Welcome, Darling Girl!

I got big. Way big. Not that I didn't enjoy every moment of those extra servings...

 

 

 

But it was worth it! Kiera Laurel, you were born on September 20, 2013 at 6:33 am under the remains of a full moon. You began your journey to the world the night before (your original due date) after WEEKS of teasing - naughty, naughty -, and in 9 swift hours and 9 whole minutes of pushing, you were placed in our arms and in our hearts forever. You sang your first sweet notes moments after you arrived, and have been vocal ever since! You never hesitate to let us know when you're needing or wanting, or just want to chat about sweet musings, music, art, history, fashion....whatever strikes your fancy! You hate to be put down, because you can't stand to be away from the people around you. A social butterfly for sure, but I've been calling you Kieraluna (a la Stellaluna) because of your "lunar landing" and your love of the night life! Welcome to the world, baby girl! This crazy, beautiful, wonderful world!

 



 

First picture! You were 19 1/4 inches long and weighed in at 7lbs 14oz

 

Since coming home, you've settled in quite nicely! You have found your happy place (snuggled up, close to anything and anyone nearby)

 

 

Big Sister Lily loves you to the moon and back! You and she are Daddy's girls for sure!

Welcome, darling girl! You are so very loved!

And We're Back!



Oh hi.....it's been a while. Like....8 months. I could go through the list of what we've missed, but, I think this pretty much sums it up:

 

 

 



 

 

Yep! Our family is definitely blooming! As well as a few other parts of me.... Baby girl number 2 is due in about 4 weeks and wee are all in a tizzy. Lily started PreK3 last week, mommy goes back to work tomorrow and daddy has been working like crazy stocking up on leave time. We're gearing up for late-night feedings, zombie-mode, diaper changes and messes. Glorious messes.

 

Already, just as with Lily, it feels like we have a pretty good idea of who this new family member is. She's more active than Lily was, and does not seem to have and particular preference for any particular position, food, etc. Easy going, constantly moving, up for anything all-day all-night party girl. Read: trouble. Crazy beautiful fabulous trouble. Get ready, daddy.

 

As we prepare for the arrival, we are doing our best to try to cherish and treasure the time we have left with our only-child. Who, is very much the ONLY-CHILD. I know her world is about to be rocked, I know it'll rock in the best way, I just hope learning to roll with it won't be too difficult. I love that she will have a sister. A secret-keeper, a confidante. I love that this new little one will have a sounding board, a guide. I have been googling, blogging, forum-ing and contacting as many friends with multiple children as I can find to figure out the best way to ensure Lily will embrace this new role in her life with ease and joy. The overwhelming response? She will. She will....she will....New mantra. She will (be proud) She will (love her sister) She will (continue to feel loved) She will (never forget how much she means to us) She will (stay confident) She will (be fine). She will. She will.

 

Sometimes I look at Lily and can't believe how little she is (usually as I'm tucking her into her big-girl bed). But more often, I am in awe of how much she has grown. Not a baby anymore. MY baby, but not A baby. At three years old, she loves ballerinas and Superman. She wears princess dresses with fairy wings as she asks to be referred to as the Red Power Ranger. She likes schedules. She likes order. When the schedule changes or the order is messed up, she gets uncomfortable. She can be painfully shy or incredibly present, depending on the day. She is as stubborn as ever and has a fear of hibachi restaurants (the fire freaks her out like whoa). She loves school and wants to hear the story of Snow White every night, as she is most proud of her ability to identify and name each of the seven dwarfs. She loves to bake. She loves to swing and slide. She loves zumba. She loves her daddy. She loves.

 

 

 

the 3 girls

 

 

With only weeks to go, we have been showered with love by friends, family and colleagues. Just last night we celebrated with a Chocolate and Cheese baby shower at the Melting Pot. Pregnant or not, chocolate and cheese I think will become the theme of most of my personal celebrations. No judging.

School starts tomorrow. Gearing up for a new year full of change and general craziness. Aren't you excited?

With A Heavy Heart

Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me, I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And take us to Heaven to live with Thee there.

*note, this is not our elf. This photo is not mine*

My daughter went to school yesterday morning, the same as every day. I woke her up at 6:20, gave her a banana, toast and milk for breakfast. Shoes on, hair and teeth brushed, lunch packed and jacket zipped, we were out the door at 6:45 and she was at school by 7:00. I signed her in, put her backpack on its hook, and walked away with a quick "I love you! See you later!" over my shoulder as I walked. She repeated my words back to me, and I went to work  smiling.

I don't think I've ever held my daughter tighter than I have since 3:30 Friday afternoon. I don't think I ever noticed the freckle on her neck, just under her chin before. Or the slight curve of her right big toe. Just little things I've noticed in the last few hours as I've tried to absorb every detail of my beautiful girl. I've memorized the tone of her voice, her cadence, her inflection. The difference between laughing at something funny, and laughing at something that makes her nervous - most often, Mowgli. I know every shade of every strand of hair on her head. And it took a tragedy in Connecticut to make me sit still and look. To hush up and listen. To take the time to take her in. This is not the first time tragedy or senseless disaster has struck our world during my lifetime. It won't be the last, I'm sure. But for some reason, this one really hit me. Maybe it's because I'm older. Maybe it's because I'm a mom. Either way, my heart is hurting.

This post is for Lily. This post is for the children I have yet to bear. This post is for my students. This post is for the children I love, the children you love, the children we all have yet to know. This post is for you. This post is for me. This post is for

Charlotte Bacon, 6
Daniel Barden, 7
Rachel Davino, 29
Olivia Engel, 6
Josephine Gay, 7
Ana Marquez-Greene, 6
Dylan Hockley, 6
Dawn Hocksprung, 47
Madeline Hsu, 6
Catherine Hubbard, 6
Chase Kowalski, 7
Jesse Lewis, 6
James Mattioli, 6
Grace McDonnell, 7
Anne Marie Murphy, 52
Emilie Parker, 6
Jack Pinto, 6
Noah Pozner, 6
Caroline Previdi, 6
Jessica Rekos, 6
Avielle Richman, 6
Lauren Rousseau, 30
Mary Sherlach, 56
Victoria Soto, 27
Benjamin Wheeler, 6
Allison Wyatt, 6

This post is my very small part to recognize these people by their names. Each one - even the adults - is someone's child. I say their names out loud for them.

 I say their names out loud for their mamas. My heart broke with theirs. I cry with them, I grieve with them, one mama to another.

And I will never forget to not just watch my daughter, but see her; not to just hear her, but to listen to her; and to be thankful every single day she comes home to me.

God bless Newtown, Connecticut. God bless those children and educators. God bless their families. God bless us all.

November - it was wonderful

Yes, I know it's December. Similar to my October post, I just have a few random pictures and some captions to try to piece together a month full of crazy beautiful wonderful stressful emotional fabulous heartbreaking - yes, heartbreaking - month (see Seminole football). That, plus the fact that I don't have a SINGLE picture from Thanksgiving, all adds up to one hot mess of a mama. Between work, grad school, Lily's activities, Jason's insane work schedule, my volunteer commitments and the holidays, I haven't had time to take a breath, much less take a picture. New Year resolution: take more pictures. I feel like I've said that before...

 

Anyway, here's a breakdown of the month (minus Thanksgiving....bad, mommy, bad!)

 



 

 

 

 

The first weekend of the month actually skipped forward a bit on the holiday calendar, as the Junior League of Tallahassee put on our annual Jingle Jubilee, our premiere holiday shopping event featuring vendors from all over the country. Fabulous shopping, performances by local dance companies and a special pancake breakfast with Santa and Mrs. Claus for the kids (and me...). It was wonderful.

 

 

Speaking of wonderful, I adore this time of year. Fabulous décor and pumpkin flavored goodies aside, this time of year is the best simply because it's the time of year when everyone comes home. I am one of the few who stayed here in town after high school, and one of even fewer who set up house here after college. I love seeing pictures of my friends in all of their dream-following, change of pace and place lives. Some day, when flight rates drop, I'll visit them. But for now, text messages and phone dates get me through the week. While I haven't yet regretted staying home - Tallahassee is proving to be a perfect place for our growing family - I do miss them something fierce. Come November, though, communication changes. Their voices are clear because they're in the same room as I am, not at the other end of a phone line. The sparkle in their eyes is brighter than ever because it's not being blurred by webcams. Their hugs and smiles beat a text message alert any day. I love it when they come home.

 

 

 

Kyla came home for a blink before she had to head back to NYC. No worries, though, she'll be moving back to Tally in January! Woohoo!

 

 

 

Lisa also came home along with our friend Kristen (from D.C and Las Vegas, respectively). We all met up at the FSU v. UF game to cheer on our Seminoles! Apparently we weren't cheering loud enough....I don't want to talk about it. Heartbreaking. Just heartbreaking. But it was just fabulous visiting and tailgating! #NoleFanForever

 

 

The end of Thanksgiving and the FSU/UF game mark the official beginning of the Christmas season. I met up with some Junior League gals at our local Painting With a Twist and made a new item for the house:

 

Yep - I'm an artist, now. No big deal.

 

 

The new art, plus our usual decorations, plus a whole new heap of decorations (after an emergency run to Hobby Lobby. The décor we had to decorate our townhouse barely covers a single room in our new house. That just would not do!) have all been put up, minus a Christmas tree and a few other finishing touches. Working on the tree....have I mentioned we're busy? Anyway, after the stocking were hung by the chimney with care (because I have a chimney now! How cool is that?!?!), we lit our first fire. As with everything else, it was wonderful.

 

October - all of it!

Yeah, it's December. Not even going start with the apologies or excuses. You know how it goes!Here's an October dump for ya.

 

 

Pumpkin picking to kick off the month!

 

 

 

 

 

With the pumpkins picked and carved, pumpkin spice lattes in hand, we began Halloween celebrations!

 

 

Candy Corn outfit for Halloween day. Thanks, Aunt Annette!

 

 

 

Tucker, his family, and Alisha came over for trick-or-treating! A little pre-costume photoshoot.

 

 

 

Quick costume change and some candy pre-gaming. Lily definitely has her eye on the prize!

Family pic! Happy Halloween!

The Holiday Season

The pumpkins are here! Halloween is a little over one week away and we are in full fall swing. I've been keeping the windows around me open whenever possible and today marked out first official fall activity - the pumpkin patch. Picking out our pumpkins, playing in the hay, avoiding scarecrows at all cost and watching a marathon of Halloween movies (thanks, ABC Family!) while snacking on sandwiches and laughing with friends marks the first of our seasonal celebrations. What a wonderful time of year! Here are a few shots from the Patch:

 

 

So take a look at this one from this morning:

 

 

Now take a moment and check this out from Baby Girl's first pumpkin patch visit. Now beathe deep and let it sink in. Yep, she's growing up way too fast!

 

So sweet.

Cuddles with Daddy

 



 

Posing with Mommy

The Campbells came, too! Lily and Tucker has a blast climbing over the pumpkins and then playing around in the back yard after we got home. They are so wonderful together!

 

 

A wonderful day to kick off a wonderful season. I'm sure I've said it before, but as far as I'm concerned, the Holidays begin with Halloween and end with Mardi Gras. That said, happy holidays, y'all!

A Work in Progress

I would like to start by saying that I am useless as an interior designer. I can arrange flowers and create tablescapes with moderate confidence, but when it comes to putting whole rooms together, I'm at a loss. I have no spacial reasoning skills and my eye for color is often a few shades off. But that's the good thing about owning your home, right? I can always start over if I need to. I will say, though, so far I think I'm doing OK!

 

It's a work in progress, but here's a quick update! We've been in the house for a few weeks now, and with me working all day and Jason working nights, it's tough to make a lot of progress during the few hours between! But it's definitely coming along. With the new space, the rooms are still looking pretty bare, and since painting the walls took about 2 weeks (again, we didn't have a lot of time between job shifts), I am 100x more hesitant to start putting things up on the wall than I have ever been before. I feel like every nail I hammer into the wall needs to be a certainty, like putting an unnecessary hole would be an insult and an injury to all the hard work!

 

But, after all is said and done, it is truly starting to feel like home. The furniture is coming into place, and Lily and Mowgli have found their own separate world in our new backyard. There is really is no place like it!

 

 

OK so a few before-and-almost-after pictures!

 



 

 

 

This is the living room before. The walls and mantle were a blue-gray with a red accent wall behind the fireplace.

 

This is the painting in progress. I had a little too much fun putting the monogram over the mantle!

 

Almost finished product! The walls are Hazy Sage from Glidden and the mantle is now a true white to match the baseboard.

 

 

This is the dining room before.

 



 

Dining room almost after! It's a rich blue with warm woods, jewel tones and brass accents (chandelier and switchplates). We are in the process of putting the paintings on the walls and finding a piece to store our china and Waterford. Definitely the most dramatic room of the house - more pictures of this one to come!