they arrived. just when i needed them…frantically arriving home from grocery shopping with a popsicle-stained girl and a spilled sippy cup in the back seat not to mention the realization of an entire bag of groceries i left at the store…the ones i needed for my stuffed green pepper soup last night.
and there they were…a little piece of home in a big, crumpled box on my front step.
our leaves.
we left the groceries in the car…let the spilled sippy cup contents seep into the upholstery a little longer…shed our popsicle-stained shirt and bee-lined for the yard where we dumped those beautiful leaves into a crispy heap. and dove feet-first.
they smelled like michigan…of rich dirt and cold morning fog…plus a few teeny tiny critters who greeted me with a michigan hello. like they knew we were from the same place.
it was lovely. thank you, my sweet jo.
and speaking of home…oh, deep breath…my home is coming to me this year. a surprise phone call from my dad yesterday that he found tickets, and in just a matter of weeks…we will celebrate here. everyone. the entire family, and my eyes teared a hundred times just thinking of it. we will gather for four days in one of dad’s houses. we will drink coffee and eat grandpa pancakes in the morning. we will watch movies and play games at night. we will sit by the light of the christmas tree and talk about all that we’ve missed. we might even have one of these nights…
swear i’m not flippin’ the birds. thought it was a cool spontaneous photo moment until i realized later those were my middle fingers, not the ring/pointers i had intended. swear. i wouldn’t do that to my dad who was taking this.
it’s going to be fabulous.
and in the meantime, there’s still a ton of photo work to do which we sandwich between loads of laundry, scraping dried oatmeal (or oma-lo, as she calls it) off her table and still, our lovely picnics in the yard…more frequent now…and more special.
having small reoccurances of morning sickness, strangely…but it’s quick and over and doesn’t phase me much. lainey stands beside me with ‘papah towah’ and hands it to me during the ordeal…and when it’s over she asks, ‘all done, mama?’ which makes me smile.
i did a small mentor session the other day for a sweet young girl who happened upon my blog through mutual acquaintances and expressed a crazy desire and passion to learn more about photography. she came along with a friend whose baby i was shooting the other day to accompany the shoot and took some great photos of her own and learned a little about editing. madisyn…it was so much fun to have you be a part of our day!
and finally…
loving lately…
cold kiwi (i indulge in two whole ones a day).
my catch-all kitchen counter finally becoming decluttered and polished tonight for the first time in weeks, perhaps months.
the winter garnet hill catalogue which is full of pure coziness.
the stack of perfectly packaged orders ready to be picked up by my front door-a reminder of what i actually have accomplished.
wearing my dish-washing gloves on my feet and chasing after her, screaming ‘i’m a crazy duck’…and uproarious laughter on both ends…especially when my big feet ripped the gloves and they fell apart leaving a trail of green rubber fingers across our tile. green rubber fingers on a floor are very funny indeed, in case you wondered.
and my very favorite as of late…waking up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom yet again and returning to bed to lie awake…in the dark…bored and restless and thinking of all i have to do…until suddenly, in the quiet and still of that moment…a kick. a little ‘hey, i’m awake too’…and it’s magical to suddenly be reminded that there’s two of us awake. and i just want to smile and say….well, hello there. it happens every night…and gets me every time.
oh, and mornings.
sweet messy bedheads and after-breakfast cheeks that smell like syrup. slippers and tight jammies and books read under cold covers.
friendly sunshine that sneaks its way between blinds to warm up our room…
…and blurry pictures that don’t show exactly what you like like in the morning.
sending happies…
~k
Poppa says
Yes, sweet one, Michigan is packin’ up Christmas love and flyin’ down to you. Our big Momma can’t come to us, so God worked it out we could come to you. Our presents this year will be our presence…and our love and laughter and family cwaziness! I can’t wait…and I will see you next weekend as well for Thanksgiving–but that is a sentiment I celebrate every day. Life is so crazy good and God is so abundantly generous. Feeling it tonight.
April says
kelle, so happy for you!
thanks for the smiles…
Anonymous says
Oh what a fun post!!
Amy says
You are so Kate Gosselin in that second to last picture. In that I’m-kissing-my-kid-but-making-sure-the-camera-is-catching-this kind of way.
Kelle says
Bwah ha ha! At least Lainey doesn’t have one of her kids’ wtf expressions. Hey, Lainey. Pretend I kiss you like this all the time. Ready, go.
Poppa says
Kelle, go blonde, swoop the front of your hair down and cut the back so short it looks like a hair explosion…go complete Kate! And keep kissin’ on cam!
Joann says
So glad the leaves made it to you. And sorry about the stow-aways. Even as I stood in line at the post office I would see some creepy crawly and try to inconspiculously (sp?) brush it off. ha! But to no avail. The worker had to brush some off, too. Don’t even want to know what he must have been thinking!
Brit Girl says
Hi Kelle!
The crazy duck story made me laugh! And I love the picnic shots – we’re big picnic fans in this household. Indoor ones at the moment due to bad weather! So pleased that your Christmas will be all that you want it to be. Guess what? I’m going to a Thanksgiving dinner! A dear American friend of mine who now resides here in the UK to be with her true love is hosting a Thanksgiving party – currently Googling Thanksgiving traditions to see if there is anything I can make/bake/take as even though she can’t be at home, I would like to take a small bit of home to her! Have a lovely weekend. Take care!
Camlon says
I think I’ve gone full circle! I found your blog around this time last year as you received a box of leaves!!! That kinda scares me that time goes this fast, that I could have checked this blog every day for a year. yours was my intro to the whole blog world.(yes, I’m a late computer bloomer!) But, the smile this post put on my face and the major LOL session after reading about the duck~ I know I’ve been a better mother this past year b/c of your writing. It still inspires me. Thank you so so so much! I try not to be this sappy in my comments b/c you get so darn many of them! But, I just had to today. Have a great Thanksgiving. Truly, my family’s joy has increased this past year b/c of your blog’s inspiration! We are thankful for you and yours!
~Rachel Rooke
ps. those totally look like pre-meditated birdies!!!
dig this chick says
Good stuff to celebrate. Your sweet realization that it isn’t just you awake…how cool. I have to reach for the reminders of how amazing it is that there is a human inside of me right now….cause those sweet little oh hello there kicks you are having turn into come on, really now, can’t you make any more room for me? I mean, what is with this bladder anyway and the intestines are really annoying and in my way… So thanks for the great reminder that the discomfort of a foot to the ribs is pretty neat. Can’t wait for us to meet our girls. Those morning photos are stinkin cute.
Heidi says
coming off a long…really good day. happy for these happies…
oh, where do i start with this delightful post. let’s start at this…this post made me a better person:)
leaves in a box…yum.
belly and leaves in a box…more delicious.
those morning pics…holy beautiful light and happy faces.
thanks man, love ya.
mrc-w says
Hahahaha you had me at “crazy duck” 🙂
Roberta says
Kelle,
Of course I enjoyed the blog, but tears with “you made me a better mom this year” – how wonderful is that. All of those early morning and late night words that had such an effect on another mom. Wow – I’m “thankful” for my “adopted” daughter. . . .Happy Thanksgiving!