Apple-ized

I really want a MacBook. I'm just sayin, 'case anyone's got a spare $2K they're not usin'.

Heading for the cloud...

I have been trying since I first got my iPhone to enter all my contact
information into google, so that I can access it from anywhere,
including my phone. (fear not - all confidential info goes into
splashID). Anyway, this is easier said than done! I spent two solid
hours on it tonight, and have only made it to the M's.

I really didn't think I knew that many people!

... but not again

Well, it's Wednesday, and so, of course, I have a sick child. At least this time* there is really no question, as Madilyn started throwing up around 5:45 am, which was followed by problems at the other end about an hour later.

So much for class followed by more skiing today. And of course, the weather is wonderful. Sigh. Watch out for the pieces of shattered hopes as you leave... they'll cut you. Sorry, I'm feeling dark and full of self-pity today.

------------------

*those who have followed my life this school year know that I decided to take a religion class at church on Wednesday mornings, taught by one of the university institute instructors. Feeling an acute need for some intellectual conversation on meaningful topics, I thought this was a perfect fit. God, apparently, doesn't agree, since my household has been struck by illness 12 out of the 19 times that class has been held. I would think that attending a religion class would be considered a righteous desire, but apparently, there is something else here I need to learn...

Skiing again!

Today was a WONDERFUL day! Kate and I grabbed our skis and headed up to Wm. O'Brien State Park for some xc skiing. The weather was great, and the views from the trail were fabulous. It had gotten warm and foggy the day before, then froze overnight, so everything had a beautiful covering of frost.

Why, you ask, didn't you take any pictures to include with your post? Well, when we left, I wasn't in the greatest mood, and didn't really feel like talking. Kate, great friend that she is, accepted this without complaint. I told her to go ahead and lead, rather than ski beside me.

Mistake. The woman has been going easy on me. Although I was able to keep up with her, her pace is definitely faster than mine. She sincerely mentioned that she was having a hard time getting moving that day, for which I was grateful, since I couldn't have kept up with her if she was feeling chipper!

In spite of what her kids think, she doesn't have eyes in the back of her head, so she didn't see me struggling, and of course, I am far too proud to not try and keep up. So, I kept quiet and slogged on. At first I kept thinking about being a flabby 43 year old out-of-shape housewife, making a fool of herself... but then I realized... at least I'm out doing something! Then, my quest seemed a little more valiant. Although humbling, it was actually quite a fun workout.

So that's why no pictures. I was too busy sweating. Seriously. I had the soaked-through coat to prove it.

YES! Back again tomorrow!

Trip to China

So, below is an example of the type of communication I have with my husband when he is out of the country. A man of few words, no? (Note: this is actually the longer of the two emails that I received from him during his trip. The first was a blank message with the subject line "Made it to china".)

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Gary Poulsen <ggpoulsen@gmail.com>
Date: Thu,Jan 14, 2010 at 7:27 PM
Subject: Boarding flight 9:50am
To: Laura Poulsen <lmpoulsen@gmail.com>

Flight looks good, bought slippers for Sarah and glass globe like snow globe for madi.

Madilyn had asked for a snow globe, so I figured he was on track with
that one, but I was very worried because I pictured embroidered
Chinese slippers for Sarah, and thought... what is he thinking?? She
hates wearing slippers!

Well, he was a hit when he got home, because these were the gifts he brought:

Super cool glass globe that spins on its base. Madilyn had asked for a snow globe with the great wall of China in it (?? where do they come up with these ideas??) and this is pretty near perfect. Madilyn was unconcerned about the lack of snow; I thought it looked classier this way.

Panda slippers! Sarah, the girl who hates wearing things on her feet, wears these things constantly. She rocks the panda slippers.

Funny of the day

Wonder if the same can happen with laughing, which I did upon seeing this...

On my skis again - finally!

So in December it finally snowed enough for some cross country skiing around here, and so I promptly left town for two weeks for the holidays. During that time, I was tortured by my BFF's constant posts on Facebook about her skiing adventures with her family. Fueled by envy, I came back to town, determined to strap on the skis and head out... only to be faced with bone-chilling temperatures. Even I am not crazy enough to ski when it's -20 outside.

But today! Finally! I (unintentionally) tore my way-too-dedicated-to-her-studies friend Kate away from her books by declaring that I was going skiing solo. In retrospect, I should have known that she was too much of a worrier to let me go alone, but I guess I was a bit stir-crazy... Anyway, she introduced me to a new local place, Pine Point Park Reserve.

Trails were great, and we had an awesome time! It does bother me a bit that she is able to talk non-stop while we ski, while I struggle to keep my breathing even, but hopefully by the end of the season I will have gotten in better shape, and our treks will be a workout for both of us. For now, I'm grateful that she considers me good company.

Here's us before the final downhill. I must say that there were a couple of downhills where I gained enough speed and momentum to solidify my resolve to NEVER go downhill skiing. If I ended up on my posterior in a snowbank at such low speeds, I can only imagine the horrific snowball I'd make on an actual slope. I'm sticking with the Nordic, thank you.