Hawaii Five - Oh My

So now it's officially a tradition. When I was about this pregnant with Lisel, the band took a trip to one of the two states that though united with the rest of the states, is not actually connected to any of them.  And it was like, really cold there.


We took a trip to Alaska.


And it was this incredible trip.  We flew over glaciers and frozen bogs and actually played in Valdez and ate many a delicious meal in Anchorage (which is a surprisingly foodie oriented town).  Alaska is one of the last places in America that truly feels like a frontier. So going there so pregnant, and therefore so close to impending first time parenthood was, well, empowering.  Having such a grand adventure so late in my pregnancy made me feel more confident about the greater adventure I was about the embark on. It made me feel like life was in fact, the final frontier.


(Okay so that was a little much but, whatevs!  This is my blog and I'll go over the top with my similes if I want to)


Now at roughly the same time in my second pregnancy, we'll all be heading to the other disconnected, but this time much warmer, state.  And this time, I'm looking forward to the relaxing side of what I now refer to as "my traditional long haul third trimester adventure."  Because I know that with a second child our lives are going to slide from reasonably handleable chaos to "they told me two was like ten, oh why didn't I listen to them" sleep deprived wildness.


And so I think that yes, I will be kicking back on as many beaches as I can, virgin Mai-Tai in hand, watching the waves roll in, and building sand castles with my daughter and husband.  My folks will be with us too on this  (hopefully) restful  adventure.


Lucky? Yes.


Thankful? Definitely.


Excited? Incredibly.

Other Road Mommies and Daddies!

I have found my people.

And they are on the internet.

I have discovered blogs of other touring families.

And I'm beyond ecstatic.

Before a couple of days ago, the only other road family I knew about were Mates of State. They've been traveling with their kids (yes I said kids, as in more than one, as in two. An epic feat in itself) and chronicle their adventures on a blog called Band on the Diaper Run. That blog has been my inspiration in a lot of ways. I mean, what could be more inspirational that reading about those who came before you.

But I never, you know, reached out in any kind of "help me please way!" I think I may have left two comments. Maybe. Mostly I just read and lurked and learned.

And that was it.

Then a couple of days ago I followed a random follow friday tweet from my favorite mommy blogger Girls Gone Child and just happened to land in the interweb realm of Jenn Rock Enders, aka tourtot.com. Jenn travels with her husband Ace, taking care of the business side of his music. And now she's also taking care of their son, Artie.

And through reading Jen's blog, I found Banjos and Babies the blog of the road manager/nanny for the Wailin' Jennys. This is another two baby experience, but this time it's twins!

I cannot tell you how giddy it has made me to find these blogs. I mean, there aren't exactly an books out there for touring with infants. And like I said, I'd only ever found one other blog. But here, there are two more people who know. Who know what it's like out there.

Yay!

I know, I know. The interweb is a big place. And probably, if I started googling, I could find more families like us out there. But during this last year, I was, you know, kinda busy. Truth be told, I didn't think to look.

Cause I was busy, okay!

But now, now I've found these blogs and I'm feeling all "my people!!!" I read their stories and I feel it. I know it. I've been there.

And I've got advice. Lot's of advice. So much that I hope I don't annoy them with all the knowledge I'm about to send their way.

So today is a good day. There are people out their on the same journey we're on.

Awesome.

Blogging Anxienty

So I'm running up against a little blogging issue, and I thought I might turn to the internet for advice. I see this blog as a chronicle, a travelogue -- a constantly updated take of my families travels on the road. And when I'm writing every day, I feel like it works. But sometimes...well sometimes the blog just doesn't get writ...Sometimes I have a baby in my arms all day, or we're traveling somewhere without interweb access, or we have interweb access and the damn pictures won't load...or, man, I'm just to tired/uninspired to write in the brief blogging window that presents itself to me.

And I get behind.

Well, then I feel the need to get caught up. But the catching up take me out of the present moment, and like I've said before it gets very "And then we...and then we..." And suddenly blogging becomes this massive chore, and when presented with my brief blogging window I become quite overwhelmed...so overwhelmed in fact, that I put off writing...which gets me further behind...you see where this is going

I certainly am not the first person to feel this, I figured I'd ask the interweb how fellow bloggers deal.

My solution now? A quick prose poem pictorial update!

Vernal Utah, land of dinosaur bones
We played at a Gun Club
and met awesome babysitters
Stephanie, Myrna and Samantha (picture to come)
I realized I was sick
Which made the 15 hour drive to Livermore, CA with the baby fun
not!
In Livermore
my mother, father and sister met up
And we loaded into a mini-van
Next day, dropped the fam of in San Francisco
and Dave and I drove through a fairy forest to Point Arena

Sigh
Then we played for people who live off the map
Then a day off in Frisco

And then to Chico
We love Chico
And the folks at the Sierra Nevada Brewery
The to Tuolumne
beautiful Tuolumne
to the Black Oak Casino
We left the baby with the fam
then 13 hours to the Dalles
to play the Granada Theater
15 hours to Salina
Utah that is
where they had a dance contest before the show
And these Dancers weren't kidding

It was like some kind of Olympic style swing dancing
Then 10 hours to Craig Colorado
Elk and Whittling Capital of the world
No seriously, the Whittling was amazing


From Craig we went to Denver, where the family was reunited!



And right now my baby, my sister and I are taking some time out between gigs to have a ladies vacation on the road. We planned on taking the baby bus and doing some camping, but then the brakes in the Baby Bus totally went out (more on that dreadfully costly bit of news later) and so we had to rework our plans. We may be hoteling it right now, but we still got our nature on with a sweet hike this morning.


Fin!

Portrait of a stroller on a long trip

Coronado you were rad



We saw Dave's Mom and Dad





Introduced her to the sea





And met uncle Willie





Cousin Meghan was a blast





Bonded with cousin Tara fast



Grabbed Aunt Wendy's nose

So that's how the good time goes.

-- Post From My iPhone