The Best Summer - Brady

Up until now, I've always said the best summer of my life was the summer I was in Guy and Dolls at the La Porte Little Theatre. It was the summer between my junior and senior years of high school. I can't remember what I did during the day - maybe worked as a teaching assistant or something. At night we'd have rehearsal. And then after rehearsal, as I recall, we'd always go out and do something fun. Drive around and listen to music. Go to Taco Bell and dance in the parking lot. One of my most vividly fun memories from my whole life was a humid, sweaty, karaoke cast party over at the Krentzes' house. I remember dumping ice down the back of my shirt I was so hot from singing and dancing and basically just laughing hysterically all night long. Nobody parties like theater kids party.

It's different, for sure, but I think this summer has actually topped that one. I don't know how to write this without sounding ridiculous and weepy and sentimental, but I'm just so happy to be pregnant. If you knew me five years ago and knew my hesitation to even have kids, that would surprise you, but once we did decide to go for it we had to try a really long time and lost faith on a few occasions that it would ever happen. On top of that, I've had an easy, easy time the past eight months - no terrible symptoms, tons of support and love from my family and friends. I'm actually sad when I think of all of this coming to an end in October. Things are also kind of fun at work. My dog is a blast. Kevin and I have had a great time setting up the nursery and just enjoying the city, with no pressure to go anywhere or do anything major. So even though this summer hasn't involved sweaty dance parties or late night drives or even any Taco Bell, it's been just about the most content and exciting time of my life.

Anyway, enough of that. Here's a random smattering of photos I've taken with my phone since June that show lots of the little good things we've been involved in this season.

My two favorites at Shakespeare in the Park.

A birthday walk to Lake Michigan.

Molly getting a whole lot of love at Lake Wawasee. 

Happy birthday to me! 

We spent a couple of awesome days at Lake Wawasee at The Oakwood with Molly.

Reading on Kevin's parents' porch.

Good old Stone Lake.

Quebec City.

A Quebec City breakfast.

Berries from my parents' yard.

Dinner at The Stray Dog in New Buffalo.

The belly in Denver.

The belly at Lake Wawasee, growing out of my favorite DePauw sweatshirt.

The belly in Quebec City. I remember thinking it looked huge in this picture. Ha! 

The belly in Evanston (in my work bathroom).

The belly again, a few weeks later, in Evanston.

It's always hard to see summer go, this one especially, but right around the corner, I'm hoping, is the best fall, the best winter, and the best spring. 

32, 30, 20 - Brady

This weekend I hit three milestones.

I turned 32 years old.

I reached 30 weeks of pregnancy.

And I'm officially 20 pounds heavier than I was in January.

All good numbers, I'd argue!

Oh, you don't care, you say? You want pretty pictures of Lake Wawasee (where we celebrated this weekend), you say? Okay fine.

The Value of a Balanced Day - Brady

One thing I've learned from taking care of Molly is the value of a balanced day. She, an athletic, energetic, two-year-old dog, would prefer to run and play and swim and chase tennis balls all the time. Kevin and I have found that it's up to us to say, occasionally, "time for a break" or "we're not going to do that right now."

This weekend, for example, she had A TIME on Saturday. We jogged two miles to the dog park, she ran around there like a maniac with a Golden Retriever/St. Bernard mix, we jogged a mile back east to Heritage Bikes, one of our favorite coffee shops, she sat outside and met lots of other dogs and kids and ate a bunch of ice, we walked the additional mile home, and then we went to a party for three hours on Lesley and Paul's roof deck where she got all kinds of treats and pets.

It was an awesome time for Molly, and she loved every minute of it. But it just...threw her off. Her stomach was upset and she was so tired her eyes were red.

Sometimes it's okay to have crazy days. But I'm learning that there's kind of an ideal balance we need to strike with her. The best days, for Molly, involve a jog with both of us first thing, her normal food, a long morning nap, some energetic activity (dog park, dog beach, long walk, trip to Petco) in the afternoon, and a chill evening that involves more of her usual food, a nighttime walk, and an early bedtime. If she has a busy day one day, it's best to let her sleep as much as she wants the next. Kevin's especially good about reminding me of this. We don't need to take her to doggy day care on Mondays, for example, because her weekends are usually so packed. And we run her every other day, at most, and only hit the dog beach once or twice a week.

Here's a picture of a totally wiped out Molly after a trip to the Montrose Dog Beach. She couldn't even get out of the car:

Not only has this been a key idea for me to remember when taking care of her - it's also taught me about how to best take care of myself and this baby, who will eventually be a walking, talking human child who will also probably want to run and play and swim and maybe even chase tennis balls all day. In the summer, especially, there are so many opportunities to have fun - so many things to do and places to go. Thinking about my day as a balance - time for work, exercise, friends, movies in the park and ice cream trips and patio pizza dinners but also for rest and routine and healthy food - helps things feel more sane. And makes the fun times even more fun.

Molly's New Digs - Brady

Check out the space where my dog now sleeps. She's in the perfect spot - in our room (where there's a ceiling fan, and where there's us) between the window (with blinds that go all the way down so she can look out on to the street) and the desk (where Kevin sits to work). Her toys will be on shelves in the corner. She has a new dog bed that's both comfy and stylish. And she has her very own painting, a purchase by Kevin's parents from Key West. 

Roll your eyes at me. Go ahead. But I think this is about the cutest thing I've ever seen.

Told ya - Brady

Told you I'd be posting more often!

I thought I'd try out this app and post from my phone. Here are some photos from my walk from campus to the train today.

Some days I have tons of energy and some days I do the pregnant lady slow walk. Today was one of those days. I was happy to take a break and photograph these gorgeous hydrangeas.



As a young able-bodied person, I try not to sit too often on public transportation or at stations. Recently, though, I've been taking full advantage of benches and priority seating.

What I didn't take a photo of was the woman rolling around next to me, kind of massaging her shoulders on the wood of the bench. City life.







That's it! Nothing big, just a slice of my life these days!

Grandma & Grandpa's 60th Anniversary Weekend - Brady

First things first. I'm feeling some major guilt about not keeping this blog updated. I downloaded an app to my phone that will let me post here more easily, so expect to see shorter, more frequent updates from me.

I'm writing today mostly to tell you about the incredible 60th anniversary weekend we had for my grandparents this past weekend. We spent Friday through Sunday in La Porte celebrating the glue that holds a pretty awesome family together. Friday we all arrived at the hotel and stayed up late (I was up until 2!) chatting in one of the common areas. It's a shame Grandma and Grandpa's children and grandchildren don't like each other very well. ;)

Saturday we partook in the incredible brunch offered by the hotel. Then we rented a pontoon and staked out a spot at one of the beaches on Pine Lake. We ate at the Yacht Club and then at Portofino's for dinner. Molly got to swim twice and did so great. She fell head over heels in love with my cousin Charlie.

Sunday we ate a second awesome breakfast (I couldn't wait to get down there and pile my plate full of waffles) and went our separate ways.

Here's a link to some beautiful photos Ashlie Ostergren took of our family. This one's my favorite:

Also I wanted to say that last weekend was one of my favorites ever for selfish reasons. I got so much attention for my big pregnant belly. I loved it because I remember my aunts being pregnant when I was a kid, and it was so cool to play a similar role with my younger cousins. Also, the baby's kicking a lot now and Amy finally felt it after weeks and weeks of trying. I can't wait to introduce the newest Jones-Rasp to everybody, and I'm so proud to bring a new member into this fabulous family.

Here's a blurry shot of my big old stomach!

I continue to feel great. This pregnancy's been so easy that I'm not wishing away the weeks a bit, although of course I'm excited to meet this person who's seems to be doing tai chi in my stomach. I'm just about 29 weeks pregnant now, safely into my third trimester. 

Now I'm going to sit back, sip a non-alcoholic beer, and enjoy another gorgeous summer night in Chicago on our balcony. Molly's at my feet, Kevin's making dinner. Life is so very good. 

And one last congrats to my grandparents. You are one (two?) in a million, and I aspire to be just like you someday. 

What's shakin' with the Jones sisters - Brady

Since I've basically given up on my sisters ever posting to this blog again, I'm going to take it upon myself to let you in on what they've been up to, from my perspective. We'll go in age order.

Amy, it seems to me, just works all the time. Sounds like some days at her charter school are great and some are tough. She helped them raise test scores a bunch this year using all kinds of creative methods. She occasionally takes a break to have dinner with me or go home to visit my parents. Roger seems to be doing well and continues to give the best hugs in town.

Kelly also works a lot, and I think maybe she got some big news from the office last week that I'll let you ask her about. She and Nate have been redecorating their apartment - I was with them when they recently bought a stylish new couch. She seems to like her yoga teacher training, and she recently went to a workshop with Rachel Brathen, this kind of famous yogi we both follow online. And my #1 favorite actor, Nate, has recently had a bunch of career success - getting a second Jeff nomination (a big deal theater award in Chicago), a part in a Steppenwolf show (a big deal theater company in Chicago), and some exciting auditions. 

Okay, now me! All good things are happening.

• I'm making good progress on my dissertation and have my funding and maternity leave all set up for next school year.

• I'm now 21 weeks pregnant, and we found out the baby's sex this past Thursday. (But we're keeping it to ourselves until the birth because we're annoying. We want to keep gender stereotyping out of the picture as long as we can.) We are crazy excited and a little overwhelmed. Also, more importantly, it looks really healthy. Its legs are long. I've been feeling it kick pretty regularly for the past month, but just this morning I could feel it with my hand, on the outside of my belly, so pretty soon I think Kevin/other family members will be able to feel it too. 

• I'm at Lake Wawasee for the first time this year. It's my happy place. Our good Fort Wayne friends threw us an impromptu baby shower here yesterday. We got a rainforest themed swing and a white noise/stuffed teddy bear toy.

• Something's gotten into Molly. She's been a maniac recently. Kevin thinks she's just feeling really good. She's slim, her allergies aren't bothering her, and she's excited it's warm out and time to swim again. Here's a photo of her sleeping on our bed (I knew it would happen eventually - we kept her off it for the first six months, but we've given in), another picture of her new favorite activity - sticking her head out the car window, and a couple of her playing in the kiddie pool at the dog park. 

• Kevin and I went to New York City over Memorial Day weekend. We spent most of our time outside of Manhattan - in Brooklyn and Queens. We saw both of my cousins who live there as well as some of our good friends, ate some awesome food, and took a couple of jogs through the gorgeous Brooklyn Bridge Park. So fun. I'm ready to be done traveling for awhile, though. I love the Midwest in the summer. 

• I got an article published online! You can read it here. This is basically what my dissertation is about.

That's about it! Big things making me happy and little things making me happy. I'll keep covertly updating you on the super secret lives of my sisters. :) Have a great Sunday!