Labor Day

Sad news:

David didn't do the pizza challenge--they didn't have any more spots for a while and his friend left town this morning.

I'm sad for him, but happy for his heart.

That is so not healthy.

So, we spent the weekend dog sitting, avoiding the heat, eating BBQ (provided by our friends Bob & Lindsay two different nights!), seeing a movie, and watching Women's Softball.

Yes, women's softball.  David's obsessed.

I have taken to napping while it's on.

On Sunday, we took the two dogs on a walk together.  

It was SIGNIFICANTLY hotter on Sunday than it was on Saturday, so the walk was shortened to two miles (we did 3 on Saturday) and ended with a dip in the river.

Maggie acts like she's dying for most of the walk, but really perks up at the idea of water.

Nevermind that I give her a drink every half mile, 

it's tough for her to be outside.

Dad says it's like going on a walk in 90 degree weather 

while wearing a 40 lb fur coat.

Poor baby.

Doesn't she look like a manatee?

Linus, the dog we were watching, was less than thrilled than Maggie about the river.

Maybe it was just that he wasn't as close to heat stroke as she was, but he had to be "convinced" to get in. 

And by convinced, I mean thrown.

Before you get mad at us, Linus wore a leash and we had his owner's permission to take him swimming.

It might not have been explicit permission to throw him in, but we sent a video of the spectacle to her and she seemed to enjoy it :)

Summer!

And it's official.... I am done with work until the fall!

Huzzah!

Of course, this comes with a grain of salt, as I'll be going to work 4 days next week and leading workshops a few more days...but summer work is 1000000 times happier than "real" work.

Summer!

Storms

We had some crazy storms in St.Louis yesterday afternoon.

It started raining as I was walking out of work and David started texting me telling me to hurry.  I didn't think much of it, as David is a natural worrier, but decided to skip the gym to appease him.

Yeah, it wasn't hard to convince me--they wouldn't let me swim anyway in the storm.

I hit some major hail while on I-44, but figured it was just some hail, so I got off the interstate and drove side roads home.  Rain, but nothing bad.

About a block from home, I got texts from my friends Laura and Susan, asking if I was in my basement.  I was going to ask them why, and then the sirens started going off.

Yikes.

Turns out, Affton had wall clouds or funnel clouds spotted on the ground.  I would have known this, but I was listening to my positive pregnancy affirmation CD from hypnobabies.

Oops.

Anyway, I high-tailed it home and scurried to the basement with the fur-babies.  I tried to get Maggie Roo to go outside, but she was having none of that.

David got home about 20 minutes after me (after TONS of furious texting and phone calls that couldn't be connected) and we hid in the basement--until it sounded like someone was jumping around on our main floor.

So, being intelligent, we go upstairs to check it out.  No one broke into our house--the hail was just CRAZY loud.

You can't really tell--but there was a crap ton of hail.  

The whole time I was taking this, David kept yelling for me to close the door and go back downstairs.

After the hail stopped, I wanted to go outside and look at it.

I know, I know.  Bad idea.

But I'm stubborn and told David the only way I wouldn't go outside was if he went out and found some "good" hail for me. 

He came back with this--and it had been melting for at least 20 minutes here.

A smaller piece...next to a gross tennis ball of Maggie's.  

We were lucky in the storm--both of our cars have some minor hail damage (I think the dents will pop out in the heat on their own) and that's about it.  No limbs down, nothing broken.

I am ready for the storm season to be over!

Menu Planning

We've been trying something at our house...menu planning.

So far, so good.  It's actually kind of a relief to know for a whole week what I'm cooking and that I have the groceries I need for dinner. 

It also helps me keep a handle on our schedule..for instance, because of softball on Monday, baby class on Wednesdays and yoga on Thursdays, I plan something quick or leftovers.

Which is way better than my old stand-by of cottage cheese and triscuits.

Also, I know that David is doing a Pizza Challenge on Saturday, and will likely not eat that day.

Yes, he and a friend are attempting to eat a 28" pizza in an hour.

Without puking.

For $500.

God speed.  

I will be filming that.

In other news, this is what the rest of our fridge looks like.

Softball schedules, photos, and save the dates. 

Oh my. 

Shelving

We put some things on the wall in the nursery!

It's a Christmas miracle!

Yes, I know a yard stick, drill, and hammer should not be stored on the changing table.

I was tired.  Sue me. 

And of course there was drama with the shelving.  I bought 2 shelves from Target, then decided they were too long...so they got returned.  No biggie.

I went to about 7 other places before finding shelves in a better length.  I bought three because that was all they had and I was worried I would get home and want more and regret.  I'm weird like that. 

Sunday night I decide it's time to hang the shelves.  I get the 6 HUGE holes in my freshly-painted wall, hang the support, and try to attach the shelf.  The screws go in, but fall out immediately.

Cue over-reaction.

I might have thrown some things and went on about how "nothing is easy with this nursery."

Thank God for David--he figured out that the first shelf I bought was defective and we just opened a new one and put it on.  After, of course, calming me down.  And buying me ice cream.

Initially I was thinking we needed two shelves...but now I'm thinking just the one is good.  What do you all think?  

32 Weeks

As of Saturday, I am 32 weeks pregnant.

Does this seem like REALLY pregnant to anyone else?

I feel awkward.   And large.


And hungry.

On Sunday, I met some teachers at 6:30 in the morning to do a 5k at the zoo.  By "do" I mean that I ran the first mile and then walked the rest...which makes me very proud.  It might make David even more proud than it does me--he was worried that I would get stubborn and run the whole thing just to prove a point.

He knows me too well.

Luckily, one of the other teachers wanted to walk after 1 mile, so it was easier for me to walk then.

In other news, enter the Baby Brady Pool!  I'll bake you a cake if you win!

http://bebepool.com/darciebrady

Actually, I probably won't until the kid is older.  But maybe David will buy you a cupcake or something.

Balloons

 On the 13th, the middle school had it's end-of-year bash.  I'm always impressed at how fun they manage to make a work party--but it probably helps that it's off-site AND has an open bar.

Even though the open bar and I weren't friends this year, I still enjoyed myself--they had an adult balloon maker come to the party.

Yes, adult.  Weird.  Luckily for me, my table was the first one he approached, so he did non-adult balloons for us.  Later on in the evening, they got a little more risqué...which probably would have made me REALLY uncomfortable.

At any rate, Henselface got an awesome fish...seriously--look at those bubbles!

He made me this poodle...but not just any poodle.  It was a pregnant poodle!

Do you see the tiny balloon in the middle?  How great is that?

You can't really see Kelly's in this picture, but it's a really elaborate monkey on a palm tree.

I'm thinking that someday, The Cactus will get a balloon animal party...but probably not "adult" balloon animals :)