Every Day Should Be Exterminator Day

Jason and I have been discussing getting an exterminator to treat our house for a while now.  We don't have a pest "problem."  It's just that we live around woods, so we do have quite a few bugs and varmints.  Well, the other day, an exterminator came to our door trying to book appointments.  Serendipity!  We scheduled an appointment for last Tuesday.

Here are the reasons why every day should be Exterminator Day:

#1: It forces us to clean our house.  Since we rarely have anyone over (and since Megan is super lazy), our house often goes long periods of time collecting dust and dirt.  This had to be fixed before the exterminator came.  Not only was the guy going to be in out house, but he needed access to the floorboards, so we really had to straighten up.

#2: It led to a really awesome afternoon.  We had told the original guy at our door that I was pregnant, and he made a note of it.  When the actual exterminator came on Tuesday, we learned that meant we had two options -- don't spray the inside of the house or I had to leave the house for two hours.

I had no problem leaving the house.  It was only 5:00 by that point, so I figured I'd go hang out at Caribou or something.  The only bummer was that I hadn't brought home papers to grade that night.  I didn't have any errands to run, either (I had taken care of them the day before).  Then, my brilliant husband had a great idea -- I could wait outside while the guy sprayed and then the two of us could go somewhere together.  Awesome!

I went out and sat in my car and read my Woman's Day magazine while I waited.  Jason finished up with the guy, and we went out on the town!  Um, but what to do now?

We ended up going to Caribou after all, getting coffees (decaf mint condition for me, please!), and walking around the outside of the art museum taking photos and sipping our coffees.  It was great to take things slow, have no agenda (except to waste away two hours), and to escape the temptations that are my couch and tv.  It turned out to be a fantastic evening!  Who knew Exterminator Day would be the highlight of our week?

This is what happens when I tell Jason to "smile with your new camera and coffee!"

Man, I love this handsome fella!

quick self portrait

capturing a sunlit blade of grass during the "magic hour" of daylight

Spring!

I love springtime.  Spring means several things to me.


Spring means rainbows of colorful flowers!

Spring means tulips!

Spring means morning photo trips resume after a dreary winter.

Spring means pollen!  (hey, I didn't say they were all positive things!)

Catching Up

I know I've been horrible about blogging recently.  Here's an quick (or quick for long-winded-me) synopsis of the past few weeks with the Selfs.

Baby:

Since finding out we're having a boy, we've decided on a nursery theme (to be revealed once I create some craft projects for the room), bought bedding, a dresser, and a side-table.  To be purchased: a crib (out of stock when we went to IKEA) and a glider (waiting for one to pop up on SAS's bulletin board).

His dresser.  Yes, we bought a RED dresser.  The more shocking part was that it was "Why can't the whole world be brown?" Jason Self's idea!  The red's a bit brighter in real life than the picture shows.

Lilhimself is still hanging out.  He's not very kicky at all, but he sure does make Mommy's back hurt like whoa.  Jason and I are still working on names.  We're very quick to veto, but slow to fall in love with any of the non-vetoed names.

Jason:

In love with his new camera (yes, another one) and sore/tired from all the work around the house.

Home:

We've aerated, fertilized, seeded, and watered our lawn with the hopes that grass will grow in our very large bare patches.  The result?  Lots of green stuff, though most of it isn't grass.  I'm calling that a victory, despite what the neighbors might say.  We also bought a table and four chairs yesterday for our deck.  We'll have better pictures later, but here's the one from Home Depot's website:

Work:

Work's busy (hence one reason I haven't blogged recently).  We're covering the periodic table (*excited squeal*) in Physical and Climates (*yawn*) in Earth.  I just got my schedule for next semester, so I'll start making sub plans soon for my maternity leave.  I gave a workshop on Friday about creating fun activities for students.  Presenting to coworkers who have been teaching since I was in diapers = mondo intimidating, but I survived!

Food:

What's a Megan blog without mentioning food?  We've had some yummy things recently, including meatball subs (made with this recipe) and mac and cheese (oh, Alton Brown, how we love thee).  We also had some less-than-successful meals (like my attempt at chile rellenos) that we suffered through together.  I've decided pregnant ladies should not be allowed to go grocery shopping.  I know there's "three" of us now, but seriously, my spending has gone way up since January!  It's a bad combination of everything making me hungry and being tired and just wanting to get home (so throwing anything feasible in the cart instead of planning out meals in detail).  Oh well.  It does mean we've been eating REALLY well recently!

20 Weeks

Here I am at 20 weeks.  We've reached the halfway point, folks!  No need to draw an arrow anymore, because the bump is quite pronounced.

How far along?  20 (almost 21) weeks
Baby size?  A banana... again, a horrible analogy since it's the length of a banana, but obviously not the same shape!
Maternity Clothes?  I got a whole new load from Kara (It's like Christmas!  Look at all my new clothes!).  I am officially out of jeans that fit and am down to about two non-maternity dress pants that still fasten.  I've been wearing dresses and skirts when the weather behaves because they're the most comfortable.  Last Thursday (when it was crazy cold and SLEETING!!!!) I broke down and wore Kara's maternity jeans.  Jeans that fit a 5'4" person do not fit a 5'7" person the same way.  Yep, rocked out the embarrassingly-short jeans in public.
Sleep?  I'm actually sleeping really well.  I haven't even been getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom the past few weeks. *knocks on wood*
Best Moment this Week?  Finding out that we're having a BOY!  Jason ended up taking the rest of the day off (yay for great bosses that encourage him to do so), and we went bedding shopping.  Fun!
Miss Anything?  I miss normal-length jeans and being able to curl up in any position on the couch without someone (yes, I'm talking to you, baby) making me uncomfortable.
Movement?  It's weird.  Everyone has been asking me, and the doctor said I should be feeling something.  Then Friday night, I think I definitely felt the baby when I laid down on my side.  The night before, we had fallen asleep with Jason's hand on my belly (Did you just "aww?"  Because how sweet is that?) and he swears he felt something.  I haven't felt anything since then.
Food Cravings?  I seriously wanted an ice cream float on Friday.  Jason was sweet enough to get me one.  It had real Coke and everything (I tried not to drink too much of the soda part).
Anything Making Me Queasy/Sick?  Nope, I want to eat it all!
Gender?  BOY!
Symptoms? I get a little pain in my side on occasion, but if I put a little pressure (like my hand) on it, it goes away.  I'm also a bit uncomfortable hanging out on the couch at night.  I also have been having a few back problems while sitting, but nothing a well-placed pillow can't fix.
Wedding rings on or off?  Still on, and particularly shiny since I just had my 6-month cleaning.
Mood?  Pretty elated.  I would have been happy with boy or girl, but KNOWING now just makes it so real.
Looking forward to?  Decorating the nursery.  I'm so excited!

Easter Portraits

What is it about Easter and taking family portraits?  On Sunday, Facebook was full of families posed together, usually in front of budding trees.  Maybe it's that everyone looks decent (or at least tries to) on Easter.  Maybe it's the fun colors, either pastels or bright, depending on your Easter personality.  Well, my family was no exception.  We actually took portraits after church on Sunday.  We didn't get the whole family (Jill was in Charlotte, my cousin Jason had left on Saturday because his girlfriend had to work, and Daddy was way sick), but I was pleasantly surprised with the pictures I did manage to get.

Jason and Sammie on Saturday before they headed back to WF

Mom, Aunt Carol, Uncle Jim, and Aunt Tammy

Jason and I

Aunt Carol and Cousin Adam

One of my favorites of the day -- Kara, Addison, and Kelly

PS, not only does "cheddar Bo biscuit" still get a big smile, but apparently Uncle Jason was making Aunt Meg have bunny ears!  Oh, Uncle Jason!

Grandma (or "Anma," as it sounds to me) and Addison putting flowers in my church's Easter cross

Love this one

And because we need just one more Addi pic:

This Year's Festival

For a description of the Herring Festival, see yesterday's post.

Jason and I rolled into town just in time to see the parade.  I didn't take a lot of pictures, but here's a few.

The Parade:

Kara trying to get Addison to wave (they were on their church's float)

This was quite the talk of the town... EVERYBODY needs Jesus, even Spiderman, Batman, Alice in Wonderland, and a sniper from Halo

After the parade, we went over to Tammy's for the egg hunt.

The Egg Hunt:

The 5 and under designated area... the eggs aren't exactly "hidden" for these kids.

After the hunt, Jason and I ate hotdogs and Cold Stone ice cream and walked around the festival.  After a while, we were a bit exhausted, and so we headed back to Mom's house.  This was the sight around the house that afternoon:

The one person who didn't nap?  The preggo!  I watched "The Incredibles" and some HGTV while everyone else slept.

I didn't get pictures of the rest of the afternoon.  Kara, Kelly, and Addison went to another egg hunt, and then we met up with them at the River's Edge to eat fried herring and rock (a type of striped bass), stewed potatoes, and okra.  Did I mention all of that was less than $9?  No wonder I think seafood at other restaurants is overpriced!

After dinner, Jason and I went to Kara's house to pick up her old maternity clothes (awesome!) and got back to Jamesville just in time for the fireworks.  What a day!

Herring Festival

Easter weekends growing up in Jamesville meant a few things -- new floral dresses that were always too summery for chilly Sunday mornings, sticking flowers in my church's cross, and going to the Herring Festival.

What is a herring?
First of all, for about 10 years of my life, I thought it was spelled "heren," because that's how we pronounce it in J-ville.  A herring is a small, narrow fish that is found all over the Atlantic Ocean.  Jamesville, which runs along the Roanoke River, is in love with and rather proud of our herring.  In fact, our school yearbook was called "The Herringbone."  While people in Scandinavia are known for pickling their herring, all Southerners know the best thing you can do with a fish is deep fry it.

 Before frying them, deep slits are cut along the length of the fish to ensure even cooking.

The end product -- cooked until it's crispy.  Some people eat the bones and all (just with herring, not all our fried fish), but I just eat the flesh and leave the skeleton behind.  I do differ from most of my fellow Jamesvillians in that I do not sprinkle the fish with pepper vinegar (vinegar that has been infused with hot peppers for up to several years) before eating it.  Just call me a purist.

What is the Herring Festival?
The Herring Festival started in 1949 to celebrate the spring spawning of the herring.  This time of year brought a lot of prosperity to the town as fishermen came to fish the river waters and diners came to eat at our seasonal restaurants, the Cypress Grill and the River's Edge (open only a few months a year while the fish are plentiful).  The festival included fireworks on Easter night, a baseball tournament, and the main festivities on Easter Monday (the day after Easter).

What memories do I have of the Herring Festival?
Growing up in Jamesville, it was THE DAY for our town.  There would be all kinds of yummy food, fun games to play (and prizes to win), and vendors selling all kinds of crap that appealed to young kids.    There was always good music, from blue grass to beach music to gospel, that always gathered a crowd.

When I was 9 or 10, I spent $20 playing this one game over and over, and showed back up at my house with six giant inflatable objects (inflatable bear, guitar, baseball bat, crayon, and two others I can't remember).  All through elementary and middle school, the first thing you had to do was arm yourself with silly string and poppers (the kind you throw on the ground to make popping noises), so that you were prepared if you ran into a school classmate.

When I went to college, one of my biggest disappointments was that I had classes on Easter Monday, so I couldn't attend the festival.  Well, a few years ago, for the 60th anniversary of the festival, they switched things around.  The festival is now on the weekend before Easter, which means I can attend it again (much to Jason's joy, I can assure you *insert sarcasm here*).

What is the Herring Festival like now?
A lot has changed with the festival.  Other than the days, the festival is now on Main Street instead of River Road (two whole blocks over, people, drastic difference).  There's no baseball tournament anymore, but there is a parade.  Oh, the parade.  Do you have an old car?  You can be in the parade!  Do you have a four-wheeler (ATV)?  You can be in the parade!  Do you have a Mustang or Corvette (not vintage, just any year)?  You can be in the parade!  Honestly, not my town's finest moments.

Images from previous years:

Got motorcycles?  You can be in the parade!

Got a weird car?  You can be in the parade!

Yep, that's the Easter Bunny riding in an ambulance.

*facepalm*  Really, this is how we want to represent our town???

The festival also includes an Easter egg hunt at my aunt Tammy's house.  It's huge!  I didn't even know that many kids were in the town!

Images from previous years:

Hiding the eggs

 Stay tuned for descriptions of this year's festivities.