changes in those three small hours.

We're going home in four weeks, and I can't even begin to tell people how excited I am.  While we've been home for the holidays, this will be our first time back in MN during the summer since 2007.  I have some favorite spots that I can't wait to visit.  There's this gravel country road less than a half-mile from my mom's house that I love to go walking on.  It has a small hill that when you reach the top you can see all around you.  Some of it is corn, some of it is grassland, blowing in the wind, and when you reach the bottom of the hill, there's this cool little wetland amidst one of the pastures.  If I'm lucky enough to borrow my mom's bike during the trip, I might take it down this road and even further past Richter's Woods, a county park.  I remember how the temperature immediately drops 5 degrees once you reach the tree cover and can still see the sign for maple syrup sold by my childhood friend Andy's grandparents who live on that road.

And my other favorite spot?  The Melby Farm.  I never grew up on a farm, but I fell in love with my husband's farm when I first visited.  I can't wait to see all that Mary has done with her rock gardens...

Picture taken before we moved to PA in the summer 2007

to take a walk out in the pastures and see what treasures can be found...

Picture taken Summer 2007

to take the pontoon out on the lake (and oh how we miss the lakes! You can't throw a stone without hitting a lake in MN), and to enjoy the gusting wind off of Buffalo Ridge.  

Then when we get to New Ulm for my cousin's wedding, I can't wait to take our dog for a walk and look at all the beautiful old homes on Minnesota St. and Broadway.  I can't wait to sit in my Auntie Barb's amazing garden (something I hope to aspire to someday).  I can't wait to visit my grandparents in their home, a home that has always made me feel at peace and safe.  

My friend Chelsea recently posted a wonderfully poetic post on her blog about the small things making a home.  And she's right.  Not just about the home in which you lay your head each night, the home whose numbers and street are listed on your driver's license.  But home in the larger sense, too.  I can't wait!

Picture taken Summer 2007