Day 1- 9:51 a.m.

7:45 a.m.- David heads off for the first day of his new job. I peep through the (fake) lace curtains to watch him fold his long, suited legs into the Camry. He drives away. Sniff. Day 1 of "alone with baby in new city" commences...

7:46 a.m.- Gulp down a bowl of cereal while Seth talks to himself in his crib.

8:00 a.m.- Get baby up, give him a bath, get water splashed in face from vigorous kicking, lotion him down, pull stroller out of minivan, tie on running shoes that have never experienced running...

8:25 a.m.- Begin pushing stroller to the local walking trail down the block. Walk the trail, (Seth chewing on Mr. Froggy), enjoy the nice canopy of green trees and the paved, stroller friendly path. Begin envisioning a future full of morning walks, lovely scenery, and, gasp, exercise. Fantasize about losing those last 15 extra pounds. Imagine six pack abs. Laugh hysterically. Continue walking...

9:20 a.m.- Push stroller up slight hills on the way back. Temperature- 90 degrees, Humidity- 115 %. Become drenched with sweat. Start wondering if those last 15 lbs. are really so bad after all. Wonder if Maine would be a nice place to live.

9:35 a.m.- Back at house. Put cranky baby in swing. Listen to him crying while putting stroller back in car. Find cat throwup on bedroom carpet. Eliminate with Spot Shot, a hairy cat owner's best friend. Read baby three board books. " 'I'm too small,' wailed Puppy..."

9:45 a.m.- Put cranky baby down for morning nap. Ahhh.

Time to get a shower and move on with the day. It's off to a good start, but I know I'm probably going to be fighting some blues throughout the day. I got so used to spending all day, every day, with my best friend. We won't get that again until we're using denture creme. Sigh.

I'm going to be diving in to things here with all my might. The hunt is on for a sense of community. I did meet another mom who's new the area in Sunday School this Sunday. I think she's just as determined to find a network, too. We compared notes, and we're joining the same MOPS group for the year. My community Bible study starts this week, too, so I have some things to look forward to to get me out of the house. And I will have plenty of little errands and odds and ends to attend to that we didn't get done while David was home with us.

And I'm encouraged by the network that we already have here. It's been a long time since we've been able to make a few phone calls one night and pull together a party for the next day, but that's what we did for Labor Day. We had 8 adults and two babies here for a Labor Day picnic yesterday. It wasn't anything fancy, just hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, but it was so nice. These are all college friends who are in the area, and it's been years since we've been able to hang out with them, playing cards, and eating junk, but we did it yesterday. My porch was filled, my playset was getting used, and I was happy. I'm thankful for that jumpstart to community.

Ok, time to get a shower. We've gotta hit the grocery store later, and I'm going to attempt to be the perfect suburban housewife when David gets home from his first day. I aspire to this: I want him to come in the door, smell the delectable odor of dinner cooking, trip over some baby toys, and find me in an apron with the table set and a happy baby bouncing away in the corner of the kitchen. Ha! We'll see if it happens... =)