our spring trip, post 4: Portland with Rach, Cam, Poppy, and kitties

Rach is about 22 weeks along here with Poppy, otherwise known now as Baby B.

Little story: one night at Ethiopian food, Rach asked what my guess was for the baby's name,

because I told her I knew. My first guess was Bo, and I was preparing a poem for him:

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Little Bo Clear

Had lost his skier

And didn't know where to find her.

He sought and he searched

And he learned with a lurch

She's a photo in his black Steno binder.

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Rachel said, "Nope, not Bo. It's more of a last name." And for a split second, I could nearly see the name in print before my eyes. Out I blurted it, with hardly a thought more! Rachel and Cam were flabbergasted, as was I, because none of us know anyone by this name. They just made it up then later discovered it is a last name. So, I am feeling pretty good/weirded out about that little guessing situation. Right now, for the low low price of $39.99, I will tell ye your futures...

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Zoralee takes to Cam like a duck to water. She especially loves for him to chase her down the hallway, but she'll make do with whatever activity gives her the chance to flirt it up.

Ruling the world isn't easy. Believe you me.

Aunt Rachel let Zoralee unwind a basketful of yarn one evening.

You can see there Sumo joining in on the yarning of the living room. (last two pics by Rachel)

Thanks, Rach and Cam, for the fabulous week! We love to hang out, eat delicious foods from all about Portland, take pretty drives, and laugh and laugh. And get totally inspired to clean up our lives from one simple episode of "Clean House."

zodiac boots

I mentioned these boots in passing awhile back. They are fantastic. I went on a boot buying frenzy one time and wound up with like five pairs of boots. I hadn't meant for it to happen. I just kept winning bids on ebay. My competition sense overrode my common sense, see. Except in this case.

I have to be honest though. When I wear these particular boots, which is rare, but which I had opportunity to do several weeks ago for a show of my brother's music that I played in, I have two nearly paralyzing negative feelings, which I'm fixing to tell you about. Fortunately, they have corresponding redemptive feelings that I can try to focus on.

Sad thought #1: It's a solid bummer that every girl can't have a pair of boots like this. No kidding, I try to avoid the eyes of any onlookers who are not hiding their jealousy well. It breaks me up inside - not enough to hand over my boots, you know, but enough to be heartsick. I like competition in sports and games, just for fun, but then I wish we could all win. Am I reading jealousy into their eyes, because these boots are THAT cool to me? I dunno. You tell me. Are they sweet? Before you answer, you should know that the soles are made of a really unique, grippy rubber. Also, it takes time, on the order of minutes, to put on each boot, so you totally get into the zone of wearing them. The old school zone of corsets and fancy dresses and barn dances. What clothing articles take time to put on, in these casual, flippant days? (I realize long time lacers could be considered negative, because the whole time you're thinking, "Gosh, if I fall off a horse and my foot gets stuck in the stirrup, no way I'm kicking these things off. I'm getting THRASHED by that runaway horse.") So, there's the first sadness.

A redemptive realization that I'm just now having is this, though: because of the miracle of blogging, at least you people know they exist and can be on the lookout for a pair of your own! They are a brand called Zodiac. Most of the Zodiac boots that come up on google images are pretty westerny for my tastes, but gosh, these ones are great, right? And I found out in the Dallas/Fort Worth airport recently that cowgirl boots are way in style with dark jeans and silky tops, especially if you sit in a waiting area with a laptop and do very important business.

shakin' an egg......in these boots

(thanks for the pic, Heather)

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Sad thought #2: It's a crying shame that I haven't got the calves to properly fill out these boots. I really cinch 'em down to where zero tongue is showing, and there's still space. On the other hand, Zoralee is destined to have thicker legs than me (how could she not?), so she will be stunning when she wears them with shorter skirts.

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Or any of you would look stunning, if you paid me several hundred dollars for these boots.

break from trip pics - red sweater day back in January

I just downloaded a bunch of pictures from old camera cards. Here's this one of the non-planned red sweater day in our house, waaaay back in time, when Z had only two teeth on the bottom. So young! And yet....it was only three months ago.

Weird thing about kids - growth is woven into every moment; there is rarely enough stagnancy to allow holding onto a particular stage or way of their being. I can only really grasp who Zoralee is by thinking of her right now, with her personality exactly as developed as it is, at this precise age of 16 months and two weeks. I can't mentally undo her progress. On the other hand, you people who haven't seen her in awhile (if ever), you know her by images and stories; she occupies one-dimensional spaces in your brains, so that when you see her again, you have to adjust forward. Try as I may, it's nearly impossible to adjust backwards.

our spring trip, post 3: Zoralee's balcony speech

-- in Portland at Uncle Cam and Aunt Rachel's house --

(I have a truckload of Portland and Sequim pics, so they'll come in reasonable batches.)