Tiny Happy Tuesday: 13

It's Tiny Happy Tuesday! Time to acknowledge and appreciate all the little happies piling up to give me my beautiful, chaotic, lovely life. Want to join? You can find more info here.

  • My oldest friend currently lives on the other side of the world but she's in town for a short time. She came to visit us yesterday. It's been almost a year since I saw her last but it was like I saw her a week ago. We chatted. We laughed. We drank gin and ate cheese. It was absolutely perfect. I'm so grateful for her friendship. Grady has called her "Uncle Dree Dree" since he could speak and she truly is family. 
  •  Poppy is enchanted by all animals but she's particularly smitten with dogs. Yesterday I was wearing her in the baby carrier as I flipped through the racks of greeting cards at the grocery store. All of a sudden she started panting like a dog and then giggled like a maniac. There was a rack of giant novelty cards with dogs wearing hats, dogs eating ice cream, etc. It was Poppy's version of heaven. It was a very sad moment when we had to leave. 
  • Local asparagus! I roasted a bunch yesterday and have been eating it non-stop. You guys. So good.  
  • Smitten Kitchen's Rhubarb Snacking Cake. The perfect amount of buttery cake, tart rhubarb, and zingy lemon. If you've got fresh rhubarb, make this cake. It's perfect for breakfast (what? There's fruit in it.).

Want to join me? I'd love for you to grab my graphic and join the Facebook group, and share in the fun (don't forget to use the hashtag: #TinyHappyTuesday so I can follow along!).

Let's find the happy, friends.

Another Wild and Crazy Saturday Night

Shawn is a talented musician. Is that gauche of me to say? Am I supposed to be humble on his behalf? I don't even care. The guy has worked at honing his musical craft for decades and is extremely good at what he does.  

Recently, opportunities have presented themselves to him and all of a sudden he's playing for multiple bands.

Which is great. Dude likes to play. But it's also challenging for me, the person stuck with the dinner grind and bedtime routine and the whole "not having the time or energy to even remember what her hobbies are, let alone pursue any" thing.  

Look. I know how lucky I am. I am endlessly, unbearably grateful for the life I have. I'm at home with my babies. There's a roof over our heads, we are fed, we are safe.

It's just, when someone asks me on Friday what we're up to this weekend, I want to be excited about my response. I don't want to make some vague comment about "kid stuff" and quickly change the subject. I also don't want to answer honestly (because somehow I don't think they want to hear "eating leftover Easter candy while watching Bones season one on Netflix and going through my camera roll to sort pictures into my "Penelope Rash" photo album."). 

I'm happy Shawn is pursuing his passion. I'm thrilled his hard work and commitment are paying off. I'm so glad he has this creative outlet and the privilege to accept these opportunities as they come.

I'm also seething with envy. It's petty and unattractive, I know. I can't help it, though. I don't want to be up on stage, performing. I'm not jealous of his specific situation. I just wish I had the time/energy/freedom/space to do my own thing sometimes. Whatever that thing may be. 

This sounds like a criticism of Shawn but it's not meant to be. I am sincerely happy music plays a role in his life. I'm also glad he feels secure enough in himself, and in us, to protect that part of himself.  Shawn would sacrifice sleep before he'd give up music. I want to learn how to be like that. To acknowledge that I enjoy / need something and just do it instead of doing a million other things all the while complaining about not having the time to do the thing I actually want to do. There will always be more laundry. Th dishes will never be done. If I'm waiting for the house to be completely clean before I pursue my interests, I'm going to be waiting a very long time. 

If you're a parent, what's your strategy for being present for your family but also preserving your hobbies?  Or is this one of those "seasons of life" moments where I just need to buck up and realize that I have a baby and anything beyond "keep the baby fed" is beyond the scope of possibility right now?

 

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Tiny Happy Tuesday: 12

It's Tiny Happy Tuesday! Time to acknowledge and appreciate all the little happies piling up to give me my beautiful, chaotic, lovely life. Want to join? You can find more info here.

  • Collaboration. I've had a lot of opportunities lately to collaborate with creative, intelligent, motivated people and it's fuelling my spirit. I keep hearing "collaboration is the new competition" and it really speaks to me. I keep waiting for people to figure out that I'm not worthy of a spot at their table but until that happens, I'll keep lapping up the inspiration.
  • Connection. I'm so grateful to have people in my life who love my kids. Family members, friends with kids, kid-less friends, my family is surrounded by quality people who appreciate my babies.
  • Ice cream cones on a sunny patio after a long, hot day.
  • Rain. We've had a bit of a hot spell but today the rain came to give us a bit of relief (and give me a bit of a break from watering the garden. Thanks, Mama Nature!).
  • It's local rhubarb season. The best season of the year.
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Want to join me? I'd love for you to grab my graphic and join the Facebook group, and share in the fun (don't forget to use the hashtag: #TinyHappyTuesday so I can follow along!).

Let's find the happy, friends.