Back to the 'Ville

Almost exactly nine years ago I graduated from college. Its hard to believe that much time has gone by. I've been busy working with juvenile offenders and special needs kids, getting married and having a baby, and moving to Chicago and back. I've had two jobs, three cars, two houses, an apartment, and 1.5 babies in that time. Despite all of these adventures, one thing I have not done is return to Kirksville and visit the ol' college stomping ground.

This weekend, we had the chance to do just that. Over the summer, Jason received word that the 1998-1999 Truman basketball team was going to be inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame. Jason was a part of that team and it was an incredibly exciting season, ending with the team placing third in the nation. The induction was held in conjunction with Homecoming weekend.

We left Friday morning (since the induction was that evening) and arrived in the 'Ville with enough time to take a tour of the campus and show the little one around. We originally were not planning on taking Amelia, thinking it may be hard to wrestle her during the 3+ hour ceremony. But I am SO GLAD we brought her along--she had a great time!

(As is evidenced in the picture).

That's the library in the background--my old place of employment! We took Amelia in the library and visited with my old supervisor. It was really fun catching up and Amelia loved seeing a library that was so much fancier than our library at home.

There was a stage set up on the quad, probably for some sort of Homecoming skit or band. It was apparently calling Amelia's name.

This is Missouri Hall. The dorm where both Jason and I resided. Those of you familiar with the dorm will notice the new glass addition. Apparently the dorm is now also equipped with air condition--a luxury we lived without.

We stopped by the gym, where Amelia was engrossed for a full 15 minutes with the volleyball team's practice. Then, she and Jason did some sprints up and down the court for old time's sake.

After a stop at the hotel and a little rest time, we changed and headed to the reception. This was held in the old Quiet Lounge (now called "The Hub") in the Student Union Building. It also has had a major update and looks really great. Amelia enjoyed the swanky appetizers.

Upon our arrival at the reception, we were greeted with (among other things) name tags for the whole family. Amelia really thought it was great that she got her own. In her other hand, she is clutching Jason's boutonniere--also a popular item that night.

Amelia was surprisingly patient during the lllllooooonnnnnnggggg dinner. When she could no longer sit at the table, she found a friend she met at the reception and the two of them got down to coloring.

After dinner, we moved to Ophelia Parrish for the ceremony portion of the evening. I almost did not recognize the building as it has had a complete makeover. They even built a new theater that is really top notch. Here are a few of the basketball players on stage with their awards. They are all smiles because the coach is telling some interesting stories about them.

After the ceremony, there was a dessert reception in the new OP art gallery. This was also a surprise and very well done. If you can't tell, I was repeatedly impressed with all of the updates that the university has made in the last 9 years. Amelia enjoyed pursuing (read: touching) the art and dining on yogurt and berries.

She also found her fellow 3-year old friend and the two of them caused some trouble. She actually told me at one point, "I am just going to walk around with her (meaning her friend) for a little bit". I swear some days she is 3 going on 13!

I was SO impressed with the way Amelia handled herself that night. I still can hardly believe she got through almost 6 hours of programming. Thank goodness that nearly every player on the basketball team has kids and brought them along, too. There were plenty of playmates to choose from!

The next morning, we attended the Homecoming parade--an event I could never wake up quite early enough for when I was a student there.

Man, it was cold though! The day never really warmed up like we thought it would. I was ill prepared for a 24 degree wind chill. Not only did I bring my dressy coat, that is not really known for its warmth, it wouldn't even close around my big belly. I also had no hat for me and no gloves for Amelia.

We decided to hit up the new little cafe in the Student Union Building for some hot chocolate (and parade candy, of course) post parade. We got our drinks and then headed back to "The Hub". I am seriously a little jealous that all of this wasn't in place when I was there.

Amelia loved the posh, circular seating.

After killing some time with various chocolate drinks and treats, we headed to the dedication of the King House. Apparently the past owner of the house was the head basketball coach at the university long ago. The house, located on campus, was being placed on the National Historic Registry. The coach asked all of the players to come, if possible. It was a short and sweet ceremony. And thank goodness because a certain someone was getting awfully antsy waiting for the speeches to end.

We got some lunch (at Ruby Tuesdays no less!) and still had some time to kill before the football game. Seeing that Amelia was very close to falling asleep, we drove around for a little bit before snagging our spot in the football stadium parking lot. Jason and Amelia had a snoring competition, while I did some ebay bidding on my iPhone!

When it got close to half-time, we braved the cold and headed to the stadium. We lasted just about as long as half-time. It was easy to remember why I rarely attended football games while going to school there. Its just too freakin' cold to be outside in Kirksville once October hits, I think.

Of course, our trip down memory lane would not be complete without a stop by the houses where we used to stay.

Jason will claim his was pretty much the best there was in Kirksville--mostly because it had a dishwasher, washer, and dryer (and no bats). The years, however, have not been kind to it. It was looking pretty run down or maybe our standards have changed!

I certainly will never claim my house was the best Kirksville had to offer considering its fire hazard floor plan, shag carpet, oven that shot flames out when you turned it on, and its visiting bat population. But, it was a fine house for our needs. It certainly beat the on-campus apartment I stayed at the year before (they have new luxurious apartments on campus as well!). I mean check out that ivy growing up the side of the house--such character!

It was a super fun trip and I am quite sure that we will be returning before 9 more years go by. I am just waiting for someone to give me an award now--like maybe Young Alumni of the Year or something would be great!

On Contact

Here's a secret about me that you may not know: I LOVE contact paper!

I bought a roll of it about a year ago and have used it for so many projects. Often I use it to "laminate" things that I want to use again and again. Looking at the roll, though, it really doesn't look like I've used any of it.

I saw this idea on No Time For Flashcards. She used a stencil, but I thought contact paper would be a better choice to keep the paint out. I cut some pumpkin shapes out of the paper and then stuck it to the construction paper. Amelia did her job by painting the page black--or brown, really (we had to mix our own "black" since we didn't have any).

After it had dried, Amelia got a kick out of pulling up the contact paper, revealing the orange pumpkins.

I was inspired by this project and am planning to do a similar version of this painting technique with Amelia for the baby's room. Here's hoping it goes as smoothly as this one!

Zoo Friends

We headed out last week to meet my friend, Erin, and her daughter, Elise, at the zoo. As luck would have it, it was also the same day my play group had decided to plan an outing there as well. We were lucky enough to have the chance to play with lots of friends and enjoy the beautiful day!

As usual, we arrived during the first hour they were open to take advantage of all of the free activities available. Even though we are Zoo Friends now, old habits die hard! We were a little disappointed that the stingrays were already gone for the season, so we headed straight for the carousel. It was hard to decide which girl enjoyed it more!

After a couple rides around we headed to the Children's Zoo. Amelia did some playing while Elise did some sleeping.

There was a lot of love in the air while the girls waited to catch the train. I can only hope that when we have a baby around all of the time, Amelia is this tickled!

Before we left, I promised Amelia a trip to see the zebras. Then, of course, I had to get a picture of Amelia in her zebra pants with said zebra.

Hopefully there is still time for at least one more zoo visit before I have to figure out how to make the trip with two little ones!

Experimentation

As some of you may know, Jason is a scientist. He has a PhD in plant biology and although we struggle to keep our grass looking good and our house plants alive, I would say that he is very good at what he does.

On a subconscious level, Amelia must know this. She received the book "How a Seed Grows" a long time ago from her Grandma. It is a pretty technical book that sets up a science experiment growing bean plants. The other day she picked it off of her bookshelf as one of the books she wanted me to read.

As I read the experiment to her, she said, "We should do that!". I told her that we could and she looked at me very seriously and said, "No, I want to do it with Daddy".

Well, okay then.

On Sunday, the two of them set up the project much to Amelia's delight. First, the book outlined how to use an egg container to serve as a holder for the seeds. It noted that holes should be poked in the bottom of each spot. So, (after running out to get a dozen eggs before breakfast specifically to use the carton for this project) they cleaned out the carton and then Amelia got some good practice poking holes in the container with a screwdriver.

After the holes were poked, they headed outside to add soil to the carton.

Then it was back inside to plant the seeds and then add water.

After that, Jason decided to concoct a complex flag system to keep track of the seeds. This was a variation from the book. Despite my initial doubts, the system has proved successful.

The book encourages you to unbury the first bean three days after planting and observe the changes. Amelia and Jason unburied the first bean yesterday and didn't notice much difference, except that it was slightly fatter than an unplanted bean.

However, on Thursday, they unburied bean #2 and were able to see the root pushing out of the bean. Here they are making their observations.

I am pretty sure that most of this "experiment" is lost on Amelia. I think the book has an older audience in mind. But, I love how she initiated it and has shown a lot of interest so far at each step. And with a scientist for a dad, I am sure there will be many more experiments to come!

The House of Magic

I am pretty sure this is not the most appropriate post to add to the blog after the last one, but I think I'll go with it anyway because it is so representative of my life and my little girl (and it still makes me laugh every time I think about it).

The other evening while driving home after a late night at Grandma and Grandpa's house, Amelia was quietly sitting in the back seat looking out of the window. We passed one of those seedy, adult novelty shops called Pure Pleasures. It is a stand alone building that is outlined all around the outside with a neon purple light. From the back seat came Amelia's excited voice asking, "Is that the Magic House?".

(For those of you who don't know the Magic House is an incredible children's museum in St. Louis full of hands-on fun. Obviously it is time to take her back there again!)

The Past, Present, and Future

September 29 was the due date of the baby that we lost earlier this year.

I had been dreading this day for awhile now. After the miscarriage, I kept wondering how I would get through September 29, especially if I wasn't pregnant again. I am so thankful for the baby growing in my stomach that is going to soon join us.

I wanted to remember the day, but didn't feel a need to dwell on the past. I really tried to keep things simple and enjoying the beautiful day. Amelia and I started the day with a Parents As Teachers activity centered around the book, "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?". It was really a neat concept about how everyone carries an imaginary bucket and by doing and saying nice things you fill it for them (and, in turn, fill your own). When your bucket is full, you feel happy. By contrast, you become a "bucket dipper" when you are mean or say something rude to another person. An empty bucket makes others feel sad. I was surprised at how quickly Amelia caught onto the concept and it seemed fitting for the day. We even made a plan on how we could fill someone's bucket the next day (which we did!).

On our way to have our buckets filled:

After the PAT activity, I thought we would spend the rest of the morning picking out and planting some mums around the mailbox and in pots for the front porch. The poor flowers I planted in the springtime were looking pretty dried up and crispy, so this was perfect. It was a small gesture that quickly made a huge difference. Plus, I had lots of help from a certain someone who never passes up a chance to get dirty! It affected my mood immediately and has every day since. I love seeing the fall flowers when I come home!

Lastly, (and I could not think of a better way to spend our afternoon on this day) Amelia and I headed to my 27 week appointment. I like having Amelia at my appointments because the doctor always listens to the baby's heartbeat much longer so that Amelia can get a good listen too. We heard a very healthy heartbeat and the doctor even commented to Amelia that "that is a VERY happy baby in there!". (Probably because I had just eaten a chocolate bar, but I didn't mention that to him). Regardless, that is exactly what I needed to hear!

It was really important to me to remember this loss that still seems so fresh to me, but I am glad this day is behind me. I am eagerly awaiting our baby's arrival and looking forward to seeing what else lies ahead!

Pickin' Some Apples!

Since we've already been peach and blueberry picking this year, it was only a matter of time before we added apple picking to the list.

We opted to visit Eckerts in Grafton again so that we could take the ferry (actually 2!) and stop by a farm on the way that sells enormous pumpkins for super cheap!

Lucky for us, Amelia's grandma and great grandma were along for the ride. Even though they aren't all from the same side of Jason's family, we still had 4 generations of apple pickers!

I didn't catch any shots, but we stopped by a small family farm in between ferries to pick out our pumpkins. I am amazed every year at the cheapness of these pumpkins. We got two HUGE pumpkins that were $2.50 each. Amelia also picked out a medium sized one for $1. Even the biggest pumpkins they had (the kind that you would need more than one person to lift), were marked at $5. There was, of course, also all kinds of jams and apple butters too! Yum!

After the second ferry, we were on to the apple orchard. Amelia thought that having her own little bag was pretty neat!

I am not sure these next few need much commentary....

From here on out, you may notice she has an apple in her hands at all times. I think she ate 3 apples during our visit!

Enjoying the wagon ride...

Apple still in hand...

Did you notice her apple shirt? I mention it only because I rarely am so coordinated to pair her outfit with the activity that we are doing. The shirt has really, really cute green corduroys that match it, but it was definitely too warm for those!

After picking our share, we stopped by a restaurant in Grafton for lunch. It was a beautiful day for sitting outside and enjoying the weather. I wish I would have gotten a picture of Amelia taking it upon herself to sit at the outside bar and order her drink separate from ours. She also asked the waiter (while he was behind the bar area) for a napkin. Does the entertainment ever end?

Rain, Rain Stick Around!

Map Quilt

Last year at MOPS (Mother of Preschoolers group for those of you who aren't familiar), one of the moms spoke about her love of traveling with her family. She gave all kinds of tips for traveling with little ones and brought some great ideas to share with the group.

One of the projects she shared with us was a quilt her mother made so that her children could follow along with the map during long road trips. Instantly, I knew I wanted one. Thus began the long search for a map of the USA fabric panel. I was specifically looking for a version that had cartoon-like pictures for certain characteristics of each state. I was unsuccessful with my ebay bids and could never snag one on etsy fast enough. I searched the web high and low without much luck. Much to my surprise during a trip to JoAnn's Fabric during our stay in Spokane, WA earlier in the summer we came across several of these panels! Needless to say, we bought them out!

My mom, the crafty lady that she is, was able to whip up one of these quilts in time for our road trip to Wisconsin. Amelia already has an interest in learning the states and can name quite a few. The quilt worked especially well since we drove through two state capitals on our way to visit my great Aunt, both of which were also marked on the map. Amelia could be heard asking from the back on several occasions, "Are we at the first star yet?".

After returning from our trip, I decided that I wanted to mark each state she has visited with a simple black button. I originally wanted to use pins that I had collected from each state, but decided that the fabric was already busy enough, so keeping the marker simple and solid colored would be for the best.

Amelia was excited to help me sew the buttons onto the quilt. She has been to a total of 8 states so far (Missouri, Illinois, California, Wisconsin, Florida, Washington, Idaho, and Virginia. I have decided to not count states where we've only been laid over). She lost interest after the 3rd button and I finished it up.

Evidence on the map quilt of our most recent journey to WI.

Florida, up close, I don't know why.

The map in its current state. I am eager to add more buttons. I asked Amelia where she would like to go next and she picked Mississippi.

Have I mentioned how much I love this project? I know it will be a special keepsake for Amelia for years to come, as well as a great learning tool!