Drifting

You may have noticed that I've been woefully absent for the last couple of weeks.  I promise I have a good reason.

You see, I've had a lot of work to do, and to be honest, I am still struggling to learn that delicate balance of working at home and being the best mom I can be to this little nugget.  Some days, I truly fail.  Either work is neglected, or my sweet little one has a cranky day because mommy hasn't been very present that day.  One day, the internet broke.  It was good for me.  I spent the morning cleaning and playing, the door to the bedroom and the internet shut tight (really, that door kind of sticks) and reminded myself what was important.  Obviously, work is important to me as well, but when I did sit down to work that day, I got so much more done without the internet in the background calling me to distraction.  Hence, the lack of any update. 

So, the point is, I'm still working on that balance thing.  But I've got a lot of motivation to get it right, and maybe someday I will.

Here are a few of those sweet moments...

 

Anni is finally doing a little better hanging out with people other than Daniel and I.  Amy is definitely a favorite, and as you can see, she's pretty excited for Baby Lucy to come out and play (any day now!)

We also had some old (does it count as old when you're still in your 20's?) friends move to Colorado with their son, and while we are thrilled, Anni is absolutely over-the-moon excited.  She spent most of the time there giving hugs and cuddles.  Their little man was a little confused, but I think Anni just gets excited over kids her size she can play with :).  

Yep, they're awesome.

Oh, and I'm still super impressed with how fast Jill got their apartment looking adorable and cozy.  I'm still working on that.

We've had a lot of this recently.  While she's still a champion sleeper at night (except for this morning, where she was restless from 5:30 - 6:30 when we finally just gave in and got up... er... Daniel got up, I slept until 7, have I mentioned how awesome my husband is?), naps are a near no-go recently.  I can't figure out why, because she's obviously tired.  She sleeps nearly every time we're in the car longer than 15 minutes.  

I cut my hair off (I know it looks like a different color... it's not, just different lighting).  Easy is necessary for me :).

She walks absolutely everywhere!  It's adorable and I'm so proud of her.  She is, too, she gets the biggest grin on her face every time she walks through the apartment.

She blows kisses, which melts my heart to no end... especially since I'm not sure where she learned it.  

We celebrated the actual day of our anniversary the way we always have, with a picnic :).  (Every other year it's inside, although we don't plan it that way.)

 Passing on our faith to Miss Anni is important to us, but it is equally important to me that she knows why we believe what we believe and that we as parents truly represent the love and mercy we believe God is.  All that will come with time, but for now she likes to point at this icon, say "Jesus" and do a little kiss pucker.   

And, as you can tell, I'm running out of steam.  Anni is napping, for once, and I'm going to go crawl into bed in hopes that it lasts longer than 15 minutes.

the end.

Nugget's Room

This is the one room in our little apartment that has a complete feeling.  I like to go sit in it during the day and daydream, with the yellow curtain open and sunlight streaming in to touch all of the sweet little things we've used to make Anni's room special.  Putting her room together was very important to me.  Her due date was going to be after we had moved to a new apartment (the one that we lived in before this one), where she would have a room I could get all ready for her.  However, when she came early, we were living in a garden level one bedroom apartment, and when she came home, we were still in that apartment.  At the time, it wasn't a big deal - we had other things to worry about, and I wanted her in our room for a little while, so we certainly didn't need the extra room at that point.  Sometimes it's okay to want something; though, right?  And a sweet little room for my sweet little baby was one of those things.  Since she came home, it has felt like life has moved so fast that I can barely keep pace.  This was important to me; though, so for over a year I've been slowly gathering bits and pieces and ideas for her room.  And, as complete as it may ever be: our nugget's room!

A note before you look - I know a coat of paint can transform any room.  Unfortunately, we live in an apartment.  And while we actually are allowed to paint, we'd have to paint it back before we moved out, which may be less than a year from now, so the trouble wasn't worth it.  Therefore, we found the sweet little decals.  They probably won't be a part of her room in the next home, but for now, they make up for the drab walls a little bit :).

Noticed the crazy mix of woods we have?  See... the crib is a hand-me-down from my wonderful sister, the bedside table is from Daniel's childhood room, the bookshelf is my college bookshelf and the rocking chair is the one new thing in the room.  I originally wanted dark wood in the room, but I think we'll transition to a lighter wood as we move some of the baby items out.  (On a funny note, the next room theme I have in mind definitely calls for dark wood... why can't I just pick one?!)

Did you notice the riotous flowers on the right-hand wall?  My nieces were in charge of that lovely meadow :).  It makes me smile and miss them every time I look at it.

There it is :).  Now for a few favorite things (okay, pretty much everything is a favorite thing, but I narrowed it down).

On the left: the yellow rocking chair Anni's grampa made for her.  I can't even tell you how special it is to me that this is in her room and that she will have it long after she's grown out of it.  I also love the square pictures above it.  I really wanted some at Anni's level... because this room is about her, right?  They are easily replaceable (I used velcro to put them up) if Anni gets a little too interested and not too expensive to that.  I got the idea for these on one of my favorite blogs.

On the right: the canopy!  Oh, how I love it!  I always wanted a canopy, and I love that this one was affordable and not too fussy.  I got it from ikea, and they even have an even cheaper one that I think it also darling.  And, just because it is one  of my favorite Anni blankets, the sweet quilted blanket lying over her crib was a gift when she was born.

Anni's cousins keep us company :).  We like to say good night to them, because we wish we could in person!

I loved the idea of letters on the wall... but wasn't too thrilled about the cost or look of the wooden ones.  Luckily, my sister is uber talented, and whipped these up for me.  Perfect!  In case you want some of your own quilted letters... she sells them in her etsy shop.

I just love this collection of books.  Some are Anni's, some are being borrowed from cousins, some were mine when I was little... I have always loved reading, so I want to give Nugget the chance to fall in love with it, as well!

Ah... Organic Bloom frames, you just make me happy :).  While I feel like I need something more on this wall, I've been just a-waiting for this frame to share the room with you... because it was the mark that the room was "done enough" to share.  This darling picture was taken by the lovely Jenny Hanlon.  It is definitely a favorite.  And, by the way, the frame is a 16x20 Lucy in buttercup.  In case you care about these things ;-).
 

This has always been a favorite piece.  Anni was so tiny when she was born and used to make a very birdlike face.  An artist local to the college I went to (in fact, the daughter of my choral instructor!) makes and sells beautiful cut paper art.  You can find her here, and I strongly suggest that you do.

So, there it is.  Definitely a labor of love, and one that I don't think will ever be finished.  I like changing things, adding things and moving things.  It's not perfect, but it's her very own.  I like to think she likes it (except for the crib, she has emphatically informed us that naptime should disappear).  I like it.  It's home.

Two years and a happy life

Photo by Brian Robinson

Today, my husband and I are celebrating 2 years since the day we made our vows.  We have been blessed beyond belief and have also been through some difficult times.  My husband deserves an entire post on how unbelievably strong he has been for our whole family, and someday he will get it.  But, today, I'm going to spend the time I would spend on that post with him, because he deserves that more.

A Weekend in Estes

This weekend I had a wedding to shoot in Estes Park. The best part about it was that my family was also invited, so I got to steal little moments with them throughout the day. Plus, we were staying in Estes Park. I mean, it was gorgeous.    

The bride is a childhood friend of my husband's.  During the few years he lived in California, she lived next door, and the three of them (my husband's brother included) played together all the time.  She is so fun!  She is a dancer, a theology major and has possibly the coolest tattoos I've ever seen. 

Deacon Doctor Grampa was also there (he witnessed the vows - really, this wedding was all in the family), so Anni partied it up with him.  Since we've moved a little further away from them, it was great to have an extra reason to see them.  Have I mentioned I have the best in-laws ever?  They are amazing.

The morning after, we were bleary eyed and a little more than groggy after our dear, sweet little one was awake from 2 - 4 am.  We are out of practice with the middle of the night wakings, so it was rough.  Luckily, we had breakfast at the Stanley Hotel (yep, where The Shining was authored and tv version filmed as well as portions of Dumb and Dumber, I am told, I didn't watch the whole thing) to look forward to.  So.  Beautiful.

Sweetness abounds in our life, and I'm loving it!

but, I am really, very tired.

100th Post: Short and Sweet

 I've kind of held out on posting, I mean, I should do something epic for my 100th post, right?  Well, it's epic, alright... just short and sweet at the same time.  I know it seems like something small to many people, but Nugget walking is a closing of a chapter of worry for her.  We are so proud of her!

That's it, nothing fancy, just pure, unadulterated joy at my sweet one's triumph.