Enjoying…

Coffee in the Woods
If pina coladas are best sipped on beaches and hot mulled cider is to be enjoyed fireside in the fall, then I’ve decided a proper place for morning coffee is in the woods.

I don’t really know if there’s a place that wouldn’t be good for coffee, but I do know an impromptu traipse into the woods with my friend and our girls yesterday morning was an invigorating way to start the day.

A muffin and O.J. outdoor breakfast…

…followed by more egg art.

…and pretend fishin’.

Teething/Sleeping
Several of you have asked about the amber teething necklace. So I admit this might completely be the placebo effect, but Nella seems to be doing a lot less biting her fingers while crying.

…and the sleep is improving too. After rocking and walking for a half hour one afternoon last week, attempting to get her to sleep, I realized she was so frustrated nothing was helping. I did what I never thought I’d do–I kissed her, put her in her crib and let her work it out.

Turns out, that’s what she wanted. She cried for a very short time and ever since, naps are easy. A short rock followed by a kiss, a crib, a brief cry just to let us know she still thinks she’s in charge, and then she’s out.

Heart Hair.
It kind of happened by accident, but now it’s her favorite. “Do a heart in my hair,” she says. All she needs is a teenage boy with bad skin to give her a corsage, compliment her peach taffeta tea length gown, and off to prom she goes.

We’ll be busy this weekend and are looking forward to the holiday, but I wanted to launch a new sponsor I’m really excited about. If you don’t have your own kid to buy for, find a baby shower, a coworker’s kid, a niece or nephew you love. Mountain Aven Baby’s funky prints and unique styles make for great conversation pieces and really cute tots.

Photos courtesy of Mountain Aven Baby.

I love the variety of crazy fun fabric prints (check out the sushi bib or bird cage skirt) and finding another great store to add to my favorites. Use code SMALLTHINGS for 15% off your order!

Party Flag Tee.

Pachyderms Bib.

Tell me three things you’re enjoying right now, and one comment will be randomly selected to win a $25 Mountain Aven Baby gift certificate.

There is a man sweating in a cheap Easter Bunny costume not far away, and we have a date to wave from a safe distance and pray he doesn’t come near us. So if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be on my way.

Happy whatever-it-is-you-celebrate this weekend!

This is why I love blogging.

…because at the end of the day, I finally sit in the red chair to edit a few pictures. I settle into my nook and turn my speakers up, cueing the dogs to come curl at my feet, one on either side, as I begin the process–sorting my favorites into a folder. I slowly click forward, one photo at a time, and smile. Things I’ve forgotten I snapped. Sweet smiles I overlooked. Moments I might have never thought about again.

But now they are frozen, magnified by the size of the screen, glorifed by the glow of computer light, and I stop and really look at them…and remember it all.

The sky seems bluer, the trees more vivid and life just a tad bit sweeter.

And somehow this ritual of stringing photos and words together makes me more grateful, more aware, more present.

And I like that.

Enjoying…

Breakfasts with Friends.
A new Wednesday ritual–one that will definitely stay. We house swap each week, and this week brought a small group of friends to my kitchen. I love having people in our house.

Which reminds me of a particular afternoon when I lived with my grandma and grandpa. The living room was full of visiting friends, and I watched as my grandma hurried around the kitchen, pouring coffee and arranging food trays to serve the friends that laughed and told stories in the other room. I offered to take over as certainly, she’d rather be part of the conversation in the living room. And my grandma smiled a different smile–the all-knowing “I have this one figured out” smile and replied, “No, I don’t have to be in there. I just like hearing them.” I know exactly what she meant.

Hunting in the Woods.
Lainey’s favorite game right now is hiding tiny things in the woods and making me hunt for them. Like these baby chicks.

Eleven chicks she hides under pinecones and dried leaves, and she remembers where every last one was placed.

More “Ohs”
The Bath Oh, ranking slightly below The Beach Oh, but still pretty high on the list of Ohs That Make Me Smile.

Nook Spruce-up.
Had to hang my Abernathy art above my desk (“the only thing I am 100% certain of is what I am doing exactly right at this moment now”) and needed something different. Small but necessary change. I can’t have things looking the same in my house for very long at all, or my inspiration gets stale.

Baby Dolls.
It’s happened on its own with both my girls–their love of baby dolls. Nella’s finally given up bossing them around and now she’s gentle…but if you’ll notice, Lainey still puts them in their place.

Her Squinty-Eyed Smile.

Almond eyes magically transfrom into almond slivers when she smiles, and I’ve memorized this face and see it in my sleep…sweet little crescent moons that get me every time.

But full moons are quite lovely too.

And the barrettes? Adorable stay-put gems from new sponsor, Coco Penny. The barrettes stay in all day, work brilliantly with baby fine hair and can be clipped onto everything–purses, belts, headbands, you name it.

Check out their amazing assortment of headbands, clips and embellished onesies, and use code “smallthings” for 10% off your order. (Nella’s worn our favorite felt flower clip practically every day this week!)

TWO commenters on this post will be randomly selected to receive a $25 gift certificate from Coco Penny. And because I love hearing what you have to say too, in your comment tell me what’s the last thing that made you laugh?

The last thing that made me laugh: Lainey tattling on Nella as in “Hey Mom, Nella’s being mean to me!”

So yes, this right here is what I like about blogging. Feeling *that* much more aware of the little things that add up to one big thing. And I tie a grateful note to the string of a balloon and then I let it go…into the void, having no idea where it’s going but feeling good watching it float, float, float away.

Publish Post.

Yesterday, it rained out of nowhere. Forecast said nothing of it, but come afternoon, it rolled in unannounced.

And not just a sprinkle either. A shower. Soft, steady rain that fell for two hours, making circles in puddles and mini waterfalls at the base of our downspout.

Brett, my weather man, thought it was world breaking news. And he’s all scrolling through radar maps on his phone, smiling like a boy, excitedly pointing out blinking green clouds that hug the western edge of Florida’s map. He tells me it’s a sea breeze front, and he runs his finger along his screen while he throws out terms like gulf wind and air flow interaction, and I smile, listening intently because I know he is thrilled to teach me something he loves.

And if I’ve learned one thing in my thirties, it is…

When rain falls unexpectedly…dance in it.
We danced in the rain yesterday, drenching our hair, catching drops on our tongues, and finally running inside, wrapped in towels, for a hot bath.

Spring love list is checkin’ off quite nicely. We still have yet to fly a kite, find a four-leaf clover, land the perfect jelly shoe and purchase our Peeps (of course opening package at least two weeks prior to eating to let them harden appropriately for a proper crisp), but we have put our galoshes to good use. And isn’t the word galoshes just lovely? Makes me want to splurge the $25 for a used copy of this adorable book. But then I found another word you can use for galoshes, thanks to Wikipedia. It’s…wait for it….dickersons. And, well…galoshes just got its ass kicked. Because dickersons is the greatest word ever. Makes me want to bust out my British accent to Lainey with a “Go on now, Lovey, put your dickersons on and we’ll go frolic in the rain.” Galoshes, wellies, dickersons…so many choices, whatever is a girl to do?

Continue a list of happy loves. We are just happily loving right now.

Sun slivers.
Because I’m not done using the word sliver and my girl is still enthralled with scouting out sunny treasure spots for shadow making.

Friend Breakfasts
There will be many more to come because when we make efforts to do it, we are fulfilled in the way that makes us say “why don’t we do this more often?” a dozen times. There were just a couple of us today and it was good and cozy. Heidi always thinks her house is a mess and apologizes for the food not matching her standards and we tell her she’s crazy ‘cuz if there’s one thing Girlfriend can do, it’s cook a meal.

I am in love with this photo. The light, the tomatoes, the herbs, my friend who’s in love with her girl.


Baby Kinsley grows.

And when I’m with Heidi and my kids are off making trouble with hers, I miss my family a little less. Because it feels like cousins and sisters. We sip coffee and laugh and don’t worry about the kids until we hear crashes coming from upstairs. And we yell, “What happened?” and they yell back “Nothing,” and we keep sipping and laughing and talking.

Nella always shimmies across the floor, following the sound of voices until she finds the kids. And then she plays with them, no trouble. Walked in to find this scene…happy heart.

Mornings
I’m already looking forward to tomorrow’s.

“Morning is when the wick is lit. A flame ignited, the day delighted with heat and light, we start the fight for something more than before.” ~Jeb …oh now, this is just uncanny. Jeb’s last name? Dickerson. Swear. Jeb Dickerson said that quote.

Regardless…mornings…we like ’em. The coffee, the jammies, the potential.

Slipped another Oh in there.

You know where she gets the Oh?

…and he has no idea I took this picture.

The Blue “Fancy” Dress.
It’s getting worn and junky and yet she puts it on every single day. It makes her happy.

Contrary Mary.
Garden is growing and we will soon have carrots and radishes and lettuce. I thought everything died twice but apparently, our garden is cat-like in its multiple lives.

Outside Ratio
Our outside time/inside time ratio is shifting, and I’m loving it.

Nella’s hat, Lee La La

And a waterpark date with new friends.

New Sport: Drawer Digging.
She can make a nice little mess.

Daddy Love.
I love the way he loves them, the way he smiles while he’s holding them, the way I know they feel so secure in his arms.

Plus, he makes really good scrambled eggs, so that’s kinda nice too.

And then there’s…
This Girl.

Brett took Lainey for some Daddy time yesterday and I had this girl to myself. And we just basked in love. Laid on the couch belly to belly, kissed, whispered, laughed and patted. She’s always been just pure lovely, but now she’s funny too. Purposely makes us laugh and eggs us on and then gets this look in her eyes, anticipating our reaction. ‘Cuz Sister knows she’s funny.

Going to Bed.
It’s almost as good as mornings, and tonight my bed is calling early. Clean cold sheets, eucalyptus mint pillow spray, a new book and a hot tea.

The weather’s calling for rain tomorrow…perhaps there’ll be some dickersons.

And look who won the muthaload with a Mamalode subscription…Comment Winner #312, The Jones Family: My sweet Noah does the eyes lock, smile while nursing love to me too. It is bliss!

Congratulations, Jones Family. Please send your contact info to kellehamptonblog@comcast.net and your first Mamalode issue will be in your mailbox soon.