The Letter "C"

I know it's been awhile since we have posted on our "Dating the Alphabet".  Although we have been going on dates, it's a little more difficult than we expected.  This is going to take us a little longer than we originally thought.  (I would add that the difficulty is in making the time to blog, rather than in the dating.)

It was Bryan's turn to choose.  He has always loved the State Capitol.  So naturally he choose "Capitol" for our date.  We decided to make this a family date so Bryan could share his love of the state capitol with both Rosie and I.  He went above and beyond and made it a triple "C" date!  We just bought new bikes this spring and decided to "cycle" to our destination.

Along the way we stopped at "Cooper" Park.  We enjoyed a picnic lunch and let Rosie play at the playground for a little while before we headed on our way.

Being that we are such novice cyclists we realized, as we approached the capitol, that we didn't have bike locks.  Thankfully our friends at Agee Automotive where kind enough to watch our bikes for us.  So on to the capitol by foot. 

We arrived at the Nebraska State Capitol just in time for a tour.  There was one other couple from Iowa that joined us on the tour.  This made for a very intimate and personal tour.  It was interesting seeing the cavernous spaces and minute details through Rosie's eyes.  She loved all the mosaics on the walls and floors.  The guide we had was very knowledgeable and interesting.  He took his time and was very good at including Rosie in the conversation.  At the end of the tour we took the very small elevator to the rotunda.  This was my favorite part!  It was pretty neat to see all of Lincoln from the top of the capitol. 

Looking for our house!

Rosie also found a feather which we later
found out came from a falcon that lives
at the top of the capitol.

After we explored the rotunda we took the very small elevator down to the lower level.  There we found a tv screen that showed us a live feed from the falcon nest.  Rosie also got to take a drink for the very popular water fountain. 

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No trip to the capitol is complete without
a drink at the fountain.

We explored a little out side before heading home.

Standing in front of
Abraham Lincoln

Looking for the falcons.

Taking a break on the steps.

Hiding in the trees at the
Lincoln Mall.

Cooling off a bit.



We picked up our bikes and started our journey home.  We had an unexpected surprise on our way home.  Our friend Michaella Kumke was also biking that day and rode up right behind us.  She followed us home and we enjoyed catching up with our good friend over a nice cold beer.

B is for BasketBall

If we didn't mention it earlier, we're alternating responsibility for planning our alphabet outings.   So Jessica suprised me with a phone call at work last Wednesday to let me know that the evenings events would start with attendance at the last men's home BB game of the season, versus Iowa.   Those of you that know me well know that I like BB quite a bit, so despite a very disappointing season for the Huskers, I was game.   Much as in football, the Big Ten Conference scheduling gurus have decided to feature an "Iowa/Nebraska" border rivalry at the end of the season.   Bonus for us was that the evenings events we courtesy of Jessica's employers, so it really wasn't that disappointing or unexecpected when the Huskers fell short and ended up losing 62-53.
This was a Rosie-free date, so we went to a local watering hole and enjoyed a post game dinner and drink.   As is often the case when we find ourselves without the little pumpkinhead, we took a little time to get acclimated back into "couple" mode, but just like riding the proverbial bike, it came back quickly.   We were shocked when we heard last call--it's been awhile since we made it last late.

Dating the Alphabet, A

So Jessica mentions off hand to me several months ago how much she likes this idea, this "Dating the Alphabet," something she comes across on the internet (on Pinterest, no doubt.)   "Uh, yeah [feining interest]  . . . sounds cool," I mutter.  At this point, I apparently still haven't learned the dangerous implications of non-committal responses to seemingly off-hand comments from my wife.   Dummy.
What I am really thinking is that I have a creeping, unshakeable bias that people spend way to much time glorifying their lives on electronic mediums, social sites, making their ideas, families, personalities seem far more interesting than they really are.    Snarkily, I'm wondering if the model couple that caught Jess's interest actually completed all their dates, or are even still together.   All this time spent on the internet creating our social media personaes happens as a cost to our actual character development, right?
I came across this idea on, gasp, pinterest.  I thought it might be a way to put a little more excitement into our lives.  Usually our dates consist of going out to dinner, movie and maybe a drink after.  BORING.  I wanted a little more thought put into what we do with our time together.  So this is how it works...Starting with A, plan a date that starts with or has something to do with the letter A.  We have decided that we can include Rosie in approximately half of the dates because we love to experiance the excitement she has for new things.  We also decided that we would take turns planning the dates.  Bryan was first and he chose Art. 
This was a no brainer.   It is a travesty that I don't go to the Sheldon more often.  So yes,  despite all my philisophical objections and general discomfort with sharing my private life on the internet, we're not only Dating the Alphabet but also blogging about it.   Yeah, you totally saw that coming, right?  


 So the original plan was the Sheldon here in town.   But we had a weekend where we were just flat-out stir crazy and needed to get out of town.  We got a room in Omaha for the night and left early Saturday morning.   We wanted to make it to the Joslyn before noon, when general admission is free.   We really admire that, and apparently it is well appreciated by others in the community as well.  It was packed, with all kinds of people of all backgrounds and ages.   It was pretty neat to see, and it was a beautifully sunny day.   They had a new exhibition, "To Live Forever, Egyptian Treasures from the Brooklyn Museum."  I really enjoyed seeing it, although it too was very congested and I just kind of floated through it as the crowd allowed.   More than the exhibit pieces, I liked how the exhibit highlighted Egyptian theology and the what the "average Egypitan's" notions of the Afterlife at the time.    Osiris was Jesus before Jesus, although many would argue the distintions.   We had a pretty good expectation that Rosie was not going to be too fascinated by extended contemplation of any particular piece.    So it was quite a bit different experience to breeze through the museum in 90 minutes than it would have been with just the two of us.   But there was a lot of joy in seeing the art through Rosie's eyes.   For instance, we had some fun picking out our favorite pieces in each new room.

 It really was a lovely day and I truely enjoyed the time we spent together as a family.

Here are a few pictures from "A" date...

Bryan and Rosie on their way up the steps.

Rosie was pretty excited to make a wish.

Standing by one of Jess's favorite Chihuly pieces

Some other highlights of the weekend included playing shadow tag, eatting a piece of cake the size of Rosie's head, spending the night at a nice hotel, and of course, the zoo with friends.  All in all our alphabet scheradventure is off to a good start!

This is why I love being a Mommy.  She really brightens my day. 

The only way I can get her to sing while I video tape is by letting her see it when she's done.  That's why she keeps saying "Can I see it?"  She is such a silly girl and I love that about her. 

A Curios intersection of the Pixies and Parenthood:

Where is my mind?

A reoccurring contemplation these last several weeks, and one universally shared often by by all parents, is "What did I use to spend my time [doing/thinking about/worrying] before my kid? This comes about lately as we proceed full-bore into the rigros of potty training. We've kind of been edging into it, dipping our toes into the pool for the last couple of months. No more excuses now though. We've jumped in; We're past the point of turning back.

This nifty potty sings when wet

For example, yesterday I was trying to explain to one of my employees the intricacies of a good positive reward program, such as the importance of "princess wipes" versus regular ones, and the different grades of stickers (overall size is very important, Mermaid stickers are best, but if all we have geometric than we have to usually double up.) The young twenty-something coed e listened patiently, and unsucessfully tried to hide the increasing level of bizarre fascination/dread that she was experiencing listening to a grown man talk about "Announcing your Poops," and celebrating that most mundane of human functions, wiping one's own butt.


Which leads me back to the original question. All these details have long since pervaded my subconscious; I often only realize upon arrival at work that I have been humming a Laurie Berkner song for the last seven miles. So what did I used to do with my brain? What great ideas, contemplations, obsessions have been lost in the shuffle? I really can't seem to remember. Was I close to reconciling free will with a deterministic universe? Did I have the rosters and stats of the entire Western conference of the NBA memorized and analyzed? Have I become dumber, mundane and generally less interesting? I really can't seem to recall . . . .


Got to go . . . the frog potty needs changing for a fresh attempt!

The Case of the Missing Fork

I was washing dishes the other day and noticed that our forks have mysteriously been disappearing. I knew I had only washed two forks.

When I went to the drawer to see if there were any in there I was surprised to find only three. Interesting. Where have all the forks gone?

A couple days after pondering the whereabouts of our forks, Bryan is in the kitchen cooking. I hear a little shuffling, something falling, a couple of clinks then some very choice words. Then Bryan says, "Well, there goes another one." To this I reply, "What do you mean another one?" Apparently over the course of our marriage and (of our forks) they have been "falling" victim to the floor vent in the kitchen.

Case closed. Now, off to buy new forks.

The New Nurse

After a few weeks on the job I have learned a great deal about myself. Here is a list of a few things that I have learned.

1. It is okay to cry, and in many circumstances a necessity. I have become close to one of the burn victims on the unit. She is a beautiful young girl who has a long road ahead of her. For some reason we connected almost instantly. On one of the days I was caring for her she had a minor setback. She was so upset and frustrated. I could see that she wanted to cry but was trying to put on a brave face. I shut the door and pulled up a chair next to her bed and we cried.
2. Be thankful for what you have. I had not been assigned to the young girl in a few days and I have really been missing her. I knew she's been having surgeries this week and wanted to see how she was. When I entered her room she asked me where I had been and why I hadn't been her nurse for a while. She began asking me how my weekend was and how Rosie has been. It made me take a step back. This girl is in a hospital bed, in pain with a long road ahead of her and she's asking me how I am? Really puts things into perspective.
3. 12 hour shifts are hard work. I love having 4 days off but the three that I do work are exhausting. I usually need a day just to recover.
4. I do not function very well without sleep. Yesterday was a pretty tough day at the Scherhouse. Rosie has been sick so I decided it was a good idea to keep her home with me. One problem...I had just got off work having worked the night shift before. Needless to say, we didn't get a whole lot accomplished yesterday. I forgot to add the clothes to the washing machine. We watched a whole lot of Dora and Word World. We ate breakfast and lunch in front of the TV. We took a nap and I'm pretty sure Rosie was awake long before I was.

I really love my job and am adjusting to the new role of working, being a wife and mother full time. I am thankful for the opportunity to care for people.