I recently stumbled across this website www.thepioneerwoman.com thanks to my big sister. It’s a blog about a woman who could have walked straight out of a Sex in the City episode onto the big screen of a John Wayne movie. She’s a terrific writer and an excellent photographer. Bonus – she’s funny. Check it out. Some may not appreciate the level of “country” involved, but she validates my wanna-be some day life – one can enjoy pitching shit, getting dirty and riding horses and not be a redneck.

work=busy life=boring

Work is excruciatingly busy right now. I’m slowly diving into the gigantic project that will consume my life for the next two or three years provided I don’t loose my mind and hurl myself out the fourth story window. It’s so huge I doubt why they even asked me to work on it. We’re completely overhauling the four most important education pieces we have. Together they cost well over $2 million to produce each year. I’m going to be very involved in helping my leader with the revision of the first and most important of our pieces. Then my leader and I will independently lead the overhaul of the remaining pieces simultaneously.

To further complicate things I have to wait until they get someone hired to take some of my work load before I can completely immerse myself in this new project. In the meantime I feel like I’m missing out on the important discussions that are helping to shape the direction and scope of the project.

And on the opposite end of the spectrum lies the rest of my life. Outside of work things are pretty much routine. I’m still freelancing for a newspaper back home, although not nearly as much as I want to. Ten points if you can guess what NBA star went to high school in Clayton County (without the aid of Google; editors not allowed to answer either :-). I really miss writing about something other than 401(k) plans and Social Security. I’ve even started seriously contemplating ideas for my book… you know, that one that I’m going to write as soon as I discover what it’s about.

I’m forever playing around with photography. I find it hard to fall asleep amid thinking about poses, camera angles and effects for my cousin’s senior pictures this spring. In need of some quality internet time to create a website of some galleries. Looking forward to our nephew’s birthday party this weekend to take some candid stuff.

I just finished reading Light a Penny Candle and am half way through Love Walked In. My book club is reading Love in the Time of Cholera for February. I need to go to the library.

Babies have kind of taken over my life, according to Ryan. My sister had a bit of a scare yesterday, but both she and my little niece are fine. I’m working on finalizing shower plans with my mom and sister-in-law. It seems like most of our friends are either pregnant or trying. Since babies are the focus of so many people I’m close to these days I suppose it could seem like it’s the only thing I talk about. For those who are wondering – no baby plans for us on the horizon just yet. Ask again next year but I can’t guarantee the answer will be any different.

Guess that’s all. Over and out.

the holidays

Skipping from one holiday to the next two. Christmas in NE Iowa was a fine time. My sister and her family stayed with us Friday night on their way through the state. Ironically enough, of all my family they live the furthest away but have been to our home more than any of the rest. We caravanned to mom and dad’s with them Saturday morning and spent the day sledding, which is much easier now-a-days with atvs to pull you around. Even took a little trip to the infamous Osborne hill.

Thanks to the lovely winter weather we were snowed in on Sunday. In a feeble attempt to go into town to save his sanity Ryan thought our pick-up would make it. He was sadly mistaken. After several phone calls one neighbor said they’d rather not because we could sue them. Honestly!? I’ve known this family my whole life and was their regular babysitter once upon a time. Whatever dude. Many thanks to my uncle Mark who successfully rescued my husband and my uncle Terry who offered.

By the morning of Christmas Eve the county crew had plowed a single lane along our gravel road north to the highway providing passage for the rest of our family to get to mom and dad’s. Laura and Adam decided to open the envelope containing the sex of their baby that morning. We were delighted to find out a niece will be joining our family in May. After lunch had been eaten and the presents had been opened it was off to Christmas Eve mass where we sat in the basement and watched the service over closed circuit TV. Which was immediately followed by the celebration at Grandma and Grandpa’s with the whole extended family.

We tried to visit my other Grandma in Dubuque on Christmas day but she already had plans. So we ate a quick lunch with the Tucker clan and headed home. I had the rest of the week off and spent three glorious days watching the Today show in my pajamas.

Our New Year’s was a rather quiet one. We invited our good friends over to celebrate with us at home. We popped open a bottle of wine, a couple of beers and some sparkling grape juice for Stefany who’s pregers. Enjoyed three rousing games of a “battle of the sexes” version of Scene It. They headed home shortly after midnight and we were in bed by 1 a.m. Like I said – pretty low key but it was fun. My cousin and her bf from Cedar Rapids crashed at our place after attending a party in the DSM area. So we were able to hang out with them for awhile on Monday.

My Christmas decorations are all packed. It’s all over. I’m obviously having trouble getting back into the groove at work after 11 days off seeing as how drafting an entry for my blog has risen to the top of my priority list today. My New Year’s Resolution – be more productive at work…. Starting tomorrow.