fall equinox

Yesterday was fall equinox; and it definitely feels like fall here now. All of a sudden. Since we arrived here in Northfield on Sept. 1, we've enjoyed late summer time weather, sunshine, blue sky, balmy temperatures. I've been wearing short skirts and tank tops, Lilly's been in T-shirts and shorts, we've played in the baby pool, outside around the house, enjoyed on our porch. Then all of a sudden it got cooler, darker skies, shorter days, the evenings, nights and mornings feel almost chilly, the last couple of days I've worn jeans. When I walked home from the library the other day, fallen leaves were spinning in the air, blown around by the wind. I like fall too. Every season has its charm. We're still out on the porch at night, right now, it's a little after nine, Lilly's asleep, we're sipping this fall's first Oktoberfest, made by Surly Brewing Company, one of our favorite microbreweries (we prefer the Surly Furious, it's super hoppy and kind of flowery. But the Oktoberfest is a nice treat, dark and kind of nutty).

Yesterday also marks three weeks since we arrived and two weeks since we started taking turns working and being with Lilly. It was hard to get into the swing of things at first, a new routine, the writing mode. But now I'm really enjoying it. The time, either with Lilly or at the library, writing, editing, it goes by in a swish! Unfortunately, getting into the writing mode for me also means that my shoulders tense up, I get so darned caught up in the process, and so all of me becomes this bundle of concentrated energy. And then it starts to hurt. This afternoon when I was writing (while Lilly was napping), my shoulders hurt so bad I could tell my irritability was quickly rising.

But then I got to go to yoga this afternoon, after an early dinner. It felt so good, I almost cried. Yoga is like giving your own body a good massage, at least for me it is. I'm so grateful we're both getting to practice now. Leighton goes Monday night, then I go on Wednesdays, as well as Saturday morning. There's also a class Thursday night Leighton can go to. And Tuesday nights, I get to walk with Dee, witnessing and being with the changes that surround us, that we're in.

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Lilly update: wants to do all we do, from eating what we eat (including my pita sandwich this afternoon, with goat milk yoghurt, turkey, cheese, grapes, and mustard. Another favorite is parmesan cheese; she likes it more than the noodles we dust it on. She also wants our coffees and my tea; I gave her a tea spoon taste today, she kept wanting more...), to unlocking doors with our keys, reading her new book from Marte, dancing to Raffi's songs, stomping around, running, not walking, mimicking our talk, doing her own talk, playing with other kids at the library, playing with her "baby" doll Rita, and of course playing with her dogs ("vov, vov!" her dogs are now plentiful: Eddy, Snoopi, Husky, and then there's bamse, and gopher, and pus-pus). She loves "swimming" in the bath tub and the baby pool outside (but now I think the season for that's over). Meeting other kids in the neighborhood ("heeeiiii!!!" w/big smiles). And other adults. And animals (she likes the ducks in the river, and whatever cat and dog she hears or sees, and birds. But she's not too interested in the squirrels, and there are plenty of those around.

"make yourself at home"

We've been back over two weeks now. Settling in. There are many things to do around the house. Chores which are hard to get around to with our new schedules. But we're making ourselves at home.

Lilly loves all the space to run and play. Here she is with her friends, cozying up on the couch.

We inflated the pool last weekend. Anne and Lilly got in to cool off, pictured here playing "I see (you)!" Lilly says, over and over, "I see! I see!" with lots laughs.

Lilly also likes playing in our bed (even though she has her own big girl bed in her own bedroom). Here she is reclining against the pillows with her round belly, eating the cord to the window shade like a little glutton.

Here's a picture of the two women of the house on the sun porch, which we are getting good use out of while we still can. Mama got a new haircut and Lilly is wearing a cute new, "girlie" shirt . Aren't they both lovely!


We've added a new album called USA II. The Greece album is now complete. If you didn't keep up with our adventures this summer, link to the album and click on the "slideshow" button for an automated picture show. Also, we've updated some albums with pictures from our film camera, so check the sidebar.

home in Northfield

Lilly playing with my Mardi Gras pearls on our porch

It's Saturday, Jesse James weekend here in Northfield; the town's invaded by people relishing on fair food, kids enjoying rides at the amusement park that's been set up, we can still hear the rowdy sounds from the rodeo, lots of stuff going on. I was looking forward to my first yoga class back at Heartwork this morning, but alas, they had closed for the festivities. Fortunately, I ran into a good friend and former colleague and we teamed up for a walk instead, through mosquito ridden prairie landscape. Then Leighton and Lilly met up with me and we went to the local "Used a bit shoppe" where we got Lilly some new toys (a work station table she loves to work at in the kitchen when I cook, a piano/xylophone, and a thing to pull or push on, like a lawn mower, with a sound), all for six bucks.

Lilly's been down with a cold since we got back, the climate change, maybe, combined with a reduced immune system after three days of traveling. She had a rough night last night, teething again, I think. After a long nap this afternoon, she had lots of parmasan (!) and pasta for supper. -- I think her tummy hurts a bit now... It feels full and hard! In any case, after she finally fell asleep, Leighton and I got to watch a movie on my laptop, out here on the porch (Australia, with Nicole Kidman). I enjoyed the movie, it's very Baz Luhrmann. And I love hanging on our porch. In the pic. above you can see Lilly playing out here with some Mardi Gras pearls the other day, stuff I found packed away in the basement. We're getting things out for a garage sale.

I'm so amazed at how girly Lilly can behave, draping herself with pearls, playing dress-up. Where did she get that from???? I haven't worn jewelery in ages. She's also quite the tomboy though, beating herself up right and left, front and back (I'm not going into detail here: enough to say she hit her head badly enough at the airport in Athens for the ambulance to arrive and transport us to the nearest doctor. She's fine now, though. But everyday she seems to manage to attain another bruise or wound).

What else? We've had a good first workweek. After labor day last Monday (Sept. 7), Leighton and I have taken turns working either in the morning or the afternoon. I have MWF before lunch to work, and Tu & Th afternoon. Leighton has MWF afternoon and Tu & Th morning. I've been going over to the library at Carleton college or Northfield city library for my work times. I like walking along Cannon river downtown to get to either place.

We've also been busy running errands. I went with Lilly to Trader Joe's on Thursday to stock up on yummy inexpensive foods and drinks, and Leighton went to Target and Best Buy yesterday to get us a new digital camera. We've also gotten ourselves a video camera to capture all those countless precious moments with Lilly ...

first day back in Northfield, Minnesota

So we're back, at "home." I say "home" because, while we've been homesick for the US and our house for quite a while now, and the first thing I say when we land on American soil yesterday (in Chicago) is how much I prefer arriving here, in the US, as opposed to in Norway, where we had a layover the night before (everybody was so ungalant, unfriendly, and unhelpful; at the end of a very long day, none of the business men offered to help me, as I took the shuttle from the airport to the hotel, all by myself (while Leighton took the bus downtown to pick up a suitcase we'd stored for the summer to take along over here), with Lilly in my arms, a stroller packed up, two big backpacks, and three carry-ons). And what more? In Chicago we're detained by the INS. Because I'm "only" a permanent resident (still an "alien," even if "legal"), with a green card. Apparently I can't be out of the country for more than a year, without having obtained a special "reentry permit" from the local INS office before departure. I had not, so I had to pay a $ 545 fee. Now, this all sounds neat and fine, too bad for me (the fine), but not a big deal. But of course they had to make it into one. Strutting their guns in a huge theatrical power play performance that lasted a good three hours, back and forth, an eternal while intermittent interrogation, nurturing the suspense... So not only do we miss our connecting flight to Minneapolis, we ended up with a very tired baby, being very tired ourselves.

But of course, Lilly is a trooper traveler and was only happy exploring during the entire ordeal. She fell asleep as soon as we got on the plane again, and continued sleeping when we got into the car at the airport, all the way down here, and into bed, slept all night, just a few feedings.

And good friends help. My friend Nancy did not only provide us with the car we've now bought (a Volvo 850 fom 1997), but had also got us some milk, bread, coffee and fruit. Heaven for tired people. And then my friend and amazing neighbor Dee had put flowers and more fruit on our kitchen counter with a friendly note greeing us as we got into the house.

Which does not look quite the way we remember it. Not only has stuff been moved around, it's filthy. A cleaning company has been through, but ignoring the micro, stove, and fridge, apparently, as well as drawers and cabinets. And vents and corners and tub and sinks and .... So we haven't unpacked quite yet. But have been busy all day, getting settled, reclaiming the space, our home. Getting organized and stocked up today, attacking the cleaning and laundry tomorrow.

Lilly seems quite happy with it all, she had a lovely walk downtown with me this morning to do some errands, running into people we know, friends and colleagues (always, in a small town like this), then later again with Leighton while I went to Target for lots of stuff, from the essential diapers and toilet paper to the things we've been wanting but not feeling we can afford, like a bouncer seat and baby monitor set ("calling system"). Leighton picked up, oh, about 16 boxes and some from my office at St. Olaf College. Now that I've quit, they seem quite eager to get me out of there and had given me till end of today to pick up all my stuff. I don't know quite what to make of this. Wounded feelings? Jealousy? Pettiness? Or just plain eagerness to get all clean and good to go for fall semester?

In any case. I do look forward to walking up to campus with Lilly, visiting with friends and colleagues, mainly, I realize, outside of my "home" department. But then they are also the ones who express the most sincere sentiment of regret that I'm leaving.

I am glad that we get to have all of fall here, a full three months. This is home. If one of many homes. It's an important home. For me, for Leighton, and for Lilly.

Then we got some of our favorite food for dinner that we've been craving: mixed field greens with strawberries, walnuts and blue cheese, local corn on the cob, chicken in bbq sauce, blue corn chips with flax seeds and salsa. And margaritas.