Tuesday, May 29, 2012

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

This past weekend, Scott and I got away to Lawrence, KS for my birthday while my parents watched Everleigh. It was soooo restful, fun, and relaxing. I haven't felt so young in years ;)










My cutie puckering up after tasting my girly drink












Chicken-mobile with live chickens



Scott checking out "Experimental"



Oh, Henry's--I love you



Posing for a post-drinks pic at Henry's upstairs

My dream van ;)


Friday night was pretty low-key. We checked into the hotel, lazed around for awhile enjoying not having to watch someone every second, and caught a Pickers marathon on TV. Then we decided we needed to shift it into gear, so we hit Mass Street and ate some pizza at a little underground dive called Rudy's. Afterwards, we went to my favorite little record store, Love Garden and Scotti bought me a few killer cd's for my birthday (something I always want to do but rarely spring for). I got an Azure Ray CD, the new Lykke Li (love does not describe how I feel about this album), and Fleet Foxes.

Then we hit up our favorite little Lawrence Bar, Henry's Upstairs, and capped the night with a visit to the Taproom (a basement dance-party with awesome DJ's).

Saturday, we slept in (wow. so nice), had breakfast in bed, and got up to window shop. We visited an antique mall and found Ev an old-school bulldozer that was made to last. Then we hit the vintage shops and got a few new duds. Along the way, we sampled the best coffee of all time, and caught some kind of decorative car/bike parade, which was super fun to see.

Later that night, we had a late dinner at Free State Brewery and then wandered into the coolest show at the Bottleneck that I've been to in a minute. The bands were Spirit is the Spirit and Cloud Dog. Both bands were super-danceable, and the place was packed with strangely dressed artsy kids and lots of skinny white gay guys painted up like American Indians. When Cloud Dog played, they basically had a drum circle combine with techno music. We danced along and laughed until about 2AM, when we headed back to the hotel.

Glorious. The whole weekend was magical and fun and brought us even closer together. We missed Ev like crazy, but it helped us remember how much she has changed our life, and how happy we are in our new role as parents.

So yep, Happy Birthday to me!

Friday, May 25, 2012

A NEW DECADE

Today, I turn 30 years old. I have been so lucky to have had 30 healthy and beautiful years so far. As I kiss goodbye to my carefree twenties, I think of all the amazing memories of festivals, moments on stage, summers where bare feet and sundresses were considered standard dress. I recall amazing conversations with friends that lasted all night, of last minute road trips, of studies, studies, studies. Drinking too much, talking too much, reading too much, working too much.

I think of past loves and old friends. Of what I've traded in along the way to get where I am right now. And I feel absolutely, positively blessed.

Spending my first weekend away from Ev with Scott, and although I'm already missing her like I left a chunk of my heart back in Kansas City, I feel so grounded and happy and alive riding in the car, holding hands with my husband, listening to music way too loud with the wind in my hair.

Here's to a new decade for me. What will it hold? From where I'm sitting, it looks fabulous.

Cheers!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

DEAR EVERLEIGH (23 MONTHS!)








Dear Everleigh,

This month you are 23 months old, which means you are almost 2!  This month you made some huge strides towards becoming an official big girl, and I couldn't be more proud. As your second birthday approaches, I see your baby-ness (a word I may or may not have just created) slipping away and revealing the cutest, sweetest toddler I could have ever hoped to know. Here's what you've been up to this month.










Miss Independent: this month you have decided that you can do it ALL "by myself". Everything from dressing yourself to feeding yourself to wanting to swim by yourself (which, by the way you cannot yet do). You are overly sure of yourself sometimes, which is pretty scary for us, but it also makes us so proud. You're such a big girl Ev!

Imaginative Play: you've started playing more by yourself, having your dolls talk, and flexing your make-believe skills. It's super cute to watch you do this by the way. Sometimes you use your little toy phone and say things like "Oh nothing. Hanging with Mommy and Daddy" and we MELT.

Night Weaning: this has been a big one for us. I never in a million years pictured nursing this long, but you really were not interested in stopping and it was a really nice way for us to connect after a long day apart. Now, the time has come and we've been working on weaning, which has been slow and frustrating for both of us. But it's just another way to celebrate you being a big girl.

First Night Away: you spent last Friday night with Grandma and Papa which was your first night away from Mommy and Daddy ever. According to Grandma (who may have fudged the details in an effort to make me feel better) you did awesome, and only brought up Mommy and milk a few times. She told me that you only woke up crying one time where you couldn't re-settle yourself and needed some Grandma love. I was admittedly a bit nervous about leaving you, but I thoroughly enjoyed sleeping ALL NIGHT in my own bed. That overnight was a practice run for later this month when Mommy and Daddy go out of town for a whole weekend to celebrate Mommy's birthday...but I feel confident that you can handle it.

Repeating and Baby Talk: lately you've been getting a kick out of imitating other kids when you hear them in public--especially babies. If a kid yells out "ba bah!" you yell back "ba bah!" It's super cute and kind of funny, but it also can be frustrating when you take it home with you and start talking baby talk there. We just keep encouraging you to use your words and talk like a big girl, with mixed results. It is pretty cute though to see you interact with little kiddos everywhere and try to speak their language :)

Cute Things: some of the things you say crack me up on a daily basis. For instance, lately you've said a few times out of the blue "I forgot to run-run!" and then taken off running. Or you've tooted and said "toot Magoot Mommy". You're a very classy kid, Ev.

I'm Not Done, I'm Finished: somewhere along the line you've gotten done and finished mixed up as being opposites, and when I ask, "are you done with that?" you'll say, "no, I'm finished". To you, this means you're still working on it. I explained this to you, and yesterday you said "I'm done. Done means finished". You're getting it. Maybe. Or not.

ABC's and 123's: You can now sing your ABC's all the way through and count to 10 by yourself. This blows me away. Rock star. You love to sing and frequently hum, even in your sleep.

Little Friends: this month you've really come into your own socially, and are interested in interacting with friends. There's nothing so sweet as watching you play with other kids, laugh with them, share with them. I never get sick of it.

Everleigh, I can't begin to tell you the ways you've changed my life for the good. I'm so happy to see you blossoming into this independent toddler. Stay cool!

Love always,

Mommy








Tuesday, May 1, 2012

TWO GENERATIONS OF FRIENDS

It's so sweet to see my amazing friends have kids and for our kids to become friends. Who knew the heart could be so filled with love? This weekend, my lovely friend Natalie invited Ev and I to join her and her daughter, Sage, in attending a pre-opening lunch at Cafe Gratitude--a gourmet, raw vegan restaurant opening in Kansas City. Nat got the hook up because she painted the amazing mural you'll see in one of the photos (go Natalie!).

The food was delicious, the company was even better, and the environment was warm and loving. The girls were actually awesome during lunch, and afterwards they tried to get the place hopping by breaking out into spontaneous dancing. Afterwards, we picked up some felt at the local art store for a project, and then headed up to Everleigh's playroom and where we all had some friend-time :)

Check out Natalie's skills on that mural!

We really felt an abundance of joy and love and friendship that day

I meant to photograph the awesome food but it was so good we ate it first. These were our to go boxes ;)


After an accidental slip and fall while dancing, the girls decided it was funny and kept doing it

Getting their dance on





Natalie and Sage in the art store

Fort time!

A brief scuffle over control of the brush

Combing Ev's hair