Book of Mormon

We went to see The Book of Mormon here in Milwaukee this weekend!  The original plan (when we bought the tickets half a year ago) was to go with my brother and his wife, but that was before their baby made different plans for them.  So we decided to take our daughters instead.

Welcome to the World!

I have a new nephew!  The adorable Rivyn, son of my brother Barrett and his wife Dosha, arrived into the world a bit earlier than expected, but he's home now and doing well.  I got to meet him in the NICU on my way to Vermillion, South Dakota recently.  I'm looking forward to holding him next time.

I'm looking forward to lots of things!  So are my kids.  They are excited by the idea of a baby cousin to love and eventually include in all their fun.  I'm glad that my kids have each other, and that my niece has them, too, and now this little boy will be part of that cousin group and the recipient of all they want to share.  They want to pass down their favorite sand toys at the cottage and show him how to paddle an inner tube across the lake there.  They want him to bounce with them on the trampoline and bike around the neighborhood.  They want him to join in their cookie baking experiments and to help decorate our sidewalks with chalk while waiting for an ice cream truck to come by.

In good time, though.  They understand for a few years there's just a lot of aimless cuteness to admire, but of all the cliches about raising kids the one about "It goes too fast" is probably the most true.  (Followed closely by "It changes everything.")  As hard as it is to imagine right now with that little boy unable to do much more than wiggle, they will be doing those things and more with their cousin before we know it.

Trip to the National Music Museum

This past weekend I was in Vermillion, South Dakota to visit the National Music Museum.  No, you've never heard of it unless you live near there or are a hard core musical instrument nerd.  And even among hard core musical instrument nerds there are few who have actually made the trek to South Dakota to see the museum.  I am now truly in an elite category of instrument geeks.

The Violin Society of America arranged a mini-conference there for the first 240 members who signed up.  I responded within a minute of getting the email and forwarded it right away to my friend and fellow luthier, Robyn, to see if she could come also.  The VSA conventions are huge and can be overwhelming.  This was on a much more personal scale, and I really enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with other violin people in that setting.  It was a great trip.

Spring Break 2015!

This post is a month late, because rehearsals-concerts-work-kids-biopsy-RACE!-stuffandthings.  Plus my nephew was born and we had my parents here, etc. etc.  You know...LIFE.  So pardon this overly long update with too many pictures, but I need to get it down before I forget everything.

That's pretty much it for Indiana

Ian had Army obligations over Spring Break this year, so I took the kids on a road trip.  We headed first for Ohio, which was a good drive in that it was uneventful, but boring in that the most interesting part was passing through the windmill farms.  (In the distance in the photo are windmills.  Don't spend too much time looking--it doesn't get more interesting if you find them.)

We stayed with my aunt and uncle in Marysville for Easter which we really enjoyed.  Everyone was generous and welcoming as always.  It's a lucky thing in life if you get to feel at home in more than one place.

The Last Amazing Milwaukee Race

This past weekend we ran the Amazing Milwaukee Race #6.  There have also been three of the bike version, so of the nine races I've been involved in, five were as a participant and one as an element of the race.  They've all been, well, amazing, and sadly the remarkable man who runs them is moving this summer, so this was the last of them.  Adam Baus is the kind of person who is able to organize productions and people in ways I can barely fathom.  I'm awed by his ingenuity and his ability to not only inspire but follow through.  He makes great things happen.  It's a real loss to our community that he is leaving and he will be missed.

But what a way to go out!  I loved this race.  I'll be feeling it in my legs for a while but it was worth it. 



Ian and I signed up pretty late (because there was the possibility of his having to do an Army activity, but that wound up not being a conflict) so we were team #80.  Team name: Best Team Name Ever.




The starting point (and finish line) was a restaurant and bar on the Downtown Riverwalk called Ale Asylum Riverhouse.  It would be nice to eat there when it's warm, which late April in Milwaukee is not.  Only in the low 40s and windy, but at least it didn't rain on us this time.  (And I didn't have to do any portion of this race in just my underwear, so that was a plus.)

Benign

I wouldn't want to keep anyone in suspense about my biopsy results.  Got the call this morning that it was just a benign cyst, so all is well.  Thanks to everyone who reached out to me on this blog and through email.  Your kind thoughts have been much appreciated.

Since my last blog post I've traveled to Ohio and New York, played two concerts, and been featured on local TV, so lots to write about when I finally find a minute.  In the meantime, for those who are curious, I can describe the biopsy a little.

No Way to Make Some Things Pleasant

I'm going to start off by saying I'm fine.  I'M FINE.  This is not a plea for sympathy.  In fact, sort of the opposite, as odd as that seems, because I'm finding this easier to write about than talk about with anyone.  I don't want to talk about it, but I still have thoughts I need to sort through, and that's really what this blog is for.

This week I went for a followup mammogram.  The one I got just after my birthday was with a new "3-D" machine and it apparently sees more than the old machines, so the new pictures essentially became the new baseline, and they needed to look at some things more closely.  Most of those things turned out to be cysts that they are not worried about.  One small nodule requires a biopsy to be sure it's benign.