I remember it so well - 3 years ago right at this moment I was walking to my wedding with my mom, Maria, & Heather. I was so excited! The wedding we had planned was finally about to happen. Everything - every single part of that weekend - was perfect!! Everyone was ready to have fun and we were ready to give them another reason to celebrate! We had a great time and I think everyone there did too. Here we are in the photo booth signing the marriage certificate with out dear friend Matt who performed our wedding ceremony.
Today, life is very different in such a sweet and wonderful way. We went for a walk around our neighborhood with 6 month old Ada. Included in this walk was a hike to Corona Heights. The last time the three of us did this walk Ada was still an inside baby...and I was in labor. Here I am looking at San Francisco from Corona Heights at about 12 hours into my 36 hour labor.
And here is a family self-portrait from today.
We're headed over to Moira's tonight for a quiet time with friends. I'm excited - it's been a while since I've been without being pregnant or having to work the next morning!
Happy Anniversary Love!
Happy New Year everyone! I hope that 2010 is a year full of prosperity, fun times, and wonderful surprises for all.
XO,
Peeper
Overall, the good outweighs the bad, which is a nice reflection. All year I have dubbed 2009 "the year that can kiss my ass". Focusing on gratitude really does change your perspective. Even still, I am looking forward to 2010 and hoping that it is a quiet year full of health, wealth, and good times with friends and family.
The Good
1. Ada. The best thing that ever happened to me. It's so nice that this is our family.
2. Tim and I will soon celebrate 3 years of being married (11 as a couple) and going stronger than ever.
3. Tim and I both have jobs.
4. We have a roof over our heads. While we can't afford a lot of the stuff we want - it is just "Stuff" after all.
5. Tim, Ada, and I are all healthy.
6. The American Classic lasted one more year. New car payment avoided!
7. We are surrounded by friends and family. What a wonder to be so loved.
8. Our financial situation isn't great, but all things considered we have little room to complain.
9. CA came through re: maternity leave. I was able to take more time than I originally thought.
10. The cats are all healthy and adjusting to the new addition quite well.
The Bad
1. The illness and death of my mother.
2. The "Lost Weeks": this is what Tim and I call the period of time from 18-22 weeks of the pregnancy where we thought that Ada was missing a prominent, crucial brain structure.
3. The IRS struck again. Bastards.
I'm not a big country fan but Dave Matthews redeems it for me - this is a great summary of how I feel as the new year rolls in:
Everyone knows Etsy, the super-great site for crafty hipsters, right? Well, there is an entire craft fair called Renegade that is mostly comprised of Etsy sellers. Moira discovered it in Chicago. We are lucky in that the powers-that-be have decided that San Francisco is now on the roster.I went to the first fair here about a year and a half ago. I missed it this past summer because we were in FL with 3 week old Ada to see my dying mother. Lo, all was not not lost as they now have a holiday fair as well. We hit it last Saturday. Ada did reasonably well hanging out in the Ergo. We drove over to the east bay that morning so that I could get the H1N1 vaccine (pathetic, right?) so she had already had a long day. Renegade blew her mind. And who can blame her? It is pretty darn spectacular. Moira rushed to get her camera out to document the moment. Once again, we were mistaken for a lesbian couple. Here she is with a knit starfish on her head.
Now for my long-awaited, much loved Renegade loot:
First up is this cute little clip with felt leaves on it. I think it will be adorable on Ada when she finally has hair.
Next is this great little dish. I have been in need of a jewelry dumping spot and this one is quite lovely. It's really just an old dish glued on top of a crystal-esque candle stick but props to the girl who came up with it as they were all so pretty.
UPDATE: Broken. Well, I enjoyed it for the full 9 days that I had it. Fark.
Then we came across another crafter who has a way with felt. I picked up this cute little purse. It's just big enough to fit my phone, drivers license, and some cash. It hooks to my keys so it is quite perfect for a quick bundle to grab on the way out the door. It also fulfills my deep and abiding love for ric-rac. Super cute, right?
The same seller had these cute little poppy pins. I put it on my Hazel coat from myrebe.com. I got the coat during my firs trip to Renegade and I still wear it almost every day! It was time to adorn it with something colorful.
Speaking of Rebe - I got this great bamboo dress there. Brown is not my favorite color but this does go nicely with the Jeffrey Campbell shoes I got on sale and love but didn't know what I would ever wear them with. Believe it or not, this dress is quite flattering - the photography is poor quality, I know. And let's face it, I'm no model!
Finally, I saw this glass bead necklace and had to have it. Immediately when I put it on I said "yes!". The seller threw the earrings in for no additional charge. Love it!
I sometimes like to approach problems/questions in a way that it perhaps a little unconventional. I put the thought out there and let the universe take care of the rest. Whenever I do this the universe brings to me the perfect solution to the problem. The task of finding the perfect "Baby's First Christmas" ornament for the tree was no exception. I've been casually looking but pretty much everything I've seen is just cheesy or super expensive...it's just going through the motions.
Last night we went to Cole Valley Hardware to get our Christmas tree. It has become a San Francisco tradition that Tim or one of his brothers has to carry it up the hill. Some sort of bragging rights thing that an only child like me simply can not relate to. When I went inside to pay for our tree I saw it: the perfect ornament for Ada's first Christmas.
We also did the Santa thing. When we made a weekend trip to San Luis Obispo we stayed at a place called The Apple Farm.This place is like how Disney would do Americana country decor. Not quite our style but it was really nice. One of the things they are known for is the amazing Christmas decorations. It was truly amazing! Santa was therethe morning we checked out. We seized the opportunity to get a few shots of Ada with Santa - in fact we had to plan carefully in order to get a few pics the second she was handed over to good old St. Nick because of the high likelihood that our daughter would scream in terror (see the Halloween post for a refresher).
What we didn't realize is that you can't go see Santa anymore without wearing your Christmas best. Apparently these are the photos that end up at Shutterfly becoming the cards we all get. The other parents were all too happy to explain this to us. They were also happy to judge Tim and I out loud for having messed up so terribly. Whatever. Ada was still the cutest baby there even though she had on jeans and a pink t-shirt...
Today was Ada's 6 month pediatrician visit. Here are her "stats":
Age: 6 days shy of 6 months.
Weight: 17 lbs 10 oz. and 26.5 inches
Size (diapers, onesies, etc.): Size 2-3 diapers and 9 month old clothes (some 6mos still fit and some 12 mos. fit already)
Eyes: Blue/gray with an inner rim of brown like Tim's eyes have
Hair: It's coming in so slowly. There is still a prominent bald spot.
Sleeping: sleeping through the night - we are incredibly blessed. She is a great napper too.
Milestones: Clear to start solids!
Words/sounds: She is still in the pterodactyl phase. It is beyond hysterical to watch her be so pleased with herself. It must feel good or something.
What we are looking forward to: I am unnaturally excited about starting solids. This is going to be so much fun!
As soon as our pediatrician said we could start solids we got really excited. Her first food was oatmeal. Here is a photo essay on how it went:
I got a package at work today. Here is what I found inside:
What is this beautiful medallion? Why it's the Cat Writer's Association Muse Medallion, of course. You probably didn't know that there was such a thing as a Cat Writer's Associaion. It's OK, I didn't either. In fact, the technicians went skipping over to a computer to figure out what this accolade was for and if they sent it to me by mistake.
VIII.3 – Color Photograph (single)
Judge’s comment: “It told a story. The image stayed with me for days. Adorable! Intriguing lighting. It’s so uniquely the essence of kitten.”
Winner:
Dr. Monica Shepherd, “Frankie Meets Her Shadow” Our Animals
The website explained it all. I won this award for a photo I took of our foster kitten, Frankie. She was playing with her newly discovered shadow on Christmas day 2008 and I caught the whole thing on film. The photo appeared in the magazine that my organization publishes as part of a larger story. Unfortunately, that article isn't available online. For your enjoyment, here is the winning photo:
