30 Days of Memories: Day 30

It was very hard to get a picture of the Colosseum, as it is always swarming with people. It looks like a busy anthill with ants scurrying here and there.

We did a self-guided tour and I was awe-struck by the fact that I was standing in a stadium with so much history. Even with so many people around, I could help but feel touched by the events past. We opted not to do a guided tour, but now that they've opened the underground chambers and passages to tour groups, I will definitely be doing that next time around.

Rome was an exciting, beautiful place to visit, but my inner country girl will always feel more at peace in the wide open spaces like Tuscany or in the small villages surrounded by nature like Cinque Terre.

30 Days of Memories: Day 29

Nebalee, Deejo, me

All girlified: Staci, Robs, me, Nebalee, Sue

Me and Robs both in dresses - it was an event!

I love my family and my girls. Love them. A year or so after Hall and I broke up, Brandy and Justin got married and I was invited to the wedding, along with Nebalee and Deejo.

Our break-up was awful and it took me years to get over it, so Brandy's wedding fell smack-dab in the middle of my mourning period. Because I love Brandy, I wouldn't have missed her wedding for anything, even if that meant seeing Hall and his fiancee for the first time since our very bad break-up.

My sibs and my girls rallied around me, knowing how difficult it was going to be and I ended up having the greatest time ever. Yes, Hall and the soon-to-be Mrs Hall were an annoyance, but we managed to avoid each other and still have a great time.

Because of my crazy work-out schedule (and probably some stress too), I had lost 24 pounds since anyone outside of my girls had seen me. Perhaps one of the best parts of the whole night was seeing the look on Hall's face when I walked in with my posse sibs and my girls. I never thought I was "girly" enough that I would derive pleasure from rubbing the fact that I was doing okay (even if it was a lie) in his face. Turns out I was wrong, I totally loved that feeling. It was so worth the "die, bitch" looks I was getting from his fiancee, who happened to be a member of the wedding party.

(Yes, Robs and I wore black to the wedding, not for any malicious reason, but because we were only going to buy ONE dress and it needed to be multi-purpose. What's more multi-purpose than a little black dress?)

30 Days of Memories: Day 28

I didn't get heavily into shooting until after Hall and I broke up. I knew how to shoot before then, but once my stalker issue was resolved, I stepped away from the shooting lifestyle and learned to enjoy the soccer lifestyle, but I always missed it.

After we broke up, I stepped right back into the shooting world and began shooting competitively at our local defensive pistol matches. Neither Staci nor Robs are shooters, but they are always up for a challenge and agreed to join me at one of my matches.

I can't believe that it's been almost twelve years since these pictures were taken. I was so tiny back then and in the best shape of my life. Besides shooting, I was playing on four soccer teams a week (three indoor teams with Staci and Robs and one outdoor team), and working out six days a week. Being in that kind of shape certainly helped with my shooting skills, and while I would definitely consider Staci and Robs novice shooters, their athletic ability really helped them out at the match as well.

This was such a fun day and I'm forever thankful for my girls who wholeheartedly support me in anything I want to do.

30 Days of Memories: Day 27

Both of these were taken at Highgate Cemetery in London on our first trip to Europe. I never had much interest in history, but this cemetery was really eye-opening for me. There are grave markers that are older than our country! These pictures don't do it justice - the cemetery (the East one, at least) is breathtaking. It is surprisingly peaceful and full of life.

30 Days of Memories: Day 25

Creepy, muddy lane and the Scooby Doo gate

This might just look like a long, muddy road, but it leads to one of the most haunted castles in Europe. Chillingham Castle was a must-do on our first trip as a group across the pond.

The plan was to take the train from London to Alnmouth and then take a cab from Alnmouth to Chillingham. We noticed that one of the stops along the way was in Newcastle, and Hall was a die-hard Newcastle United fan, so the two of us decided to get off at Newcastle so we could go see St. James' Park.

We hopped off at the stop, planning to catch the next one through and meet up with everyone else at the castle. However, we did so without checking the train schedule. Turns out that the train only stopped at Newcastle during commuter hours, so we  were stuck in Newcastle until the end of the work day. This was back before cell phones were readily available and had decent international service, so we had no way of telling the rest of the group that we would be hours behind them, not just one hour. We walked around St. James' Park and enjoyed the day in Newcastle before hopping the first afternoon train to Alnmouth.

I don't recall how we managed to arrange for a cab in Alnmouth, because my memory of the station is just a stop in the middle of nowhere. I do remember that the cab from Alnmouth to Chillingham was not an actual nightmare, but neither of us could understand a single word the cab driver said and he apparently could barely understand us. We did understand when he pointed out Alnwick Castle, where they filmed Harry Potter. Those were about the only words we understood, "American Filmn Harry Potter". No, that's not a typo, he said filmn.

The gate at the end of the long, muddy lane in the picture is what we came to call the "Scooby Doo gate", full of creaks and groans just like the cartoon.

Shamelessly stolen picture of the creepy bridge on the grounds

While Brian and I were cooling our heels in Newcastle, the rest of the group took a tour of the castle grounds. I loved the picture of the creepy bridge so much that I stole a copy of it from someone (either Squid or Robs).

Being the off-season for tourists, the castle wasn't exactly bustling with activity and there was no food to be found, so the caretakers sent Hall and I into the next village to find some food. The rest of the group had given up waiting on us and had already gone on ahead.

The mile and a half into the village was the longest mile and a half I'd ever walked. It was like we'd been transported into American Werewolf in London, and I'm not exaggerating. It was dark, drizzly, and there were a bunch of noises we didn't recognize.

Unbelievably, we found the rest of the group in a restaurant in the village, just getting their dinner. We happened to look through a window of a restaurant and there they were! I was never so happy to see familiar faces in my life.

Three Little Piggies

On August 2nd, I got a phone call from Robs' partner telling me that the babies were on their way.  I could hear Robs in the background working on her computer, so I figured there was no reason to worry.  Robs had undergone IVF and had two eggs implanted, thinking one would take, like when they had their first.  Only, they got one heck of a surprise.  Not only did both eggs take, but one had split.  Instead of one baby, they were getting a set of identical twins and a singlet.

The triplets were at the 31-week mark, just a week shy of their goal, but Robs sounded in good spirits and was trying to finish up a project for work before they wheeled her into the OR for her C-section.

I didn't hear from Mandy the rest of the day and started to get worried.  The docs had been able to identify some issues via ultrasound with a couple of the babies and I started thinking the worst.

I finally got to talk to Mandy on Saturday, the day after the babies were born, and found out that they were all alive, but that Robs had started to bleed out during her C-section and was currently in the ICU.  I headed down to Denver to meet the babies and make sure my Robs was okay.

Since I don't have blog names for the babies, I'm going to continue to refer to them by their ultrasound names, Babies A, B, and C.

Baby A was born first, at 1:26 pm and was perfectly healthy, for being a 31-week old multiple.  She was tiny, but the biggest of the three, at 3 lb 6 oz and 16 inches.

Three weeks old, with Mommy Robs

Baby B was born immediately after her identical twin, Baby A, at 1:26 pm.  She was 3 lb 5 oz and 15 3/4". They had been watching Baby B carefully on ultrasound because her heart seemed to be shifted to the left.  Turns out, she only has one lung.  She spent 8 days on a vent and had a chest tube, but is now only on oxygen and doing well.

Three weeks old, with Mommy Robs

Baby C had it rough.  She was born at 1:27 without pulse or respirations. She was only 2 lb 6 oz and 15".  The docs resuscitated her, but basically told Robs and Mandy that she wasn't going to live through the night.  Mandy doesn't come across as deeply religious, but she is, and she had faith that Baby C was going to make it.  By the time I talked to her on Saturday, not only was Baby C alive, but she was doing well.  I got to the NICU with Mandy just as they were extubating Baby C.  No more vent!  The NICU nurse told us that sometimes the babies "just need a minute" to make the transition and that's what Baby C needed.

24 hours old with Mommy Mandy

3 weeks with Mommy Robs

After getting to meet the girls, I went to see my Robs.  It was very hard to see someone so vibrant laying in ICU, pale as a ghost.  Mandy told me Robs actually had some color compared to the day before. All I could think was "wow".  I can't imagine how scared Mandy had to have been the day before, watching her partner bleed out and being told that her baby wasn't going to live through the night.  I'm glad Mandy's best friends were there with her, and that Robs' parents were there for Robs.  I felt incredibly guilty for not leaving work when Mandy called me, but with Robs being so incredibly healthy (other than being pregnant with triplets), I figured I would just be in the way.

The last three weeks have been rough, but the girls are now doing well and the NICU nurses are doing their best to let Robs and Mandy still have their "firsts" with the girls, such as their first baths.

It's going to be amazing to watch these little ones grow up.

It's Been A Minute, Hasn't It?

I don't know when I lost control of my time.  Seems like it was just June and here it is the middle of August.  How the hell does that happen?

I owe a book review (it really was a good book and deserves a good review).  Okay, two, actually.  My bestie had triplets and my niece" falled off" of Ranger (his words, not mine).  And I finished my book, but am losing my mind trying to format it.

I swear, I'm going to get back on track, because I have the most beautiful baby girls to introduce you to and an orthopedist story that no one will believe.

Maybe tomorrow :)

What a Day!

I'm not sure if I mean that in a good way, or a bad way.

This morning, I did my thing at the Outdoor Show and felt *eh* about it until I watched the video, then I realized it wasn't as horrible as I thought it was.  So that was good.

Then I ran off to Denver to see Robs and the babies (!) - all three of them.  I tried calling Nebalee on my way to Denver, but didn't get an answer.  However, when I pulled into the hospital parking lot, I get a text from Nebalee saying she was almost to the hospital.  I was perplexed, as I don't recall telling her that Robs had had the babies, but, hell, I might have.

And then a series of confusing texts followed:

N: We are almost at the hospital.

GD: What hospital?

N: Longmont (this was confusing to me because Robs is in Denver, not Longmont.  That's when I started to get a hint that we were not talking about the same thing.)

N:  Looks like probably surgery. (Surgery?  WTF is she talking about?)

N: I'm barely hanging on.  

GD: What? (I'm totally thinking something happened to Mom - sorry Mom, but you ARE bionic and sometimes things happen to make you more bionic.)

N:  Sorry thought you called because Mom called you.  Your timing was exactly on.  (Whew, Mom wasn't hurt, but WTH happened to Bill?)

GD:  So. What the hell happened?

Turns out Asset took a dive off of Ranger this afternoon and got banged up pretty badly, resulting in a broken arm and a whole lot of skin missing from her face.  Luckily, she had a riding helmet on and Autobot had insisted that it be adjusted to fit her just before she climbed on Ranger.



No one knows what caused Ranger to jump, and it apparently wasn't a big jump, but it was enough for her to lose her balance and make her acquaintance with the ground with a little help from our friend gravity.

She's hanging in there (so is Nebalee), but it's going to be tough to keep her still for the next couple of days.  Still and Asset do not get along.

Tomorrow's my defensive pistol match.  Let's hope it's a much less exciting day.

Italy, Day 13

11 Apr 06

We had a great sit-down breakfast at the hotel today, then set off in a water taxi to Murano island to see the glass blowers. 

The water taxi was much more like a "water limo" with wood and brass cabin and cream-colored leather seats.

The glass on Murano was amazing!  Watching the glass blowers do their thing was unbelievable.  Even after watching them start with plain glass and work it, I'm still in awe at what they are able to do.  I took a ton of pictures of sculptures that I loved, but couldn't afford.

Robs spoiled herself and bout six wine glasses and a carrafe caraffe wine decanter for 325 Euro including shipping and handling.  She should have everything in 4 - 6 weeks, so we'll have to have a party to celebrate when she gets them.

Signing her life away.

I bought some very cool bracelets for my co-workers, a necklace for Nelle, horse for Mom, angel for Grandma Mary and mini-carnival masks for a couple of other people.  I spent less than 50 Euro for 12 gifts ~ not a bad deal.

Squid was kind enough to model the jewelry.

The rest of the day was very laid back and relaxed.  Mrs Squid and I walked around while she finished up her shopping.  Then Squid, Kev, Robs and I went for gelato.  I think I'm going to go through gelato withdrawal when I get back to the States.

NEVER pass up an opportunity for gelato.  Never.  Ever.  Never.

I've eaten so much pizza here because it's fairly cheap, that I don't care if I see another pizza again.

After dinner, Squid, Mrs Squid, Robs and I walked to San Marco Square again to see it at night.  I was hopeful that it would flood so I could get some cool pictures of the reflection of the square in the water.

That's the extent of the flooding, which is a good thing.

Venice at night is every bit at beautiful as it is during the day, and we had a good time wandering through all of the alleys, even if Robs and I kinda got lost and worried Squid.

Headed home tomorrow.  As much as I'd like to stay here, I miss the kids and home.  I just hope that I'll be able to bring them back with me one day.

Italy, Day 11

09 Apr 06

Up bright and early today to take the train to Milan to see the Duomo (church) and AC Milan v. Chievo Verona.

The subway from the train station to the Duomo was much nicer than the subway in Rome.  There was much less graffiti and urine.

We climbed the stairs (164) to the roof of the Duomo  and walked around looking down at the square.  It's probably the only time I'll get to wander around the marble roof of a church.

With the drizzle, the roof was very slippery.

Our seats for the Milan game were not the best seats around, but at least we got to see them win 4-1.  I picked up shirts for the kids, which I hope they'll like.

Nothing brings a smile to Squid's face like futbol

When we got back to our hotel, the housekeepers had been in to straighten up and they left actual bath towels.  Then it dawned on me ... we had dried off after our showers with the towels hanging over the bidet.  We'd dried our bodies with ass-towels!

I wish we had more time to spend on Lake Como, but we're down to the last couple of days of our trip and we're off to Venice.