Mom


There once was a little bunny who wanted to run away.
So he said to his mother, "I am running away."
"If you run away," said his mother, "I will run after you.
For you are my little bunny."*

Happy Mother's Day.
To a mom who has always come to find me.
 No matter how far away I've gone. 

(And has pretty nice taste in books). 

Me and Mom in Colorado, Easter, 2008.


*From "The Runaway Bunny" by Margaret Wise Brown


Down four participants, with rain in the forecast, and Sunday plans for half the group, we called off our camping trip to Wyalusing and went to the cabin instead.  For once, I'm glad we cancelled a camping trip (I generally don't like to cancel under any circumstances except Biblical flooding, which actually occurred once last summer) because it rained all Friday night and was damp and gloomy on Saturday. We were joined by Brad and Julie and three terriers - Dodger, Brewer, and Ranger. Julie just completed her first year of grad school on Thursday, and was in need (and very deserving) of a weekend of relaxation. So relax we did. We kept a roaring fire in the fireplace, popped a few beers, caught up, and spent several hours playing board games, specifically Trivial Pursuit and Apples to Apples, two of my all-time favs. I'm relaxed, refreshed, feeling in touch, and really happy I don't have to spend this week drying out our camping gear prior to our trip to Colorado Saturday. 



We drove to Menards in Platteville tonight to get some more river rock for the yard. Mike looked over at me and declared "Happy Anniversary." Awe. It's our six month anniversary.

Except the wedding was in October.
November...December....January... wait a minute!


As of Thursday, April 30th, we are homeowners. I realized today that we closed exactly four years (to the day) after we met. Awe. Mike carried me across the threshold when I got home from teaching that night. Awe. And that was the end of the sappiness.
And the begining of reality. Homeownership is exhausting. We spent most of last weekend cleaning out the garage and basement as we hadn't done much with either since we moved in. And this weekend, it was time to tackle the yard. Our yard is an ugly ugly place. Rumor has it that somebody actually bulldozed it prior to it going to estate sale. I believe it. The backyard is basically a small patch of yard next to a large, bare, patch of dirt, currently covered in weeds. The front yard was completely ripped up from construction and the removal of a hideous brick planter, and is now covered in dirt in an attempt to patch it up. We spent more than 10 hours this weekend poop scooping, raking, digging, and planting grass seed. We bought 600 pounds of rock and covered (approximately half) of a particularly awful area of the lawn with river rock. Eventually (i.e. after we buy another 600 pounds of rock) it will be a doggy poo area in an attempt to keep the yard spot free. My parents have hinted that they might come up while we're in Colorado in a few weeks and plant flowers. Oh, I hope so!
Of course this is all just the beginning. We need to cut down trees, paint the house, put up shutters, replace windows, install the new fire pit we bought this weekend, create something prettier than the concrete slab currently surving as the patio, and a gazillion other projects during this summer. I think I need a nap!