Making friends

It's almost been one year since we've moved to Minneapolis, and I've learned A LOT. One of the most important lessons is how to reach out and make friends. Moving across country where you don't know ANYONE while you're 9 months pregnant is really scary! (duh)

 (Me about to pop in the Lake Harriet Rose Garden, stay away from the thorns!)

I knew I needed a support system, and I needed it fast. I researched different clubs and groups, even going to a baby group while I was still pregnant. Three moms groups later and wondered why I didn't click with anyone. Then I met Erin and Luann.

The first people I really made a connection with. I went to a Newcomer's Club welcome coffee and Erin made a bee-line for me. The spirited, red-headed southerner caught me off guard when she immediately scheduled to get together later on in the week... as in date, time, place oh and I need your phone number too. Uhhhhh woa there, I'm from the land of "I'll call you"- on the spot scheduling is almost foreign! But it worked- we got together for coffee, then lunch, and continued on every week after. Both Erin and Luann had also recently moved to the area from out of state so we shared our new-found Minnesotan experiences. I welcomed the company with open arms.

I started to think- out of all the clubs I went to, why Erin and Luann? Then it occurred to me. Erin took the initiative in order to get together again. People kind of wait for something to happen, so sometimes you have to make the first move.

Then Jack was born.

 (this picture of him makes me want another one!)

Nothing like a baby to throw you in the deep end. I had no idea what to do with this little larva. Even though I had my mom and Ryan's mom there to help me, those first few months are hard. With Ryan's encouragement, I signed up for a new-mama's class at Amma Maternity. I was able to connect with other new first time moms. Copying Erin's technique, I organized lunches with my new-mama's and began to make real connections with people. When the class ended, we still got together for a few months after for "Mom's Night Out" on occasion.

awwww I love babies btw Jack's in the Mickey sweater

Although the entire group doesn't get together anymore, I still hang out with one of the moms on a regular basis, my friend Kerry. Both stay-at-home moms and with babies close in age, naturally we have a lot in common but we also share the love of cooking and eating. We go on baby-friendly adventures about once a week including a horribly failed attempt to make homemade donuts, a failed attempt to go to the gay pride parade, and semi-failed picnic club (K, we need to schedule another one soon!)

 Kerry and her little snugglepuss Jude

Now that Jack is on the move and much less portable, I took yet another mom-class sponsored by the state of Minnesota called Early Child and Family Education, or ECFE. I was able to meet even more friends in this class and they are my new summer crew. We share info on kid-friendly events around town and meet up at the pool, go to free summer concerts or my favorite- BYO Baby Happy Hours. Its been a lot of fun but I also think its good for Jack to have exposure to other little people.

J

Jack and Jude, baby buddies

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Loungin' at the pool 

Meeting new people can be scary, if you let it be. With a little research and a little courage it wasn't that difficult to make a circle of friends within a year.

So, to all my new found friends, thank you for the much needed companonship and support during my first year in the Twin Cities, I don't know what I would have done without you! And to EB, you probably didn't know you made this impression on me but you did and thank you.

Just when you think it won't happen to you

It does.

Last of the jarred baby food- prunes to be exact. Prunes that have been sitting innocently in the pantry for a few months. Prunes that turned into tug-a-war with the spoon which turned to catapult-prune-bomb all over my face. Prunes that turned into a big mess, and will be another big prune mess in a few hours- bleh.

You can tell Jack feels really bad about the whole thing.

Its finger foods for now on kid.

Weekend of accomplishments!

Wow- what a weekend! Our little famliy unit was super busy. First and most importantly- Jack started walking (with assistance)! So exciting but I have to say I am a little bit nervous about this new talent.
Friday rolls around and Ryan rolls in an almost brand spanking new BBQ! He scouted out Craigslist for the past few weeks and stumbled upon a deal he couldn't pass up. Brand new gas-powered Weber grill STILL IN THE BOX for $200??? Gotta love Craigslist. Could Ry wait until we moved to assembled it? I think not...

But at least he resisted the urge to fire it up. There's just something about putting a jug of propane on a moving truck that makes me just a little uncomfortable... BUT Can't wait to use it!

Friday night we tried out a new recipe that will definitely go into our meal rotation- Green Chili Burgers YUM. Combination of anahiem and jalapenos gave the burgers a great south-west flavor and a good but not overpowering spice-although I think I would minus one jalapeno if I was making this for company. We used the recipe from Cook's Country magazine by America's Test Kitchen and Cook's Illustrated- my favorite magazine! Here is the picture from the website- ours looked pretty much the same :)

Saturday I finally got a chance to volunteer. After noticing all I talk about is Jack, I started to look around for volunteering opportunities. I found a perfect fit- an environmental health sampling crew. I signed up, went to training and as luck would have it Ryan was put on a project where he travels and of course the sampling days are all during the week- bummer... So after a month of sampling the team went to the lab to identify and count what they found- I was actually able to go woohoo! Never realized spending 4 hours with a macroscope could be so refreshing... snails, leeches, beetles oh my!
That evening we headed over to a friends house for an awesome dinner, a few games of pool and watching weather channel for tornado warnings- you know the usual Minnesota cook out. Oh did I mention this is our weather man??? Of course we love the weather channel. I heart Sven.

 (Image source: Citypages)

OK drum roll.... Sunday! I finally ran my 5 mile race. 52:32. Not my goal of 50 minutes but its the fastest I've run it so far so I'm happy with it. Go me!

Sunday dinner- Huli Huli chicken- recipe also from Cooks Country. It was a lot of dirty dishes but turned out oh-so-good. Ryan and I make a great grill'n team.

 

Oh and did I mention throughout all of that- we (as in Ryan) packed the guest room, his closet and miscellanous kitchen stuff? I feel so much better about moving now that we are starting the packing now :) And of course I will end this post with a Jack fix- I love my little joobers.

You say Tomato, I say Le Creuset

When Ryan and I started recieving gifts for our wedding, one of the first things to arrive was the amazing Le Creuset Dutch Oven in Tomato Red. I had remembered registering for it but didn't realize just how lovely a pot can be. Super heavy yet so delicate. We went for the red to add a splash of color and eye candy to our dull apartment kitchen. Since then we have accumulated several more pieces in the Tomato color. Here they are in all their cooking glory.

The star shaped mini-pot and the canister were added today thanks to an awesome sale at Sur La Table. Now that I put them all together I just get giddy. Is it normal to have an emotional reaction to cookware? Of course not! Le Creuset just makes a damn good pot in extremely pretty colors. I have made several memorable meals in the dutch oven and the HUGE skillet is just perfect for a dish like chicken catchitore (which I made last night- yum!). The cast iron just holds the heat AND cold very well and the enamel makes cooking in it much less scary and clean up a snap.
Next item to add to the collection? Who knows- but there will be more, for that I'm sure :)
Perhaps this little lovely?

2 1/4 qt Braiser- I think I could use this for much more than braising. Making sides, roasting veggies etc.

Another skill you can't put on a resume

This morning I started getting things back in order after a long weekend. Its amazing how much there is to do after a holiday- and we didn't even entertain! The mountain of laundry is just a little bigger, Jack ingested just that much more God-knows-what off the floor, instead of a few of the big forks left- they are ALL in the dishwsher and so on. So as I was crawling around looking for loose change Ryan habitually leaves on the floor, I realized I have a SKILL. Not just anyone can change the sheets with a baby on one hip or put on make-up while pumping (if TMI, too bad this is a mom blog!). A few more multitasks include but are not limited to...

Vacuuming with a baby strapped to your chest and moving the cord with my toes.

Improvising a laundry basket into a baby carrier

Using my toes as another set of hands ( I was blessed with the Walton oposable toes, Jack is too!)

- Checking email while spoon feeding a baby
- Doubling a stroller into a shopping cart
- Cook dinner while simultaneously drawing a bath for the little munchkin, knowing exactly when to go and turn off the water
- put away laundry and catch up with my podcasts
and the list could go on and on....

Runner up!

One of the ways I dropped the baby weight was training for a 5K. I gave myself 2 months to train and ended up getting in great shape- I was able to drop that last 15 pounds that just wouldn't budge. Never in my life had I ever been a runner. I played basketball yes, but most of that was sprinting. This is a new venture- and I'm hooked.

The day of the race I felt really confident and super healthy... then I found out there was a 10K option. 10 kilometers, or a little over 6 miles seemed daunting. As much as I was proud of running 5K, I couldn't help but feel a little silly running along side ten year-old girls, who actually ended up beating me. After the race, I was ready for more- I quickly looked online and found another race... the Raspberry Run- a 5 mile run in mid-July. So far I have only ran the 5 miles twice, both in about an hour. I have some serious training to do if I want to accomplish my goal of 5 miles in 50 minutes. We'll see what happens.

Minnesota, Here we come.. errr are!

So after months of discussions, long hours of thinking, and browsing the MLS listings in CA and MN, Ryan and I have decided to stay in Minneapolis. It wasn't an easy decision but one that we are both happy with. Its pretty hard to beat 365 days of sunshine, fresh produce and family nearby. But once we REALLY thought about moving here permanently our perspective started to change. The schools in Minnesota are some of the best in the country, the jobs are plentiful and Minneapolis really is a big city (believe it or not!). But the really clincher was on a trip back "home" for Ryan's training. A 2 hour commute EACH WAY. We barely saw each other during the week, Ryan was exhausted and we realized... this is what it could be everyday. Then we started looking at homes in CA, all we can afford as first time buyers is a crappy house in a crappy neighborhood or a small crappy townhouse.

The skyline of downtown Minneapolis and the Mississippi River.
© The Greater Minneapolis Convention & Visitors Association

So househunting we went, mostly online but it was pretty overwhelming. The amount of inventory in our budget out here is incredible over 300 homes within a 20 mile radius! We had to narrow it down to neighborhood and ended up lovingthe city we currently live in,  Eden Prairie. We found a house we love and made an offer. It was accepted so now we wait.. first we waited for the inspection- scary yes but pretty uneventful (thank god). Next step, bank appraisal- and as long as that goes well we move in August 1st! Woohoo! Pics of our first house to come... when we find out it is OURS.