Hoops!

We love our Memphis Tigers! New, young, energetic coach (some of the local media folks call him "Coach Sunshine"). Fans with lots of energy. Players with heart. This was a big transition year for the Tigers, and even though we didn't make the NCAA tournament, our guys played well, and we had a winning season. Next year will be even better, as our recruiting class is outstanding. Here's the view going into the city's big arena, and the view from our seats (nosebleed section, but still worth it, 'cause the vibes in that place on game night are UNREAL):

Swamp Things At The Swamp

One day of Spring Break, I took Molly & Rebecca to the nature preserve in Rossville, TN. We ate at the local diner for lunch and enjoyed the peaceful quiet of the country.

Mt. Laundry. Conquer and Repeat.

On Facebook, I often post a status update regarding conquering/battling "Mt. Laundry." It is quite something to watch the pile grow. With five grubby souls in our dwelling, it doesn't take long for the molehill to become a mountain. I am picky about the smell of my detergent and about how shirts are folded. Peter is choosy about the whiteness of the whites and how pants are folded. It's a team effort, since we both work full-time. Frankly, he's better at it than I am. He often gets it done and folded, and I have the task of sorting the kids' clothes and putting everything away. Just when we finish, a new mountain awaits. It never ends...

Who's Watching Who at The Zoo?

I don't take my camera every time we go to the zoo. We're there A LOT. But I'm glad I brought the Nikon on this day. The animals and the children were particularly adorable.

Rebecca is 6!

Party with the family! Nana and Pa were in town from Oregon. They brought the Other Marshes over to join Granna and Papa in celebrating. Cake, round one, in the form of a gigantic cookie.




Party with the peeps! School and Sunday School classmates were invited to Crossfire Commandos, an obstacle course location designed to exhaust children to no end while allowing parents to do practically nothing other than show up. My kinda party! Everyone had a blast. My friend Kara made the adorable and scrumptious cake. Rebecca's request was the the cake had "an animal theme, not butterflies and dragonflies but raccoons and owls." Kara did a perfect job with this direction, dontcha think?

Momma's Little Trip

We midwives have to keep up our skills and stay current on the latest research. Doesn't sound like fun, but actually, the conferences are informative and, most importantly, they are located in places other than where I live. This means a few days of travel each year for me, all by myself. For the first 24-36 hours, being all alone is liberating. Then I start to miss those little pipsqueaks and their dada. In any case, this year I opted to head to San Antonio, Texas. Never been there before, had heard that the RiverWalk was lovely, wanted to see The Alamo (which brings back fond memories of a childhood movie called Pee Wee's Big Adventure, starring that actor who later got caught doing something less-than-child-friendly, if I remember correctly).

The conference was phenomenal, made me itch to get back into group prenatal care, and refreshed my soul. The weather was moderate, which is good for February, and I got to eat some of the most amazing Mexican food I've ever tasted--and I know my way around a burrito, people.

Perhaps the coolest part of this little getwaway was connecting in person with some cousins who have been in contact with my dad for a few years after some genealogical research led them to each other. There were four of them, all of whom live in or near San Antonio, and all of whom were sweet as could be. It seemed like we were, well, family. Here are a few pictures from my trip:

Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!

There are so many things to do on board! We took dancing lessons (learned the opening sequence from the Austin Powers movie), played trivia (won two first-place trophies), ate amazing food, sunbathed, ate at the midnight buffet, gambled, sang karaoke, learned to make towel animals, danced in the disco, drank martinis and margaritas and whiskey and beer (not all at once), listened to live music, took in a comedy show and a Broadway-revue-style show. We dressed up for dinner and slept in. Ahhhhh....

If We Weren't All Crazy, We'd All Go Insane:The Shore Excursion

Several weeks before we set sail, the three cruising couples had dinner together at a Japanese steakhouse to determine the best way to spend our day in Cozumel. There were lots of choices--visiting the Mayan ruins, shopping, beach parties, booze cruises, Mexican cooking classes, jeep rides, parasailing, swimming with dolpins, scuba diving, etc. After ruling out the ridicuously expensive options, as well as the wildly dangerous options, we settled on the Catamaran Ride/Sea Kayaking/Snorkeling/Beach Party/Lunch Buffet option. It seemed like a nice combination of activity and relaxation. Here we are, arriving in Cozumel, blissfully ignorant of what our day had in store:

It was a clear day, but incredibly windy. Choppy seas. Unkempt hair. Sandy teeth. As we reached the touristy zone, locals were holding up signs with the excursion titles. Turns out the windy conditions precluded snorkeling and catamaran sailing. Our excursion was cancelled. Frankly, we didn't have too many choices left since many were sold out or had already left, but we ultimately decided to see the Mayan ruins, with beach time at the end. We'd all seen the big pyramid-like temple in pictures, now we'd see it in person! We wandered around the shopping area waiting for our trip, disappointed but determined to stay positive.


We boarded the bus with Jorge. Jorge was a native of Cozumel. He talked non-stop on the way to the ruins, but not about what we were about to see. He talked about Cozumel, informing us that they do not grow anything there, they do not make anything there, and they are basically the redheaded stepchildren of Mexico. Not exactly a great representative for his city was Jorge. The ride was long, and Jorge just kept going, reciting a litany Mexican foods and talking about habanero peppers. I cannot over-emphasize how long this ride was. Finally we arrived. And it became painfully clear that not only were we in the redheaded stepchildren's city, we were also at the redheaded stepchildren's Mayan ruins. No temple. Just a lot of rocks, mostly, according to Jorge The Informed, sacrificial altars (maybe). One remnant of a road with an arch and one "small house." Here are a few pictures of the sad ruins and of us, first feigning excitement, then showing our true feelings.




The highlight? An iguana. He was regal and unafraid. Until some other cruisers (who, judging from their uncooth behavior, were probably from Cozumel) decided to get up in his grill--a move he did not like one bit. Off he ran. And the highlight was over. I did get a few pictures before he hissed and banged his head against the ground in Obviously Threatened Mode.


Okay, so ruins were a bust. Jorge is a turd. But now we get to go to the beach! Oh, first, let's stop for 45 minutes at the PeePee Station (see picture to show you how classy it was), which is just a souvenir shop, most likely owned by someone related to Jorge. 45 minutes! We grumbled as we waited for some dumb people to once again get off the bus for no reason. We were hungry. We wanted to feel the sand in our toes. We did not want to buy hammocks with pictures of iguanas drinking tequila on them.

By the time we arrived at the beach, after more excruciating Jorge Speak, we had only 45 minutes. We regrouped and decided quickly that we would just take a cab back to the ship, allowing us more time on the beach and some time to actually eat some of the Mexican food that Jorge had described in such detail. This would cost more money, but dad-gummit, we wanted to drink a margarita on the beach and play in the ocean. So we did.





In the end, we made the best of a rotten day, relaxed for a bit on the beach, enjoyed some local booze in the square before boarding, and managed to get just enough sand in our toes to have a good story to tell.