i’m not kidding. when it comes to babies…i don’t think “could we afford them?” “do we have enough room?” those things are piddly little details to me. i just want a bunch of little souls to love. thankfully, between lainey, our next baby(-ies) and the ten more imaginary ones i want but probably won’t have…there’s these little souls i get to be with as much as i want. i don’t know who i love more: my friends or their babies.

(p.s. valentine shoots…book one)

and my own? guess what she’s been very interested in lately?

mmm-hmmmm. wouldya look at that?

other than an actual product in the toilet, she’s got the wipe, the flush and the rest of it down pat.
(yes, i just said toilet, wipe and flush in the same sentence)

…enjoying the little-souled things. ~k

oh, and my sister arrives tomorrow. for seven days. which basically means the two of us together ignite crazy creative powers which will explode and possibly land on this blog. great things to come, people.

10. two beautiful pieces of snail mail in my box today. with hand written addresses. and linen envelopes. i think i was a mail courier in another life…rode horses across the country with a satchel full of letters. somethin’ like that because i have a strange love affair with things-that-can-be-sent.

9. making my afternoon coffee in my french press . i forgot i had one until i was cleaning toaster crumbs from the cupboard the other day and noticed it hiding in the shadows of the waffle maker. why, hello there, little friend. how charming you are.

8. cleaning out our lanai so that, once again, i can sit there in the morning with my coffee and not play connect-the-dots with the spiders hanging from the ceiling fan.

7. afternoon bubble baths. my heart has the biggest soft spot for her wet lashes. melts me. and i now have a folder reserved for the very best lash shots i can get. possible obsession, but i’m dealing with it.

6. my present in the mail yesterday. if a hand-written letter in my mailbox is dessert, then a box delivered from ups with my name on it is like the creme brulee of desserts…served by george clooney…naked….in heaven. or the equivalent superlative of your choice.

a box from dig. a box i knew was coming and hoped it would contain exactly what it did. montana peach butter…that her own little hands made. i went to the bakery for a loaf of bread in anticipation of breaking that jar open this morning. i toasted it to perfection, smeared the biggest cold pad of butter i could manage and literally poured a small mountain of that peach perfection onto the hollows of those little butter puddles for a completed masterpiece. it was one of those times i could actually hear my mouth thanking me. applauding, really. screaming for an encore. it’s all i can do not to pour that peach butter into my favorite mug and drink it. lainey even tasted it on her toast. two minutes later, she brought me the same piece of toast, the peachy goodness sucked right off the top and asked for “more, more.”

aw, diggy…thank you.

5. fresh flowers. brett’s allergies can’t take them in the house very often, but once and awhile, he’ll let me slip a little bouquet in and i enjoy it while i can.

4. lost treasures.
in cleaning out the closet, i found a few forgotten shoe boxes. one holding these beauties which are extra-special because, not only did brett pick them out, but the wood soles make the coolest clip-clop noise when you walk.

3. her cubby hat.

2. valentine’s day on the horizon. when hallmark finds me, they will hire me to be their poster child because i think i can say with certainty there isn’t another soul on the planet more in love with holidays…all of them. and it brings me great pleasure to bask in the d0llar-aisle in target among heart-y dish towels and pink pot-holders. life is special on its own, yes…but why not take advantage of these sweet little calendar gifts? especially with kids around. my mom always went bananas with them and i’ll never forget the excitement. i vow to do the same.

…and you’re thinking, did you actually already buy valentine m&m’s and did you really take the time to arrange them into a heart for this picture? the answer, my friends, is a respective yes…and yes.

1. the phrase “what are we gunna do today?” i ask her, all excitedly every morning, and her eyes light up just like this….

and she smiles…and i think she knows her mama is head-over-heels for her. and the possibilities of each day. will we color? will we play kitchen? will we go for walks and hunt for lizards?

sucking up the goodness of her and all the little things…sucking it up like peach butter on well-toasted bread.

…enjoying the delicious things. ~k

blessed is this life…and i’m going to celebrate being alive.

we went out with a bang today. …as it is the end of our “vacation.” and even though we didn’t technically go anywhere, this has been one of the best vacations ever because we just did nothing but love life, love our home, love each other. and there was no work or e-mails or appointments or photo orders…or anything to scathe the beauty of our languid mornings and cozy evenings. and it seems like it has lasted forever.

but tomorrow it’s back to life as we know it. however, i shall suspend my talk of the return to work as a death sentence. …as the end is also a beginning. a beginning to looking at life as most beautiful. embracing routine as what fuels us. and knowing that when we successfully balance home and family and work and doing what we have to do with what we want to do, we are setting an example for our kids. that it can be done.

and holidays and vacations and grand affairs are fabulous and all…but sometimes, it’s during the in-between that we notice most what makes us happy. it’s during the demanding weeks that i notice just how happy my favorite coffee mug makes me. how much i love hot baths. how baby bear yawns on crusty morning faces make me smile. enjoying the small things rises to the occasion when life is gnitty gritty. and tough and busy and not-always-fun.

and i’m ready for the challenge.

with no further ado, our last big hurrah today before we embrace life as we know it…was a trip to our blessed isle of capri with friends…and family.

that place is my solitude.

i’m ready for tomorrow.

my morning coffee. in my favorite mug.

…and the return of routine.

life really can be a….

…if you make it that way. even when vacation’s over.

…enjoying the vacation’s-over-but-we’re-not things. ~k