A short weekend post that I intended to put up Friday, but my mom just arrived and we have pies to bake.

This week’s faves.

Fave Photo:

This room holds so much sunshine.

Fave Internet Loves:

If you haven’t seen this video, get your tissues:

And this beautiful story about the power of photography–the story of photographer Jeremy Cowart capturing a raw, beautiful moment from actor John Schneider.

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This week, I’m over at BabyZone with a list of cool toddler versions of grown-up toys (the things they really want to play with like our razors, our laptops, our cameras, our keys)…including this awesome camera with interchangeable lenses (from Egg & Yolk on Etsy)…

…a round-up of 15 sweet songs to sing to your babies, and some new reading goals for the new year, over at All Parenting.

Enjoy the last bits of your weekend.
And thank you so much for all of the thoughtful birthday messages for Nella last week!

A generous offer for ETST readers today from our friends at Dashing Bee: Use code KELLE40 for 40% off your entire order.

Dashing Bee is an online children’s resale shop, offering top brands for less money.

A few current faves on their site…

Thank you, Dashing Bee, for your generous offer!

Friends, thank you so much for your support of Nella’s Pay It 4Ward over the weekend. I love some of the discussion that’s been happening. Prompted by a friend, I called the grocery store I referred to in my last post and talked to the manager, commending her on the way her employees modeled inclusion in the workplace. The phone call took less than five minutes, and the manager was eager to talk about her employees and the way they work together. We need to start these discussions more often. Someone commented on Facebook that she has a friend with several businesses and would love to work with and employ more people with special needs but is rarely approached by anyone. I think we can conclude that a good place to start is Approach. Get these conversations started. I’ve learned so much just from reading your comments and hearing your stories and the ways you are modeling acceptance and inclusion and teaching it to your children.  Please continue sharing–we are so very thankful for your continued support in raising awareness and the many ways you are doing it.  And thank you to the many who have shared Pay It 4Ward on your social media outlets.

Thank you to my dear friend Kaity Ayres for these pics

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If half-consciously tapping out “enjoying the small things” in the “name this blog” window six years ago marks the wedding anniversary for me and Small Things (he’s a handsome one, I tell ya), then consider these past six years our marriage. Just as I’m not frolicking with Brett in a field of daisies talking about our love every moment of every day, Small Things and I don’t constantly make out. Our relationship evolves just as any other relationship does–through good and bad.  The bottom line is, I know I love Small Things–when we’re together and jiving like we should, I’m my very best self.  But six years together also means we get in ruts and take each other for granted sometimes.  And I’ll be the first to tell you that while I wholeheartedly believe in sucking the marrow out of life and noticing beautiful things around me, it’s easy to get swept up in Life.  When I started this blog, it was easy–it rained small things every day.  I was a brand new mom in the honeymoon phase of both motherhood and my worry-free twenties, and it was completely natural to be all, “Look at that sky! Look at this baby!  Look at that piece of fuzz–isn’t life beautiful?”  Life is a bit more complicated now.  With three kids, new experiences, more goals, more worries, new relationships and a few layers of naivety peeled off the 29-year-old girl who started this blog, “enjoying the small things” evolves too.  And I’m glad it does.  I always think it’s funny when people say “your blog has changed” as if that’s a bad thing.  I have a lot of goals in life, but I’m pretty damn sure “staying the same girl and never changing” isn’t one of them.

I started a redesign project of this blog eight months ago.  I paid a web designer half of the project fee up front, hashed out some ideas and then told her I’d get everything together that she needed and send it to her.  And then I didn’t.  Because I’ve been paralyzed in thinking about what I want this space to be. As if I have to have everything figured out perfectly before I can start–as if it can never change after I hit publish.

One of my favorite moments in the movie Bridesmaids is this lady fight that breaks out between Helen and Annie, concealed behind fake smiles and forced politeness.  Arguing over whether their friend Lillian has grown to like sports since childhood or not, they launch into a hilarious dispute of who knows her better.

Do people really change?
I think they do.
Yeah, but I mean like, still stay who they are pretty much.
I think we change all the time.
I think we stay the same, but grow, I guess, a little bit.
I think if you’re growing, then you’re changing.

And this escalates until they’re ready to take it to fisticuffs.

Bizotch!  BOTH are true.

Every experience you’ve ever been through, every person you’ve ever loved, every lesson you’ve ever learned, every trend you adopted, every book you’ve ever read, every life mantra you’ve ever quoted–it’s all part of you.  I don’t look at change as swapping out but rather adding to–we are everything we’ve always been but more with each experience.

I’m rewriting the “About This Blog” tab today to begin shifting things over to a new site, and I’m excited about going into this with no expectation of perfection and with the opportunity to evolve with time.  It’s sort of a vow renewal for me and Small Things, and it comes at a perfect time.  This past week, we recommitted to each other.  More connection, more reading, more music, more quiet mornings, more holding hands, more beach, more reaching toward the things that make me better and distancing myself from the things that don’t.

I want more drawn-out meal preparations in our kitchen.  With candles and Nat King Cole.

More reaching out to people I wish I saw more often.

More making art.

More Sunday mornings at the pier.

More assurance that good begets good.

Framed headline I cut from Darling Magazine.  Have you seen their publication?  So beautiful both aesthetically and in content–truly captures the depth of women and all the different things we can be.

More Table Topics at dinner and Shel Silverstein at bedtime.

I think we change all the time.
I think we stay the same, but grow, I guess, a little bit.

To everything we’ve always been…and more.

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A little lesson in perfectionism, parenting and a new theater class coming Wednesday.

This week, I’m at All Parenting talking about making our family baptism tradition our own and over at BabyZone sharing 10 TLC Tips for New Moms.

And I’m excited to be the guest judge in I Heart Face’s January challenge.  Check it out–still time to enter this month’s photo challenge “Best Face of 2013.”