July 29

The blasted dogs have been barking for the past 20 minutes, and now someone just came home and the half-wolves are howling. Oh, life in Arizona is going to seem so dull after living with 5 dogs and 9 people! And yet dull seems so appealing…We’ve seen Matt the past 3 days! And what a difference it makes! I know that he is working hard to make space for us, and I appreciate it greatly. Sometimes I’m amazed at how much he is able to balance; he is very good at being focused on the task at hand and not sweating the small stuff. I admire that about him.

Besides seeing Matt today, there isn’t much else to say about July 29th. I’ve decided that I’m no longer going to tolerate Sebastian’s nightly behavior (waking up 2-4 times, only to be comforted by nursing), so last night I set up camp in the hallway outside our room, prepared to let him cry it out. And cry he did, off and on for about 1 1/2 hours, and then he cried again at 4:30 and I was so delirious, and Dora was in desperate need of some sleep, so I fed him. I’m going to try it again tonight, and hope that I’m not so out of it tomorrow. I couldn’t get it together today: I swear that we went down for breakfast at 8:00, but when I started making French toast it was 8:40, and it really threw me off. We were going to go to the Farmer’s Market in Elizabethtown and then to Crown Point to go to the museum, but Sebastian wouldn’t take a nap, and even just making coffee was an ordeal. So the best we did was the playground in Westport. And we had pizza with Matt, and considering how tired I was today, I am pretty proud of even that.

It’s 9:00, and I’m already in my pajamas and I’ve got the bed set up again, so I feel like I’m starting tomorrow out right. Even though it is tonight…whatever. The #$%! dogs are barking AGAIN! Don’t they have anything better to do?

An old entry...

So Matt's computer just got back from the repair shop (Matt's famous last words: "Mac's don't have problems." yeah right), so I am posting an entry I typed up in word a few weeks back, Day 45 I believe. Here goes:

I thought that I should give a little time to talking about Bear, Dora's beloved sutffed animal that has traveled cross country with us. Bear has become a part of the family, a third child, so to speak. She is responsible...no, make that blamed, for many mishaps and mischievous behavior: pushing Sebastian down, screaming, throwing fits, bouts of anger. Bear is a part of the trinity of stuffed friends in Dora's life, but in a moment of frantic packing, Duck and Teddy did not make the cut, and are awaiting their reunion with Bear back in Arizona. How do I know this? On our walks, and throuhgout the day, Dora tells me elaborate stories and histories of Bear and her friends. What follows are some of the details of Bear's life that have been forever etched into my memory, as Dora repeats them to me VERY OFTEN. Bear lives in Africa, and she has frogs at her house. Bear's mom (sometimes played by Teddy) always lets Bear watch TV when she eats dinner, and gives her Oreos, candy and pudding every day. When I was a little girl, Bear made a picnic for me and I enjoyed it. Teddy is teaching Bear to play the violin , and when Bear plays Dora and I dance. Sometimes Bear can hear Teddy and Duck calling her all the way from Arizona. Teddy is at home in Arizona because he (yes, Teddy frequently changes sexes) has to work; he is building houses. And these are just a few of the stories that I have heard! It is quite faxcinating to me how detailed Dora can be, and yet how much Bear's life reflects what Dora is experiencing. She is such a wonderful, enjoyable child, and it is a gift to be able to spend so much uniterrupted time with her. I've been prepping her to go to a concert with me sometime soon, so we can have some special "Dora and Mama" time. I'm hoping it works ou that she can hear Matt's solo at his concert in August.

Countdown: 24 days until we get home

Dora told me that she misses Arizona on the way here (we're at the Elizabethtown Library). I don't know if I miss Arizona, especially the 115 degree heat, but I miss home. Especially today. It is raining like crazy, Matt and I have been playing phone tag like crazy, and I don't know if I'll be able to see him much this next week. He told me in our brief phone conversation earlier today that one of the counselors had to leave, so he'll have to work more this week. But the problem is that he's already working lots as a counselor, and he's been asked to be in a Cello Choir, and he has a solo performance on August 8th, and he's teaching 4 students. So today, I'm really missing our real life, and wishing we could be back together as a family again.

Yesterday I took the kids to Vermont. There was only a slim chance of us seeing Matt, and rather than waiting around to be disappointed, I decided to make the best of it. We drove up to Port Kent and took the ferry across Lake Champlain to Vermont. We walked on the ferry (it saved us almost $13!) and it took about an hour, which mostly involved me chasing Sebastian away from the cheap plastic toys for sale at the "Ferry Shop". We walked around Burlington for a few hours, had Ben and Jerry's ice cream (Fossil Fuel ice cream is REALLY REALLY REALLY good), bought a few items to entertain Dora for our return trip, and went to the playground. It was a pretty fun time, and I hope to get back. Our trip yesterday brought the number of states visited during this trip up to 10. I've got to go get Sebastian off the table--he's climbing whenever he gets a chance...

Day 47 Wesport New York

I'm at the Westport Library right now--Dora and I just attended the Story Hour. The library here is open 4 days a week, and we come pretty much every day that it is open. It has a GREAT kid's room, and I think that by the end of the summer we will have checked out almost every kid's book! Dora asks me every day if we can go to the "kid's" library. Matt took the morning off, despite the fact that he's in a little bit of trouble with the other counselors. He's been taking Saturdays off to spend with us, but apparently some of the other counselors are mad at him because this means that he doesn't have to supervise any day trips for the under 18 students. To appease them, he's working this afternoon: he's driving a van full of teenagers to Plattsburg to go to the mall. We're going to follow him up, and spend the afternoon with him doing something in Plattsburg. All for now!

Day 43 Westport New York, take 2

Oh dear. I'm sitting in the parking lot of the Elizabethtown Library at 1030 PM trying to post this! I had some difficulties with the pictures on the last post, so here are some explanations:

Picture #1 Dora and nakey Sebastian swimming at the marina
Picture #2 Dora standing amongst the tiger lilies in front of our house. This is the first part of the walk we go on almost every morning.
Picture #3 Sebastian sitting under the sink in the "room" outside our bedroom. It isn't really a room, but a "landing" at the top of the stairs. I keep the kid's toys there, and I sit there at night when I'm reading, paying bills, typing these things, etcetera
Picture #4 The sink in our bathroom--it is as old as our house (built in 1807). It has the most interesting system for draining, I just had to take a picture so I'd remember it. If you want water to collect in the sink, you leave the "plug" (the thing in the middle) in, and if you want it to drain, you lift it up.
Picture #5 Another shot of our "room", you can see the old fashioned phone on the wall. This one doesn't work, but a few of the others downstairs do.

I'll try to post more pictures of the house soon!

Day 43 Westport New York

Matt found out that he has internet access at Meadowmount, so we’ve been sharing the computer, hence my infrequent postings as of late. It’s hard to believe that we’ve been here 2 1/2 weeks. We’ve fallen into a routine that goes something like this:
7:30 Wake up (thank God they kids are sleeping better!)
8:00 Breakfast. Not only does this involve getting food to the table, feeding the kids, and doing the dishes, but also trying to chase Sebastian around so he doesn’t eat dog food, touch one of the millions of antiques in the house, play with the handles on the wood stove, push the little cow statue over on his toe…My friend Shelly suggested that I put him in the backpack, and boy! Does that make a difference!
9:00 Walk to the park or go to the playground
10:30 Snack and Sebastian’s nap. Dora watches TV while I have a little time to myself
12:00 Lunch. See breakfast.
1:00 Some days we go to Meadowmount to visit Matt, sometimes we go to the library or on an adventure, and if we can’t think of anything else, we go swimming.
3:30 Nap time. This is VERY important.
5:30 Dinner.
6:30 We play on the porch, or in the yard, or we walk to the park where there is an ampitheatre and we have “shows”
8:00 Bed time for the kids. And I have a little time to myself!

Not a bad summer, if you ask me. This morning we walked down to the beach by the marina and the kids played in the water. I took pictures, so I will try to post them soon. Sebastian is still awake, and it’s almost 11, so I’m going to try to go help him go to sleep.

Day 38 Westport New York

I have a big mosquito bite on my forehead. But really, I want to devote some time to talking about our wonderful hosts and the big Victorian home we are calling home this summer. We have a wonderful set up: our hosts are so welcoming and generous (John and Astri have said that I’m now a part of their family), the Meadowmount students that we are sharing the upstairs with are cool (one of them is making us Korean food for dinner on Sunday night!), and there is always plenty to do and keep Dora and Sebastian busy. Our hosts, John and Astri, have 6 kids, and John’s sister lives just up the road, so there is always someone coming or going. John is a philosophy professor at a University in Vermont (from what I’ve pieced together), and he always has some interesting story or anecdote to share. He is 75 years old, but I wouldn’t have guessed it: everyday he drinks a glass of broccoli-cauliflower-celery-carrot-fish oil “juice” and he claims that the chlorophyll keeps his hair from going gray. He is a violist as well, and he attended Meadowmount in 1945. His wife tells me that he is quite a collector, hence all the interesting antiques and gadgets around the house—pictures of Abraham Lincoln, masks from Africa, clocks, and much much more. He’s going to a conference in Spain next week, something having to do with Philosophy. Astri is from England, and she collects cacti: I keep trying to convince her to come visit us in Arizona. Sometimes I can’t quite believe how hospitable they are (they are always trying to pour me glasses of wine, and tonight John gave me a jar of fresh oysters!), and how much I feel at home. I really don’t think I can do this home justice—it has so much character. Paul, one of the students here, keeps telling me that he thinks that our room was at one point the servant’s quarters, because there is a “back entrance” to the kitchen, and because we are right above the kitchen. It also seems a bit more functional and practical than the other rooms (i.e. it doesn’t have built in mirrors and chandeliers and access to the balcony). Oh, I could go on and on, but it’s getting late and I still need to take a shower. I keep telling myself that I don’t have much to do, but somehow these kids and the driving and exploring and preparing meals fills up my days. And it is good. I’ll try to write more about the area and what our days are like next time. Adios!

Matt at his childhood home

Matt at his childhood home
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Sebastian and Jay Dolan

Sebastian and Jay Dolan
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Sebastian and John

Sebastian and John
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Cousins

Cousins
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

with Joan Crovello in South Bend

with Joan Crovello in South Bend
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

With the Scotts in St Louis

With the Scotts in St Louis
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

At the Dolans in South Bend Indiana

At the Dolans in South Bend Indiana
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

At Lake Placid

At Lake Placid
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Becky got kissed by a dragonfly!

Becky got kissed by a dragonfly!
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Building an arch in St Louis

Building an arch in St Louis
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Dora at the piano

Dora at the piano
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Matt and Christine

Matt and Christine
Originally uploaded by shellzenberg.

Day 35 Westport New York

Matt had his first day off on Saturday, and we had a great day. I picked him up at Meadowmount in the morning (he had from 7 am on Saturday to 7 am Sunday off) and we drove to Lake Placid for the day. I hadn’t really done much research as to what to do in Lake Placid, so we just walked through the main part of town and then went to McDonald’s for lunch (thanks Mom!). We did stop by the Olympic Ice Arena, and we saw the ski jumps, but I’m hoping we can go back again to take a gondola ride, or see a show at the Ice Arena. After we got back to Westport, we went swimming, had dinner, put Sebastian to bed, and then Dora got to stay up late to see the fireflies and the fireworks over the Westport Marina. She also got to see some bats too; I think she had a pretty good time. And it was nice to have a full day with Matt. Very, very nice.

Today we walked to the park, and played with our hosts’ grandson Jack. Sebastian is sleeping now, and Dora is watching Blues Clues. Matt has a little bit of time this afternoon, so we will hopefully see him for a bit, and probably go swimming too. Ahh, this 7 week vacation thing isn’t too bad! I’m going to try to get to some emails now. More later…

Day 32 Westport New York

Happy Canada Day! I’m a bit too tired to write much, but I do want to share some of the strange, but true, events of the day:

1. After swimming laps tonight, I immediately applied mosquito repellent and I think I had a weird reaction to the mosquito repellent and the chemicals from the pool water and my legs are red. Weird.
2. There was a dead squirrel in the pool (this was before I went swimming).
3. I drove around for almost an hour trying to get a one year old to take a nap, but what happened? Dora fell asleep. Go figure.
4. I drove to the Elizabethtown Library and sat in the van in the parking lot to check email. They have wireless internet, and they leave it on all the time, so people can come and experience “drive through” internet.
5. I can’t find a grocery store around that carries tahini—what is the world coming to?

Oh, I’m pooped. I’m dreaming of 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep…zzzzzzzzzz