New member of the family!

Well, the Powells are excited to welcome a new member to the family!!!

What? You were disappointed to find out that it's not another baby??   

Awwww, c'mon! You know us better than that. 

What, in our minds, is ALMOST as good as another baby?  

ANOTHER COFFEE MAKER, our course!!

The Powells now have FIVE (count 'em 1-2-3-4-FIVE!) ways to brew coffee.  (Ok, Brendon insists that I say we have SIX, actually. If you count the brewing set-up we use when we go backpacking, then yes- we have six.)

Let me reacquaint you with our coffee family:

(Starting from the left)
1. French Press. Perfect for a rainy weekend day. (Of course, we get those less often now in the South.)
2. Espresso Machine. She was our go-to coffee maker nearly everyday in Portland- a couple of shots and some hot water and.... poof! Americano heaven. Gets a little less use now, as the water here in Nashville makes the shots taste funny.
3. Bialetti Moka Express Stovetop Espresso Maker. We were introduced to this way of making coffee a few years back... while the shots are very strong, when coupled with the right amount of water, a little sugary sweetness and a dash of cream, it can be the perfect treat.
4. Standard Electric Coffee Pot. This old gal (this particular machine is nearly 10 years old now!) has become our stand-by in Nashville.  For some reason the water here doesn't seem to bother her as much as the espresso.
5. (drum roll, please.....)  THE TODDY COLD BREW SYSTEM!!!  Born out of an absolute need for cold coffee once the normal daily temps were hitting 90 by 10am, Brendon did some research and found this little gem. She arrived today (thanks, Dr. Amazon.com for a quick delivery) and we set up our first cold brew.

The Toddy is a cold slow-drip system wherein you combine your grounds with cold water and let it steep for 12 hours, and then allow it to pass through a filter, generating a cold concentrate that you can add to cold water, milk, soy... whatever.  Basically a nice way to do iced coffee without getting the acidic effect you get if you just let your hot, drip coffee get cold and poured it over ice.  Want hot coffee instead? Not to worry! You can combo your concentrate with hot water and wah-lah! Hot coffee.

Also, how can you not immediately trust something that quotes "independent lab tests."   This is MY kind of coffee maker!!  WOOOO!!!

Of course, the jury's still out on the flavor and versatility of our new family member, but we will keep you updated.

 

Happy Father's Day!

Last weekend, we also celebrated Brendon's second father's day. It's been SUCH a joy watching Brendon be a wonderful father to Ev and to see their special relationship develop. It's interesting seeing how she's learning that we are different and she will react to us completely differently, even if we are doing/saying the same thing. So fun.  I caught a picture of them this year, which you'll see below,  is a HUGE improvement over last year... Ev's still not smiling, as I caught her before she was about to head to bed, but it's better. I guess there's always 2012...

Father's Day 2011

(Father's Day 2010)

Videos from Gatlinburg....

Ev liked to dance to the music...

Fun dancing with mom...

30th birthday.

Well, I got a little older last weekend. The past 30 years has actually been pretty cool, looking back.
I've lived in 5 states, traveled abroad a number of times, got married, ran a couple thousand miles, had a child and received a PhD. Oh! And the crowning achievement being not moving back into my parents house. Not too shabby for 10, 957 days. :-)

To celebrate, we went out with some friends of ours here in Nashville a couple of weekends ago. We went to City House, my favorite restaurant here in Nash. Great food and great times with some friends that have become close to us during our first year here. (Two of which we met our first day here! Ev and I were about an hour off the plane.) To cap off the birthday experience, this past weekend we took a trip to Gatlinburg, TN near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and met up with friends for my 30th birthday. It turns out that the National Park is VERY lame, compared to those we love to frequent in the west, but being with close friends as I entered the next decade more than made up for it. Here's some pics of the festivities! Enjoy!

Ev and mom pre-dinner...

30!

Good friends.

Everyone at dinner!

My "30" dollar Brendon decorated to hang on the wall in the restaurant.... unfortunately, the stapler was broken.

The crew at Smoky Mountain Brewery

Ev and Kirst!

Eric. Being Eric. :-)

Three good lookin' doctors.

Who's the fine man?

Who's that other fine man?

View from the deck

Chantelle and breakfast. Classic.

Matty makin' the eggs. These two were made for each other.

A band we happened upon in Gatlinburg.

Ev and Matty.

The old woman... :-)

So much has happened...

Wow, where did the spring go! It seems like it was just March, I was starting a new job, Ev was figuring out the walking thing, Annie was a rookie post-doc and Khaya was a good old dog. Here it is getting into late June, I've been at work for nearly 4 months, Ev can not only walk but run and say a few words, Annie is in no way a rookie having been there over a year now and has had speaking appointments and awards given to her and Khaya is still a good dog but is able to run over 2 miles a few times a week.

Khaya: As good as ever with the patience of a saint, she has been making the transitions in our lifestyle quite well. We started to feel guilty about her decline in activity so we instituted the GOOBAR routine (get out of bed and run). I've been doing this at least twice a week in the mornings and she is up to running 2 miles without me dragging her and I think she'll be up to 4 within a month or 2. You all know she is one of the best dogs ever and she keeps proving it.

Evelyn: It is crazy to look back at pictures that were taken but only a few months ago and realize the changes that have taken place. Like I wrote above, in March she was barely taking a few steps and here she is now running around, going up and down steps, climbing things, getting up on crates or boxes, trying to jump...it is amazing how fast they gain skills. On top of that her communication is improving daily. Today we found her saying "nanna" for banana, Khaya for Khaya, duckie for her bath-time rubber duckie...and that is just today! She amazes us every day and her personality is becoming so complex and rich with every day that we can't wait to wake up to find out what the new day will bring.

Annie: She is now a 30 year old and proves that becoming 30 only proves how great 30 can be. Her work is proving successful due to her diligence and hard work. She busts her tail at work and still is able to make time for herself, Evelyn and me. Her marathon training is going good, she's on track and is excited for the fall trip to San Francisco to run with her girlfriends at the Nike Womens Marathon. Speaking of 30, we raised a glass on the special occasion in Gatlinberg, TN this last weekend. We rented a cabin and our friends from Portland who are now in Durham, NC drove over to meet us. We had a great weekend and Annie was thrilled to take in the early 30's with friends and a cool and relaxing setting. Even the black bears came out to say "happy birthday" to her.

Me: I'm having a blast at my job. I am challenged every day to learn more about the products I represent, the logistics of wine and spirits distribution, marketing, negotiating and selling. Many people ask me why I gave up woodworking and I give the simple answer that I haven't, I can still do woodwork any time I want to, I just continued in the business side which is where I needed to grow and be challenged. It really has been fun! Aside from this, I've been keeping up with running and have been working with wood in the garage (currently a buffet project).

We were also fortunate to have Annie's mom and step-dad join us here in Nashville for a week in May. It was great to see them and even more so to see them interact with Evelyn. It is an amazing bond that occurs between grandparents and grandkids. While they were here we took in some touristy sites, got some hiking in, plenty of good eating and a taste of the "humid south". Annie and I were also able to take advantage of the Montana babysitters and catch a date, it was wonderful!

Up next is a trip to Oregon for my niece's wedding. We are going out in July and haven't been to Oregon since last October. We are looking forward to a week with family, friends and the Oregon we love and miss. Please say prayers as we fly across the country with our 17-month older mover and shaker who will be more or less confined to our laps for 8 hours...we are scared!

Fashion Friday

Almost naked baby. 

(Diaper: Target. Photo credit: Matt Smith.)

Wordless Wednesday- Ev and the big city.

((Stealing the wordless wednesday concept from several of our blogger friends.))

Marathon training again!

Brendon and I figured out that this month marks 5 years of distance running for us.... and to commemorate, I found out this week that I'll be training for another marathon!
The race: Nike Women's Marathon
Place: San Francisco, CA
Date: 10.16.11
The race will be almost 4 years to the date from my last (and first) marathon in '07.
COOL FACT #1: It's an epic race, of which, 30,000 women applied and about 12,000 were chosen at random. The remaining 8,000 are college women (with automatic entry) and charity runners- the majority of which will be running with Team in Training. Many women go years without being chosen, so I feel lucky to have been picked the first time around.
COOL FACT #2: The course- super scenic!! We basically run all along the bay!!

It's known to be a very hilly course (see the white spikes in the elevation map above this sentence); something that I am hoping all these hills I am running in Nashville will help me with. Portland's marathon, which was my first, is one of the flattest around, so that will be a change. Speaking of a few things that will be different this time around... my training. Before my first marathon, I had only run a 10k. Never even a half. Obviously I've run countless halves, by now and a few thousand miles, so hopefully my "legs" will be much more ready to get under me. Specifically regarding training, below is a comparison of my training plan this time to my plan in '07.

Basically, the new plan is much longer and involves much more mileage both weekly and overall (the total mileage for the week noted above doesn't include the speed workouts, which are new this time around. I started doing speed workouts a few years ago and I think they have really improved my overall pace and am glad they are built into this plan). I'm hoping this approach will help lessen my chance of injury. I dealt with some knee problems in my last marathon (which side-lined me for 3.5 months) and am hoping the things I learned and have built into my routine ever since, will help me avoid those. We shall see.
Also, I am making a concerted effort, this time around, to focus more closely on my diet during the week... drinking more water, eating the right carbs and having less alcohol... I suppose the last one on this list fits under the umbrella of eating the "right" carbs. ha. It will be a challenge, given Brendon's new job, but sacrifices must be made. :-)
Here are the stats from '07:

So as you can see, in 2007 I was doing pretty well and staying on target for a 4h:15min finish until about mile 17 when the knee pain started and I pretty much ended up run-walking the last 8 miles... and gained over a minute per mile. Final finish time was about 4h:54min and some change. Not bad for my first one and am hoping this one can improve upon that quite a bit, despite the hills!
Also different this time will be training in the God-forsaken heat of the south and with a kiddo in tow. Brendon is strongly considering running the Flying Monkey Marathon (basically one of the hardest marathons around. Akin to "many will enter, few will win" sweepstakes disclosures, only "many will enter, few will finish") here in Nashville in November, so he'll likely be putting on the miles either with me or on the "other" weekend day, since I doubt either of us wants to run our long runs with the jogger! (UPDATE 5/3/11: I asked B about this last weekend during our run and he said that he wants to run EVERY run with jogger to have maximal resistance. The man is an animal. AN ANIMAL, I say.)
COOL FACT #3: All finishers get a necklace specially made for the Marathon from Tiffany & Co. WOO!

COOL FACT #4: Finally, the BEST part of all of this: running with girlfriends! One of my best friends from grad school, Carole, was also drawn in the lottery and we wil both meet up in SF and run the race together. Carole starting running a number of years ago (and is actually completing her 2nd marathon as I write this) and this will be her 3rd marathon. (Unless she squeaks another one in this summer... which I wouldn't put past her. ha!) Also, another friend of ours from grad school, Ashleigh, will be running the half marathon- she's got her hands full with 2 kiddos at home and has taken some time off from running (can I just brag that she ran her first marathon in under 4 hours!) and this race seemed like the best chance to lace up her shoes and getting back out there.
All in all, I plan to blog about my running journey as I train for this one.
So check back in, occasionally, and hopefully I'll have news to report about the training.
Now for my 8 mile run...

14 months!

Ok, well, 14 months was a few days ago, but here's a little video to show you what our little lady has been up to. Exclusively walking everywhere now... and really enjoying "throwing" the ball for herself. Throw, walk, pick-up. Throw, walk, [cheer for herself], pick-up. Hours (ok, about 15 minutes) of enjoyment.

She's growing up. Nearly everyday we look at each other and wonder where the little baby we moved here with went!

First tornado season in Tennessee...

We pride ourselves in the fact that we don't use umbrellas and only Gortex. Hey, we're Oregonians, right?
Today we were humbled and shown just exactly what real rain is. (Not to say that we could have done much about this with either an umbrella or our Gortex.)
B shot this video today while he was working downtown. It looked the same from the 10th floor of my building at Vandy, with the exception of the fact that I could see much of the city blanketed in this craziness.