today is tuesday

One would think that by now, I'd be a pro at coming up with clever blog post titles.  I am clearly NOT.  At one point, I considered just not using titles anymore, but I had already started using titles from the beginning of the blog and I couldn't handle just randomly stopping.  I'm a little OCD like that.

So, I'm writing again tonight because my Aunty Jenny told me to.  No, I do not do everything my Aunty tells me to.  But, I decided to go along with it, just to prove to her that I could in fact be a regular blogger IF I wanted to.  Also, she started another blog, and I wanted to just give her a little nudge in the right direction.  It's her third blog and one that might be worth reading IF she follows through with it.  Being the only female in a house with five other dudes, ranging in age from late thirties to ten months old, well, life gets interesting.  You can read her intro for yourself here.  Do not be deterred by her title "My 10 Nuts," it isn't as dirty as you think.  She is simply referring to the five pairs of testicles she lives with.  Okay, it might be as dirty as you think.  But read it anyway.

Moving on.

This morning, I went to Michael's, a store I should not be allowed to visit.  Ever.  I entered the store with the intent to purchase two balls of yarn.  Two.  I left with many more than two, and an additional bag of canvas, Mod Podge, and an assortment of items from the dollar bins.

Oh, and that's an Instagram pic.  I've been a social networking slacker because most of the time it just makes me roll my eyes, but I've immersed myself in Instagram-land for the past few days and, for the moment, I'm having fun.  My username is tonyaedwards if you want to follow me.  I know, real original, right?

This afternoon, I made Laci pose in front of the glass doors while the sun was pretty low and shining directly through the glass.  I was attempting something called dramatic lighting, which I clearly know nothing about, but it was a first attempt.  These poses were achieved with the aid of marshmallows.  One for each picture taken.

Then I got frustrated and moved her farther away from the window where the soft light, and my comfort zone, exist.

Then she insisted on making weird faces and looking at her pictures on my camera.

{Look close, you just got a little lesson on window light there.}

Later, we went outside to stack wood on the back porch.  For the first time ever, the girls played nicely so I could help Ryan.  No one ran haphazardly toward the pond, no one fell in the mud, no one picked a fight with her sister.  Okay, that last one is a lie.  There was fighting, and yelling, but it was mostly ignored and life went on.

Mia in mittens.  Carrying a tiny spoon.  Of sand.  She melts me.

I attempted an interesting picture of wood, but well...

...wood is just wood.  And that's all I see.

This, my friends, is called "sand oatmeal."  Laci says so.

This is a very small part of my yard.  I love all the green this time of year.  Of course, I love all the gold in the summer, too, but green, ahhhh, it is nice to have you back for a while.

And these are my big girl's boots which are getting very worn and are still too big for her.  I imagine they will be shot by the time they actually fit her.

We had an awesome Tuesday.

Did you have a good Tuesday?

just a few thoughts

We had an uneventful weekend.  Ryan worked and the girls and I stayed home to nurse the tail end of sickness.  Mia has decided 5:45 is a fantastic time to wake for the day, and so now I sit, in the corner of a chaotic playroom, while she enjoys chewing on a pretend piece of bacon.

Lately, I don't mind these early mornings so much, which is good, considering their frequency.  It gives me a chance to be with Mia for a bit before big sister wakes up.  She gets her choice of toys, and I have the luxury of only one person needing me at the moment.

One of the rooms in our house is a playroom, dedicated to holding the girls' toys, and my toy computer.  It is one of my favorite things about living in a house again.  There is a big window facing the East and an even bigger window facing North toward our ponds, which makes this the brightest room in the house.  There is so much light, and I love it.  I stare out that window several times a day as I sit in my ratty, brown rocker with Mia.

Of course, the toys spill out into the living room, and my bedroom, and onto the table and the kitchen floor, but that's how these things go.  It really doesn't bother me.  If you visit my house, you will be surrounded by my kids and their stuff, but you will feel comfortable.

***

We showed Laci the eclipse yesterday through Ryan's welding hood.  She said, "Wow!" as I explained to her that the moon got in the way of the sun.  I'm not entirely convinced she understood, but it was fun anyway.

Mia has been trying to take steps on her own.  She only holds one hand when we walk now, but sometimes she forgets to move her feet when she leans forward.  She has two big bumps on her lower gum...teeth, finally, maybe.  She was already not feeling well, and now teeth, well you can imagine the snot and drool and discomfort and crankiness.

Laci wanted her nails painted for the first time.  She asked for green, but I only had pink.  She wanted me to take it off after a few hours, but I distracted her.  It gives her something to pick at.

We had calzones last night with homemade pizza dough.  They were alright, but I will roll the dough thinner next time.  I love homemade pizza dough. So easy, so good.

My mom came to visit yesterday and it was one of those visits that we both really needed.  It's not that we discussed anything important, or accomplished anything amazing, but we both needed some company and were perfect for each other.

I love having a house again, complete with fingerprints on every window and Cheerios on the floor.

"Enjoy the little things, 

for one day you may look back

and realize they were the big things." - Robert Brault

white {you capture}

Is there anything more inviting than worn wicker furniture on a front porch, warmed by the sun, surrounded by a picket fence?  It is quintessential country.  It is my mama's front porch, not mine, though I aspire to create a haven as warm and welcoming as hers.

Our house is like a blank sheet of paper right now, all neutral white, beige, and brown.  It is begging for color, begging for decoration.  I have been watching design shows and scouring the internet for ideas.  There are so many ideas, I am so inspired, but where to start?  I will have to develop my thrifting abilities, but am excited to do some projects.  I will be sure to share.

I'm not sure how a theme of white could take me off on a home decoration tangent, but that's how my brain works these days.  It is almost impossible to follow my thoughts in a straight line.  Even conversations with me tend to wander around, loop back, and return to where they started.  Eventually, all the information is conveyed, but not necessarily in a logical, linear pattern.  I'm almost positive this happened after having children.

That is all for today.

Linking up with You Capture this morning.  Click HERE for more white.

just life

We've been "home" for almost two weeks now, and it is as if we have always lived here.  I'll admit to living in a bit of a delusional euphoric "new house" bubble.  The novelty of keeping my own house has me tricked into thinking housework is fun, and I'm entirely on top of everything - dishes, laundry, floors.  Though I am well aware that, like the new baby bubble, it will burst and I'll once again dread house cleaning.

I still have quite a few boxes to unpack, though they are boxes of the less necessary items, and since I'm tired of trying to find places for everything, I'm not too sure how quickly they'll be unpacked.  We have lived without the contents of those boxes for a year now, so I'm certain another week, or two, or more, will not harm us.  I predict that one day in the future, I will get tired of seeing empty shelves and walls and unpack everything in a frenzy, pounding holes into the walls and securing items with earthquake glue (to protect from baby earthquakes, not real earthquakes).  I'll be sure to post pictures when, and if, this actually happens.  In the meantime, I'm enjoying the pristine walls and the easy dusting.

The girls are adjusted, wonderfully resilient children that they are.  Laci is busy finding the best hiding places in kitchen cabinets, closets, and the shower.  She insists on doing everything herself and is slowly warming up to her sister's constant presence. Oh, and the Ariel nightgown has resurfaced and has been worn approximately 80% of the time since we've been home.  Day and night.

Yes, that is a camp chair in the background.  We are still looking for the perfect couch.

Mia is busy relentlessly following her sister and pulling herself up on EVERYTHING.  The stage of bumps and bruises has begun for her as she has a habit of pulling herself up on items that have sharp edges and that topple easily.  And since I don't want to wrap her, or the items, in bubble wrap, I suppose she'll just have to learn the hard way.  She also enjoys spitting up on every surface on the house and then playing in it.  Awesome.

We made a little visit to grammy's house yesterday, where Maverick and Laci had a joyful reunion and both ate way too much dry pasta.  As much as I love to see my girl play with her best doggie friend, and I know she would love a doggie friend at home, I am far from ready to bring a dog into the house.  I just can't do it.  Yet.

Ryan has a crazy schedule at work this week, leaving me alone at night with the girls.  We survived our first night last night, and while I regularly doubt my abilities as a mother, I believe we will survive the next two nights as well.  Now, if only I could get a little more time for blogging, I think everything would be just about perfect.