today is jeremy's birthday.
here is a little poem i wrote to celebrate.
for thirty-two (a gift for my love)
the alarm goes off,
or sometimes it is a child calling to us.
morning has broken,
even if it is still dark outside.
you get up first,
i struggle to open my eyes.
minutes later you stand by the bed,
cup of steaming coffee in hand.
you set it on the nightstand.
the coffee is for me,
and so are the "good morning"
and the kiss.
the day begins.
work done.
children cared for.
bills paid (somehow).
meals prepared and eaten,
the chaos of dinner and bedtime.
maybe an argument or two,
but hopefully more kisses than arguments.
sleepy devotions before bed.
with heavy eyes we read
and sing quietly,
with cracking voices.
we exchange yawns,
then turn the light out.
we kiss goodnight
and fall asleep in each other's arms.
ordinary days,
but these are the good ones.
treasures upon treasures
in each simple day.
we often forget the beauty
He has given us.
yet He lovingly blesses us
with more days and years.
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
southern not-hospitality
today our van officially became a south carolina resident. we put it off as long as possible due to the very inhospitable vehicle/property tax that we had to pay before we could register the car. not only do residents have to pay it when they register their car, they have to pay it each year when they renew their registration. the tax is 5% of the purchase price (maximum being $300). it's outrageous. our michigan registration was set to expire in september, so we figured that waiting until september to register the car would be a good idea. that way, if/when we move at the end of jeremy's residency (in august), maybe we won't have to pay the tax again next year.
is it just me or does anyone else feel that a trip to the DMV is comparable to a dentist appointment?
the level of unpleasantness is certainly close, if not equal to visiting the dentist. (although if i were to choose, i guess i would go for the DMV over the dentist).
i don't know if there has ever been a time when i have gone to the DMV and actually done what i came to do in one trip. no matter how many papers, forms, and proofs i bring with me, there is always something more that is needed. it is so. frustrating.
today i showed up armed with all the papers we own about our van. the kids were secured in the stroller and i had two lollipops in my pocket for when they got antsy. i had even filled out the paperwork in advance, so i thought i was good to go. (still, for some reason i get very nervous when it's my turn at the counter and the seemingly unhappy worker glares at me, asks what i'm there for, and starts going through my pile of papers).
despite all my preparations, i was missing something - jeremy's signature. who knew that we both had to sign the form? there was only one line and nothing that said both owners needed to sign. alas, i dragged the kids out to the car (both were eating their lollipops by this point) and off we went to get jeremy's signature. my level of annoyance was quite high at this point.
the story ends three-and-a-half hours, four lollipops, and two emergency happy meals later when we finally walked out of the DMV with our new license plate. by that time jobot was screaming and a man actually jumped up from across the room and ran over to hold the door open for me. i think everyone was just glad that i was leaving at that point.
whew. it wasn't as bad as when we got our driver's licenses. that took three trips to the DMV and i think i actually cried at some point. but still, today was frustrating.
since we moved, life has often felt like a lot of paperwork...addresses to change, health forms to fill out, student loan deferments, health insurance paperwork, preschool forms, and on and on. it tempts me to move to a remote area far from civilization and live off the land. but, that would present a lot of problems as well. i just get tired of life being about papers and tired of my desk being covered with papers to deal with.
meanwhile, our michigan license plate has joined all the other ones we have saved from past states and cars. someday we will have a garage where we can display all those reminders of frustrating trips to the DMV. ha.
is it just me or does anyone else feel that a trip to the DMV is comparable to a dentist appointment?
the level of unpleasantness is certainly close, if not equal to visiting the dentist. (although if i were to choose, i guess i would go for the DMV over the dentist).
i don't know if there has ever been a time when i have gone to the DMV and actually done what i came to do in one trip. no matter how many papers, forms, and proofs i bring with me, there is always something more that is needed. it is so. frustrating.
today i showed up armed with all the papers we own about our van. the kids were secured in the stroller and i had two lollipops in my pocket for when they got antsy. i had even filled out the paperwork in advance, so i thought i was good to go. (still, for some reason i get very nervous when it's my turn at the counter and the seemingly unhappy worker glares at me, asks what i'm there for, and starts going through my pile of papers).
despite all my preparations, i was missing something - jeremy's signature. who knew that we both had to sign the form? there was only one line and nothing that said both owners needed to sign. alas, i dragged the kids out to the car (both were eating their lollipops by this point) and off we went to get jeremy's signature. my level of annoyance was quite high at this point.
the story ends three-and-a-half hours, four lollipops, and two emergency happy meals later when we finally walked out of the DMV with our new license plate. by that time jobot was screaming and a man actually jumped up from across the room and ran over to hold the door open for me. i think everyone was just glad that i was leaving at that point.
whew. it wasn't as bad as when we got our driver's licenses. that took three trips to the DMV and i think i actually cried at some point. but still, today was frustrating.
since we moved, life has often felt like a lot of paperwork...addresses to change, health forms to fill out, student loan deferments, health insurance paperwork, preschool forms, and on and on. it tempts me to move to a remote area far from civilization and live off the land. but, that would present a lot of problems as well. i just get tired of life being about papers and tired of my desk being covered with papers to deal with.
meanwhile, our michigan license plate has joined all the other ones we have saved from past states and cars. someday we will have a garage where we can display all those reminders of frustrating trips to the DMV. ha.
Monday, September 9, 2013
why i gave up wheat
{note: feel free to skip this post if you don't care}
i know that a lot of people have eczema. i've had eczema on my hands for years and years. there have been brief periods where it has seemed to let up a bit, but it really got bad once i hit high school and it has only gotten worse since. the kind of eczema i have is called dyshidrotic eczema which is especially uncomfortable (google it if for some reason you want more information).
there have been times when it has been so bad that i have cringed every time i washed my hands because they were so sore (this was terrible when i was working as a nurse!). almost every night, i would wake up in the middle of the night with itching and burning hands and i would lay there scratching and hurting. it would keep me awake at night. there were times when i wasn't able to bend my fingers without pain. it was actually quite debilitating. i would also be embarrassed in public because my hands were so red and irritated sometimes.
in high school i went to dermatologists who prescribed steroid creams. i would put the cream on before bed and wear gloves while i slept. my college housemates thought that was hilarious.
all that made my skin feel better, but didn't actually "cure" the problem. (and of course, those steroid creams weren't the best thing to be putting on my skin anyway).
it was miserable and significantly impacted my daily life, especially as a nurse and now as a mom who needs to have functioning hands to do daily tasks. i eventually just resigned myself to living that way for the rest of my life, and realized that in the grand scheme of things it really wasn't that big of a deal. but...to me, it still felt like it was.
then i started learning more about health and food and i just kept thinking that it could be related to something i was eating. i thought maybe it was sugar, so i stopped eating that for a while, but i didn't notice a dramatic change. i've always wondered if it could be wheat, and i've stopped eating wheat at times, but never long term.
and then last january i started this low-carb thing and stopped eating wheat because of that. i went from january to the beginning of august without wheat (except for a few very minor encounters with it). sometime in the spring i realized that my hands were drastically better (it can take quite a while for the wheat to get out of your system). still on the dry and itchy side, but significantly better. i was hopeful that the eczema had somehow gone away, but i also thought that maybe it was just a fluke. and then august came and jeremy was off of work for a week and i decided to eat a few things i was missing as a special treat. i made a homemade pizza with a wheat crust (recipe to come on the blog soon, by the way) because that was what i had missed the most. i ate two pieces and didn't have a thought about my eczema (at this point it had been a lot better for several months).
and then...the middle of the night came...and i woke to itching, burning hands. something i hadn't experienced for months. it lasted for a few days. since then, i've done quite a bit of research. (i had in the past, but not so seriously.) it seems there are a lot of people who have eczema who are allergic or sensitive to wheat/gluten. i certainly seem to be one of them.
why has no doctor that i have ever talked with brought this up as a possible cause of my eczema? i have no idea. it is frustrating because maybe i could have realized this and done something about it years ago. (this reinforces my lack of trust in doctors...but i won't get into that here).
i have read a lot about how the wheat we eat today is different than it used to be and how that can mess up our bodies. that all makes sense to me. i have also read a lot about "leaky gut" and healing your skin by healing your gut (i even tried the GAPS diet for a couple of months two years ago). maybe in the future i will look into something like that again with the help of a professional. for now, though, i am glad to have at least figured this out.
in a lot of ways, it's inconvenient to not eat wheat. but, the plus side is that i feel much better without eating wheat anyway...more energetic, happier, and just better overall. i'm also used to not having it now, so it doesn't seem like that big of a deal to give it up.
from what i have read, some people who are sensitive to wheat can eat traditionally fermented sourdough bread without any problems. a couple of years ago i took an ecourse and started learning about sourdough. I made a starter and made a few recipes and really liked it. then i found out i was pregnant with jobot and couldn't handle the smell of the sourdough (sad!), so i quit. i providentially have a new friend who has a starter she is willing to share and i am looking forward to seeing if i can eat that bread without problems. we will see.
i'm just thankful that now i can sleep all night without waking up when my hands are irritated, and it's wonderful to be able to use my hands without pain. if that means eating an almond flour pizza crust while my family eats a wheat crust, that's totally fine with me.
i know that a lot of people have eczema. i've had eczema on my hands for years and years. there have been brief periods where it has seemed to let up a bit, but it really got bad once i hit high school and it has only gotten worse since. the kind of eczema i have is called dyshidrotic eczema which is especially uncomfortable (google it if for some reason you want more information).
there have been times when it has been so bad that i have cringed every time i washed my hands because they were so sore (this was terrible when i was working as a nurse!). almost every night, i would wake up in the middle of the night with itching and burning hands and i would lay there scratching and hurting. it would keep me awake at night. there were times when i wasn't able to bend my fingers without pain. it was actually quite debilitating. i would also be embarrassed in public because my hands were so red and irritated sometimes.
in high school i went to dermatologists who prescribed steroid creams. i would put the cream on before bed and wear gloves while i slept. my college housemates thought that was hilarious.
all that made my skin feel better, but didn't actually "cure" the problem. (and of course, those steroid creams weren't the best thing to be putting on my skin anyway).
it was miserable and significantly impacted my daily life, especially as a nurse and now as a mom who needs to have functioning hands to do daily tasks. i eventually just resigned myself to living that way for the rest of my life, and realized that in the grand scheme of things it really wasn't that big of a deal. but...to me, it still felt like it was.
then i started learning more about health and food and i just kept thinking that it could be related to something i was eating. i thought maybe it was sugar, so i stopped eating that for a while, but i didn't notice a dramatic change. i've always wondered if it could be wheat, and i've stopped eating wheat at times, but never long term.
and then last january i started this low-carb thing and stopped eating wheat because of that. i went from january to the beginning of august without wheat (except for a few very minor encounters with it). sometime in the spring i realized that my hands were drastically better (it can take quite a while for the wheat to get out of your system). still on the dry and itchy side, but significantly better. i was hopeful that the eczema had somehow gone away, but i also thought that maybe it was just a fluke. and then august came and jeremy was off of work for a week and i decided to eat a few things i was missing as a special treat. i made a homemade pizza with a wheat crust (recipe to come on the blog soon, by the way) because that was what i had missed the most. i ate two pieces and didn't have a thought about my eczema (at this point it had been a lot better for several months).
and then...the middle of the night came...and i woke to itching, burning hands. something i hadn't experienced for months. it lasted for a few days. since then, i've done quite a bit of research. (i had in the past, but not so seriously.) it seems there are a lot of people who have eczema who are allergic or sensitive to wheat/gluten. i certainly seem to be one of them.
why has no doctor that i have ever talked with brought this up as a possible cause of my eczema? i have no idea. it is frustrating because maybe i could have realized this and done something about it years ago. (this reinforces my lack of trust in doctors...but i won't get into that here).
i have read a lot about how the wheat we eat today is different than it used to be and how that can mess up our bodies. that all makes sense to me. i have also read a lot about "leaky gut" and healing your skin by healing your gut (i even tried the GAPS diet for a couple of months two years ago). maybe in the future i will look into something like that again with the help of a professional. for now, though, i am glad to have at least figured this out.
in a lot of ways, it's inconvenient to not eat wheat. but, the plus side is that i feel much better without eating wheat anyway...more energetic, happier, and just better overall. i'm also used to not having it now, so it doesn't seem like that big of a deal to give it up.
from what i have read, some people who are sensitive to wheat can eat traditionally fermented sourdough bread without any problems. a couple of years ago i took an ecourse and started learning about sourdough. I made a starter and made a few recipes and really liked it. then i found out i was pregnant with jobot and couldn't handle the smell of the sourdough (sad!), so i quit. i providentially have a new friend who has a starter she is willing to share and i am looking forward to seeing if i can eat that bread without problems. we will see.
i'm just thankful that now i can sleep all night without waking up when my hands are irritated, and it's wonderful to be able to use my hands without pain. if that means eating an almond flour pizza crust while my family eats a wheat crust, that's totally fine with me.
Friday, September 6, 2013
and preschool begins!
it's a big day over here - love's first day of preschool. we went for orientation on wednesday, and then today was the real thing. she is attending a small, very diverse little church preschool on monday, wednesday, and friday mornings from nine to twelve. each week they have chapel, sign language, music, and yoga, and fridays are show and tell days. they spend 45 minutes each day outside on their lovely playground. we are so thankful that she can attend and we think it will be a great place for her.
putting her in preschool was a bit of a difficult decision. we are strongly considering homeschooling for our children's education but at this point we don't know for sure that we will. we decided that for this year, it is best for her and for our family for her to be in preschool. i will also be doing some homeschooling stuff with her and i am already enjoying that. and really, all of life is school for her anyway!
when i dropped her off this morning she happily hopped off to her class. a few seconds before she admitted that she was a little scared, but as soon as she saw the director's familiar face greet her at the door she announced, "this is my new backpack," and off she went. she came home with tales of the playground, her snack, new friends whose names she didn't remember, and music where she sang lots of songs. and then she got really cranky and it wasn't very fun. it's probably going to take several days before she is adjusted to the new routine, and transitions are difficult for her anyway. it also probably doesn't help that she woke up at 5 this morning.
jobot and i spent the morning baking pizza crust for tonight's dinner, playing with legos, making nut granola, and throwing a ball down the hallway over and over again. he is a good little helper with cooking and he just loves it. every time we finish a cooking project he throws a tantrum. (the tantrums have begun in earnest these days...and he's only 15 months old!). when he got bored i gave him a dishpan with a little bit of soapy water in it. he had a spoon and a little bowl and that kept him busy for at least thirty minutes.
our weekend looks to be pretty relaxing. jeremy won't be on call (hurray!) and we have plans to grill with our neighbors tomorrow afternoon. tonight is homemade pizza night at our house, our friday night tradition. and just in the past month we made it dessert/ice cream night as well, so that makes it even better. love especially looks forward to this night!
what will your weekend hold?
* also - HELP! maybe someone who reads this blog can give me some cloth diaper advice. we are having cloth diaper troubles over here. it seems that every time jobot wears a cloth diaper he gets a rash. we stripped the diapers and we are still having the same problems. i've been changing him every two hours to try to prevent the rash, but he still gets one. any advice?
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
new house tour {our porch and yards}
here is the last post in my little tour of our new house.
pros:
- fenced in
- good shade
- the yard is really big with lots of space to play and explore
- quiet and secluded
- perfect spot for a fire pit (maybe this winter if jobot is old enough?)
- fun little cherry tomato plant that we got on clearance shortly after we moved here. love fell in love with it at the store and we brought it home. it has died and come back to life a few times, but is still producing a small harvest. love enjoys picking the tomatoes and sometimes enjoys eating them.
- plenty of little critters to find (bugs, snails, slugs, frogs, worms...)
- the kids have lots of fun with the sandbox, little swimming pool, hose, and sprinkler.
cons:
- no direct access from house (have to go out the backdoor and around the house to get in the gate)
- mosquitoes!!!
- creepy storage sheds (i tried to make them less creepy by hanging a colorful banner up, but they are still scary!)
we spend a lot of time in this backyard and we really enjoy it. i am really looking forward to later this fall and winter when the weather is more pleasant (not so hot and humid!) and we won't be fighting with mosquitoes whenever we are outside. but, we have already used this backyard a lot and are very thankful to have it.
pros:
- front porch always has shade
- carport is a great place for riding bikes (the kids have been doing that more lately)
- a great place to be to see neighbors
- feels relaxing
cons:
- we have to watch jobot every second to make sure he doesn't go in the street
we've actually been spending more time in the front yard than the back the past few weeks. there are less mosquitoes and we like seeing neighbors, especially on a long day at home. we've been going for walks in the mornings and then playing in the front yard for a bit before it gets too hot. the kids have been enjoying their bikes (trying to ride them). the porch is a great place to sit (although it has been too hot lately). we have enjoyed sitting there together after the kids are in bed and look forward to doing lots more of that when the weather cools down a bit.
see the white wicker rocking chair on the porch? we got it off the curb! it is a bit worn, but still works. a while back we picked up a cushion for it on clearance, and we have already gotten quite a bit of use out of it. i have always wanted a wicker porch chair.
also, i have two basil plants on the front porch. we got them on clearance shortly after we moved here and planted them in wine boxes we found on the curb (those and the wicker chairs are the only things we have found on the curb, but all were good finds!). the plants have been thriving, and we've been using them a lot (caprese salads, pizza...i love basil). some bug has been eating them though, so i've got to figure that out. i love that these plants are decorative, but also edible! that's the way to go.
{backyard}
pros:
- fenced in
- good shade
- the yard is really big with lots of space to play and explore
- quiet and secluded
- perfect spot for a fire pit (maybe this winter if jobot is old enough?)
- fun little cherry tomato plant that we got on clearance shortly after we moved here. love fell in love with it at the store and we brought it home. it has died and come back to life a few times, but is still producing a small harvest. love enjoys picking the tomatoes and sometimes enjoys eating them.
- plenty of little critters to find (bugs, snails, slugs, frogs, worms...)
- the kids have lots of fun with the sandbox, little swimming pool, hose, and sprinkler.
cons:
- no direct access from house (have to go out the backdoor and around the house to get in the gate)
- mosquitoes!!!
- creepy storage sheds (i tried to make them less creepy by hanging a colorful banner up, but they are still scary!)
we spend a lot of time in this backyard and we really enjoy it. i am really looking forward to later this fall and winter when the weather is more pleasant (not so hot and humid!) and we won't be fighting with mosquitoes whenever we are outside. but, we have already used this backyard a lot and are very thankful to have it.
{front yard}
pros:
- front porch always has shade
- carport is a great place for riding bikes (the kids have been doing that more lately)
- a great place to be to see neighbors
- feels relaxing
cons:
- we have to watch jobot every second to make sure he doesn't go in the street
we've actually been spending more time in the front yard than the back the past few weeks. there are less mosquitoes and we like seeing neighbors, especially on a long day at home. we've been going for walks in the mornings and then playing in the front yard for a bit before it gets too hot. the kids have been enjoying their bikes (trying to ride them). the porch is a great place to sit (although it has been too hot lately). we have enjoyed sitting there together after the kids are in bed and look forward to doing lots more of that when the weather cools down a bit.
see the white wicker rocking chair on the porch? we got it off the curb! it is a bit worn, but still works. a while back we picked up a cushion for it on clearance, and we have already gotten quite a bit of use out of it. i have always wanted a wicker porch chair.
also, i have two basil plants on the front porch. we got them on clearance shortly after we moved here and planted them in wine boxes we found on the curb (those and the wicker chairs are the only things we have found on the curb, but all were good finds!). the plants have been thriving, and we've been using them a lot (caprese salads, pizza...i love basil). some bug has been eating them though, so i've got to figure that out. i love that these plants are decorative, but also edible! that's the way to go.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
staycation and back in the routine
jeremy had a week off of work two weeks ago, in between his summer program ending and year-long residency program beginning. we had a little staycation. then, this past week he had orientation for his residency and it was a lighter week schedule-wise, so that was nice. now today he has been on call, so we are back in that schedule again (not so fun).
the kids and i joined him for dinner at the hospital tonight. one trauma came in while we were eating dinner, and another came in as we were leaving, so jeremy was keeping busy. the helipad is right in front of the hospital, near the road, so it is a perfect place for the kids to see the helicopters. there were two tonight and before we drove home we sat in the parking lot and watched one of the helicopters take off. there were two kids in the backseat of my car who were very excited to watch.
our staycation was okay. some days were good and a few were not. it rained a lot, then we had a couple of beautiful days that were unseasonably cool, and then the heat and humidity came back with a vengeance. we went into the week with a substantial list of free or very cheap activities we could do as a family. we ended up not doing much at all, which was fine. (and now we still have ideas for days when we are looking for something to do).
we took the kids bowling (through the kids bowl free program). the two of us didn't even bowl, and we only had to pay for love's bowling shoes. the kids thought it was a lot of fun, and we had fun with them!
we went to the zoo. always a fun, free (because we have a membership) activity. we go just about once a week. we fed the lorikeets (something i don't dare try to do with the kids when i take them by myself!).
and one of them bit jobot.
jobot got his first black eye (thanks to a collision with our coffee table).
love and i were in charge of feeding our neighbor's cats (she was on vacation). it was the second time we have done it and the five cats seem to like us more each time. they should, as they spend a lot of time sitting on our front porch and lounging in our yard.
we checked out a local health food store and it was a winner. we also found a source of raw milk. awesome.
the best day we had was last weekend when the weather was refreshingly cool and we spent monday playing and working in the yard. love collected backyard treasures in a dishpan. she found two frogs (toads?) in our backyard and held them captive for a little while. she holds them so they lay on their backs and she gently rubs their tummies. they actually lay there looking very content.
jeremy mowed the lawn with a baby on his back. i love this photo, it reminds me of my dad. he did the same thing back in the day!
i got a haircut which was a frustrating experience and i actually almost cried when the guy said he was done cutting my hair. it was terrible. i mean, really terrible. thirty minutes later i left the salon with an okay haircut.
jeremy gave me a day off, which was a wonderful gift. i spent the morning at a coffee shop sipping coffee and catching up on my scrapbooking on the computer. it was so relaxing. in the afternoon i went to a thrift store with hopes of spending a bit of my birthday money on some new to me clothes. i ended up with a shirt and a pair of shorts, so it was successful.
this week we are really going to be back in the routine. jeremy will be working full days again and love will be starting preschool. she will be going just three mornings a week for three hours and i think it will be so good for her and for me. we will also be doing some informal homeschooling at home, and of course, all of life is school for her anyway!
i am feeling ready for the new routine and am eager to figure out what our days will look like with this new schedule. i am looking forward to getting back into sourdough baking for our family (i have a new friend who is willing to give me some of her starter so i don't have to start from scratch!), and yesterday i got started making kefir (something i have been meaning to do for two years...silly me, it is so easy!). i am eager for fall weather, but i don't think we are going to be getting that any time soon. it's been in the 90s and humid with no relief in sight. i find myself missing the cooler fall mornings of the Midwest.
the kids and i joined him for dinner at the hospital tonight. one trauma came in while we were eating dinner, and another came in as we were leaving, so jeremy was keeping busy. the helipad is right in front of the hospital, near the road, so it is a perfect place for the kids to see the helicopters. there were two tonight and before we drove home we sat in the parking lot and watched one of the helicopters take off. there were two kids in the backseat of my car who were very excited to watch.
our staycation was okay. some days were good and a few were not. it rained a lot, then we had a couple of beautiful days that were unseasonably cool, and then the heat and humidity came back with a vengeance. we went into the week with a substantial list of free or very cheap activities we could do as a family. we ended up not doing much at all, which was fine. (and now we still have ideas for days when we are looking for something to do).
we took the kids bowling (through the kids bowl free program). the two of us didn't even bowl, and we only had to pay for love's bowling shoes. the kids thought it was a lot of fun, and we had fun with them!
we went to the zoo. always a fun, free (because we have a membership) activity. we go just about once a week. we fed the lorikeets (something i don't dare try to do with the kids when i take them by myself!).
and one of them bit jobot.
jobot got his first black eye (thanks to a collision with our coffee table).
love and i were in charge of feeding our neighbor's cats (she was on vacation). it was the second time we have done it and the five cats seem to like us more each time. they should, as they spend a lot of time sitting on our front porch and lounging in our yard.
we checked out a local health food store and it was a winner. we also found a source of raw milk. awesome.
the best day we had was last weekend when the weather was refreshingly cool and we spent monday playing and working in the yard. love collected backyard treasures in a dishpan. she found two frogs (toads?) in our backyard and held them captive for a little while. she holds them so they lay on their backs and she gently rubs their tummies. they actually lay there looking very content.
jeremy mowed the lawn with a baby on his back. i love this photo, it reminds me of my dad. he did the same thing back in the day!
i got a haircut which was a frustrating experience and i actually almost cried when the guy said he was done cutting my hair. it was terrible. i mean, really terrible. thirty minutes later i left the salon with an okay haircut.
jeremy gave me a day off, which was a wonderful gift. i spent the morning at a coffee shop sipping coffee and catching up on my scrapbooking on the computer. it was so relaxing. in the afternoon i went to a thrift store with hopes of spending a bit of my birthday money on some new to me clothes. i ended up with a shirt and a pair of shorts, so it was successful.
this week we are really going to be back in the routine. jeremy will be working full days again and love will be starting preschool. she will be going just three mornings a week for three hours and i think it will be so good for her and for me. we will also be doing some informal homeschooling at home, and of course, all of life is school for her anyway!
i am feeling ready for the new routine and am eager to figure out what our days will look like with this new schedule. i am looking forward to getting back into sourdough baking for our family (i have a new friend who is willing to give me some of her starter so i don't have to start from scratch!), and yesterday i got started making kefir (something i have been meaning to do for two years...silly me, it is so easy!). i am eager for fall weather, but i don't think we are going to be getting that any time soon. it's been in the 90s and humid with no relief in sight. i find myself missing the cooler fall mornings of the Midwest.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
budding artist
we have a budding artist on our hands. love is starting to draw lots of pictures and is able to tell us what they are drawings of. it is so entertaining to see what she comes out with!
this morning on the way to church she was drawing on her mini magna doodle in her carseat. we heard her giggle and say, "heehee...and there's a beard".
and then she showed us her work of art. cleverly titled, "reindeer daddy".
we loved it!
her artistic mood continued after we got home when she drew this picture:
she said, "it's a picture of mommy crying because daddy hit her."
WHAT? for the record...jeremy does NOT EVER hit me. well...except for this last week...he accidentally hit me in the face twice in the car when reaching into the backseat to get something. i didn't cry either time, but i will admit that i got pretty mad when it happened the second time (two days after the first). all is resolved, but unfortunately it must have made an impact on love.
hopefully she didn't draw any pictures like that in her sunday school class this morning!
this morning on the way to church she was drawing on her mini magna doodle in her carseat. we heard her giggle and say, "heehee...and there's a beard".
and then she showed us her work of art. cleverly titled, "reindeer daddy".
we loved it!
her artistic mood continued after we got home when she drew this picture:
she said, "it's a picture of mommy crying because daddy hit her."
WHAT? for the record...jeremy does NOT EVER hit me. well...except for this last week...he accidentally hit me in the face twice in the car when reaching into the backseat to get something. i didn't cry either time, but i will admit that i got pretty mad when it happened the second time (two days after the first). all is resolved, but unfortunately it must have made an impact on love.
hopefully she didn't draw any pictures like that in her sunday school class this morning!
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