Her Thanksgiving threads

Because tomorrow it's all about Christmas.

Booties, bonnet, and dress were mine when I was baby (thank you for saving them Marm!). Capelet is from periwinkle bloom.

3 months

Three months. 1/4 of the way to one year. My baby. My baby. It makes my heart hurt to think about those early days from the hospital and compare them to now. You were so patient with us then and you still are.

We are starting to see a shy, happy personality peek through. You're less and less serious these days, and our favorite pastime is finding ways to make you smile and squeal. So far sure bets include "airplane" on my knees, farting noises, silly dances ending in jazz hands, looking at the other baby in the mirror, and the hamster song. Lately you've been giving me these incredibly loving, lingering gazes followed by a coooooooo that stops me dead in my tracks and makes me want to just pull you close and hold you forever. It's like you think I hung the moon. Well, you are my everything, too.

You love being stood up and will easily bear weight with our support, and you aren't toppling over quite so fast when I sit you up against pillows. Of course you're still constantly moving, my long and lean baby. We were alarmed to find a bald spot on the back of your head but a quick google search showed it's actually quite common, no doubt a direct result from your 180-degree Linda Blair turns towards sounds. I thought you were aware before...little did I know. I read that your vision is completely in focus now and it shows. Maybe that's why you fight your naps.

This past month you experienced two big holidays, Halloween and Thanksgiving, and well, you spent the bulk of them eating. You were eating when trick-or-treaters were coming to the door and during our chili dinner, you were eating when Santa came 'round the corner during the Macy's Parade on tv, and you were eating when Nonna said grace at the table for Thanksgiving dinner. Breastfeeding is one of my favorite things about motherhood so far. It was worth the stubbornness to get to this point. Just like you were worth the wait.

The Tried + True's Part Two: Crack Pie

[source]

See Part One of the Tried + True's here.

Crack pie. I wasn't going to add this one to the mix since yesterday I only tasted three bites of it in between bouncing Mila, not enough to make an accurate assessment. But Steve hasn't stopped raving about the crack pie since. He told me he's been talking it up to his co-workers all day today, and the last time he did something like that I had dedicated nearly a day making a homemade pasta with duck meat sauce. Luckily crack pie comes together much easier, only taking me two evenings to make--although if you don't have a three month-old you could very likely make it in one.

So like I said, I wasn't going to post about this one, until about 5 minutes ago when I peeked at the leftovers Marmousch lovingly packed for me to take home- and she had saved me a little sliver of the crack pie! I ate it standing over the sink in my robe, barefoot, hair wet from the shower, the only one in the house not asleep right now. And it's decided. This is a tried + true.

Here you go. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

So many things to be thankful for this year, the year that made me a mother. Perfect and beautiful daughter, amazing husband, wonderful family, big-hearted friends, healthy pregnancy, a delicious meal to come prepared by Marmousch's capable hands- just to name a few. Thanks God!

Photo taken when Mila was three weeks old.

I washed a dish!

Or maybe three. I didn't count, because I was so taken with the little munchkin who was behind me, a little gnome on our kitchen floor. If she could talk I think she would say, I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing with this book, I can't even pick it up yet, but that nice lady who's with me all day long keeps looking back and smiling and singing at me so I guess it's okay.

I started this post intending to write about how I'm managing to find little pockets of productivity in my day, but I ended up gushing instead. Productivity be damned. I am in love.

Aren't I lucky?

I get to spend a Mila + Mommy weekend with this girl!

Happy anniversary to us.

We just put our baby to bed for the (fingers crossed) night. And now it's time for sushi, cake, and pinot noir. I love my husband more than ever...we've come so very very far. Happy 6 years Pook!


photo by Steve Gold

Happy Monday

My day: I ate a carrot cake cupcake with little carrot flecks in it, I was able to stop my daughter's backseat screams (road warrior she is not) by reaching back for her little hand while driving, and I played airplane with her resting on my legs. She is awesome.

this moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

-from Soulemama

Marmousch's kimonos

I am starting to put away Mila's newborn itty-bitty clothes (sob) and wanted to post pictures of the kimonos Marmousch made before she doesn't fit them anymore (another sob).

The Halloween one is here. And then there are these two. We followed this tutorial really really loosely because, well, it's crap. Sorry Martha. Luckily Marm knows her way around a sewing machine and blazed her own trail.

Hoping for a little luck

At some point last night our sweet Hoodles escaped and we've spent all day looking for him. We are hoping that our friendly, sweet boy comes back to us soon.

Right before Mila and I headed out on yet another search-and-rescue walk I glimpsed in the mirror and saw this. The bright spot of an otherwise sad day.

Update: No more than 10 minutes after hitting 'publish,' he came back to us! Thank you St. Francis and St. Anthony!

Bébé Wugs

Steve and I have this recurring joke that on Mila's first day of school, the kiddos will be instructed to go around the room introducing themselves.
"Emma," says one.
"Joshua," says another.
"Sophia."
"Mason."
"Kayla."
And then it's our sweetheart's turn.

"Wugs," she'll say with her tough and determined little face. "Bébé Wugs."

We have got to start calling her by her real name.

this moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. -Soulemama

Thoughtful Mila and Gregarious Mila

Two sides of a delightful coin.

Trunk or Treat

I had never even heard of Trunk or Treat until this year, but when I mentioned a local one to Steve he was all for it. He singlehandedly designed and planned our trunk around the Wugs--she was a caterpillar, as inspired by Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar and our sweet way of swaddling her. He painted the posterboard like a forest, bought the extra fabric as the forest floor, got the 'caterpillar food'...so late Wednesday afternoon we headed over to the event. It's only about 20 minutes away from where we live but we still had to pull over so I could nurse M halfway there. What can I say, the girl can eat.

But when we got to the church we saw this sign.

 Apparently the newspaper published the wrong day. There we were, all dressed up and nowhere to go. This sort of thing happens to us all. the. time. 

Unfortunately Steve was working on the real day of Trunk or Treat but he got out a little early and we were able to catch the last 30 minutes. We had two trick-or-treaters = success.

I'll post more pictures of Mila in her costume tomorrow. Marmousch sewed up the whole thing in like 20 minutes. I want that kind of talent.

Halloween Weekend

 Ours was a good one. There was our sweet hometown costume parade which ended with me up on a stage with my caterpillar looking like a creepy pageant mom (thanks Marmousch), I actually got in the kitchen Saturday night to make whoopie pies (I'm predicting whoopie pies to be the new cupcakes), and Mila just might have met her future husband.

But back to reality today. At her two-month appointment, Mila had her first shots ever and was so brave and determined throughout. She was quietly sobbing and just locked eyes with me the entire car ride home (after breastfeeding following the shots). Melted me into a puddle. Now we've been fighting a fever for most of the afternoon and evening and thankfully I think we're past it. God bless her.