What I Found on the Way to School Today

It's been a rough few weeks,  I'm just going to put that out there right now.  I'll try to spare you from having to sit in on my pity party, but if you're only here looking for lots of cute pictures of the kiddo, you may want to skip this post.  I need a place to do some venting, and this is as good a place as any.  So what's been eating me?  Well, let's suffice it to say I have never felt so overwhelmed, worked so hard, or been so unsure of myself as I have been since starting grad school four weeks ago.  (Don't worry, it sounds worse than it is.  I just need to give you a bit of perspective for the rest of this post to make any sense.)  I'm operating on a constantly changing schedule, very little sleep, paperwork that never ends, and a sudden lack of family time - something I took very much for granted up until now.  In the words of the oh-so-wise Chris Martin, "Nobody said it was easy, no one ever said it would be this hard."

Last night was particularly bad.  I had a mountain of assignments and paperwork I just couldn't get caught up on.  I'd seen a client earlier in the day for a disorder I really don't know enough about, and while it hadn't gone horribly, I don't feel it was my best session to date.  I was tired, cranky, and on edge.  It didn't take much to knock me over to the full-fledged "ugly cry."  (I was nice enough to spare the rest of the clan from the sight by leaving the dinner table early.)  I woke up early this morning feeling just as terrible as I had before I'd gone to sleep, and decided today was just going to be awful.  It's funny how the universe goes and ruins my plans, though.  Here's what happened:

I found inspiration.
 
I left the house and hit up my favorite Dunkin' Donuts.  (Yes I was a barista at an independent coffee shop.  Yes I still love DD.  Don't judge me.) Nothing is sure to ruin an already bad day worse than driving away only to find out my medium-coffee-light-and-sweet is neither light nor sweet.  But I choked it down, determined not to be the victim of a caffeine-withdrawal headache later in the day.  As I drove south on I-87 sipping my bitterness (literally), I saw a huge bird swoop across traffic several times and land in a tree along the median.  As I passed the spot, an enormous bald eagle gazed back at me from his perch. (This is most likely not true, as I was traveling at an average of 68mph and would have been nothing more than a flash of orange zipping by.  But for the purpose of this story, HE GAZED BACK AT ME.)  My self-pity was suddenly abandoned in favor of contemplating the chances of seeing a bald eagle right there along the road.  I replayed its soaring aerials in my mind and nodded in hearty agreement at our forefather's choice of national bird. A bit of patriotism swelled in me then, and I thought about how fortunate I am to live in a country where I am free to make something of myself.  How everything I am working for right now would not be possible if it weren't for this freedom.  My day wasn't about to get any easier, but at least I had a renewed sense of purpose.  Then...

I found amusement.

Traffic quickly began to congeal into a slow-moving ooze on the Northway.  My emotions still wavered precariously, but I was suddenly overcome with a fit of giggles as I slowly rolled past a car pulled off on the shoulder.  Down a grassy embankment, the driver a man in a business suit, frantically searched for the perfect spot to "take care of business."  You could see the angst written all over his face.  Behind him, cars crawled slowly past, making him their only source of entertainment on a mundane morning commute.  In front of him, on the other side of a chain-link fence, stood a tall office building.  Surely some early birds were already sitting up on the fourth floor staring vacantly down at the highway and, subsequently, the patch of tall grass where he was hoping to relieve himself.  The funniest part of it all was when he wandered back and forth three times in search of the "perfect" blade of grass to water.  I'm not sure how he chose, considering the whole section was just tall weedy grass that came up to his waist.  He made his selection as I drove past (don't worry, he managed to keep it G-rated), and I couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation.  Part of me thought he was crazy, but another part of me couldn't help but think, "Good for you!"  By the time the whole scene had played out, I was smiling enough to convince myself that my bitter coffee wasn't so bad.  When suddenly....

I found persepctive.

Traffic was trickling along when suddenly BAM!  We were all stopped for what I could only assume was the bridge construction that was still 4 miles away.  I contemplated my bad luck and the fact that I should really consider spending the night at a classmate's house when I have to be on campus early the next day.  Slowly, my neighbors and I crept along the pavement, inch by inch.  I wondered if I should risk hopping off at the next exit and dealing with the lights along Route 9.  But just as quickly as we slowed down, traffic suddenly picked up speed again.  The source of the congestion made itself known only a second later as I drove past a broken down station wagon, completely dead in the water in the center lane of morning rush hour traffic.  I couldn't help but think, "That guy is definitely having a worse day than me."  And you know what, despite how awful I felt when I woke up, he really was.  I sent out some positive vibes to the poor guy - after all, I had some to spare.  Lovely Carrot (yes, that is the name of my loyal Fit) is a great car, and even if she could stand a good cleaning, she never lets me down. 

I began to enjoy my drive now, especially as I meandered south of Albany to find my morning client's house.  It's been ages since I've had the chance to drive down that way.  Of course, the phone call at 8:56 a.m. telling my my 9 o'clock appointment was canceled could have brought me down again, but by now, I was feeling better.  And that's when the final piece of the puzzle struck me....

I found peace.

I turned my car around to head back to campus and seize these rare free minutes to get some more of that pesky work done.  Instead of shooting back up I-90, I took Route 9 from East Greenbush toward Albany.  I had made the drive many times back in the day, but I had completely forgotten what happens when the city skyline comes into view.  The Empire State Plaza suddenly looms in front of you, the four skyscrapers (okay five, but who really counts that odd solitary one?) stretch into infinity, every bend in the road causing them to dance past one another with a stoic grace.  The modern towers, post-modern Egg, and neo-classical Capitol Building create an oxymoron of architecture.  It is the most beautiful skyline, and my heart skipped a beat as I watched it in front of me.  This is what I think of when I talk about loving upstate NY.  This is the place that shouts "home" to me.  In an instant, the doubts I've had over the past few weeks vanished.  This is where our family belongs, and if it takes me working my butt off for two years to make it a reality, than so be it.  In the end, every sleepless night and early morning drive will be worth it if I can share this view* with Eily someday.

*Note:  I did NOT take this photo while driving.  I found it here.

Well, that's it for this entry.  Kudos to you if you made it this far.  As a reward, here's a picture of Eily hanging out in our bedroom with Smokey last week.  Jesse sent it to me on one of my long nights on campus.  It's always nice to get out of a late class and find her smiling face staring back at me.

School Days

Today marks the beginning of Eily's academic career!  It's a bit strange to think that we will both be "school kids" at the same time.  She's embarking on what will hopefully be a lifelong love of learning just as I am approaching the end of my time in school.  (Alright, that's a bit optimistic....but considering how quickly the past three years have gone by, I can only imagine these next two are going to be over before I know what hit me.) Here are a few pictures of our little miss standing outside the house and getting out of the car at drop off this morning. 

I can't believe how grown up she is!  Now I'm anxiously awaiting pick up time so I can hear all about her day! 

Wait, what?

So I started out this summer on a roll.  Got the photos organized every week, took some time to blog about the life and times of JJ&e when BLAMMO!  It's August 20 and I have exactly one week left until I am thrown into what I can only imagine will be the most frantic two years of my life, and I have about four weeks' worth of happenings to report.  Here goes nothing!

Two days after the last post one of my childhood friends passed through the Upstate area with her family.  Kelly and I were classmates throughout elementary, middle, and high school, and I love that we've kept in touch even as the years and miles have expanded.  She's been living in France for many years now with her husband Eddie.  They have the liveliest couple of French cuties ever.  Jesse, Eily, and I had the pleasure of lunching with them at Circus Cafe in Saratoga Springs during their annual trip across the pond.  As you can see, Eily, Aiden, and Mathis were greatly impressed by the enormous plate of cotton candy that arrived at the end of the meal.  (Before and after this, most of their talk centered around Angry Birds, of which they all seem to be quite fond.)

 That same week, I informed Eily that we would be going to see Enter the Haggis in concert on Friday.  You're probably all well aware from previous posts that Jesse and I define our relationship on our mutual love of Celtic influenced bands, and ETH is the cream of the crop. Along with being phenomenal musicians, they are truly good people who give their fans everything they've got.  Seeing them is never a disappointment - in fact, after eight years following them around, I would say I'm surprised by something they do almost every show.  It never gets stale, and I love that Eily has already started to appreciate them as much as we do.  I shot a video right after telling her about the concert.  Considering she knows their most recent album, Whitelake, by heart I knew she would have a few requests.

Now, being the good little SLP-wannabe I am, we always make sure to keep Eily's ears protected.  Here she is happily sporting her OSHA-grade child-sized earmuffs (the same ones she wore here at 2 months old).   Meanwhile, I'm happily sporting my cup o'Smithwicks.  Mmmmm!  (Daddy has a Guinness, of course.)

 

Eily had a chance to chat with each of the guys for a few minutes before the show, and Craig (aka. "Uncle" Craig) even posed for a pic with her onstage after.  Eily was over the moon by that point, and as I pushed her out of the fairgrounds in her stroller she told me, "Maybe someday I can be a singer like that."  It totally melted my heart.  I'm so glad she shares our love of music!

Some of our other fun July exploits have included:

BLUEBERRIES!

One for the basket, two for me....

Forget it, they're all for me!

DANCING!

Eily and Rayleigh having a dance party before bedtime.

AND STALKERS!!!

Kelsey and I came home from a night out to find Kevin and Jesse watching the video monitors and cracking up.  Apparently the girls were highly entertaining, albeit naughty for not going to sleep!

Oh yeah, and Eily got to go to her first race at the track in Saratoga.  We only got to see one race, but she still had a blast!  Here you can see Eily's head at the bottom of the frame and a thoroughbred whizzing by in the upper-central portion of the picture.  I wish we had placed a bet while we were there.  I was going to put my money on #8 in honor of our new address, and wouldn't you guess that's the one that won?

The last weekend in July found us back in the NJ/PA area for a very quick trip to congratulate our dearest friends the Shillidays on their new forever house.  I didn't get a chance to snap any pictures of the happy homeowners, who make a return to their hometown after years away in NY and VA.  I did, however, catch a few of Grandmom/Debbie.  She's always the life of the party, though there was an unruly frog who gave her a run for her money that night.

Jesse and Debbie - trouble is usually brewing when these two get together.

Mr. Frog is up to no good:

After the party, Eily and I rode back to NY with Kevin and Kelsey while Jesse stayed behind for work.  Here's how Eily and Rayleigh entertained themselves in the car during the trip back:



The beginning of August saw us making a long overdue trip to CT to visit my family.  Here's Eily with Noni and Nono:

 And here are Eily and her cousins Victoria and James having an impromptu playdate at Gigi and Gramps' house.

The day after returning from CT, it was back on the road to hang out with Auntie Kiki and Grandma Mary in Rochester.  Eily loved having a "slumber party" with Grandma in the living room.

While we were there, we checked out the Seneca Zoo.  They had some amazing exhibits!  Eily's favorite was the lion area, where you could walk up to the glass right next to the sleepy lions.  I loved the safari bus, where one of the female lions chose to take a snooze in the afternoon sunshine.

Yo, lion on the bus, gimme five!

Sleepy lion on the bus.

 After seeing all of the animals, Auntie Kiki bought Eily her very own elephant.  Umbrella, that is.  Eily felt the need to take it for a test walk before we left the park.

Of course, no trip to Rochester is complete without dinner at Grandma Linda's house.  Eily always loves running through the vegetable gardens and picking fresh veggies for the evening's fare.

Making homemade ice cream is always fun, too!

 

This past weekend was our last big bit of fun before I dive into graduate courses and clinic work.  We spent it in the company of great friends at the Hartman's shore house in Somers Point.  Here are the kids at the beach on Saturday.  If only they were this easy to manage all of the time!

And there you have it - a whole summer gone in the blink of an eye.  We've had a blast seeing everyone, and I will be looking back fondly on these pictures as the crisp autumn air begins to settle in and my days are quickly filled with assignments and deadlines.  Thanks for a wonderful time everyone!

Vacation (Round 2)

Well folks, I had a really fun post all written out for you, but as of five minutes ago it has become nothing more than stardust lost in the abyss of deleted internet files.  C'est la vie, I suppose.  I wish I could say I'd attempt to recreate it from scratch for you, but it's currently 1:25 a.m. and I've already spent the past hour shuffling photos and writing.  My apologies for the less than stellar narrative you're about to receive.

Eily is already worried

Okay, so the previous post went something like this:  "Moving to NY is great.  We have lots of friends and already know our way around. Yadda yadda yadda."  Except better.  Much better.  I'm talking NY Times best-selling, Pulitzer Prize winning novel material*. 

(*It wasn't really all that good.  I'm just feeling too lazy to try to remember what I wrote.)

The early part of this week was spent revisiting some old haunts with Kelsey and the kids.  On Monday, we bummed around the fair city of Albany, a place that will always be near and dear to my heart.  Our first stop after running some errands was to grab breakfast at Professor Java's Coffee Sanctuary, where my fellow Javateer Kevin and I met 9 or so years ago.  Who knew almost a decade later I would be shacking up with him and his family in a sweet little commune?

Eily's first cup of joe water in the same to-go cups we used to use back in my day.

Eily and Rayleigh eating oatmeal in the library at Java's.

Later that morning we hit up the mall (coincidentally the first place I worked when I moved to the Capital Region back in 2001).  Eily and Rayleigh got in some shopping while we were there.

"What do you think, Rayleigh?  Can I pull off red, or are they a little too Wizard of Oz?"

"Thanks for convincing me to go with the blue water shoes.  They're much more practical!"

Once the retail therapy session had concluded, we drove over to Bombers Burrito Bar to grab some take out for a picnic in the park.  Just stepping into Bombers was enough to fill me with the kind of nostalgia that lets you know you're home.  I spent many a night closing down the bar upstairs with my boys Armando and Adam in my early days living in the area (last call is 4 a.m. for all you non-New Yorkers).  Those nights were filled with bottles of Newcastle, philosophical discourse, unwritten drafts of the next great American novel, and the best friends a shy, broken girl like me could have ever asked for at a time like that.  (I'm getting a bit weepy with the memories.  A different post for a different day, I suppose.)  Anyway, as I was saying, we grabbed our food to go and had a lovely picnic in Washington Park.  Here's Eily playing around on one of the big shady trees:

 

Later in the week, we headed south to Oak Hill, NY for our annual pilgrimage to the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival.  Kevin, Kelsey, Rayleigh, Dillon, Eily, Jesse, and I (forever after known as "the tribe") met up with our friends the Adams family (Jim, Natasha, and Rory) and the Shillidays (Andy, Nicole, Liam, and Keen).  The festival runs from Wednesday to Sunday, so camping is the only way to get the full experience.  This year we ditched the dusty ghetto of Pickers Paradise for a more suburban setting on the High Meadow.

Base camp - the social hub of our camping party.

  

Base camp went classy this year with fancy kerosene lanterns giving off ambient light after the sun went down.

I'm not really a big fan of bluegrass, per se, but the festival this year was particularly fun.  Being up on the meadow, behind the main stage, afforded everyone in our group the opportunity to switch off from kid duty to catch a few acts here and there.  Even without being into the bluegrass scene, there are always a million things to do at Grey Fox.  The event is family friendly, so getting the kids out for some fun was never hard. 

Eily, Keen, and Liam sharing a camp chair.

Eily and Rory walking back from the swimming hole.

The "big kids" circle - Liam, Rory, Rayleigh, and Eily.

Learning about constellations in the Family Tent.

Little cowgirl and her daddy.

Hippie dress & cowgirl hat day!

The trip itself is all a blur at this point (I'm still detoxing).  Our days were filled with lots of cooking, child chasing, dancing, yoga (barely), bathing in the local swimming hole, beer drinking, and of course, music listening.  The cool thing about Grey Fox is that almost everyone who goes is also a musician.  So even if you're not hanging out at one of the stages, you just have to walk around to different campsites to catch some really talented people jamming with their friends. 

Eily hanging out, listening to the sounds of bluegrass floating on the breeze from the main stage to base camp.

Like any good vacation, we played hard all day long and slept like babies in the crisp cool air each night.

Eily passed out in her very own sleeping bag.  She's a natural camper!

We're off on more adventures yet again this week, so be sure to tune in again soon.  Until then, here's my favorite shot of Eily from the festival.  She's growing up to be such a little lady!

Hello from the North Country!

Howdy y'all!**  As always, we've been busy since the last time I posted.  Truth be told, I'm grateful for the modern convenience of cell phone photography since it's the only way for me to go back and remember everything we've done.  If it weren't for my smartphone, I would probably be wrapping up this post right....about.....(wait for it).....now.  Hope you enjoyed the update.  I'll post again in six months!

 (**Note:  This is NOT something people say in NY....I need to work on re-acclimating myself to the local vernacular.)
 
Alright, alright, it's not that bad.  But seriously, with everything we've had on our plates these past two months, I can't believe all of the other (read: awesomely fun) stuff we've managed to cram in there.  In addition to taking my final and most demanding undergraduate class, we packed up all of our stuff and moved it either into storage or the home of our dear friends Kevin and Kelsey (and their two kiddos Rayleigh and Dillon).  When I say these people are sweet, I mean they are the kind of friends who go above and beyond for the people they care about.  Because they are so awesomely generous, Jesse, Eily, and I will be living with them while I attend grad school at the College of Saint Rose in Albany.  Jesse will be making frequent trips back down to PA/NJ for work and keeping the house in order, but for now Hudson Falls is home base.

The move went smoothly, although Eily and I both shed some tears on moving day.  The cats survived the 4.5 hour drive.  Fionn's voice, however, did not. He lost it somewhere on I-87 after meowing until Jesse's ears bled serenading Jesse in the moving truck.  It has since returned, and the little scamp even makes an occasional foray up to the first floor from his basement hiding place.  Once I set him loose on the neighborhood, I'm sure he'll start catching all sorts of tasty little critters and finding himself right at home again.  All in all, everyone is settling in nicely.

But wait, there's more!  

So on top of the big events happening in the land of JJ&e, there have been some lesser-advertised adventures.  I'll try not to bore everyone to tears (too much), but here are some pictures from the last couple of months to give you an idea of what else we've been up to.

 

Eily and I spent a May afternoon at the Bucks County Children's Museum in New Hope.  Her favorite exhibit was the giant Lite Brite - she spent most of the time here rearranging the lights.

 While Jesse and our friends Andy and Nicole spent Memorial Day weekend in Colorado celebrating a friend's 30th birthday, Eily and I joined Liam, Keen, Mia, P-Pop, Grandmom, and Aunt Ju-Ju at the shore in Somers Point.  We had a blast at the beach, the boardwalk, the pool, and the parade!

 Eily and I had an impromptu playdate at Sesame Place with Auntie Alyssa and Haley in mid-June.   My little dare-devil went on everything from the big swings to the tower-of-terror-esqe "Blastoff".  There were 12 year olds in line ahead of her that were more scared, ha!

 Unfortunately, part of moving means saying goodbye to friends.  Here is Eily with her first-ever friend, Ava.  Casey (Ava's mom) was Eily's first babysitter, and we've had so much fun watching these two girls grow up together.  We won't be close enough for last-minute playdates anymore, but we're certainly going to be keeping in touch with them and getting together whenever possible!

 The month of June ends on a high note for us every year now.  Eily's third birthday (I will not have a panic attack, I will not have a panic attack, I will not have a panic attack) fell the weekend before moving day, but we still managed to squeak in a birthday party for her.  Partly because we thought it would be fun, but mostly because she guilted us into it.  Starting around February she began telling me, "At my birthday party, there will be balloons, and party hats, and cake, and all of my friends will be there."  (Insert sweet, angelic smile here.) Yeah, you can bet I wasn't getting away without a party this year.  Just look at that face, though.  How could I say no?  (Note to future self:  Remember to teach Eily that blue frosting is fine, but it is not a suitable lipstick choice.)

 Here are a few more of the favorite people we had to bid farewell to before leaving.  This is Eily's sitter/second mom, Cindy.  She has watched Eily for almost two years now, and I am forever grateful for how good she's been to Eily.  Eily comes home everyday full of stories about all the fun she has at Miss Cindy's house, and she adores Cindy's twins Eddie & Alyssa (above).  They are officially on our list of "people we must visit" whenever we return to the PA/NJ area.

 Here we are on moving day (July 4).  What a difference five years makes.  (For a visual idea of those differences, check out my previous post.)

And that brings us to this week.

So remember how I said Kevin & Kelsey are some of the coolest, most generous people we know?  Well, just to prove it, they invited us to join them on their annual family vacation with Kevin's parents and brother.  In true JJ&e form, we set out on the six hour road trip just one week after moving in.  Destination:  Cape Cod.  The added bonus was being able to visit with my mom while we were there.  Here are some pics of the fun we had.

Swimming at Long Pond.

 Eily's first game of mini golf.  (Uncle B - what do you think of her form?)

Walking into Provincetown and sporting the new hat Mimi (Kevin's mom) made for her.
 

 Eily, Rayleigh, Dillon, and Mimi (aka Jill) hanging with Bubbles the Whale in Provincetown.

 Getting in some ocean time with Nana and Howard.  Nothing like having an entire beach to yourselves on a hot summer day!

Daddy teaching Eily to skip rocks.  (There were plenty of them!)

And here is Eily last night while we were packing up the cars and getting ready to head back to NY. 



Wow, that was a lot.  And I didn't even tell you everything!  Like how we somehow squeezed in an afternoon at Celtic Fling at the PA Renn Faire in late June.  Or how Eily and I attempted to hit every local park at least once throughout June.  Or visiting with Ack Ack and Auntie Heather at their place on the farm and going Jeep riding and fishing.  I may have to put up a second post of pics just to prove we did all that (and more!). But first, it's time to start packing for the next adventure.  That's right, on Wednesday we head out for our annual camping trip to the Gray Fox bluegrass festival. And the insanity doesn't end there!  Every week from now until the start of the semester is chock full of trips, parties, visits with old friends, and as much fun as three people can possibly fit into one summer. No rest for the wicked!  (And by "wicked," I mean wicked crazy.  Oh, to be close enough to New England to use that word again!)


Here's hoping I take enough pictures on my phone to remember what I'm going to tell you all about next time. Until then, stay cool and have a great summer!