Late Spring

Doesn't Owen look miniature in this picture?

He and I took a wonderful walk earlier this week. We stopped to watch ants carry food across the path. Picked up flower petals and smelled them. Stuck sticks in the ground to mark a 'garden' plot. Biked 'fast' down a small hill (he made me go a few feet ahead of him to 'catch' him as he glided). We heard a branch fall from a tree and he hiked into the woods to put it back on.

I love the 'Oh! Look at dat, Mommy!' moments with my little partner. He is so insistent that I appreciate the specialness of whatever has caught his interest. Repeating the command to look, "see dat? see dat, Mama? see dat?"

He'll ask a question and then absorb the answer, usually with a 'huh?' to hold the space while he thinks. Shortly after he usually returns with, "ohhhhh" and repeats my answer to clarify.

It's been hard for both of us to be mostly confined to the living room during the last two weeks of potty training. Going outside again was like a revelation for both of us. The world looks so different, so alive. It's amazing what two weeks of growth (and rain) can do. Glad I have a pair of fresh eyes to help me catch everything.

Wednesday Shot

Sweet baby

Right Now

Owen ran upstairs, jumped on his bed and asked for books. I hear him upstairs reading to himself. I love how independent he's getting.

Everly is still enjoying her morning nap. I miss her.

I just finished my to-do list for today. Finished writing it, that is.

Lunch is bubbling on the stove and smells amazing. (I should put "Eat Lunch" on my to-do list so that I can check it off.)

And Jon. He's at work. He's also a warrior.

Especially considering he survived a 5K mud race with his co-workers this weekend. And jumped through fire. All with no training either. He just naturally dominates.

Proof: post race, post clean-up, in his natural habitat (with turkey leg) and traditional garb.

Dominates.

You rock.

Footsies

It makes me so happy when I carry Ever and she hugs me tightly with her little feet. It's one of the little things that make this age so special. I was looking forward to when she'd be able to hold on to me with her hands - but the feet hug is just so precious.

Sigh. Those babies. They know how to get you.

Speaking of precious and feet...

(Notice how Owen dumped half the sandbox on the steps?)

I love how Ever rubs her feet together. And when she's happy she kickskickskickskicks them. I think she's foot-sensory. Pretty sure that's a real thing, too.

The rubbing her feet together part she got from me.

The pinching me with her toes deal, though, is totally inherited from her father. Thanks a lot, Jon.

Thoughts on Fatherhood: Daddy's Girl

This post could also be titled, "Balancing the Love".

Since Everly joined our family just over five months ago, a transformation has happened within me. People always say that when you have a second child that your heart expands, rather than having to divide up some limited resource of love between the kids. I think this is true, but also a misrepresentation of the actual process.

I equate it to finding love that wasn't there before. It's like a part of your heart gets unlocked, and with growing intensity you move from knowing that you'll love this little person to actually caring deeply and protectively for them.

And girls are most certainly different than boys. Owen has always filled my heart with joy... for the bright and precocious little boy that he is, but also for the man I see him ultimately growing into. I always want to see him learn or grow into the next thing, and am constantly looking for indications of that growth.

Everly, on the other hand, stirs a different emotion within me. Her sweet little smiles and infectious laugh touch a place that wasn't there before. People joke about little girls wrapping their daddys around their little fingers... and, while I'm conscious of that possibility and pull, my intense sense of protection over her grows each day in a way that I've never quite felt with Owen.

It's odd too in a way since I don't get nearly as much time with her as I did with her brother at the same age. Seems that most of my time is spent tracking down and corralling our (over)energized 2-year old, while my all-to-brief but utterly amazing interactions with my daughter come too few and far between.

The trick is making sure that Owen gets the attention and love that he needs during this time of mental and emotional transition, while also making sure that Everly gets as much daddy time as possible... which unfortunately is never as much as either of us deserve.

The good thing is that both Everly and I seem to cherish our brief moments together with equal exuberance. I am mostly unable to lay her down for a nap because, if she notices it's me, she snaps awake and refuses to sleep. This is a mixed blessing because I rarely get to enjoy the "quietly sleeping baby in my arms" joy... but it's also a nice reminder that our growing affection is mutual... that I'm not just some stranger who comes in and out of her world.

So each day passes and I am increasingly vigilant for ways that I can steal moments with her... to build our relationship... to strengthen our bond... and for me, as her father, to track her closely so I can cherish and nurture her into the woman she'll become one day too.

What is it?

Any ideas (Ellyn)?

It sprouted from one of my garlic chive starters. I have two dinky garlic chive shoots and this monster.

The leaves are pretty hairy - which makes me think it's a mellon or squash of some sort. But the stalks aren't mellony.

And it's growing like crazy. The leaves are all larger than my hand already.

Any guesses?

It's probably a weed...darn.

Social Media Guru (Me)

Sabrina...this is for you. (But you probably already know about it.)

I'm definitely not an early adaptor - especially when it comes to social media. I figure Jon does that for both of us.

But when I heard about Pinterest the promise of an electronic image pinboard/categorization system got me really excited. My bookmark folders were crammed with images and ideas that I found online. And honestly - I would probably never have gone back to look at them.

Pinterest allows you to 'pin' any image you find online to any number of virtual 'boards' in your collection. You can create boards for fashion, kids stuff, interior design, weddings, parties, etc.

THEN they add in a social media component. You can look through other people's boards, follow them to keep current with what they are looking at or 'repin' their images. But I haven't really explored that side of it though, obviously.

The best part is that Pinterest also keeps track of where your images come from. They record the original url and embed it in the picture. A quick click takes you back. So you can save one image as a visual bookmark to a recipes or instruction. It's pretty cool.

No more piles of magazine cut outs or overstuff internet bookmark folders. Yay!

Thought it was interesting enough to share...check it out!