Welcome Baby!

Sawyer McIntyre
Born: May 30th 2008 @ 7:35pm
9.2 pounds (no wonder a c-section was necessary!)
21 inches long
With a full head of hair (more than his dad.)

Excuses

I have been slacking on the blog. Partially because my schedule is so tight in the mornings. I always have to start getting ready at 6:45 and be on the road by 7:15. Two people ride in our "car pool" this saves some money and makes the morning/afternoon rides a little more tolerable. Oh and our computer crashed and we lost everything. And...I am madly trying to get everything figured out for classes this summer in school psychology. I know I am crazy and can't stop going to school. I definitely know that I am officially CRAZY and I have the credentials to judge.
We went to Damon's parent which was a wonderful relaxing visit. We hiked in the Ruby mountains behind their house and rode the tandem. I also got to meet Damon's really cool nephew. It was a good fast visit. We got home at noon on Monday and we tamed the jungle in our back yard. We even sat in it Tuesday night. So relaxing with the cars racing by.
Here is what I wrote yesterday when I was feeling really philosophical - I started the day out good, but by 2pm the little stuff was bothering me again. I will start over today.
Why do we get caught up in normal everyday crap when at any moment life can turn into a huge tragedy? You know those people that are unshakeable? You could walk up to them and just say anything and they shrug and calmly move about their day. I want to be one of those people. At any moment your life could end or someone that you love could lose their life and there you were spending precious minutes – wasting time complaining, working, cleaning things. Damon’s answer is to sell everything and move to Mexico. I don’t believe that I would necessarily be happy in that space. My answer is to move a little out of town and have goats and chickens. Anyone want to housesit for the manger when we go on vacation to Mexico? The main question is will the goats be allowed in the house.
Okay I am really late now! No shower I guess. Think baby for Janice.

She is not my dog, she is my friend - Jeff

Some very bad news this week. Mia has been ill for awhile. Jeff's dog for those of you who don't know. She wasn't just a dog - she was a friend. She had the best life that a dog could have. As a puppy she had not just one owner but a community. Mia spent her time on the couch, waiting for someone to come home and take her somewhere. Maybe a hike, maybe a visit to friends houses, maybe just to get tied to a bike rack while someone was in class. She had a very good friend for awhile named Charlotte. Charlotte would come to the door and see if Mia could play. Word was she was the mayors dog. Sometimes Charlotte even got to go for a hike. Mia probably saw more of the West than most people. She wasn't fed people food until the grand canyon and a girl named Aurora gave her McDonalds. Mia then travelled to Riggins with her best friend Jeff and became a river dog. She rafted the river like a pro - even when I was too scared for the river - Mia was ready to go. Mia joined her best friend, Jeff in his wedding to Judy. Then Mia became a big sister to a dog named Gabby who I am sure learned from Mia. We will all miss Mia. Our good and wonderful friend. We can all learn from Mia - always ready to go, never concerned where. Following are some photos.

Girls Weekend - Orcas Island

How do you do it justice? Time to just be. Usual thoughts and worries slip away as we climb in Ember's car to drive around the island. People in the back, people sitting in the front. Giggling down the road to pick up Sylvia, who went for a run and went so far she needed us to pick her up. We are not sure where she is, but no one is concerned, she will be found. Then we will go to the dump where goods are exchanged. There is only 10 minutes left to find a treasure. No one is concerned. Then Heather needs to go scout a place where she is doing a wedding. Half of us go. The drive turns into a sightseeing trip to the top of the island. We are blessed with an amazing view and even more laughter. On the way back, the breaks in the car smell like they are about to give out. No one is concerned. A phone call to everyone else brings us to a restaurant for dinner. After lots of crafting, which I avoided, we play a game of Balderdash. I am not sure we are really playing a game, but we laugh a lot, and no one is concerned At the end of the weekend, we all say goodbye. Hopefully it won't be long until we get together again we say. We will see each other for an hour or two in the meantime. But it will be at least another year until we can do a girls weekend again, where all of life's stress melts away and the stress free personalities of yesterday surface. Until then, maybe someone could explain how Heather's hair is always so fabulous on girl's weekend?