the best weekend ever.

Hello, it’s me. (Overdone? Perhaps). Today, I have decided to return to working on my Khaki Shorts blog. 

Where have I been, you might ask? 

On Pinterest. That’s sort of an annoying thing to say, but it’s 100% accurate. John and I got engaged about a month ago and, following the holiday rush where I kind of took a step back from author work to spend time with friends and family, I have found myself stupidly addicted to looking at things like flowers and cakes on the internet. 

Who knew such things would prove to be such an utter distraction? Well, we creative types sort of cling to anything like that I suppose, and to me a wedding seems like a fun outlet for creativity. The planning has, however, left me with very little time and energy for things like, this blog I’d say. 

So, now I’m back! I’ve been wanting to write about my “best weekend ever” that sparked this Pinteresting spree for a while, so here it goes…buckle your seatbelts, kids, this is gonna be a long one…

Have you ever had a few days that changed everything? I have. In one weekend last May, John’s Aunt Barb passed away after a battle with cancer, my little sister got married and moved to Kansas City and my older sister announced that she was pregnant with my first niece or nephew. 

(So much happiness..but so many emotions!)

When I returned to work on Tuesday of that week, I literally could not keep myself together. Anytime I even momentarily thought about one of these three events I started to tear up. How could it be that after four short days Barb was gone, Nancy and Pat were married and moving away and there was also a new little person to know and to love here among us? It was too much for me to handle!

Well, 2016 kicked off with a weekend like that for me again! This time, all happy events, thankfully. When I use the term “weekend” I mean it in purely the Zookeeper sense of the word, in that in this particular case I’m referring to my own weekend Wednesday-Friday. 

My older sister told us she was pregnant the day after Nancy and Pat’s wedding in May SO…fast forward to December 2015 and Baby Croce was just about ready to make his/her debut!

(Kristin’s announcement the day after the wedding.)

(Mike and Kristin, teetering five days away from parenthood.)

Every time there has been a baby born in the Mueller family, we have created a baby bet where for $1 you can guess the baby’s sex, DOB and weight in order to win the entire jackpot. 

I bet that Baby Croce would be born on December 30, mainly because I took a vacation day that day in the hopes that, well, the baby would arrive! Ah, how happy I was with the foresight of future Aunt Carolyn…

On Tuesday evening, December 29, I was at John’s parent’s house for a game night when I found out that my sister’s water broke! I was excited, but knew (from my vast experience?!?!) that first babies usually take a while, so I figured I’d sit tight and play some games and then stop by the hospital on my way home, go home and sleep, then wake up in the morning as an Auntie!

I left the Kelly’s at around 11:30 and went straight to the hospital. I’d made a labor playlist for Kristin, so I needed to bring her my iPod, plus I had some coffee and Christmas cookies for Mike. When I arrived in Labor and Delivery, the baby’s heart rate was low during contractions, so there was some talk of a c-section.

I told Kristin and Mike I was going home, but really I stopped at the nurses’ station and asked what the chances were of a c-section occurring within the next hour. The nurse’s response? “If I were you, I’d stick around.”

So, stick around I did. 

I hung out in the waiting room with a rather large family who had all been there together since noon (It was now 12:30am). They had literally set up camp and commandeered the TV, so there I was with no book, no magazine, no TV, 40% battery left on my phone and no charger, and just a scarf to keep me warm. I entertained myself by talking to the rather large family until their baby was finally born and they left.

At 1:30am I went back to the nurses and asked for an update. To my surprise, she was pushing! Apparently first babies don’t ALWAYS take hours to arrive…who knew? 

Well, at this point, it was almost 2am, I was off the next day, she was pushing…so I decided I was in it for the long haul.

I went back to the waiting room (Kristin and Mike still didn’t know I was there) and this time had that whole place to my self! I enjoyed a lovely marathon of Sex in the City and Maid in Manhattan along with waking up my little sister to give her updates and texting with my cousin, Jenny, who is a night shift nurse. 

Around 3am I went back to check in with the nurses. “I think she’s getting close,” they told me. I asked if I could just loiter around right there, in front of my sister’s door near the nurses, and they said that I could. 

About 15 minutes later, I saw nurses go in and then I heard that baby’s very first cries!! I’ve never seen a (human) baby be born, and I’ve never heard a (human) baby’s first cries, so this was very exciting for me. 

My sister’s nurse came out of the room right after. “Is she ok?” I asked her. “She’s ok and the baby’s ok,” the nurse told me. “Boy or girl?” I asked (as Baby Croce was a good ol’ fashioned surprise). “I’m not telling you that!” she said. 

Twenty or thirty minutes later, someone passed the word along to my brother-in-law that I was still in the hallway and he came outside to tell me that IT WAS A GIRL!!

A few minutes after that, I got to go into the room and meet my brand new niece ISABELLA GRACE CROCE. 

And wouldn’t you know, she was a girl, born on December 30, weighing 7 pounds and 3 ounces…EXACTLY what Aunt Carolyn wrote on the Baby Bet!

(Welcome to the world Isabella!)

When I saw that little baby I definitely started crying and I definitely loved her immediately. I am one of those souls who struggles with change, and when I found out that Kristin was pregnant, of course, I was very excited, but I was also apprehensive in that I knew that things were a’ changin’ once again! But when I saw that sweet baby face, I did not have one ounce of apprehension about our newly changed family at all. I was just in love with her! And I can’t wait to watch and help her grow up. 

After a few minutes of meeting Baby I prepared to leave (now around 4am). As I was making my way out of the hospital I saw my Mom! So, of course, I had to show her to Kristin and Isabella’s room, and then when my Dad showed up a few minutes later, I knew I had to stay a bit longer. My Dad, at 4am, arrived wearing corduroys and loafers, freshly showered with a button down shirt. Because that is what a Grandpa wears! 

After a blissful hour meeting our new family member, the three of us left. Walking out of the hospital about 5am, I turned to my parents and said, “I don’t remember the last time I pulled an all nighter!”

And then I promptly walked right into a door. 

I can’t make this stuff up, folks. 

When we were leaving the hospital, it started to snow in the most quiet, magical way possible and on the way home I listen to this Dixie Chicks song, and just cried happy tears that my new niece was here and that everyone was safe and healthy. 

Later, I got to go back to the hospital and hold Isabella for the first time. 

(And it was wonderful. I love newborns).

On Thursday, December 31, Nancy and Pat came in town and we all went back to the hospital to meet Baby some more. 

John and I did not make New Year’s plans this year, even though I had the good fortune of being off both NYE and NY Day, since we didn’t know when the baby would arrive. So, that night we all just had a champagne toast with Kristin at the hospital, which was perfect.

(Isabella meeting her Great-Grandma Mueller)

(A few more pictures of the little one, because who wouldn’t love that sweet face?)

(Annnd we come full circle…)

Becoming and aunt and watching my sister become a mother was a wonderful and magical start to the New Year. But this weekend continued to not disappoint. 

On NYE John and I just went and had a few (too many?) drinks at Schlafly. Nothing very special. 

The next day dawned bight and sunny for the first time in a long time. 

“Let’s go on a run!” John said, quite eagerly, on that early New Year’s Day morning. 

“Um, no,” pretty much summed up my response. 

“Come on! It’s the first day of the new year!” John said. “Let’s kick it off right!”

“You can.”

“Come on, Carolyn, we’re going to want to hang out with our families today, so let’s run now and get it over with. You can nap later.”

That did it.

The prospect of getting a run done and then hanging out with my family all day was too much for me to resist. And it was sunny. So, I agreed.

I made a few mistakes leading up to the coming moment. 

1. Was the third Moscow Mule of the NYE night

and

2. The amount of effort I put into getting dressed for that run

Sure, I put one of my favorites running outfits on, but I did NOT wash my face, brush my teeth (or hair now that I think about it…) or apply a smidgen of makeup. You get the picture. 

John and I left for our run, and I had to admit, it was pretty perfect. I watched this video before we left to pump myself up and shake off the Mules. (I still love that commercial. Genius.) It was sunny and not too cold and Forest Park was just sparkling! After a rainy week, it felt good to get outside with some Vitamin D. 

We ran along, and when we reached the top of Art Hill by the Saint Louis statue, John asked if I wanted to stop and look at the view for a moment, and, I must admit, I did perhaps think Hmmm…at this point, because John never wants to stop on our runs. But we did just that. Looked at the view, and then kept running, so, of course I thought Nahhhh. 

You see where this is going, I’m sure…

At the bottom of Art Hill we met a friend and chatted with him for awhile, then continued around the Grand Basin, across one bridge to what I refer to in quite eloquent language as “The Bouncy Bridge” because, well, it bounces a lot. It’s a suspension bridge leading to Picnic Island. 

As we approached this bridge, John suggested we walk across it because it might be slippery. This I thought nothing of, because it was frosty out that morning and that bridge is notoriously slippery. 

When we reached the base of the bridge, John stepped off into the bushes right next to it. I figured he was spitting or blowing his nose or something (winter warriors, you know what I’m talking about…) so I just stood there enjoying the sunshine in my own little world…

BUT then, when he turned back toward me, I saw that John was holding a ring! And at that moment I just felt very calm and thought to myself matter-of-factly Ok, this is happening now. 

So, yep, John asked me to marry him at the base of the bouncy bridge. He did not get down on one knee, we were both just standing there eye to eye, which was perfect for us (and very Jo and Frederick from Little Women, as my sister, Kristin noted). 

John told me he wanted to propose at the bouncy bridge because “life has its ups and downs, but we will just have to keep running through them side by side.” That basically sums it up. It was very sweet. 

I think I said something along the lines of “Of course!” And it was a perfect, wonderful moment. 

(Right after saying YES!)

(Maybe not our cutest pic ever, but, hey, it was at least very real!)

After awhile John told me we needed to run home and shower because my family was going to be at his family’s house for brunch at 11. 

So, we spent the rest of the day hanging out and celebrating with our two families together. John’s sister, Rachel and her wife, Ana, were in town from Michigan, and, of course, Nancy and Pat were still in town from KC, so it was perfect to have them all there. Obviously Kristin and Mike and Isabella were still in the hospital. 

(One of my favorite pics of us telling John’s 90 year old Mamaw, who was over the moon.)

(It was very special to have Nancy in town!)

(Cleaned up a bit!)

(My favorite pic of both families together)

The center stone on the ring belonged to my Nana. She left it to me when she passed away in 2011, and it really means a lot to me to get to wear it and to think about her when I see it. The side of the ring has leaves engraved on it because, you know, John and I really like nature. 

All in all it was a perfect, happy, relaxing day. 

And that, my friends, is the story of my best weekend ever! Kicking off 2016 with a wedding to plan, a niece to cuddle and a whole lot of love and excitement!

It’s been a great year so far. Can’t wait to see what other surprises 2016 brings! 

it’s coming...

That’s right. Winter.

The clock change is behind us and it’s dark as hell when I’m leaving work. It’s been an incredibly beautiful fall, but winter is well on it’s way.

Typically, I never complain about the heat in the summertime so that I can save all of my complaining for the winter. I hate being cold and I tolerate high temperatures much better, so winter is my time to whine.

Today, though, a few friends shared THIS ARTICLE on the ol’ Facebook, and it got me thinking. Maybe this year I should strive to be different. Maybe, just maybe, I could try not complaining and then perhaps winter might be more fun?

Today I tried to think of a few positive winter things:

-SNOW. Duh. And all that comes with it (sledding, beauty, snowmen, coziness, half days at work…)

-Ice skating. I really love to do this and I don’t take advantage of Steinberg enough. 

-You don’t have to cut the grass or blow the leaves at work (or at home, for those of you in that situation).

-Hot tea, hot chocolate, hot soup!

-Sweaters? Uggs? Those things are nice, right?

-And MOST OF ALL a nice, quiet Zoo all to myself all day long. Such a lovely break from the stress of the summer crowds. 

My favorite quote from the article was there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing. 

Ain’t that the truth. 

Who knows? Maybe this is the year the cold won’t get to me. Either way, I’ll aim for a little more koselig in my life. 

(Obvious choice, here.)

On 29 years of life + 6 years of Zookeeping.

I’ve been wanting to write a “29th Birthday Post” for quite some time. One month and six days, to be exact.

So, why haven’t I done it? Well, as I always say I suppose, things have been busy. I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice it to say that when you’ve just released a Halloween themed book, October turns into a CRAZY month! 

I had a big cup of coffee and a diet coke at first aid training this evening though, so I’ve decided I have the energy to write this post now. 

Last month, I turned 29. That means I only have 11 months left in my twenties. I wrote a post a while back about those once trendy articles tired “Blah Blah Blah number of things you MUST do to be successful/happy/fulfilled in your twenties.” I hate those articles. Because everyone’s twenties are so very different. But I will say, turning 29 definitely made me reflect on mine.

I’ve grown a lot in this decade. How could I not? The twenties sort of thrust one into adulthood, like it or not.

 In my early twenties, I did a lot of traveling. Between ages 20-23 I visited Botswana, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Austria and Spain. How many countries have I visited since age 23? None. That’s because I started working at the Zoo, shortly after I returned from that last little European vacation.

I remember taking out a loan to study in Australia and thinking to myself one day I’ll have the money, but I’ll never again have this kind of time. Kudos to the foresight of 21 year old Carolyn! Because now that I’m 29 I don’t have the money or the time! It was a loan well spent. 

From ages 23-29 most of my traveling has involved going to and from weddings in neighboring states. Working weekends, and very little vacation time have definitely restricted me in a way I sensed, but really couldn’t fathom when I accepted this job. 

I remember the day I got a call from the HR department at the Zoo offering me a part-time keeper position. I was excited, of course, but in some ways I felt my world narrowing. This was it, I thought. The start of adult life. It was scary. 

I turned to my sister and said something like “But zookeeping will be an adventure too, right?”

She agreed that it would. And it has been.

I’ve been thinking a lot about my first day as a zookeeper. Yesterday’s weather was the exact weather we had here six years ago when I started in the Children’s Zoo. A cold, grey October day with a relentless, constant downpour. I worked goats that day. I remember being soaked and shivering. When I got home I had a fever and later found out I had the swine flu (but that’s another story.) 

On that day with the goats I remember having one very specific thought. It’s a nice life, making a good home for goats. And it has been a nice life, that is, trying to make a good home for all kinds of animals. 

It has been an adventure too–lion cubs, bear visits, hyena breath and flying macaws. This job is hard. It is so, so hard. Physically, emotionally, mentally just hard. It is stressful. There are deadlines to be met every hour of every day. It is a lot of responsibility. Releasing lions and tigers into public space will wear on your nerves day after day. But it is also an adventure. There have been so many moments when I just stop and think wow, this is my life. 

It truly is my life, and has made up the brunt of my twenties. So, did I spend those years 23-29 globe trotting and being wild and crazy? No. But I like to think I fulfilled a lot of what it takes to be an adult. 

One of my favorite quotes about adulthood comes from one of my favorite authors–Barbara Kingsolver. In her book of essays, Small Wonder, she describes all of the things “grown ups get to do in this howling hoot of a party.” 

Stand on your own two feet, get your heart broken, get over it, vote, drive a car, not drive a car, get dog-tired doing something that makes you proud, play the radio station you want, wear your heart on your sleeve, dance on the table, make a scene, be ridiculous, be amazing, be stronger than you knew, make a sacrifice that matters, find out what you’re made of, cook a perfect meal, read a perfect book, kiss for an hour, fall in love for keeps, make a baby, stand over your own naked child weeping for dread and wonder at the miracle.

I can honestly say I have done every single thing on that list EXCEPT that last kind of weird one about the baby (I’m saving that for my thirties, yo) in my twenties. And, probably, that cook a perfect meal one too (though I do have some pretty good skill with the crock pot). 

But the line that resonates with me the most is to get dog-tired doing something that makes you proud. 

Because that is how I believe i have spent the last six years and the majority of my twenties. I am literally dog tired every single day. Every one! From zookeeping, from writing, from simply trying to keep up with adulthood. And, yes, I realize that I will probably eat these words in my thirties when I have kids, I know that. But that doesn’t make it any less true right now.

So, have I gotten to travel the world in the latter half of my twenties? No. But I have had the opportunity to work every day at something that makes me proud. And that is special too. 

I hope to make the last year of my twenties one good, solid adventure. So far, I have some very exciting plans. I’m going to be an aunt! I’m already signed up to run the Boston Marathon. I get another week of vacation, so might get to do a bit of travel. And, in the words of Cheryl Strayed, I want to “write like a mo*&#$ f*#&er.” 

Here’s to the beginning of the end of a decade! And all that the next one holds too. 

Book Release Party Recap

The book release party for “Dizzy” and “Boo” went smashingly!

 The party was hosted at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood. My friend and event planner extraordinaire, Lauren Dugan, helped me to set it up. I found Schlafly to be the perfect place for such an event. It was centrally located, casual, friendly and with access to a great patio. Plus, the staff there was nothing but kind and helpful throughout the entire event.

For me, the book release party was a very special night. I LOVED having so many random people from my life in one room! It was incredible. Poor John was probably the only one who knew my family, his family, my high school and college friends and the Zoo crew–so he was running around hosting the entire evening! But for me, it was a ton of fun. 

Thank you to everyone who came out to support the release of my two new children’s books. I’d say “Dizzy” and “Boo” are off to a great start!

Without further ado, a few snaps from the party!

My DePauw friends and I with the entire collection. 

The Kelly family plus my dad. 

Dan Cebulski and I. 

A few of my favorite Aunts with their copies of “Dizzy.”

Ed Koehler (the illustrator of “Dizzy”) and Chris Grant (the designer/illustrator of “Boo”) were kind enough to come out and sign books. 

Claire and John got books for their brand new baby, Joey!

Sue Hoffmann and I. So many friendly faces that night! 

BOO!

Well, September is officially here.

That means FALL is sort of on it’s way. I’m not one to rush out of Summer (duh.), plus it was 90 degrees today, but, seriously, Halloween and pumpkin season will be here before we know it.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is where my new book comes in!!!

St. Louis Boo! arrived fresh from the printers on Friday! And it is BOO-tiful! (sorry.)

The story of St. Louis Boo! is, like the publication of Happy Birthday, St. Louis!, a story about a last minute project pitched to me by my publishers that turned out better than I expected. 

In the midst of my work on Dizzy I was asked to write a book of St. Louis local ghost stories for kids. And, being crazy, I said yes. 

This book took quite a bit of research because, let’s face it, I didn’t know very much about haunted Lou lore. The research was tough!  I could only read my ghost books during the daytime because I KEPT SCARING MYSELF! I live in an old building, people, I wasn’t taking any chances.

All scaring aside, I learned quite a few spooky stories (and had some fun torturing my sisters with facts about the Lemp Mansion on a long drive to Chicago) and was able to write a book I am proud of.

The research was scary, but St. Louis Boo! is not. It is written for young children and illustrated for young children.

Are the ghost stories true? I’ll leave that for you to decide. Honestly, though, it’s a silly book full of cute critters and goofy/spooky surprises. 

It is LOTS of fun for Halloween. I am so happy that the book has arrived so early in September so that we can kick this Fall season in gear!

Where can you get St. Louis Boo!? Well, it’s on its way to local bookstores, BUT I am having an open house book signing at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood from 7pm-? this THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3. 

Stop by, see Dizzy (the book, not the man) and meet “The Spirit of St. Louis,” the cute little host of my new children’s book.

Scared yet?

I didn’t think so! 

Meet Dizzy!

Exciting news! “Dizzy Dean and the Gashouse Gang” has officially hit the shelves!

The book is GORGEOUS. Ed Koehler did a phenomenal job on the artwork. It is exactly the vintage, painted, old-timey sports feel I was hoping for. This book is also larger than my other three, which is kind of fun. I am very happy with how it turned out.

I just can’t believe it’s officially HERE! 

Two years ago I met with my publishers at Reedy Press about an “idea” they had for me. They handed me a book called “The Gashouse Gang” and enthusiastically proclaimed they’d like to publish a children’s book about this ragtag bunch of ball players, and that they wanted me to write it.

Well, I love the Cardinals as much as any red blooded St. Louisan, and I’m a bit of a history buff, but my first reaction was….um, what?! A book about a 1930s ball team written by…ME? No way.

I’m not terribly big into sports trivia. And ask any of my Zoo Crew softball teammates, they’ll tell you I’m not even very good at knowing all of the rules in baseball. But I told my publishers I’d do a little bit of research and get back to them. 

I can still remember sitting in the waiting room of the Tire and Auto center at Wal-Mart last summer. I have no idea why I brought my car to Wal-Mart for whatever I was having done (Oil change perhaps?) but I clearly remember browsing all the usual fun aisles (Hanes tees, hair products, snack foods etc.) while they worked on my car and once I’d run out of options there I figured “Well, guess I’ll head back to the waiting room and start that Gashouse book…”

Sitting in that greasy, over air conditioned room I fell in love with Dizzy, Joe, Pepper, Branch, Frank, Paul and all of the Gashousers. They were hilarious! So silly. So weird! And such phenomenal ball players!

I decided then and there, this was a story I’d like to tell. I also figured that any writer worth her snuff should be able to research and write about any random topic. So, depression-era baseball it was!

Flash forward a year, and many, many research books later, and I was chugging away on the Dizzy serial story for the Missouri Press Association. The feedback from those stories was very positive and got me even more fired up about writing the children’s book.

Now, one year after that, it’s officially here! I am so excited to introduce this generation to Dizzy and friends. I also hope that there are quite a few grandparents out there ready to reminisce about their sports heroes with their grand and great-grandchildren. 

When you go to Busch Stadium to see a Cardinal’s game, you might notice “Dizzy’s Diner” and the “Gashouse Grill” but most kids have no idea what these terms refer to. 

I hope this book will open a window into a bygone era in our city’s history to this generation of baseball fans. These guys are such characters, they deserve to have their story told. 

Welcome to the world, “Dizzy Dean and the Gashouse Gang.” 

I really love this book. And, hey, as Dizzy, himself, would say, “It ain’t braggin’ if you can back it up!”