Mothers

I have always found such beauty in motherhood. Now that I am a mother, and have felt what mothers feel, the depth of emotion I see in motherhood is so much bigger than I imagined. Stunning. There is nothing more fantastic, more pure than a mother with her child.

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Lovely Living

I'm constantly searching for images that inspire my space. I'm dreaming of creating a perfect, peaceful, playful home to dwell in with my husband and littles. Some of my best finds this week

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Yay!

I Can't Believe I haven't already mentioned how excited I was to recieve a few of the coveted Penguin Hardcover Classics Illustrated by Coralee Bickford-Smith for Christmas!!!!

They do look so pretty on my bookshelf. Oh, and they're fun to read too!

Home Improvement

Mike put so much of his heart and soul into this little cabin that we live in, but it seems like the list of projects is never ending. I decided that there were some things that my mom and I could try to work on while she is staying here. She has a lot of expertise in home improvement, and is really creative.

There have been a few changes made to the layout of our house, and with the addition of stairs up to our deck this summer came a new entryway to our house. Now this little nook is our entryway, and it has been sitting unfinished. I finally came up with a plan, and began gathering materials months ago, but the project quickly fell by the wayside when the holidays arrived. Last week though, my mom had a few days off and asked me what I wanted to do, and I said I wanted to complete the floor. If it had been up to me to gather the rest of the materials and prepare to do the project, it wouldn't have gotten finished, but my mom is a machine. In one (exhausting) day we poured and pieced the floor together. Joel showed up about halfway through, and I'm glad he did because We would have been working well into the night if he hadn't been there to help.

 

(Before, just the plywood sub floor)

 (Supplies gathered)

 (I still have some scrubbing to do. Can you read that? It says Everett!)

 (Hazel's little footprint, and a 2011 penny next to it)

 

I really love how it turned out. I get so bored with cookie cutter houses, and I really enjoy it when I see something unique like this in someones home. I am also happy that I am able to add some of my own touches to our home that mike has done such a great job of putting together. There is still a bit of work to be done. Plans for a bench, some cubbies up high, some hooks, and possible a mirror are in the works. Can't wait to walk in my house, sit down on a bench to take my shoes off, and hang up my coat right here!

Eight

Eight months ago
I was not quite a mother.

When looking through photos of this day, this one grabbed me. Not sure why. When compared with the hundreds of similar ones, there isn't anything of noticeable significance, but all the same it caught my eye. It took me back.
 

So tiny. So dreamy and sleepy and new.


And now. So big. So aware, and strong and demanding. So stubborn. So beautiful and chubby and giggly and toothy. My Dear Hazel. She still sleeps with me every night. I curl my body around her, and she fits right where she always has, and I know that she will not always fit there, sleep there.
Now I wonder every day whether what I am doing for her is the right thing. I think and think, and rethink.
And now I treasure my moments with her........and I treasure my moments alone, few and far between.
And I wonder every day about her hair, what color it will be and when will I be able to braid it, will she even let me?
And her face, what will it look like? And every day it changes but it's still just the same.
And the firsts are coming and going. In fact just now, as I was writing, she turned over in her sleep for the very first time from her back to her belly. We've raced past the first smile, the first giggle, the first time she sat up, her first foods, her first tooth, her first big fall, the first time she really reached for me, and even the first time she pulled herself up to stand.  I'm not sure how we got to this place, already past half way to a year.
The last eight months have certainly not been the easiest of my life. I have had to admit a lot of things about myself that I didn't want to. I have had to work on my patience and understanding a great deal. I have had to make hard choices. I have had to make big changes. Despite all of those hard things though, these last eight months have certainly been the most perfect, the most fulfilling, and the most rewarding of my life.

This Man of Mine

He lives for big mountains and black dogs. Old motorbikes, and his girls

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His hands are always dirty. He works hard.

His favorite clothes are of good quality and have fulfilled their purpose. His old wool sweater with holes in it, which I attempted more than once to carelessly discard.

His many pairs of carharts that I advise him to trade in for GAP jeans when we go out to dinner. 

He is older and wiser, though I forget and deny it.

I am finally beginning to understand. Grasping who he is.

He is authentic. He is not the boys I have spent my life chasing after.

 This husband I love, and this place he has built for us. I haven't given the respect or appreciation that is deserved.

I am learning.

 photos via:
http://awelltraveledwoman.tumblr.com
http://youngmanandoldsoul.tumblr.com/
http://ohpioneer.com/