The 4th in Flagstaff

Photo Courtesy of AZ Daily Sun

Tomorrow is my very favorite holiday. There are no presents involved, no familial obligations and no religious overtones. It's all about community and BBQ.

I love my town. We've almost lived here for 10 years in November and it is an awesome town for the 4th of July. The parade is huge. The whole community comes out and a lot of Phoenix people come up for the ability to sit outside for more than 10 minutes. Everybody who is anybody has a float in the parade. The entire town walks by in 2 hours. I love, love, love it. It's all about getting the best spot on the parade route and then waving to all the folks you know while dressed in your very best red, white, and blue. I live for this day.

Tomorrow my daughter will get to walk in the parade for the very first time with her gymnastics class. She is over the moon about it. Photos soon to follow. We'll probably pick up some donuts in the am and then hang out until the parade starts at 9:00 and then cheer everyone on as they walk the parade route. Ohh I'm getting goosebumps already.

Afterwards we will be heading to a light lunch and then a showing of The Lone Ranger with the whole family. Then we head to my parents house for an afternoon BBQ.

Finally we'll top the day off with some illegal fireworks smuggled in from last summer in Nebraska (don't worry they are only sparklers, we don't want to spark the forest on fire), followed by beer and champagne on the back porch.

That is some good all American livin. I love being an American. You can have all your politics and internation issues, but to me I celebrate America by simply celebrating community, parades, BBQ and beer.

Nelson Atkins Art Gallery Cloister

I've been researching our road trip and trying to decide what to see in each of our stops and it just came to me the other day that I must take my children and my husband to the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City.
I lived in Grandview, Missouri, a suberb of KC, from 1981- 86. Some of my most vivid memories of living there include spending time at this museum. I took art classes there in the summer in real artist's studios and it was in this room that I fell in love with architecture.

The cloister.

 

There is an etherial light in this little room that has stuck in my mind for over 30 years. This space was like nothing I had ever seen or felt when I first came here as a child. It was peaceful, it was beautiful, it was pure architecture and pure art. I fell in love immediately. When I read From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler, this was the museum and the room that I imagined that I would run away too.

I still think about this place, but I think I just now realized that this is where I learned to love beautiful buildings. Kansas City if full of art and architecture. The museum itself (minus the modern addition) is gorgeous. I was there for the restoration of Union Station and remember on special occasions heading to the Plaza to eat at a fancy restaurant, usually during Christmas to see the Plaza lights.

I have to share these things with my family. That is what roadtrips are about. I don't think this room will have the same affect on my children, but maybe they will see something that will inspire them.



Road Trip 2013

This summer we are going to attempt a 2 week long road trip.
Stops to be included are Amarillo, TX, Kansas City, Champaign, Il, Lansing, MI, Chicago, Madison, WI and Valentine, NE.
I know, all the midwestern hot spots.
I can't tell yet if this is going to be a good idea. It could end up the hottest, most infuriating, longest trip ever. Or it could end up a pleasant romp through my childhood haunts smattered with beautiful reunions with long lost relatives and highschool friends.
This summer is the litmus test.
We have 3 other trips planned for the next 3 summers. This summer being the least interesting of destinations. Next summer the South, 2015 the West and Northwest, and 2016, the big one, the Northeast.
This is the time to take these trips while the kids are still somewhat small. They can sleep and Ipod and if I can make them, look out the window and see their beautiful country. It's all foreign to my desert forest raised children.
I would totally like to write more today, but it's 95 degrees in Flagstaff and if I don't get some ice cream into my system I will overheat.

My May European Vacation

So I promised photos  a while ago and I'm a slacker, so it's taken a month to get to it. The photos have been downloaded and uploaded and sorted and dated and are finally ready for a more formal venue.

I won't go into all the details of the trip now, but it was good... and bad. 

It was rushed, jam-packed, exhausting, and stressful. It was beautiful, educational, thought provoking, and eye opening.

England was beautiful. Although the sun is actually shining in some of these photos, the sunshine was short-lived. It was cold.

Paris was a weather nightmare, raining and cold the whole time we were there. I didn't get many photos on my phone of outdoor things. We used the good camera inside all the museums, but you'll get the idea.

Overall we've decided we need to go back. England needs a good three weeks for us to see everything and Paris probably needs the same just for the city. What we came back with is a list of things we need to go back and see.

These are a few of my best photos.

This is a small street right next to Wells Cathedral. I felt like I was at Disneyland, except it was real. It totally blew my mind. The city was so full of architectural treasures.

Carl and I at Stonehenge at 8:00 in the morning. We had reservations to be able to go in among the stones. It was amazing.

Glastonbury Tor. The history here was palpable. The hike up was thru beautiful English farms and there were sheep and cows grazing along the way. The wind at the top was ruthless though.

Me at the Muse de Orsay by myself. Carl was deathly ill this day with a lymph node infection and I had to conquer some sites myself.

The rainy view of the Eiffel Tower. We walked all the way there and then took the trip all the way up to the top. Amazingly it is not as scary a trip as the one up the tower in Vegas.  This one is much larger and felt a million times more stable.

Till next time.

I'm back and I'm 38!

Today is my 38th birthday.
Yes I feel older, but not on the inside. I still feel like I'm 23, but much wiser.

We are back from Europe.
School is out.
I am home for the summer.

I will post photos and updates.

I am currently deliberating going back to work next year or taking some time off to write and take care of our businesses and have more time for the kids and the house.
It's a tough decision and of course there are money concerns. I don't make a lot of money working for the school district, but what I do make helps pay for extras like gymnastics and vacations.

Can I find a way to make $200/week on my own?
Do I really want to quit a job I love?
Will I still know all the cool books if I'm not working with kids everyday?

I don't know is the only answer I've come up with so far.

14 Years

Next week during our fabulous European vacation Carl and I will be celebrating 14 years of marriage. This weekend we will also be celebrating the 13th birthday of our oldest son. He will be turning 13 on the 13th in the year 2103. Pretty darn amazing.

So obviously Carl and I have had kids almost our entire married life. We don't get too much time alone. We don't take weekends away as much as we used too since the economy took a dump. We steal afternoons shopping here and there and a few nights out every once in a while. Next week I will have him all to myself for a full 10 days. I can't think of a better way to spend an anniversary. I can't say it's been hard being married to this man. It all comes pretty easy for us, so I can't say it's been hard to get to 14 years. Its been like the blink of an eye and here we are bigger, better and stronger, with three beautiful children.
I don't know what I'm more excited about... going to Europe or getting to go with my best friend and not having to share him with anyone the whole time. We get to be Emily and Carl instead of Mom and Dad.

Life is good.

Self Employment

So we own a couple of businesses.

It's a real bitch. Most of the time things are good. We are in charge and no one can fire us. But other times, oh I don't know, like when you have a vacation scheduled and someone quits with no notice... it blows. The stress that that asshole created last week was ridiculous.

But then I thought, "No. I'm not going to let that tool make me feel that way. He does not have that power." And instantly I felt better. It was really strange and really cool at the same time.

We are still dealing with the aftermath of that employee's cowardly actions, but we are moving forward.

All of the good guys at our FedEx terminal are willing to pitch in and cover us while we are on our trip.  

There really is a difference between people who are self-employed and those that are employees. If you have your own business you work your ass off. If you are an employee you show up, do your work and go home. There is a real difference in mentality. I'm not saying all employees are bad, but good ones are few and far between.

I'm starting to get frustrated at my job and want to branch out on some more entrepreneurial ideas. I'm always thinking of stuff I want to do and try and my 35 hour a week job keeps me from doing most of those things. I really only make about $275 a week after taxes. That is not much and such is the state of our educational system that I can work so much and get paid so little. Of course I feel my time is worth more than that.

I've figured out over the past 14 years of my working life that I cannot work a full 40 hour week year round. The past 3 years working for the school district has been perfect.. almost. I get weeks off here and there and 8 weeks off in the summer. I'm done at 3:30 every day and can time time as I need it. I'm taking off 2 weeks for the European trip and then another 3 weeks in August for our road trip. They could care less. It sounds like the perfect job, but I still feel stifled sometimes. I want to take more time off to write and to learn. Somedays the last thing I want to do is referee 5 year olds and 11 year olds that act like 5 year olds. I have time to read books at work and I know all the people and feel fully supported but, I feel like I could do more with more time to myself.

We'll see if I stay for the next year. Maybe I'll take a year off and come back. Maybe I just need a break to explore other things.