Adding pictures

I think the first few weeks here will be spent playing around with features! So here are some pictures:

Maggie loves to play with the garden hose.

You've heard of the Naked Chef and the Pampered Chef?

Well, here's the Pull-up Chef!

Maggie decided to wear her pink dress one afternoon we were home together. Then, of course, she wanted to go outside. It was a gorgeous day and she had fun blowing bubbles and chasing after Otis. She wanted to tickle him when he rolled around in the grass.

Something new

In a money saving effort, I'm going to try this out for a few days to see if it will work for us, as opposed to our other website. I may even see if I can copy the other site here, as far as the log and photos. In 2007, I updated our website and removed all of the blogs from Maggie's first year. I had printed them first, but in the move, they got lost. I still have her baby book and her calendar, but I miss not being able to read back on her first year and all those firsts.

So I'll be busy the next few days, but it will be nice to stay busy as I need to avoid the let down that comes after a show ends (or so I'm told). Saturday night was the last show of "The Producers" and it was quite the run!

Where did my baby go?

This morning, we had orientation for preschool. My baby will be three years old the end of this month. We could have put off preschool for another year as she is 2 weeks behind the cut off date for Kindergarten and will now attend preschool for 3 years. Not that this is a bad thing. She already goes to daycare every day and has a very structured environment there. She will get to play a lot and she will get to work on her fine motor skills. I’m hoping this will push her to become potty trained as well. She already knows 2 kids as they are coming from her daycare. But even as we seem to push her to be a “big girl,” I try to remember the little baby she used to be.

It is sometimes hard to remember that this little tow-haired girl who loves to laugh and jump and sing used to be a bald little thing that captivated her father and I long before she could even smile at us. Her tiny hands that used to wrap around my finger are now holding paint brushes and books. Her little feet that used to seem to be there just for decoration are now being shoved into boots and little mary janes and are running everywhere! Her blue eyes that used to stare at me blankly now look at me in anticipation of what we may do or where we may go next.

I know this is not the last time I will look at her and wonder where my baby went. When she starts Kindergarten. When she rides her first bike. When she stops wanted to cuddle with me. When she turns into that surly teenager.

For now, I will try to savor the snuggles, the kisses, the “I lovechyou, Mommy“s. I will try remember that reading “Green Eggs & Ham” for the 5th time in a row is a good thing. I will try to pay attention when she starts singing and will sing a long (if she’ll let me). She is my big girl and growing up much too quickly. But she will always be my baby as well.

September 2008

Life has been busy the past few months, with rehearsals and work. Friday August 29was opening night and we've had 2 shows so far. As a cast, we were definitely ready for an audience. Hearing the instant response is amazing. We have three more weekends of shows -- 4-5 shows a weekend. It's hard to be away from home so much, but a lot of fun. I will keep an eye open to do other shows, but will be picky about what shows to do. "The Producers" has been worth it! You can see a short video and review on the Gazette Web site.

We took a long weekend and drove to Aberdeen for my cousin Nicole's wedding. We had a lot of fun at the hotel. Maggie learned to "swim" and had a lot of fun dancing at the wedding dance. She was very well behaved during the wedding and only asked to "go home" once. Maggie got to spend a lot of time with Grandma Alana and even spent Friday night after the wedding with her so Rocky and I could have a few more drinks at the dance. We visited Great Grandma Alberta for a while and Maggie did her Clifford puzzle. Then it was off to spend some time in Watertown. Maggie had a lot of fun playing with her cousins, especially Amy and Delaney. She told Daddy "I play with my friends!"

We've also driven out to Deer Lodge for a quick visit. My cousin Angela and Aunt Karen were in town for another cousin's wedding. It was nice to see both again as I couldn't quite remember the last time I saw either of them.

The yard is really coming in nicely and it fun to play in. Maggie loves to go outside and blow bubbles, play with water balloons or write on the sidewalk with her chalk. We will also have some tiny tomatoes as the seeds Maggie and I planted this spring have already produced 3 bright red tomatoes. I haven't picked any yet to see if they are any good.

Tomorrow is preschool orientation. Maggie still isn't potty trained, but is ready in every other way, so we will chat with the teachers to see if they will let her attend. She will also be moving up to the 3 year old room where many more kids are trained. I'm sure she'll just decide one of these days and that will be the end of diapers.

Rocky starts classes again this week. He's taking 2 this fall, but doesn't think it will be much more work than the 1 class was that he took this summer. His folks are going to come out later this month to "baby-sit" -- he has class one night that I also have a show. It's a nice excuse for them to come visit.

Opening Night

I am two days away from my very first opening night for a musical. I’ve been in high school plays before but those were part of class and not everyone took them as seriously as we should have. Now, I’m in a community theatre production of “The Producers.” A fun show. And a life-long dream of mine. And to think I almost chickened out of the audition.

The time commitment for this has been unbelieveable. I could most likely be 2 classes closer to a master’s degree with the time that I’ve used for rehearsals. I’ve been gone so much that the word “rehearsal” brings out the bottom lip for my daughter. But this is a huge show, with lots of wonderful musical numbers. Dancing little old ladies with their walkers. Showgirls in pearls. Springtime for Hitler. The cast is excellent, hard working and going the extra mile for the show.
I love singing again. Hearing the harmonies that send chills up your spine. Hitting those high notes that I can feel in my nose. Finally finally FINALLY getting those few steps right! And hearing the audience laugh. Wow. That is just an amazing feeling, especially when I know it’s my performance, especially when they’ve seen it and they still laugh.

Tonight is the first full dress rehearsal. And we only have 2. We hope all the costumes are ready. We hope we can get the timing down for moving the sets. We hope to not run nylons or mascara.

I’m tired. We’re all a little cranky, but I know it will be a great show. I know my husband and daughter will be happy when it’s over and I’m back at home in the evenings. Part of me will be happy too. And part of me wishes it would never end. It’s been a lot of fun. Will I do it again? Maybe, someday. It would depend on the show and the timing. But at least I can say I’ve done it this time.

And here's the review: Billingsgazette.com

Big Sky Country!

I believe we have hit the dog days of summer. As Rocky mentioned the other day, "I thought we left VA because of the heat!" I do better understand the idea of a "dry" heat though. The heat in Richmond would just wait at the door and hit you like a ton of bricks as you walk out.

I'm also really enjoying the Montana "Big Sky." Last night, we watched a rain storm come in from about 7 miles away (at least that's what I've been told how far away the horizon is). The rain came down in streaks in front of the big red ball of the sun -- perfectly round and not diminished in it's light. We saw the lightening and heard the thunder. And we stood outside playing with water balloons and bubbles until 9 and then continued watching the storm from our bedroom until 9:30 when we all feel asleep. I love that I can see all of this from my backyard. This morning, we played in the pool for a few hours and watched 2 hawks search for a meal. The farm on the other side of the creek and slough has cows we can hear bellowing in the morning. The deer have gone off for the summer, but seem to spend the fall and spring in a small clearing of trees just past the slough. I had truly forgotten what it is like to live on the prairie. We got a huge rain on July 5th and we saw the best rainbows ever. I think it was the first time I was able to see all five colors so clearly.

We actually have grass now! It is rather patchy, but is really coming in. Our neighbor says that next year we will really be able to tell that the hydro-seed was a good investment. It's nice as we can actually walk in the backyard barefoot. Otis loves it and never misses a chance to roll around on it. Maggie's not sure what she thinks yet, but I'm sure next year she'll be ready to run around barefoot. The front yard looks really good.

Maggie was doing really well about sleeping in her own bed, but has regressed a little in the past few weeks. I think it may be because of my rehearsal schedule. But she's also been stuffy -- with the weather being so hot, we are spending a lot of time in the air conditioning. She loves to go to the zoo and knows exactly what animals she wants to see when we go. We took Grandma when she was here over the 4th of July. We also went to a baseball game at the new stadium. The stadium is really nice, but we only stayed until the end of the 2nd inning because it was raining so hard and Maggie had seen enough. On the plus side, we got to see a lot of the great rainbows!