Homecoming 2008

This weekend was Kalamazoo College Homecoming. For the first time in several years, I was actually in town for the weekend (in the past it has conflicted with my admissions travels or quilt retreat weekend) and there was a great group of people who were also able to make it to town for the celebration. Saturday morning Jenn, Annalee and I braved the chilly weather and walked the 5K run/walk event. We had a great time (see pics below for our victorious crossing of the finish line!) and it was a good way to start off the day. After showers and coffee we all went and toured through the gorgeous new Hicks Center before heading over to the football game. We met up with the Wades, Podolners and Hilliards at the game. We actually almost won the football game--we lost by 1 point in the last minute of the game. While we lost, which was a bummer, historically we lose by 30-40 points instead of just one, so it was an improvement. Todd and I left after the football game to have dinner with the family, as his grandparents were in town on their way to Florida for the winter. Sunday morning we all met up for brunch at Colonial Kitchen and then hung out at our house for a little while. All in all, it was a great weekend!

A new sister!!

Friday night we got the exciting news that Todd's brother Stuart proposed to his girlfriend Erin, and she said yes!! Erin is an amazing person, and the two of them make a great couple. We're so excited to have her in the family; and I'm thrilled to have a sister! :) On Sunday night they stopped in Kalamazoo on their way from Ann Arbor to Chicago, and we all had dinner together. Stuart asked Todd and Jordan to be his joint best men, and Erin asked me to be a bridesmaid. Let the wedding planning begin! :)

Kal-Haven Trail

I've got some catching up to do with my blogging and picture posting! Here are some pictures from October 19, when Todd, Deuce and I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous fall day and explore the new section of the Kal-Haven trail.

Home Sweet Home

Well as of Wednesday, I am officially done with fall travel season! Woo Hoo! I always like the work I do during travel season, meeting the students who I'll be working with each year before I read their applications. However, by the end I am definitely ready to be back home and on a regular schedule. The pace of the day on travel season is always a little odd, and it is difficult to eat meals at normal times/intervals and downtime comes sporadically throughout the day rather than in the evenings. I found this particularly challenging this year, as I get tired and hungry unexpectedly, and the needs of my body appear to be changing every day.

I'm so happy to be back home with Todd and the animals, and I'm pretty sure they've been missing me too! :)

A walk in the woods

Yesterday Dad and Deuce and I met at Yankee Springs Recreation Area (drove right past Oakleigh, where so many wonderful Hooker Family Fourths were celebrated!) and enjoyed the incredible fall day with a hike and picnic in the woods. We took a beautiful trail loop through the woods, and then explored a camp area that was closed for the season. It was a great way to get some exercise, enjoy some time together and take advantage of living in a place with four seasons.

28 Week Appointment

We had our 28 week appointment yesterday, and we met with a new midwife. Well, new to us; she just returned from maternity leave after having twins. She was really nice, and also told us that they just hired another midwife, so they are back to a full staff. I was really happy to hear this. Even though I've really liked all of the OBs at our practice, I would ideally like to work with a midwife, and it seems like that will work out for us now.


Nugget's heartbeat was 145, and I am measuring right on track with uterus size and weight gain. I could just listen to that little heartbeat forever! Apparently Nugget doesn't agree, as he kicked the monitor when the midwife put it on my belly! :) I passed my glucola test with flying colors, which means that I do not have gestational diabetes. I'm really happy about that, not only because it keeps my pregnancy in the low-risk category, but I also don't have to give up ice cream!


Here's a 28 week belly picture:

Great trip to Rochester

Mom and I took a road trip to Rochester for an extended weekend (Friday-Tuesday) with Grandma and Shadow. We took the Subaru on her inaugural road trip, which was a lot of fun. It was really great to have so much time in the car with Mom; I felt like we really caught up on all the big and small stuff.

I was a little sad that we did not have a quilt retreat this year, as I love the camaraderie with all those creative women, the time spent with family and the beautiful setting. However, it was also nice not to have a set agenda to our days.

Saturday we drove down to Letchworth State Park, which is absolutely beautiful. There was a big craft show there, and all three of us were hoping to find something fun. It was really busy, but the only thing any of us bought was lunch! Still, we enjoyed the day and the park's beautiful surroundings.

Sunday we headed off to an outlet mall in search of some bargains--and we had much better luck than at the craft show! We had a great lunch and then each of us found some cute clothes (including Nugget!). That night we went to a favorite restaurant--Timothy Patrick's--for some delicious wings.

Monday we went to Wegmans to stock up on the essentials that can only be purchased there, including some Dinosaur BBQ sauce. Sigh... why, oh why don't we have Wegmans in Michigan? We went to a really fun restaurant for lunch--great food and lots of cool rock & roll paraphenalia (the restaurant owner also caters for pretty much every major concert that comes to town). We then spent the afternoon wandering on a new path that runs between Durand-Eastman Park and Lake Ontario. It was the perfect way to enjoy the gorgeous fall leaves and all of the little kids enjoying an 80 degree day at the lake. The rest of the day was spent puttering around the back yard and stuffing ourselves with authentic Italian food.

Every time the three of us get together, my absolute favorite time is when I can get Grandma and Mom going with memories and stories of each of them growing up. I usually find myself laughing like crazy at all of the adventures they've had, and I love learning more and more about these two amazing women who have played such a huge role in my life and shaping me into the woman I am today.

All in all it was a really relaxing weekend, and a much needed getaway with two of my favorite ladies!

Nursery progress

Mom and dad came over for dinner last night--we made pizzas with all farmers market ingredients, and dad brought a freshly made apple crisp--delicious! They also brought the changing table that my dad made for when we were babies. It looks great with the crib, and I love having handmade furniture with family history for my little guy! :) Right now it's living in the closet, as the computer desk is currently occupying the changing table's future home. I also set up a bookcase for the collection of toys and books that we're slowly acquiring.

Mom also brought over all of the fabric for the quilt, bumper and bedskirt. I hadn't seen all of the prints in person, just online, and was really pleased with the way they all work together, and they match the walls and the crib perfectly! I can't wait to see the raw materials come together into an adorable bedding set. All five of the fabrics will be used in the quilt; the blue polka dot fabric will be the bumper, and the stripes will be the dust ruffle. I think I'm going to make simple valances with the blue car material and edge it with the stripes.

Introducing... my new car!!

While I was traveling through Texas last week, Todd found an awesome car for me! All of our research paid off, because we got a great sense for what cars are available in our price range, the variety of conditions that they are in, and what features/options are important to me. So when Todd found this car at a small dealership in Grand Rapids, he knew it was a winner!

It is a 1999 Subaru Outback with 97,000 miles on it, and one of my favorite features is that it has heated leather seats!! Oh, the luxury!

He picked me up from the airport in it last night, and I spent this morning coming up with errands to run so that I could drive it around! :) Still no name for it yet, but it's only a matter of time!

26 weeks

Here's the latest belly picture at 26 weeks. It's hard to believe that this is the last week of second trimester!

99 days!

There is a pregnancy message board that I like to frequent, and part of my sign-in is a ticker that tracks my pregnancy, including the days left until my due date. Today marks 99 days until Nugget is due to arrive in the world! That seems really soon!! It must be something about the double digits. :)

Travels through Texas

Well, travel season is officially underway. I have spent this week on a whirlwind tour through Texas. I flew in to Houston on Sunday, had a great interview with a prospective student, and then headed over to Jennifer's house for dinner. It was so wonderful to just hang out at her house and catch up. I met her son Blake for the first time, and he is just an adorable, smiley, sweet little guy. 3 year old Brooke is still the little spitfire that I fell in love with when I met her last year! I am so thankful for friends like Jenn who, even though we don't keep in touch as regularly as we should, still feels so comfortable and natural to hang out with.

Monday I spent most of the day driving all over town dropping off materials at high schools. After being gone so long, it is easy to forget how far apart everything is, and how many miles I can put on the car without ever leaving the city limits! I spent the evening interviewing three more great students--it was exhausting, but a great reminder of why I love my job.

Tuesday morning I hit the road and drove to Austin. I visited my favorite Waldorf school, and had a great conversation with the college counselor there. I then had lunch with Ashley, who was one of my favorite prospective students from years ago (she is now a K graduate and living back in Austin). It was wonderful to catch up with her and her life, even though it makes me feel old that students I recruited as high school seniors are now out of college and in the professional world! I spent the afternoon interviewing more great kids. After work I met up with Mike and Revell for a wonderful evening of conversation and great food. I love those two--they are like family, and are such a haven in the midst of Hampton Inn stays and solitary driving.

Wednesday was a hectic day as well--I attended three college fairs in one day! It was a great way to see a lot of kids in a limited time period, but it was a lot of time on my feet, and my voice is shot today. I discovered that standing for six hours at college fairs with a pregnant belly makes my feet swell--ugh! I would have really been cranky at the end of the day, except that I had dinner with Kate and Kyle, and then Kate joined me for the last fair of the day. It was great to catch up with them, and having Kate's energy and college fair experience made the evening enjoyable and speedy!

I am now in Dallas, and as no kids signed up to interview with me, I finally have a low key evening. I'm looking forward to BBQ for dinner, and then watching the VP debate in my pjs.

Tomorrow I have a few more meetings and then I fly home. I can't wait to be back in Kzoo for the weekend!

Wednesday was by far