Lainey’s Third Year Book is Finished!

Click HERE to view it.

And for those of you who get XM Sirius Radio, I’ll be on Rosie O’Donnel’s radio show at 11:15 a.m. tomorrow!

It’s not always sunny. It’s not always bright. And no, it’s not always perfect. There is a time for rain…moments where the bright clarity of sunshine is rinsed with the precipitation that comes now and then to drench the parched grounds and make them grow again.

It rained this weekend.

My first real trip away from my newest little brought me and my camera to the evening before a wedding on Friday night. I watched and snapped my camera from a distance as a beautiful woman practiced for her big day. She was small and blonde and pretty and I couldn’t help but think of my Lainey someday. And, walking beside her on the beach on this happy evening was her little sister, small and blonde and pretty too. I smiled watching them and their family as they bathed in happiness on this very special night. And when I climbed in my car, I cried. I cried again for what I thought I’d have. I cried because I want Nella to have this too. I cried because I forgot the sadness is still there sometimes. And then I cried because I was mad I was crying. I found a beach towel in the backseat and wiped my tears with it as I drove, cursing myself for not being able to control it and for the mascara that was now blotched all over the yellow terry cloth loops of my towel. I felt silly. But it felt good to admit the sadness exists there sometimes and to accept it. To let it fall like the rain and rinse the sunshine out but for a moment because growth always follows a good rain.

I called a friend who had me laughing in no time and, in five minutes, we were picturing together Lainey’s wedding someday…with both my beautiful girls. And music. And dancing. And happiness. The happiness? That never changes.

Rain is still beautiful though.

Thankfully, we had our sunshine too this weekend…in many forms, but our favorite being the rare, concentrated, exquisite form of family in from out of town.

We joined my cousin and her sweet girl for a day of kiddish wonder on Saturday beginning with a tea party in our woods…

Which, for the record, may I add that the cake platter, although looking perfectly quaint and beautiful, is not the most functional place to balance tea pots and such on uneven ground in the middle of the woods. Let’s just say the entire party slid into a heap of half-eaten crackers, puddles of milk and soggy cookies in poor Cousin’s lap and it’s a wonder if the poor child wants to attend a tea party at our house again. Go big or go home we say and, sadly, I think the “go home” option was lookin’ pretty sweet after our fiasco.

Not to worry. We recovered beautifully at our Botanical Gardens where the girls basked in their bathing suits among herbs and plants and flowery things and despite a small little almost-getting-run-over-by-a-motorized-wheelchair incident and one of those award winning mom moments when it’s my kid who blatantly breaks the rules (DON’T TOUCH THE SLOTH, she said) because the girl loves any furred creature that breathes…

…well, it was perfect.

The favorite event of the day (I think for all of us) was, by far, the tree house relay where both girls ran ferocious circles through bridges and wood-planked ramps, screeching to a halt as they rounded corners anything but gracefully which was just the way we liked it.

Overall, the gardens trip put the tipsy tea party to shame.

And every day of outdoor splendor must indeed be balanced with indoor wonder, a challenge we were happy to accept as we settled our sun-kissed girls inside for some painting and potato salad…

And, yes today it rained…literally…as we opened windows to welcome misty breezes kissed with the scent of spring and used a gray day as an opportunity to scour floors and catch up on laundry. It was quite wonderful, really…a cozy Sunday banished to the inner comforts of movies and coffee and snuggling with this sweet little beetle…

Which brings me, once again, to the comforts of home you have been sharing. A few more from you as this comes to a close…

From Rachel:

Our lively room is our master bedroom. It has seen some great nights and some terrible nights. It’s had its door slammed by squealing kids running to hide from imaginary dinosaurs, it’s where I spent countless nights nursing my babies, it’s full of great hide and seek spots, it’s a haven for toys, and my favorite room in the house.

From Sarah:

Life happens here in our toddler’s bedroom. Love has been literally stroked onto its walls, having been painted no less than three times over two days by a loving daddy, at the urging of an expectant mama, both determined to find the perfect shade of pink for the arrival of our firstborn. Currently it’s my favorite place to watch as our two daughters are united and we can just see love and friendship blooming in their hearts.… In this room sweet and silly books are read and giggled over by all before naptime and lingered over after naps. It’s here that bedtime tales have been shared nearly every night by adoring parents, who are still finding it a little difficult to believe that they could have possibly been this blessed.

And from Amy:

The Floor in our Family Room. It’s where we start our mornings, me with my coffee in hand, my daughter by pulling out all the toys that were put away the previous night or begging her Daddy for a sip of the foam off the top of his latte before he leaves for work. It’s our home base throughout the day as she toddles to far corners of the house to explore. It’s where we play together, or where I just watch in awe as she plays on her own and I feel the kicks of her baby sister, whom we are so eager to meet. It’s the perfect spot to try to see the world through her eyes. It’s where we gather when Daddy gets home so we can all play together and talk about our days and our dreams. Where Daddy and our Miss watch fishing shows on Sunday mornings, or he plays the guitar for her while I make dinner. Where we open Christmas and Birthday gifts and where an Easter basket was “hidden.” So much Life happens in this spot on the Floor.

As the wet, evening air of a good spring rain breathes through our bedroom, preparing it for a good night’s sleep, I am relishing again in the wonderful comforts of home. Of family. Of us.

Yes, rain is beautiful and purposeful.

…but I still love my sunshine.

Drawing compliments of Abernathy’s Art.

And beautiful, wonderful growth never fails to follow the rain. I’ve grown many ‘inches’ this year already…and I like being tall.

Farewell!

This week, I cooked my first real dinner since Nella’s been born. It’s actually been that long that we’ve had meals brought in or Brett has taken over the kitchen. And, for a minute, I thought I forgot how to cook. But, it wasn’t long after pulling up my sleeves and digging in to peel onions and potatoes, pull thick cabbage leaves apart and drop them into a simmering pot of salty corned beef that mulled with the promise of a tasty feast soon to come that I felt it all come back…the delight of working in my lively kitchen. And, thanks to the beautiful stories of yours coming in on life in the kitchen and elsewhere, I think I enjoyed it even more.

And, speaking of firsts, I will leave the “newborn” for the first extended period of time tonight. I have a rehearsal dinner to photograph and other than quick trips to the grocery store here and there, she hasn’t been without her mama. Or milk. We’ll see how that goes, but I will say, I was reminded once again today as I hooked up the mess of tubes and plastic contraptions, just how strange and unnatural the process of pumping is, and there’s a reason this process occurs in barns. Because doing it standing over a counter in the middle of a kitchen while your husband is washing dishes is just weird. Which explains why my cousin swears the whirring rhythm of a breast pump sounds like it’s saying…crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy.

I had a quick shoot earlier this week at our house and Brandyn came running out to tell me Nella was crying and Dad was trying everything he could to keep her quiet to no avail. Ten minutes later, I walked in to find him in the kitchen with Nella swaddled in one arm and a plastic cup full of pennies in the other. And he was shaking the bejesus out of the cup so that all you could hear was coins going bananas and I can’t figure out if she was soothed into her trance or scared out of her mind. Either way, Brett swears it works, so tonight I am leaving him with brief feeding instructions, a bottle full of well-earned milk, and a plastic cup full of pennies. All should go just fine.

Here’s to hoping because Brett has been looking forward all week to his night alone with the girls.

I walked by the swing the other day and saw a little elephant toy had been rigged up to hang in view and, before I could ask, Brett explained, “I did it. She likes it.” I smiled and passed it off as one of those cute little daddy things Brett convinces himself is true, but then later I saw this…

…so, I guess he’s right.

She’s also discovered that her little fingers taste delicious and watching her tediously look for them and score on their arrival to her little mouth for some good sucking is like watching a good movie.

…and hello sweet little feet. If I had a penny for every precious picture we’ve taken of ripe little toes, well we’d be stinkin’ rich.

We now interrupt this post for our fairy party update.
No-sew tutus are in the works and are super easy to make. Basically, you use waist elastic and measure 1 inch smaller than child’s waist, secure with safety pin (although I did sew mine), loop around chair and tie strips of tulle into knots around perimeter.

Hot glue flower and add inexpensive Target t-shirt painted with a big “3” and sewed with ribbon and buttons and…Voila…my girl’s birthday digs.

She talks about her party every single day amid library book reading, coloring and…running naked in our front yard. Our poor neighbors.

With cousins around, she’s also enjoyed the trundle bed being pulled out because she can safely jump from one bed to the other.

She loves her bedroom.

Despite the parade of nasty colds going around in our home right now, we are enjoying our Friday and looking forward to a weekend of more family in town and maybe…just maybe…an Isle of Capri reunion. Be still my heart.

You know what I’m loving right now? I’m loving my girl’s snuggles and the way Lainey says, “‘Top it, Baby ‘ella” when the little one grabs her hair.

Or when they have foot wars, even though Lainey wins every time because poor Nella doesn’t know what a foot war is and I guess if you don’t know, according to Lainey, you lose automatically.

I don’t get sad anymore thinking about their relationship. I get excited. I know I will have sad days, but I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve been scared or sad. I’ve just been enjoying life and her and us so much lately. And I think, when it comes down to all there is to think about for the future…all there is to be scared of, I arrive back to the place of this: at the end of our lives, when all is said and done, what we will look back on as the most important, most defining, most beautiful moments in our life? They won’t have anything to do with the things Nella may not be able to do. It won’t be milestones or college or jobs or success. It will be herds of bodies in the kitchen on Christmas Eve preparing breakfast for the next morning, vacations holding hands, scouring shells on the beach, laughing around the dinner table for evening meals, kayaking to the accompaniment of live reggae on Isle of Capri Sundays…and that? Nella will have every bit of that. What a comfort that is.

And finally, more lively places in your home. Oh, I smile reading them. What lovely homes you have.

Jenna loves her daughter’s room where life evolves (and sweet Lana has our magic chromosome too):
Life abounds in Lana’s room. It’s where giggles and imaginations explode. It’s where Lana knows she’s the queen and where everyone encourages that. It’s where we know we did everything we could to show Lana just how much we love her and all that she has blessed us with… every night we gather as a family and allow jumping on the bed just before we nestle in for story and book time. And this is where our family is living life to the fullest.

Laurie’s lively place is her bedroom:
There are so many rooms in our house that have a warm beautiful feeling to them, but our bedroom would have to be top of the list. Here is where a lot of love, joy, laughter, and cuddling goes on! In the morning, while I nurse my baby girl, the boys huddle close to get a snuggle in under the covers, and watch Sesame Street on Youtube. …it’s a precious room, one full of awesome memories, and one where new ones are made each day.

Kristy loves her couch…

This is our lively place. This couch is where we hug after my daughter comes home from school as we chat about her day; where I “tittle” my son’s feet – at his insistence – while we watch the flames flicker in the fireplace; where we read story after bed-time story; where we take Sunday afternoon naps; and lay under cozy blankets when sick; where we just CHILL…while the world around us swirls and pulsates with its steady hum…here, we are at peace.

Daniele beautifully describes her much-loved kitchen table:

A few of many flashes of memories for me at that table: Being alone, ripping open and reading letters over and over from my husband when he was deployed in Iraq, my tears falling down to the glass and wiping them away with my shirt sleeve…late nights grading papers and writing lesson plans when I was student teaching and also when I was finally a “real” teacher… Putting my first daughter into the high chair strapped on to one of the seats, so beyond excited to feed her her first meal of rice cereal….Flash forward to today—We finally live in the home we’ll be in for a long time. And it is like our beloved little table was made for this house and our little eat-in kitchen area. It fit perfectly. When you sit there now, you feel like you’re outside in the backyard, in the kitchen, and in the living room next to the fireplace all at once.

And finally, Rachel, portrays their lively entryway with her words…

I enclosed this picture from our current place, because this tiny entryway is where it all goes down daily. My daughter loves getting outside, the baby loves to move the door and my other son races his cars on the rug. AND it’s the wonderful threshold that we watched my husband walk through after he finished 3 months of training away from us. This photo was taken when we first moved into this house after a cross country trip, 2 weeks before my husband came home.

I don’t ever want this contest to end! I’m seeing a best-seller coffee table book full of the lovely places in a home!

Thank you to all who have sent their beautiful, inspiring photos and stories! More to come.

Have a beautiful weekend!

~k