Losing Sleep, Making Decisions

I was going to post a picture of Juniper and I that I took at 3am the other morning, but then I decided that the whole world really didn't need to see a picture of me looking that tired, no matter how realistic it might be. Okay, I'm on day four of three nights of little sleep, and I'm starting to feel the effects of it. I adjust pretty well to losing sleep overall, but after a few nights in a row, I'm barely completing sentences, losing focus, and my body (muscles and bones) starts to feel like I'm ninety years old. I hope I look back some day and see the humor in it, but right now, I'm not feeling too much like laughing.

Change of subject: Landon and I observed the first of two Montessori schools we are considering for Samuel next year. It was a positive experience, and I think we're both leaning towards enrolling Samuel, but I'm feeling a little sad about him being in school five mornings a week. If we decide to go through with the Montessori school, instead of leaving him where he is now, this will be the first of five-day school weeks for him until he graduates high-school. Although I'll miss him in the mornings, I know he will do well, and Samuel is the type of kid that would thrive with this routine at the right school. I've been gradually preparing Samuel for this transition now since he was 18 months old. First with "Parents' Time Off" sessions at the community center, then preschool two days a week. I never wanted him (or me) to have the traumatic first-day experience, so I chose to gradually transition him, which went well, and to this day, he's never cried when I've left him! Still, these decisions aren't made lightly for me. After giving this a lot of thought, I'm hoping the decision we make will feel right in the end.

Leave a Comment

A Memory from Our First House

Samuel was 13 months when this video was taken. Landon is playing tunes with some of his friends from sessions around Portland.

1 comment

Juniper, the Good Sleeper?

Did I just say the other day that Juniper is a good sleeper? It's 4:32 am right now, and she's been awake since 1am! Here she is, sitting on my lap as I type. She's a happy girl, but she's a wide awake happy girl. The adventures in nighttime parenting continue . . . !

6 comments

February Book-Club

Last night was book-club, which I look forward to every month. For February, we read "The Whistling Season" by Ivan Doig. I haven't read any of his other novels or non-fiction work, but after reading this one, I think I've discovered another master writer! Each sentence is carefully crafted & he skillfully weaves this story together. Having said that, I didn't enjoy the story all that much. It was a slow story, set in early 20th century Montana. That time period definitely has it's share of interesting stories, so I'm not quite sure why this one isn't a little more exciting. Despite the dull plot, I kept reading, because Doig's writing is so captivating. I think a few of us agreed last night at book-club that the book seemed devoid of emotion in many places. Perhaps in the time Doig takes to thoughtfully construct each sentence, he loses some of the emotion that a more free writing style can bring to the story. I'm curious to read some of Doig's other novels, and I've heard his earlier work is excellent. My copy of "The Whistling Season" has already been mooched and is on its way to Texas. I'm always happy to finish a book and feel excited to pick up a new one. We're reading "The Big House," a non-fiction book by George Howe Colt for next month. Can't wait to start it! Meanwhile, I must update my Shelfari account (oh, for some free time!) and add my friends so we can exchange reviews!

1 comment Bookclub

Co-sleeping

Juniper is 11 weeks old already! She's sleeping pretty well at night now, and for the most part has a pretty consistent schedule during the day that she's fallen into naturally. When she wakes up in the morning, she has about 20 minutes of happy time, then gets fussy & is ready for her morning nap. Usually, I no sooner get her to sleep and it's time to get out the door to take Samuel to school or to start our day. Juniper takes her naps most of the time on the go or in her swing. I still haven't used her crib yet, except to let her look at the mobile every once in awhile. Speaking of her unused crib brings me to the subject of co-sleeping.

Co-sleeping has worked out great so far for us. We kept Samuel in our bed until he was about 16 months, then when we bought this house, we purchased him a twin mattress & cute new bedding at Pottery Barn. We figured since we were buying a new house that it would be a good time to transition him to his new room (ever try sleeping with a 16 month old? it's not easy!). At that time, we started laying with him until he fell asleep, then would go in during the night and lay with him when he woke up. Samuel was never a good sleeper, so we would end up going in there several times a night. Landon was usually pretty good about only staying in there until he fell back asleep, then he'd return to our room. Me, I'd fall asleep and wake up in the morning in Samuel's bed. It's only been now that Samuel has turned 3 that he's started sleeping through the night. Of course, when he's sick, everything changes, but when he's well, he's sleeping through the night on a regular basis now--finally! Landon told him awhile back that he can get up when the sun comes up, so sometimes I hear him get up to check at 5am, then go back to bed. Most mornings, he lays with his curtain slightly opened and waits for the sun. Sure enough, the minute he sees the sun peaking through his curtains, he walks down the stairs and announces a little too energetically at 7 in the morning, "The sun is up, DADDY!"

Then there is Juniper. She seems to be a much better sleeper so far than Samuel was. Samuel would get up 6 to 8 times a night until he was well over a year old. On a good night, Juniper wakes up around 5am for a feeding. On a not-so-good night, she's up three or four times. Overall she's sleeping much more soundly than Samuel. I'm wondering if she'll continue to sleep better if I transition her to her crib or co-sleeper, or if she's only sleeping so soundly because she's right next to me in bed. One thing that makes transitioning her to the crib a little challenging is that I would have to physically get up out of bed to go and get her and then either bring her back to bed to nurse her or sit upright & awake. If I bring her back to bed, we'll be co-sleeping the rest of the night, as I'll fall back asleep, so it seems like it would defeat the purpose of having her in her crib. Really, what's the point if she ends up back in my bed a couple of hours later? So, I'm not going to worry about all that right now, because I love co-sleeping, and I really only have these early years for a fleeting second and then they'll be gone. When I think about that, it makes me want to forget about transitioning her altogether and focus on enjoying this time with my little co-sleeper. Plus, I can't deny the fact that co-sleeping WORKS. Juniper and I both sleep better (I'm not waking up worrying if she's still breathing or warm enough), and I can go back to sleep as soon as Juniper wakes up for a feeding as we've mastered side-line nursing.

Part of me wonders if there is a magic window where transitioning your baby from your bed to the crib might save you a year or two of multiple night-wakings. Of course, the term "magic window" insinuates there is one catchall formula that works for all children, and being an advocate for attachment parenting, I believe you have to work instinctively at establishing individual techniques for each child. I found that Samuel at a certain point was waking up at night to nurse because he was in the habit of doing so, not because he was hungry. It was at this time that we transitioned him to his own twin bed & I decided to stop nursing shortly thereafter. Of course, right now, Juniper is waking up to nurse because she IS hungry. My hope is that she will continue to be a good sleeper through all the upcoming developmental stages, but my fear is that by co-sleeping, she might eventually develop the habit of nursing off and on all night, and being a human pacifier can be exhausting!

5 comments

Postpartum

The postpartum period has its positives (Juniper is here!), and negatives (my hair is falling out!). I can't wait to get my pre-pregnancy body (and hair) back!

1 comment

Becoming a Pumping Mom

If she can do it (be a pumping mom, a working mom, AND look this good), then maybe I can, too! Yes, it's true. I'm now currently taking on the task of learning how to pump. Like breastfeeding, it isn't as easy as it sounds. Plus, I really dislike (okay, hate) pumping! But, if it means I can leave the house for two hours at some point, then maybe it's worth it. Plus, Landon would like a chance at feeding little Juniper. So with some old-fashioned determination, I'm hoping I can make this work, which means increasing production & let-down. Sounds scary already. For starters, I'm setting a personal goal of trying this for a week and who knows, I just might be a pumping mom, too.

3 comments

Declining Unwanted Catalogs

I'm currently educating myself on ways to help protect the environment. The other day I found a great web site called Catalog Choice that allows you to decline any catalogs you do not wish to receive. After creating an account (it's free), you select from a list of catalogs you want to decline. Because you have to know exactly how your name is printed on the catalog in order to decline it, I've decided to log in each time I receive a catalog in the mail so that the website can accurately process my request. I don't know about you, but I rarely browse through the catalogs I receive, and most of them go directly from my mailbox into my recycling bin. This seems to be an efficient and easy way to reduce waste & conserve natural resources without having to contact each corporation individually.
******************
An update on Samuel:
I took Samuel to the doctor this morning for a follow-up visit. His fever has gone way down, and so far hasn't reappeared. He slept a lot yesterday, and seems to be feeling much better this morning. Yesterday morning he was pretty ill, so this is definitely a good sign. The swelling in his neck has not diminished yet, but the doctor is encouraged to see him feeling better this morning. We are going to take him in again next week to have the swelling looked at again, but hopefully by then it will have gone away. Meanwhile, I'm trying to get Samuel to take probiotics through yogurt as well as supplementing acidophilus in his food to offset the antibiotics.

3 comments

Update on Samuel

After a visit to the doctor first thing this morning, it was determined that Samuel probably has a bacterial infection that developed in his lymph nodes as a result of his viral infection. He tested negative for strep in his throat, although strep could be affecting his lymph nodes. He's now on antibiotics, and has spent most of the day barely moving his head and sleeping or laying quietly on the couch listening to stories or watching movies. He's been such a brave boy about all this, and I'm so proud of him. I hope by later tonight or tomorrow morning he starts to show some improvement, although I haven't noticed any change over the past 7 hours & he's now had 2 doses of antibiotic. The doctor wants to see him again tomorrow morning due to the excessive swelling of his lymph nodes, as this can often cause a child to get more sick. Hopefully, by then we will see some improvement.

Meanwhile, Juniper is a healthy 10 week, 3 day year old, and smiling all the time now!

Leave a Comment

Continued Illness

Samuel has had a rough winter this year with one cold after another. This last virus he caught has brought along with it a host of symptoms--everything from runny eyes to a body rash. He's been complaining of a sore neck throughout the course of this illness, and although his doctor checked him out last week and noted swollen lymph nodes, it wasn't until tonight when he awoke from a deep sleep crying out that I realized they had rapidly swelled up to the size of a golf ball on the left side of his neck. He could barely move his head, and was in a lot of discomfort. Not knowing what to do, I called the advice line at his doctor's office, and the doctor on-call suggested waiting until tomorrow morning to bring him in since he was still eating & drinking. I should also note that Samuel has had fevers that have come and gone over the past ten days. One hour he'll be fine, the next he'll spring a fever up to about 102F or 103F. Tonight he has a fever along w/ the protruding glands on his neck. I've never seen him this sick. Morning can't come fast enough. I'm worried and anxious, mostly because I've never seen this before. It's so sad to see him like this!

Leave a Comment

More Primaries

Obama had his 10th straight win tonight (Wisconsin & Hawaii). I'm wondering if Clinton now has the ability to sweep Ohio and Texas as previously thought. Will Obama be our Democratic candidate!?

Leave a Comment

Window Sash Restoration

Here is a short video of a conversation between Landon and Samuel while I was getting some coffee in Starbucks. Samuel is doing better and better at having a conversation.

Landon and his Dad worked on the first of the south window sashes we plan to restore on the south side of the house today. Little by little, we plan to restore all 33 windows in our house. They are working on the first one right now, which will be the hardest, as it was literally falling apart and had to be completely disassembled, stripped down, and reglued. Once Landon gets all the supplies together & figures out the best process for restoring a window sash, which he's pretty much done with the one he's working on now, they will go quickly. With each one Landon pulls out, we'll have a new working window that is properly glazed and functional, which will keep our house warmer, and each one will have new sash cords, varnish on the inside, and paint on the exterior. I think it's important to restore houses to their original condition, and original windows add a great deal of charm to an early 20th century house. I've been told by the experts that window sashes are as good as the new vinyl ones when they've been properly glazed & maintained. So, the plan is to work on window sashes off and on over the next few years until all 33 have been restored. Right now, we hope to get the south windows (which are the worst) finished this summer.

Karli

1 comment

Warmer Weather

The weather has been beautiful! Landon and Samuel have been spending a lot of time outside raking up leaves & getting our garden areas ready for spring. We've organized our basement; spring cleaning is definitely underway. Everywhere I look there are new buds just beginning to open & bulbs are breaking up from the soil all around. The crocuses are in bloom, and the robins have returned. This February is starting to remind me a lot of the February the year Samuel was born. It was warm and sunny then, too. I only hope this weather continues. It feels great! --Karli

1 comment

Metro

Samuel's friend from playgroup, Ben, turned 3 today. We had fun at his party, which was at a bowling alley. Samuel enjoyed bowling for the first time & playing the games in the small arcade area.

It was beautiful & sunny today. After purchasing some shelves @ Costco, we got our basement straightened up, and I ran some hazardous waste out to Metro, as well as 140 pounds of junk that I unfortunately had to add to the mountain of garbage there. Fortunately, that pile is sorted by hand, and anything that can be recycled is put aside. I'd never been out to Metro before, and was impressed with how efficiently they run things there. They are also friendly & helpful. I have to admit, however, that I was a little dismayed at seeing the mountains upon mountains of garbagethere , and felt guilty adding to the pile. Makes me want to recycle and reuse more than we do.

Leave a Comment

Edamame

After a busy day of errands, caring for Samuel & Juniper, and attempting to clean up the house, we decided to eat out tonight as our refrigerator is nearly empty as it's the end of the week. So, to make things easy tonight, we ate out at Le Hana again, and this time, we got out of there for $25.00. We ordered lots of sushi from their happy hour menu, and had a couple of bowls of edamame. Samuel loves edamame.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Allie!

Leave a Comment

Post-Vaccination Day

Juniper slept a lot last night and today, most likely a response to her vaccinations yesterday. She hasn't had any other side effects, just lots of sleep. Samuel's actually still fighting this virus he's had. His fever comes and goes at random, and there have been a few nights where he's awoken from a deep sleep crying, and when I go into his room, I realize he has fevered up again. This virus has given him a light body rash, diarrea, and sore neck muscles. Poor guy. He's also coming down with a new cold. Juniper, too. I'm hoping he gets over this virus soon, because I hate to see it come and go like it has for so long.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Ian!

Leave a Comment

Vaccinations

The anticipation of appointments that include vaccinations is so much worse than the actual appointment itself. Juniper did great. She had 4 vaccines & one oral rotavirus vaccine today, and moments later, when this photo was taken, she had already stopped crying. I did some reading prior to this appointment, and felt so much more informed and secure in my decision to vaccinate than I did when Samuel was vaccinated. Samuel was actually due for his third Hep A today (a new requirement), but since he's still running a temperature, we decided to postpone it for another week. The poor guy is still fighting this virus he picked up at Papa's Pizza Saturday night. He's hardly eaten anything for the past few days, but is fortunately keeping plenty of liquids down. It's hard to explain vaccines to a three year old, but Samuel watched the nurses vaccinate Juniper today, so I'm hoping that might help him to be strong when he has to endure a prick next week. Like I said, the anticipation is so much harder to endure than the actual prick!

2 comments

Another Winter Illness

We attended a birthday party on Saturday night for a friend of Samuel's at Papa's Pizza in Beaverton, and I had a bad feeling about the play gym before Samuel even knew it was there. What's a mother to do, though? I wasn't going to tell him he couldn't play, so Landon did the best he could to keep his hands out of his mouth while he was playing (I was holding Juniper) & made sure to wash his hands really well before he ate any pizza. But, sure enough, 48 hours later, Samuel came down with a high fever. He complained that his mouth & neck hurt, but other than the fever, he has no other symptoms. It was a long night last night. Samuel had a lot of trouble sleeping, and he finally ended up in bed with Juniper and I. Between the two of them, I had little sleep. Samuel's fever continued this morning, so I kept him home from school. He's spent most of the day watching movies & laying on the couch. He won't eat anything, but he's keeping lots of fluids down. By this afternoon, he seems to be feeling better, although his forehead is still warm to the touch. I'm hoping he didn't catch anything additional at the Children's Museum. If so, the lovely virus will probably show up by tomorrow.

The gravel was delivered today. The chimney & fireplace are clean. The gutters & roof will be cleaned later this week. Last night, Landon was able to move our red twig dogwood, which is extremely pervasive, and was planted too close to our fence line. He moved it before it had developed too much of an extensive root system, and since it is quite hearty, I don't expect it to have any set-backs. As shown in the jpg. that I hyperlinked above, it has beautiful red twigs during its dormant season, and beautiful creamy white flowers and lush foliage during the summer & fall. It's now in the corner of our backyard, and will make a beautiful focal point. I have a vine maple on each side of the dogwood.

My crocuses are in bloom, and with the sun we've had the past couple of days, I'm sensing spring in the air!

2 comments

9 Weeks Old

My little Juniper Octavia is nine weeks old today, and is getting so big! She will have her two month appointment this Wednesday, where we'll find out her current weight, height, and head circumference. I'm dreading her vaccinations, and will be relieved once the appointment is over. Samuel has to have a Hep A booster with the new requirements for this school year, and I'm hoping he'll be brave for his little sister. I'm also hoping that Landon will be able to come with me for moral support while our little ones get pricked.

It's been a whirlwind around here lately, and I feel like I'm swimming in the sea of things to get done. I was able to schedule our chimney cleaning for tomorrow, as well as leave messages with several contractors to get our gutters & roof cleaned. Landon called to get a load of 3/4" gravel delivered tomorrow for the street parking in front of our house. Only the center of our street is paved, and the part of the street where we park along the curb is getting pretty muddy. I'm glad I made a little headway on my list of things to do today, but I still have a ways to go before I'm caught up.
P.S. Thank-you for the adorable outfit (pictured above) for Juniper, Erin!

3 comments

Samuel Turns Three

Three candles on the cake means my little boy has turned three. We had a big party for him at the Children's Museum, and all his friends came to celebrate. He had a lot of fun. The party started off with a puppet-making craft, then he blew the candles out on his airplane cake and opened up many thoughtful gifts from all his friends, Nana, and Aunties. After the party, all the kids had fun in the museum playing in the Building Bridgetown and Waterworks exhibits, and in the Dig Pit. A big thank-you to my Mom & sisters for holding Juniper almost the whole time. Of course, I know they love holding her, but it was a huge help! I'm going to have to get creative each year with two winter babies, as there are limited indoor options. Children's Museum was a great location for this year's party, though, and with a new baby, made things so much easier!

Happy three years, Samuel!

2 comments

Little Deer Shoes

While doing some shopping at Baby! Oh, Baby!, a new baby boutique in Multnomah Village, for Samuel and Juniper, I was given a free pair of these adorable baby shoes made by little deer shoes with my purchase. I love them! They are all sewn here in Portland by the owner; she makes everything she sells with her own two hands. They stay on Juniper's feet every bit as well as the popular Robeez. Check out little deer's website for more information on where to buy these. The owner also sells caps, purses, and minibags made in the same style and wool/rayon felt as the shoes. Support another local entrepreneur!

3 comments

An Experience with Fine Wine

We were a meal or two short this week, so decided to eat out last night at Tony Bento on the east side. After hitting some heavy traffic due to a wreck on the Ross Island, we turned around and decided to eat at Le Hana in the South Waterfront. This place is a little pricey, but to our delight, we got there during happy hour! They had a variety of sushi to choose from on their happy hour menu as well as edamame (I could eat bowls of these), miso soup, and a few dinners from their entree menu. Usually, we can't get out of there for under $50 or $60 bucks, so we were feeling pretty good about getting a sushi dinner for under $30.00. Since dinner was so cheap, Landon and I decided to get drinks. He ordered a beer from the happy hour menu, and I ordered a glass of cabernet. She asked if I wanted the Mondavi or some other Cabernet that I can't recall the name of now, and after scanning the price list and seeing nothing but $6.00 a glass, I went with the Mondavi. So, we get our bill about thirty minutes later, and it's $50.00. I scan the prices on the receipt, and notice that my glass of wine was $15.00. What the? I don't even buy bottles of wine for $15.00 unless it's our anniversary or some other special occasion! I asked our waitress about it, and she said, "That's how much the Mondavi is." I thought about my mistake after she left the table, and realized that there was nothing the waitress could have done. She didn't know my price range, and if she would have said when I ordered, "Are you sure you want to go with the Mondavi? It's $15.00 a glass, you know," then I would have been insulted by her assumption that we couldn't afford it (remember the scene in Pretty Woman when the dress boutique owner tells Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts' character) that she couldn't afford anything in the store, then asks her to leave?). Although I smiled and paid the tab, laughing with Landon about my mistake, the waitress was nice enough to give us a coupon for 20% off our next meal. In the end, we still can't say we've eaten at Le Hana for under $50.00, but now that we know about their happy hour (it's from 2-6PM), we'll definitely be back. I will say it was a damn good glass of wine. Makes you realize you get what you pay for when you drink the cheap stuff. I do draw the line, however, with Charles Shaw, but as of now, that is as far as my wine snobbishness goes.

Leave a Comment

3 Years and 2 Months

I took Samuel and Juniper to have their pictures taken yesterday, and after three hours in Babies R'Us, these pictures were the final result. When Samuel was happy, Juniper was not, and vice versa. Needless to say, we were in there for a long time. There were many trips back and forth to the Mother's Room to nurse Juniper, and by the time I would finish, I had to recomb their hair and get them presentable for pictures again. Then Juniper would spit up and I'd have to change her outfit. After all that outfit changing, the picture that turned out was the one of her in a diaper. I'm glad I didn't plan anything else for the day, because picture day is obviously going to be an all day event for awhile. Since I bought one of their packages, 24 birth announcements were thrown in for free (see below).

4 comments

Peri's Ponchos

If you haven't heard of Peri's Ponchos, let me connect you with the cutest little ponchos you'll find anywhere. You can browse through the colorful children's ponchos in Peri's online gallery, and she now has a link on her website where you can order online through paypal. Samuel wore the forest green Robin Hoodie (see below) for a couple years before outgrowing it, and I've just ordered Juniper the orchid flower poncho for this fall. They make the perfect little windbreaker for fall & spring. Check them out & support another local entrepreneur!

Leave a Comment

8 Weeks

Juniper is 8 weeks old today. She is holding her head up now & has discovered her hands. She will sometimes look at them now and touch her fingers together. She loves to watch Samuel & I'm starting to see the first glimpses of sibling interaction. Samuel is a protective big brother, and is often saying things like, "Mommy, she wants her pacifier" or "Mommy, she needs to nurse right now." It's been such a relief to move beyond the adjustment phase from those early weeks, and to see Samuel move from acting out to being a big brother. For those of you still in those early weeks, it does get easier! Hang in there!

P.S. In the photo above, Juniper is wearing Smartwool Booties, and I really love them! The merino wool keeps her feet toasty warm, and they stay on her feet, despite her constant kicks! A great investment for a winter baby!

Leave a Comment

Creative Entrepreneurs

I love stories about people who quit their day job to pursue a creative interest or life-long dream career. Take my friend, Katie Jervis, for instance. After years of working for someone else, she did what many people talk a lot about, but few have the courage to do, and quit her job to go into business for herself. She's been nothing but successful, and I have nothing but admiration and respect for what she's accomplished.

In this week's Willamette Week, there's a story of a young man, Michael Chorazak, whose business idea came when he was out on a walk one evening in NW Portland and caught a drift of the smell of burning wood. Only the creative mind takes a thought like, "I've always loved the smell of a campfire" to "I wonder if anyone's ever made a candle that smells like that." Sure enough, he found that no one was making candles that smelled of campfires, so Hotwicks was born, and he even quit his day job at Nike to make it happen. Hop on over to this new candlemaker's website and check out his work. The Portland Tribune came out with a story on Hotwicks this week as well.

On another note, Move On is organizing watch parties for Super Tuesday. I've had a hard time figuring out whether to vote for Clinton or Obama, but I've finally decided on Obama. The polls are starting to turn in his favor, so I'm hopeful about his prospects. Tune in tomorrow night for coverage on the primaries, and make a party out of it if you can!

1 comment

Sunday

We all went to REI this morning to do some clothes shopping, but other than a few items, left empty handed. All I'm going to say is I definitely need to lose the baby weight. I really want to join a gym asap, but I'm not okay with leaving Juniper yet, and with the rain, my exercise options are pretty limited right now. So, in the meantime, I'm going to really watch those calories & hope for some less baggy attire in the near future.

Yesterday, we spent the morning doing grocery shopping & getting supplies for Samuel's party next weekend--he's going to be THREE already! We're all excited, and looking forward to celebrating his 3rd birthday. What a treat it was to pass through Garden Home on our way to Target and see a small snow storm passing through. Everything was white, and there was about one or two inches on the ground. I stopped at one of my favorite drive-through coffee shops, Espresso Works (they serve Stumptown and the owner is really sweet), and Juniper and I sat in the car while Samuel and Landon got out and played in the snow. About 5 to 7 minutes later, Samuel started screaming. His hands had finally become too cold for comfort, but boy did he have fun throwing those snowballs. We got him into the car & warmed up in no time. It was such a pretty morning in Garden Home with all the white, barren trees & falling snow. We really hope to get up to Mount Hood next year so Samuel can experience snow on a more regular basis, as we only get a good snowstorm here in the valley every other year or so.

--Karli

Leave a Comment

Saturday Afternoon

I spent about two hours or less with Juniper at our local coffee shop this afternoon catching up on some thank-you notes & reading for my book-club, and it really made a big difference in my day. I went during Juniper's nap, so she slept in her car-seat while I read. I'm reading Ivan Doig's novel, The Whistling Season, for February's book-club. So far, it's a little slow, but I can already tell he's an exceptional writer. For me, leaving the house is a must in order to read, and I'm starting to think about getting a MacBook so that I can blog outside the home as well. I have so many things I want to write about, but don't have the time & focus at home to do so. I'll get there, though... in the meantime, these one or two hour coffee shop outings add a necessary balance to life as a stay-at-home mama!
Karli

2 comments

Colds

We're all sick now. Landon and Samuel caught a new cold, and Juniper's struggling with one as well. The cold I've had for a couple of weeks continues. Good news is that cold/flu season is almost over! Looking forward to lots of fresh air soon.
Karli

1 comment