Sometimes life has to be lived with your head down, pushing through. Not with writing and poetry and pictures. And that’s just that.
In the meantime, Spring is close!
[And yes! That is a clip in her hair! Finally.]
February 7, 2010
You mean the world to me and Daddy.
This year has been the best year of our lives.
You are our Rose.
Our Pearl.
The spin on our world.
Even the stars make their wishes on your eyes.
The way you grow so fast reminds me to stop everyday and be grateful.
When you learn something new, I am proud. When you fall and get hurt, I am sad. When you feel silly and giggle, I smile. When you are, I am too.
Happy First Birthday, Poppy!
January 31, 2010
No matter how much time goes by, no matter how old I grow, no matter how big the commercial giant gets, no matter how liberated women become, I will never ever hate Walt Disney for his Princesses.
Belle is a personal favorite of mine and Poppy’s, as you may recall. And now with this new Christmas gift of Princess dining ware, we are spreading the fairytale joy to mealtimes too.
Behold, an obsession.
January 28, 2010
Poppy will be ONE year old next week and I’m dying over here. Dying of joy, heartache, pride, love, sadness, and excitement all at the same time.
This little Booger Butt is the most wonderful kid I know. She is as stubborn as hell and as cute as a button, which, frankly, creates a balance so perfect that at least once every day she comes within inches of her life’s end and somehow manages to smile at me in a way that makes all the BAD go away instantly.
At story time the other day, she was chasing after a boy trying to steal his stacking rings. Oh Poppy. She sat down in the middle of the circle of children and reveled in her victory, munching on each and every ring as though it were made of Toblerone. And she doesn’t even know what that is!
As she was playing, I saw her look up from her toy, scan the room, and search the faces of all the mothers and children. Finally, her big beautiful eyes landed straight on me. On me. Where they stayed for a few moments and melted into a beautiful grin across her chubby cheeks. A big “Hi” and then she was back to the rings. For that moment, I felt like the most important person in the whole world. I know she won’t always have this kind of admiration for me. I know someday she’ll hate me for something. I know someday she’ll grow up and be independent and busy.
But for today, just today, I am her world and oh, man. It is incredible.
January 13, 2010
{Sometimes the days are as long as marathons}
{Sometimes the afternoons drag on page by page like a boring book}
{Sometimes I watch the clock and will the hands to move with speed}
{But then – but then – the seconds of her life fly by me}
{Before I know it, she is Growing Up}
January 6, 2010
I love my husband because he
*stayed up late last night to do the dishes
*got up early this morning to shovel the driveway
*spent nine hours at work to provide for us
*came home to a stir-crazy baby and wife and still has the energy to make this amazing memory…
December 18, 2009
When Poppy was born, this blog, along with just about everything in my world, became all about her. In an effort to keep up with this way of life, I present to you a Poppy Update. Complete with photos and witty quips!
Poppy Anne is 10.5 months old now, but who’s counting? I mean, who cares that she is a mere 1.5 months away from the big ONE YEAR OLD. I mean, no one is crying about that yet, right?
A week before we were set to move to the new house, Poppy woke up during the night with her first high fever. She was so pathetic, and cute, at the same time. The three of us snuggled on the couch and watched Lord Of The Rings at 4AM. A few days later, Poppy sprouted this nice pair of pearly whites. Her first teeth!
Poppy is on the move these days. She can walk along furniture, crawl forward and backward, and pull her self up on the most dangerous of apparatus, including our television cabinet. She has been testing her balance and even took two unassisted steps into my arms last night! She loves to walk with Jacob on the new set of stairs we’ve recently acquired.
Poppy is saying lots of new words…
Mama (YES!)
Dada (She yells this one)
Ouch (This one is super cute to listen to)
Night Night (Which is cried through tears, “Ni Ni Ni Ni”)
and Meow (in her cutest, most high-pitched voice)
Poppy survived the move much better than her parents. She played with Aunt Amy all day and slept like an angel on the first night in her new room. I give this kid BIG props. She loves her new house already, as evidenced by the trail of mess she so lovingly leaves wherever she goes.
Speaking of sleeping, our champion girl sleeps straight through the night and takes two naps a day, which makes me both extremely lucky and very SANE. Lovey is still Poppy’s closest companion (after Cheerios and Raffi of course), and if not for this little blanket, life would be so rough for our Princess.
Poppy has also learned to hit us when she’s upset. It’s so hard not to laugh when we say, “Poppy, you may not hit,” and then she stops, looks back and forth between us both, gets a glorious grin across her face, and then WHACK! I can’t even tell you how many times in the last couple of weeks that Jacob has turned to me and said, “How the hell am I going to teach her to stop doing this?” Then she turns and smacks him again and we have to leave the room so she can’t see us laughing. And crying.
I could on and on about my tiny Poptart. She is growing into an amazing little person. I love to watch her learn new things everyday. She’s my pal and my buddy. She’s been a trooper and a joy as our family works to settle into a new place. She is leanring to test boundaries, explore her feelings and her wants, and the best of all? She is learning to love. She gives hugs when you ask her, and she finds quiet moments during playtime to turn around, crawl into my lap, and sit awhile while I kiss her soft forehead.
Babyhood is behind us and we are quickly moving on to the Bobbler stage. And this Mama couldn’t be more excited.
December 16, 2009
Sorry for the long absence, my Dear Readers, I am here. I’m just buried in lots of boxes, unassembled furniture, and happiness. I love being in our new house. From the moment we set the first box down in the living room, I felt like I was home. And gosh darnit, that’s the way it should be. There’s still a lot of projects to be done, but it is a joy to work on this little space for our little family. I will post some pictures soon, I promise!
November 23, 2009
I have two favorite kinds of animals in the whole world – owls and hippopotamusesssesses. To my wonderful surprise today, the Flickr blog was featuring some photos of happy hippos.
I love me some good photography, but Flickr sure knows how to get me with the cute baby hippos. I can’t stand it. Is Cleveland zoned for hippos?
Speaking of pictures of baby animals, I recently downloaded the free application NatureAppy for Jacob’s iPhone and Poppy loves it. It’s a set of animal flashcards and coordinating sound bites. Poppy loves to see the pictures, and she looks around the room every time the coyote howls. The realistic images and sounds make me very, very happy too. Check it out, even if you’re not a kid. I love this App!
November 22, 2009
I sat outside Poppy’s door tonight and listened while Jacob rocked her little body to sleep and sang sweetly to her…
There is a castle on a cloud
I like to go there in my sleep
Aren´t any floors for me to sweep
Not in my castle on a cloud
I love this sound more than I can express. But I guess if I had to explain it, it would go something like this – colorful rainbows wrapped in teddy bear hugs with oodles of chocolate syrup pouring from mountains of candy with newborn babies and kittens running naked through fields of Enya CDs.
November 15, 2009
On the weekends, Poppy’s high chair gets moved into the living room where she gets to eat all of her meals cartoon-side. Today while having an afternoon snack, she caught a glimpse of figure skating on television and was completely mesmorized. Readers, behold your next Nancy Kerrigan. Well, with her build, it’s more like Oksana Baiul. Minus the DUI.
November 13, 2009
Good eats and mail from a friend!
November 9, 2009
This is my sister Amy during the wedding reception of good friends on Saturday. Isn’t she beautiful? She can really tear it up on the dance floor too.
Despite the heart-attacking stress of dressing and grooming a family of three and getting out the door looking dapper and dolled-up, I absolutely loved being guests of Steve and Liz at their wedding this weekend. It is so wonderful to watch two friends commit to a lifetime of unreserved love to each other. Mmmm. I just love it.
Happy Monday!
November 1, 2009
We took a very long Sunday drive today through northern Ohio today. I know I’ve said before that fall is my favorite season, but today was my most favorite day of the fall season of the history of my life. Right in the middle of the afternoon, I felt like the earth was at the perfect, and most beautiful pass between life and death. There was just enough color left in the trees, just the right amount of bare branches poking the blue sky, plenty of harvested fields and cool air to make our little corner of the world seem like a swirling oil canvas just beginning to fade into whiteness. The sun was shining and the leaves were dancing their way to the ground, happily giving up their beauty for Winter’s cold hand. I can’t help but think of how their purpose is fulfilled and now they must lay in the ground and await Spring’s call. I love autumn.
