Goodbye 2010

Happy New Year!

So much that needs to be done before the holidays! It's going to be a busy couple days!

Happy Monday!

Cheeseballin' It Up!

New camera equals Lola photo shoot!

 Happy Sunday!

Redemption Mondays

This post comes a couple days late! I've been picking at this post here and there, but was never able to sit down and finish it! It has been a busy week for us filled with doctors appointments, babysitters, dinners, and lots of friends!

I love Mondays! Call me crazy, but it's true. Mondays used to be just like any other day, like Tuesdays, nothing special about them. Mondays used to get mixed up with all the other days because of their lack of significance. Being a new mama on baby watch 24 hours a day, seven days a week...trust me, your Mondays will become insignificant too! Ever since Lola reached this wonderful age of awesomeness, I look to Mondays with a sigh of relief- my day of redemption. I see Mondays as a chance to start fresh with a pearly white slate. It's a chance to do things differently, hopefully better than the week before. It is an opportunity to plot out my plan of attack and sort out the things I need to accomplish. I compare and contrast, weighing pros and cons in my head, basing it all on the million dollar question, "Will it really matter?" And in the end I have the blueprints for a wonderful week. This week has a lot in store for us and could not be any worse than the last. Both Lola and Pieter fell victim to a random flu virus of some sort which resulted in the first ever appearance of "Speckled Chicken", proud wearer of a head to toe fever rash. With Lola feeling better, it was time to press on!

                     

This Monday morning was one of my favorite kinds, weather-wise. I love cloudy, overcast skies. The misty kind! Freshly fallen leaves absorb moisture from the ground, adding color and depth to each one. Sidewalks are drenched with a fresh coat of them, making this post-sickness-walk extra special for my speckled chicken. Lola's eyes scintillated with excitement, thrilled to be out in the open air.

Our to do list consists of lots of errands, the usual cleaning tasks, and lots of kitchen craftsmanship. Speckled Chicken and I go to breakfast to fuel for our day. She brings along Fox, a playground family addition. Lola became the rightful owner of this "treasure" one day at the park after it was abandoned by an unaware toddler.  Since then it accompanies us on many of our excursions and makes it into the occasional pair of unoccupied shoes, for safe keeping I'm sure! I discovered his whereabouts one morning when I slipped on my boots.

And who needs a toddler cup when mom's cup is readily available? 

She drinks and drinks...

...and dips and sips...

...and as she sips droplets of water, I drink too. I take her in with every expression, even the smallest and the most subtle.This is what Mondays are about, the small things that make life grand. I take in the minute indication of the rough weekend we had, her face still speckled and textured from her rash. I make note of the joy and excitement in her eyes, free from the heaviness of illness.

I make note of the changing seasons, leaves drifting from their prior home to their final resting place. I acknowledge this change and with it, the new beginnings it brings. I observe new life. Green moss detailing that thrives, finding it's new residence on brick, trees, and stone, it's paths ranging from simple to intricate.

I find delight in the simple science of baking, the combination of ingredients working together to achieve one common goal. I find solace in knowing that this controlled situation results in one perfect outcome.

Recipe from Framed , seriously, try this molasses cookie recipe!

I seek adventure with new recipes and ingredients I've never used. I learn from my mistakes, discarding my first unsuccessful batch, and find that I, in fact, have success with the second.

Martha Stewart's Candy Cane Marshmallows. Challenging but super delicious!

I am a firm believer of Mondays and the magic that happens when we take the time to get our head on straight. We have days that are a constant battle to get through, but at the end of a long day, it's those little special Monday moments that make all the heartaches, and headaches, and meltdowns worth it.

Have a great week!

Lola's Picks-Solomon Burke

Sick Chicken

 Having a sick child is one of the hardest parts of being a parent. Seeing her struggle with discomfort has brought a dark cloud over our little home. Lola woke up early this morning baking in her jammies. She was stripped down to her diaper, 'nol-ed (verb, meaning to be Tylenoled), and placed in our bed for extra snuggles. Her fever subsided for a good portion of the day, but sadly returned after her nap. She was 'nol-ed once more, spending the majority of the evening with sad, droopy eyes and a lifeless expression on her face.

 We are hoping, fingers crossed, that our little chicken fully recovers after a good night's rest and is ready to stir up some trouble tomorrow.

Little Things- Paving the Way

Midtown Love!

Little Things- Il-Lumen-ated

Driving down J Street in the rain.

Lumens all aglow. 

Lola-Approved

My chocolate buttercream frosting was just that good!

Little Things- Anticiaption

There is nothing like anticipation. It can be so good sometimes. Like the kind where you wake up early just to get the day started. This is my anticipation morning. Lola's two wonderful grandmothers are coming up, so in anticipation of their arrival, I'm up with the sun to get my vanilla cakes in the oven. There is nothing like a cold, overcast day, and Sufjan Stevens Christmas music in the background. Life is good! There is nothing like a hot shower. Life is good. There is nothing like the warm scent of vanilla spilling out from the oven, filling the whole apartment with it's sweet love. There is nothing like anticipating that morning cup of English Breakfast tea and the benefits that will be reaped with every soul warming sip. Life is good. There is nothing like anticipating cooled vanilla cakes just so you can lather them in that fresh chocolate butter cream frosting you're just dieing to try! Sweet anticipation.

Happy Saturday!

Hamming It Up, Lola Style!

We really love our walks. On mornings off to a rough start, our walk is a chance for us to clear our heads, get the blood flowing, and let off some steam. It's a chance for us to escape the confines of our little apartment and be a part of something bigger-part of the world outside. It is a chance for us to coincide in the steps and lives of others. It is a chance for me to divert from "I have to clean because family is coming to visit" mom, and become "let's just do us" mom. And those us kinda days are always what Lola and I need. We thrive on them. So we ditch the limitations and go about our day "to-do-list-less". And joy begins blossoming. I indulge in being part of this beaming life, taking a few steps ahead of her only to peer over my shoulder, to catch the eyes of my fortune, sweet Lola.

 Her excitement for life is electric, she is electric. She motivates me to get going, get moving, start shaking, and stop taking myself so seriously. She forces me to see things through her big browns, realizing that seeing innocently is, in fact, seeing in a whole new light.

Sometimes it just feels that good to sit on a sidewalk of freshly sifted leaves. And if you can't join 'em, well hell, you better capture it!

I'd like to think that I did. Her little body all propped atop crunchy leaves in the middle of a Midtown sidewalk was quite the sight. What can I say, my little chicken keeps things interesting!

And even after being pushed by a little boy time and time again, her big browns filled to the brim with tears, she still manages to squeeze out her sweet little smile. All is right in the world again.

I live for that smile.

Now for a "Little Thing" moment. Knowing that the month of November is over and knowing that I made it out with18/30 days accounted for, I figure that I shouldn't feel defeated. There are only wins in sharing joy!

Contrasting colors. Freshly fallen leaves on blades of green grass.