Greetings from Dry Gulch, WI

Hey everyone!

Guess what! As of today, I can officially have this child without seeking outside medical help. After 37 weeks, the baby is considered mature enough and the birthing process normal - well, as mature and normal as any product of Jay's and mine has the chance of being, anyway. This means if I start having contractions tonight, it's off to the birthing center with me and no pit stops at the hospital! And believe me when I tell you I will be very happy to go. Today, my horse vet asked me if I was sure there weren't two "in there." Of course, she mistakenly thought I was due in September, so I guess the question was valid in her mind, but MAN this burly, nordic-sized-feeling child is doing some determined acrobatics! I've confided to some of you how bizarre and delightful it is to begin to be able to identify which baby body parts are nudging - heels, knees, butts. Well, butt. If you've never experienced it, I simply can't do it justice with words. Or worms. Worms, Roxanne, I was afraid of WORMS! (Just a little humor sidebar for my fellow Steve Martin nerds there.)

Unfortunately, it has been THE driest spring and summer here since the drought of '94 - so very disheartening to watch the storms pass us by one by one - skidding ever so slightly to the north or south of us as we watch the radar helplessly. The mercury is heading into the 90s for the next several days, and if we don't get rain soon, the farmers' crops will burn up. This kills me! I know I talked about this last time, but you start to realize just how high the stakes are when you spend time with people who rely (at least partially, anyway) on the weather for their living. It's not nearly so pressing for somebody like me, who, when the hot weather strikes, doesn't have much of a problem clearing her schedule for a float in the river. I will, however, have to start feeding the horses hay pretty soon because there's no new grass growing!

I'm trying to think of some other recent happenings to thrill and excite you with.

Jay and I got a car - it's about the most boring, reliable car possible (my dad calls the color "champagne," but I think we all know better), but hopefully that Toyota engine will keep us in business for a long time. Plus, the gas mileage is hard to beat. The purchase was necessary, as it's nearly impossible to put a baby's car seat in our beat-up little pick-up. Yes, okay, technically it's possible, but someone's gonna be straddling the gearshift, and that's never pretty.

Recent visitors: Mom and Dad were here for Dad's birthday dinner and beyond, then my cousin Amy and her boyfriend Jon came to visit for a couple of days, and our neighbors Jimmy and Tim dropped by for some homebrew and helped buck a couple hundred bales of hay into the barn (in wife-beater T-shirts and shorts, nonetheless!! Hay rash city!)

I had the little stray barn cat spayed. I just couldn't bring myself to add her to the piles of cats already in cages at the humane society, and I knew the old Tom who hangs out around here would have her knocked up in no time, so my horse vet did the deed at her house and gave me a deal. I still have high hopes for finding a home for this cat, as she is incredibly sweet and would love a person of her own (if you're in the area and you know anybody...) Until then, her job will be catching mice in our barn and accosting visitors with her love, I suppose.

Chris, Becca and Ellis have been in the cities and in Fargo much of the week (visiting Chris' Nana), so I don't have much news to report on that front...

After our usual initial rocky transition-from-school-year-to-summer process, Jay and I are having a great time tooling around the farm, doing chores together, sleeping in (sometimes until 7!) and mellowing during this long holiday, trying to stay cool as we wait, wait for the newest member of the family to show his or her face.

What kind of adventures have your summers brought? Do share!

Love and soil-quenching rains to all,

Charis