Schtuff

I have 5 things that I feel compelled to broadcast to the world wide web:

1. Let us investigate the various means by which people happen upon my blog. Here are the top google searches leading people to my little corner of the internet:
- In the last month 96 people have found my blog through searching "vienna sausages". Why? I do recall that I mentioned vienna sausages in this post, but I don't feel like it is an overarching theme of my blog.
- 2 have found it with a "wienershnitzel smorgasbord" search. Hmm.
- A large number have found their way here while searching for "funny pictures of roaches." ??
- A few more, searching "cute roach pictures."
- About 5 people a day find my blog while looking for "nutella and pretzels." How many pages do these people click through?? And what motivates them to click on this link??
- Lately, a few people have searched "32' port hole" and been directed to my blog. This one makes absolutely no sense to me. I'm not sure I've ever though about, no less written about, port holes.

Curious, indeed.

2. Ha.

3. Job search = over. Instead, I am going to try to just enjoy this summer and make the most of this rare opportunity to whatever I dang well please for a while. Things on my summer to-do list:

- Paint. My awesome cousin Summer is an incredible artist, and she is a great painter. Check out her super awesome business: www.finedoodles.com. She's given me some tips and I'm ready to get started! I've always wanted to paint, and I will probably be terrible, but I think I will like it.

- Work out a lot. I've been loving walking with Abby, running, sweating my guts out on the stair mill, doing Zumba on the Kinect (my downstairs neighbors probably love it), and lifting weights. But don't worry- I'm making up for all of this calorie burning with my other summer hobby which is:

- Fattening up my husband, our friends, and the missionaries at our church. So far we've enjoyed Maple Walnut Blondies, Peanut Butter Pie, Chicken Pot Pie, French Dip Sandwiches, Peach Crisp, Homemade Pizza, Carnitas Tacos, and many other delicious things but I'm tired of making links. 

- Reading by the pool, and hopefully developing a skin tone a few shades darker than my current pastiness. Any suggestions for good reads?? 

- Volunteering. I'm in the process of trying to volunteer at the hospital, but it's quite a process. Hopefully it'll work out.

- Biggest project: Compile ALL of my recipes into a recipe book. I take recipes from websites, blogs, books, scraps of paper from friends, index cards, and all over the place. When it comes to menu planning, I get overwhelmed by all of the options and I can't think of a single thing that I make. I want to take all of the recipes I've made and enjoyed and get them all into a book. It's been on my to-do list for about a year now, and I'm finally going to tackle it. That is if I can squeeze it in between wandering the apartment and wandering around Wal-Mart.

4. 

My friend has 2 bulldogs, and I am a little bit obsessed with them. Obsessed isn't the right word... more like, fascinated. Natural selection does not support the existence of bulldogs. They would not survive in nature. For starters, their squished faces are really just not compatible with normal breathing. And then there is the fact that they have to take napping breaks every 3 minutes. But I love them and their ridiculousness. And their snoring is strangely soothing. 

5. I want these shoes:

And on an unrelated note, my birthday is coming... Only 63 more shopping days.

Albatross

The albatross is a large seabird, usually found in the southern oceans and North Pacific. Upon maturity, the albatross selects his mate using a goofy but affectionate mating dance. 

They prefer to live in packs on small islands, but are rarely found on land. They belong in the air and fly great distances. Despite its extensive travels, this bird will always return home. They will always come back to the same partner. These birds find their mates young and live long lives; always faithful to their first partner. 

Happy (almost) 2 year anniversary to my albatross. 

From our first goofy mating dance... (get your mind out of the gutter)

... To the day we picked each other for life.

.... And 2 years later.

Here's to an eternity of always flying back to me. 

Mama.

All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.  

~Abraham Lincoln

My mom is Robin Dunnaway Reichman. She was born in Georgia to a hardworking and humble family of 7 children. She worked her way through school, taking glamorous jobs such as working at the Wienerschnitzel to get by. My dad came along, they got married, got pregnant about 3 seconds later, and just like that my mom stepped into her role as mother. 

My mom could have been a lot of things. She's smart and clever. She works hard and accomplishes what she wants. She's dedicated and sharp and would succeed in any avenue she decided to take. Some less enlightened people might say that her talents were squandered by her decision to stay home and raise a bunch of snot-nosed bratty kids. As one of those now grown but still bratty and occasionally snot-nosed kids, I would like to make sure the world knows that my mother's talents were not wasted. They did not go unappreciated. I am eternally grateful and indebted to her, and the sacrifice she made to be a mother to me and my siblings. Because of her sacrifice, she has 6 children to adore her. 6 children who are happily, albeit clumsily, developing into (mostly) functional people who will hopefully contribute some good to the world. Because of her love and devotion, I miraculously moved out of the house, went to college, found a husband, and am behaving in a pattern that is very like unto adulthood. This surprising development is solely the result of the encouragement and support of my mother. 

My mom is the woman that the calling of motherhood was designed for. She's one for the books: selfless, compassionate, kind, funny, playful, comforting, great cook, listener extraordinaire, strong, beautiful. I really don't deserve her. She is completely selfless. Her truest joy in life is to watch her children be happy. She's spent her life shopping on clearance for herself, so she can spoil her kids on their birthdays. Giving up hobbies or interests so that she can be at every concert, game, and recital. Sacrificing sleep to help with last-minute projects or rub the back of a sick baby. Dyeing her hair from the box so that she could afford to take me to get those highlights I was convinced would change my life and make me popular. She gave it all to being a mother. 

A couple weeks ago, my mom helped me load up my car as I left her house after living there for 2 months. As she heaved my 300 pound suitcase into my trunk, I suddenly felt kind of sorry for my future children. They are on their own with the heavy suitcases. I am so far away from everything that my mother is. But luckily for my future children (heaven help them), my mom gave me all of the tools I need to be the mom I want to be. Even if I never develop the crazy mom-strength of my mother, it is my sincerest hope that I can give my children everything my mom gave to me. I don't say it enough, but I hope she knows how extremely grateful I am for her. 

Thank you for letting me crawl into your bed to watch Sesame Street at 6 in the morning. (Not recently.) (Although there are times I still want to.)

Thank you for attending countless concerts, recitals and plays. Even the painful ones. Like Pirates of the Penzance in 7th grade. That's true love, folks.


Thank you for making the effort to give all of your children amazing memories. It couldn't have been easy loading us all up in the van and driving 7 hours to the beach, but those memories are priceless to me. 

Thank you for being my friend when no one else was. For convincing me that I am worth being friends with. For telling me that the girl who was so mean to me in 9th grade was just a B-word, and I don't need to waste my time being hurt by her. 

Thank you for the endless phone conversations about all of the trivial details of my life. For the advice when I need it. For the "you are so right" when I am probably wrong but don't want to hear it. For the listening ear that doesn't judge, but just listens. 


Thank you for making me feel like a million bucks. For clapping after every song, telling me my ideas are awesome, reading every paper, and congratulating my every accomplishment. You're the first person I run to with good news, and I think that's because I know that none of it would be possible with out you.


Thank you for sending me packages when I'm far away. And thanks for helping me buy plane tickets so that I can be home again.


Thank you for still letting me be your baby, even at 22. Sometimes a girl just needs her mama.


Thank you for showing me how to find joy in the small moments. For showing me that life is mean to be enjoyed, and not just endured. Thank you for teaching me how to laugh at myself. 


Thank you for teaching me that the way to happiness is to serve others.


Thank you for your testimony, and your example of clinging to the gospel. Your faith inspires me and blesses me more than you can know. Thank you for your prayers on my behalf. 


Thank you for loving me, despite my long list of imperfections. 


Thank you for showing me what it means to be a mother. 

Thank you, mama.

I love you bunches.

Oklahoma is O.K.!-

Greetings from scenic Altus, Oklahoma. The 10 hour road trip from Denver to Altus was just exhilarating. So many sights. Mostly cows.

Our Oklahoma adventure begun a week ago, and on Thursday we finally got into our apartment and by Friday we had internet! Now we're cooking with gas! We are unpacked and taking in all of the Oklahoma-ness we can. So far I've soaked in quite enough heat, flies, giant beetles and moths and I've had my fill, thank you. But we are enjoying Blue Bell ice cream (phew, I might have experienced withdrawals without it), Cary's relaxed flying schedule, and cable TV that is included in our rent. Abby remains unsure about apartment living and misses her backyard, but seems to enjoy having a dedicated audience each time she has to go to the bathroom. I already hate picking up dog poop, but it will just make getting into a real house in Spokane that much more delightful.

We will be calling Altus, Oklahoma our home for the next 5 months. So far, no one seems excited about the idea of hiring me for 5 months, but I'm not giving up. Without a job this summer, I might actually go insane. Cary is home quite a bit, but his schedule is very bizarre. One day he'll go in for 8 hours, the next he won't go in at all, followed by a 2 hour day, another day off, etc. And he's gone in every Saturday so far for a 5:30 a.m. simulator flight. Thusly, I have been very confused about what day of the week it is. And my brain is still stuck in February. I am not a person who thrives without some sort of routine.

So far we've had all kinds of adventures in Altus. We went to clean out our cars yesterday, during which time I vacuumed up enough Abby hair to make a whole new Abby. Sheesh. And then, because we weren't having enough fun cleaning our cars in the 95 degree heat, I decided it would be a good time to lock my keys in my car. Oh no problem, Cary has a spare. Except, wait, I had all of the spare keys while I went on all of these road trips. That sure is too bad. But the locksmith came and I learned how to break into my own car. It is not very glamorous, and he really did use a coat hanger. $36.00 later, all was well. Except my ego.

Who wants to see our apartment? Everybody? I knew it.

View of the living room from the front door. Hi Abby. My, what big jowls you have in this picture. Boy, good thing we have a fireplace. I'm sure it will get loads of use this summer...

View from the other side. The apartment came furnished, including a TV and cable! Hot dog! We lucked out in the furniture department, and our couch is sooo comfortable. I took a very enjoyable nap there yesterday. 

The kitchen. Some of the kitchens in this complex have bowls, plates, pots, pans, etc. But ours came with only 4 plates and bowls, and some dirty tupperware. Luckily we brought some of our own stuff.  But this summer will probably not be one for the culinary books without all of my usual kitchen gadgetry. (To my KitchenAid in the storage unit... Mama loves you.)

Bedroom. There is a big chest of drawers with a mirror across from the bed.

Guest bedroom! Come visit! We will even buy some sheets to put on the bed, just for the occasion!

Master bathroom. There is a full bath attached to the master bedroom, and then another full bath in the hallway! Bathrooms galore! Someone really needs to come visit us. We have so much space. 

And there you have it. And yes, I made Abby be in all of those pictures on purpose. She looks pretty possessed in a few of them. Abby and I have had to be kind of creative on our walks and runs since arriving in Altus. There aren't a lot of sidewalks and most of the roads are fast and busy, so for a while we just wandered in circles around a nearby neighborhood. But a couple of days ago, we discovered an irrigation ditch with a dirt road next to it that borders all of the fields around here. It's not the most scenic or exciting route, but I feel pretty confident that we're not going to get run over when we're out, so I'll take it.

It goes on for miles. And miles. And miles. And it looks like this the whole time. 

All in all, Oklahoma seems like an OK place to spend the summer (get it? OK?). It's hot and podunky, but my husband comes home every night and we have several friends who are stuck here along side us. And if anyone wants to come spice up our summer and come visit us, our apartment complex has a pool, we have a room for you, and I'll make you all kinds of delicious food.

As a result of all of this boredom, I tried to spruce up my blog today, but I'm not extremely thrilled with the results. Blog banners are not my forte. I wanted to come up with something awesome for my blog title, but neither "Amy" or "Reeves" really lend themselves to particularly awesome blog titles. I pondered the matter for days, but it turns I don't care enough to lose much sleep over the matter. Sorry if my blog aesthetics disturb your reading pleasure. I'll try to make up for it in witty banter and pictures.

And for those still on the edge of your seats about how I fared on my lofty April goals (run 100 miles, don't drink Diet Coke), I ran 108 miles and I didn't drink any Diet Coke**

**Okay, I had one Diet Coke on my road trip, but it was on April 29th and I was getting soooo sleepy while driving, so really it was a medical necessity. I'm calling it a success. Stop judging me.

But in all reality, this Diet Coke fast really has me bothered. On the one hand, I love Diet Coke. It is delicious. And stopping for a fountain Diet Coke with pebbled ice is one of the more profound joys I experience in life. However, there are occasions where my beloved beverage betrays me. My insides get all bloaty and distressed. And here in the other hand, there was a marked difference in how my intestines fared during my month without Diet Coke. So, what to do now? Come crawling back to the sweet nectar of life, despite occasional tummy troubles? Or forgo it completely? And if you are currently drafting a preachy comment about how diet sodas are going to give me cancer, you can go ahead and just print that there comment out on some paper and eat it, because I don't want to hear any of that nonsense. I think for now I will live by a self imposed rule of drinking 1 Diet Coke per week. I will keep you posted on my intestinal state. I know how concerned you get.