Enjoying the Small Things

Enjoying the Small Things

our girl’s party.

By

it was supposed to rain today. in fact, it’s rained all week late in the afternoon.
but today…
today, it did not rain.

no, today was perfect.
so much so that tears welled in my eyes, oh about ten times.
happy tears because i thought my heart would burst from taking it all in.

the celebration of life.
the gathering of littles.
the fact that the sky was beautiful and that everything fell into place more than i could have ever imagined.

there was music and littles everywhere. red checked blankets and cold lemonade. sidewalk chalk and bubbles. wheeled things. sticky things. sweet things. sunny things. happy things. oh, and so many ladybug things.

papa made special lainey dollars for all the kids…dollars they got to spend on games and treats from lainey’s special laineybug store.

…and then he had to one-up himself and make this ladybug bean bag toss from scratch.

lainey was in heaven and my sentimental heart just caved watching her today.

she knew. she understood this was in celebration of her and yet she humbly ambled on…doing her own thing, stopping to play with the babies (where we can always find her), casually perusing the little stations and soaking up the fact that all her friends were here.

heaven i tell you.

being in the presence of littles just does something to me. and then to combine these little souls with laughter and sprinklers and sunshine and squeals of delight at the sight of crawly bugs and drippy popsicles…seriously…it’s church.

and this one?

it’s difficult to put into words now…and i have one more day to digest the fact that two years now separates us from the beautiful day she entered our lives. and what she has become in these two short years. well, i’ll get there with the words thing. monday, there will be a post just for her.

but for now, i am grateful for the magic that was today.
for the fact that party guests stayed ’till nine, talking in the driveway…lit by candlelight and accompanied by the sounds of jammied littles pushing the limits on their daily fun intake.
grateful for life and everything hers means to us.

…and the fact that it didn’t rain.

happy, blessed and almost two.
~k

{rhett & gracie}

By

a sneak peak for my old p.e. teacher and his beautiful pregnant wife…

their two loves, rhett & gracie…and another boy on the way in six weeks…

lots of images to go through this weekend…
but for now, we focus on our little love’s birthday festivities and the joy of turning two.

more to come…
~k

rain and wants and an almost-two-year-old

By

it rained today.

the good kind where the afternoon sky dims gray and the steady pour of serenading torrents transform our house into a very peaceful state. the power even flickered twice…a tease, of course, because there is nothing better than good afternoon darkness and being forced to stop everything and just be.

just be is where we are this week.
taking some time off to catch up, prepare for my girl’s two-year bash this weekend, clean, rediscover some lost passions, dig up some creative inspiration…because i’ve been so busy.

and while all that busy has been so fulfilling and satisfying–expanding opportunities & experiences to add beautiful notches on the what-i’ve-done-in-life belt–i still need my cozy days to balance it out.

a cozy day it was.
cozy and productive.
the house smells good & clean, its carpets smiling with perfect vacuum lines and all its candle cups replinished with new wax. new wax that flickers as i type. because everything seems better with candles.

and, this is random and totally stream-of-consciousness, but in these past few days of slowing down and reorganizing priorities, i’ve thought a lot about what i want to do this summer. because making lists of what i plan to do completely inspires me.
and, well…what i really want to say is…

i want to paint my bedroom a crazy new color and find new projects in our home.
i want to learn to love a good mint julep because it sounds cool to order a mint julep.
i want to go fishing with brett and impress him with how i can bait a hook like a man.
i want to be one of those people who do laundry on the same days every week and actually follow a load through to putting it away in appropriate spots that don’t include the top of the dryer or a pile on the side of the bed.
i want to go to michigan for a cousin reunion and stay up all night crying and laughing with my soul equivalents.
i want to draw again.
i want to bake. like really bake.
i want to sleep under the stars.
i want to have neighborhood barbeques and block parties.
i want to see a symphony at the philharmonic. and i want my mom to be there with me.
i want to wake up early on a sunday morning and go to the downtown farmer’s market…and bring home good corn and green peppers and ripe tomatoes.
i want to go to a cubs game with my in-laws. oh wait…we are. in july…and i cannot wait to be with them in my favorite city in the world.
i want to make a fresh flower wreath for lainey’s hair.
i want to wear french braids more. and straw hats. and dresses.
i want to get all my friends together, have a huge dress-up beautiful getting-fabulous party and then take them all out to photograph.
i want to host the best lemonade stand this side of the mason dixon line. with fresh-squeezed lemonade. and baked goods. and hand-painted signs.
i want to do karaoke.
i want to repeat our first date…down to every last detail.

see, now i’m inspired already.
i shall save this list, add to it and cross it off one by one.

and i’ll leave it at that, except to say…

two is almost here. and, while i have much on my heart to write about this love a little later…i shall say she is just evolving so beautifully lately into crazy little layers…to the point where i am numbed with adoration and love for this little life i call mine.

(oh adding to the list: i want to stop leaving my lipstick out.)

and i’m so excited to see her and her littles interact this weekend. 1500 ladybugs arrived today…they are sleeping in our refrigerator until saturday when they will awake to join the birthday fun.

our girl is almost two.

be still my ever-growing heart.

~k