Steve and Maria Frey

The weather has turned AWESOME! Low 70′s, blue skies, cool breeze… Now that I’ve been officially cleared by the doc to “resume normal activities” Jacob and I decided to take advantage and stroll around the neighborhood this afternoon.

We’ve got some family coming in town over the next few weeks and we’re thinking there might be a trip to the mountains in the near future! We can’t wait to show him one of the big reasons we left Florida, and with Fall right around the corner I can’t think of a better time!

Now that my belly is growing nice and big, it’s pretty much impossible to sit at the wheel and throw. (a.k.a. throw a mound of clay on a spinning wheel and mold it into something useful – but NOT like Demi Moore in Ghost!!)

Due to my “condition” I had to sign up for the handbuilding class this session. It’s a lot easier on my back, hands, neck, etc… and it’s a new experience in working with clay. I’m having a lot more fun than I expected and though I’ve been working on the same piece for 4 weeks already, it’s probably the most satisfying part of my week.

I’m working on a pot that will probably end up being between 14 and 18 inches tall. I’m building it entirely from coils. Steve still fears that my “coil pot” will end up looking like a stacked hose, so I took a picture of my progress so far with my camera phone to prove him wrong…I mean, set him at ease.

I’m not at the skill level to where I could throw something this tall on the wheel, so I’m pretty excited about making something new. This process has been so rewarding and theraputic. Who would have known there was such happiness in playing with a bunch of mud.

* UPDATE: My coil pot as of 6/2/09 – moving right along!

I never did like tests in school. Mostly because you had to study for them if you wanted to get any kind of decent grade. Well, I took several tests Wednesday and a Final Exam yesterday. Unlike school, this kind of “exam prep” has rewarded me with probably the most important mark of my life.

Yep. Steve and I are going to be parents! (of a human life)

According to the doctor and her paper wheel chart (which I swear can double as a Weight Watcher’s Point Counter) we’ll be adding a new member to our family around July 13, 2009.

So I suppose this could be an update to some of the things that Steve and I have experienced in 2 years of marriage: we got pregnant.

Since there aren’t really any exciting pictures yet to post relating to this event (although I did take about a hundred pictures of the “test results”) I’ll post some from our hike this past weekend. We took Ruthie to Crowder’s Mountain State Park. It was a gorgeous day. You could see the Blue Ridge Mountains off to the west, and the Charlotte skyline off to the east. Knowing what I know now, I probably would have been a lot more concerned that Ruthie drug me down the mountain on my butt.

I got a new toy this week…the Canon Powershot G9.

I’ve been wanting a new digital camera for a while now. I had heard a rumor that there was a compact camera on the market that now shot in RAW format. Perfect for the graphic designer in me that likes to tinker with stuff on the computer. Also, the camera is loaded with tons of other features that make it a strong contender to replace Steve’s digital SLR…which gets cumbersome when trying to take it on hikes. There are lots of settings and dials to play with and customize, many of which I haven’t even explored yet.

I did however take it with us to the Biltmore Estate this weekend. You can’t take pictures inside the house, but we were walking around the gardens and I caught the perfect “first image” to showcase my new gadget.

Even though I’ve barely done more than point and shoot out of the box, it’s a vast improvement over the camera I had…may it rest in peace.

It’s spring time! In case you weren’t aware, that means it’s baseball season.

Last weekend we got treated to free lunch, free ice cream, and a free Charlotte Knights baseball game with a, yes you guessed it, free fireworks show afterwards. Thanks to some people through Steve’s work, he was able to score 3 tickets for his “family.” Before you start jumping to conclusions, we adopted our friend Matt for the night since he was up for the weekend.

It was a lot of fun – the smell of the field, the breeze in the air, the sound of that one lunatic that will always sit behind you and talk to the umpire like HE should be the one getting paid to make bad calls… We had a good time.

Matt and I really enjoyed our FREE ice cream too! yummmmmmm

This past weekend I got to go to yet another baseball game. This time I was MUCH more interested in the team…particularly the pitcher. He was a real hunk!

Yep, that’s our very own Steve Frey, taking the mound. Steve’s picked up a new hobby for the season and joined an adult baseball league. You’ll find him most Saturdays either on the pitcher’s mound or first base. If any of you happen to be up here on a weekend this spring, we’ll treat you to a free game – Might even throw in an ice cream after.