Bluebirdbaby

Find Joy In the Unexpected

Last summer I came across a talented artist whose jewelry I fell in love with. Have you ever seen Lisa Leonard's designs? I was browsing through her site and came across the above necklace with the quote, "find joy in the unexpected" and thought no necklace could be more perfect.

It arrived in the prettiest little box. The little one was so excited to open it and see what was inside. Lisa is very wonderful to work with and so sweet. Her blog is quite inspiring as well and I love seeing pictures of her delightful family. I love the dreamy quality to her photographs.

The best part about it? The necklace kind of makes this sweet little jingle sound when I walk. It's kind of like how I would imagine "joy" sounding like. The little one often requests to wear it as well and had it on for a full day before I persuaded her to take it off for bed. And I love having the reminder that joy is everywhere...even where we least expect it!

Scenes From Around the House

~Flowers from my two sweeties~

~Sally, the lady bug~

~New thrifted sheets~

~An afternoon spent in bed with a very energetic (yet completely amused) little one and some reading cuddled up in Sasa's lap~

I'm disappointed to say I'm not feeling much better. Since I've slowed down, I've realized just how much stress I was feeling. It's almost as if my body is saying "Enough!" and is slowly falling apart piece by piece. So, I'm determined to kick this. I'm determined to find some kind of stress relief (yoga, meditation, exercise?) and get back to my normal, healthy self! Thank you all for your continued well wishes! They mean a lot to me.

Baby Bellies

A little while ago, a blog reader contacted me about doing a maternity photo shoot, and I jumped on the chance. Little did I know she had just about the cutest pregnant belly I've ever seen!

When I arrived at her home she greeted me with the biggest smile and welcomed me in for a cup of tea and some mama chat. It's funny how I'm meeting many of my readers and feeling like I've known them for years. Kristen and I connected instantly, and we had a blast creating interesting shots and trying wacky things. She graciously bared her belly for nearly two hours while I snapped away. I was happy to get home to find I captured some really nice shots. You can see some more on my website under the "maternity" section. Thanks again Kristen!

And thank you all for your well wishes. As I type this I am laying in bed. Sasa has forbid me to leave the bedroom, although I see a bath in my future this morning. I have the next six days off from work to rest too. I decided that the longer I pushed myself, the longer it would be until I was well. And quite frankly, three months is already too long to be sick. I am ready to feel better! So thanks for the encouragement. Does anyone have any good book or movie recommendations?!

Rest

Well, it's no surprise that I've been increasingly exhausted, drained, and just plain tired lately. Not to mention the horrible cold/sinus infection I've had since last October (no joke...) that just won't go away. People kept telling me it was due to stress; that the feeling I had been physically beaten was a natural way to feel when you're in the midst of a divorce. But I knew something was wrong.

I ended up in the hospital this afternoon and was diagnosed with mononucleosis. I just about died laughing when the doc came in to tell me. I mean, how fitting! I get an illness that requires only one thing to get better: rest. And rest is something I am not so good at. Granted, I have a 2 year old and a job, plus photography sessions booked, a divorce underway, and a million things I want to do for the house. But if I had the ability to just stay home in bed all day, I wouldn't. I couldn't!

But he did tell me that if I didn't get this much needed rest I would just stay sick. So I suppose I'll compromise by going to bed early, extra cuddling time on the couch with the little one and Sasa, and maybe a nap or two if the little one complies.

At least the computer doesn't require a heck of a lot of energy. I've got some fun posts coming up this week, so unless Sasa ties me to the bed in an effort to get me to rest, you'll still be seeing me around!

A Milestone

Well, the little one has said "bye-bye" to diapers. In one day she potty trained herself. Since Wednesday, she's been out of diapers. I can't believe it. I don't even have to bring her to the potty...she just disappears upstairs and moments later I hear the toilet flush. She's a quick one, I tell ya.

She's very proud of herself, but this new independence has also been trying. She's growing increasingly stubborn and the potty training has certainly interfered with naps and bedtime. But I think in another couple of weeks it will be all sorted out. I really can't believe how easy it was.

We had a little "potty party" for her last night, complete with chocolate cupcakes and homemade whip cream (which she made herself!) and we made up a potty song. She's so proud of herself...she tells everyone "I pee in the potty!" quite enthusiastically.

But it seems we are not quite leaving diapers behind for good. Oh no. Apparently she has attached herself to this brand new pack of diapers. It's her new "baby" and she brings it with her everywhere, even to bed! She named it "Abby" and loves to read her books, sing her songs, feed her dinner, and make Sasa give her a bath. It's the funniest thing to watch her lug this bag of diapers with her everywhere. She also decided that "Abby" doubles as a great cushion!

So adios diaper changes! I am so proud of her...!

Sewing For the Home

Well, I've been trying to squeeze in some sewing time here and there. The little one seems to finally be able to entertain herself while I cut and measure and sew. (I won't mention that by "entertaining" I mean "pulling fabric off the shelves, dumping jars of buttons on the floor, and emptying the suitcase full of trim"...but it's so worth the mess to have a bit of creating time!)
The first thing on my list was new pillow covers for the couch. The other ones I had made were 2 years old and I desperately needed a change. In the dead of winter I found myself drawn to very spring-like fabrics, so when I saw that floral print at my favorite little fabric store, I knew it was coming home with me. It reminds me of a vintage sheet and it's so soft. So the couch has had a makeover and I'm quite thrilled to have accomplished something crafty finally!

Next it was a curtain for the bathroom. We have very, very large windows in this house and I felt that full-length curtains would just be too much. So I settled on a cafe-style curtain with a Heather Ross print.

And next on the list is a pair of corduroy pants for the little one inspired by this book, which is on her top 5 book list right now. She will be so thrilled to have a pair of pants "just like Emily" and maybe she'll even get a balloon too...!

 

Sledding

We've got snow. Lots of it, in fact. Actually, according to the little one we have "too much snow" to even sled properly. So after about five minutes of being pulled around the yard, she made it loud and clear that the excessive amount of snow was too much to handle. So inside we went! But I did manage to snap a few pictures of our activities before my frozen fingers refused to press the shutter release. Ah, winter...

Barker Family

I had the pleasure of photographing the beautiful family of a long-time blog reader last week. Tara contacted me and asked if I'd drive up to her house to take pictures of her family. It was so fun meeting her and I had one of those "are you sure I haven't met you before?!" feelings. Her boys were amazingly cute, and the series of pictures I got of the whole family were quite heart warming.
Tara and her husband own a store called Sage Market, which you can visit if you're ever up in Camden, Maine. You can check out their website here.

Thanks Tara and Josh for letting me and my camera into your lives! And thank you to all the readers who contacted me about photo shoots. I have the next five weeks booked!

Enjoy the week!

Happy

There are many days that my usual upbeat, joyful, full of life self feels a tad weighed down by a not-so-pleasant divorce process, letting the little one go for days at a time, feeling a tad financially insecure, and the exhaustion I tend to feel when faced with negative energy from others. It's on days like that I remind myself of the many things that can bring joy back to my life. Here are a few:

New vintage stereo system and turntable with many thrifted records.

Listening to an old Billie Holiday album as we clean up after lunch.

Watching Sasa and the little one build "houses" from blankets and chairs.

Vintage sheets, newly thrifted, trying to dry in the frigid temperatures outside.

An afternoon spent laying in bed, reading aloud to each other from this book.

Homemade kombucha ready for drinking.

Anticipating a night of friends and fun, good food and laughter.

And ... a special guest blogger! Sasa has agreed to guest blog all about how to make kombucha, kefir, and yogurt. He will also be occasionally guest blogging about "urban homesteading," so stay tuned for that! I'm excited to introduce him to this space here and it will fun to share our adventures with you all.

Have a great weekend!

Sweet Dreams

The little one started requesting a pillow in her bed a couple of months ago. I was using one from the couch because it was relatively flat, but I knew once my sewing room was in order, her very own pillow would be on the top of my list!

I embroidered the linen one snowy day at work, and finished putting the rest together yesterday while the little one "organized" my vintage trim collection. It sewed up really fast; taking me only about 20 minutes to do! I backed it with a soft cotton flannel, and stuffed it with organic cotton from NearSea Naturals. (I bought the stuffing from them about 3 years ago and had a bunch leftover to finish this pillow. I don't see that they still carry it, but they have other great organic fabrics available!)

And the verdict? Well, she loves it. I'd like to think it helps her sleep better too :)

At Last...

It seems like it has been months since I was able to play the piano. I missed it so much. I found an old upright in great condition on Craigslist and went down to play it. I fell in love with it, so a week later we picked it up and brought it home! It seems like it was made for this house. I've been having a blast practicing and I look forward to teaching again soon.
And my winter goal of learning the guitar is going quite well. I think I may even be able to sing and play at the next open mic night in February! (Maybe I'll even put a video up on YouTube!)

I hope you're all enjoying the weekend. We're heading out for some snowshoeing!

A Lazy Day

It seems as though most of the week is spent running here and there, rushing around getting meals prepared and the house cleaned up, squeezing in nap time and getting to bed at a reasonable hour, and all the things in between. It can be exhausting and it's not until Thursday comes around that I remember to breathe and slow down.

Thursday is our wide-open day: no plans, no play dates, no story time at the library. We simply do whatever we feel like. It may entail a trip to the big city, a lazy day at home, or hanging out in our little town. There's no telling what activity the little one will want to partake in, but it always starts at the bookshop cafe for some whip cream and hot chocolate.

With all the previous rushing about, we both seem to really appreciate the slowness of Thursdays. Falling into a rhythm of play and housework; of helping one another side by side or breaking off into our own activities. There's lots of dancing, music (we are loving this group lately), cooking and baking, and eating. And whatever we tend to do, it is much enjoyed.

We always end the day with a special meal and homemade ice cream for dessert. The little one gets extra cuddles and stories at night (she's really loving this book right now), and I sing songs while she settles into bed. Her favorite songs? Well, that would be "Lobsterman's Wife" and "Red Robin", of course!

I hope you are all enjoying this Thursday too!

Kiwi

Sasa and I took a little trip to the animal shelter over the weekend to surprise the little one with a cat. We walked in the room and Kiwi came right over to say hello. She was the fattest cat there (I love fat cats!) and we knew she had to come home with us.

She settled right in as soon as we brought her home. She loves to spend her time laying on her back in the sun or relaxing on our laps. The little one was thrilled to come home and find a new cat. The two of them have done a bit of bonding over the last couple of days.

Now if only we could convince doggy Fly that Kiwi can be a lot of fun...

In Progress

Well, the new sewing room is just about complete! I feel so lucky to have a whole room to call my own. We're working on Sasa's yoga room next!
I started on my first project this evening. It feels so amazing to be back. I can't wait to share more pictures with you. I have yet to get some artwork up on the walls, so I feel like waiting until it's complete to share more. But expect to see some more projects soon! My "to do" sewing list is growing and growing.

Have a great weekend. We've got more house projects in the works and a trip to the big city!

A New Year

I can't think of a better way to ring in the new year than with an amazing group of people, lots of laughter, and delicious food and drinks, all in our new home. It was a beautiful night, full of fun and joy. I am excited to start this new year and can't wait to see what it will bring.

Happy New Year!