mama and monkey * this is how we spend the days

We go outside every single day. I tend to gardens and animals while he runs and climbs. We both get really dirty. Then sometimes when my backyard chores are done I pour myself a cup of coffee and lay in the hammock with a book while he plays. Or I can go into the kitchen and make food or clean dishes and watch him from the window.

 

Then we come in, full of fresh air and vitamin D and we cuddle and read. And he often sleeps and then I can pick up my book once again. Or sew something. Sometimes I roam around the internet during my quiet time.

 

I know I have said it dozens of times but outdoor living really does suit us well.

a recipe for happy*

 turn the tv off * listen to silly music * eat favorite foods * dance like you mean it * bundle up and get outside * get wet and muddy and cold * come inside and change into something soft and elastic waisted * cuddle in blankets and drink tea * read stories and tell your own * giggle lots, tickle, hug, kiss, and get sleepy * settle in for a cozy nap

yesterday was the worst and i cried after the kids went to bed and decided that we have to make some big changes for my sanity and well being as well as theirs. 

today is the best! fresh air, lots of play and music and books and sleep! 

happy mama ♥ happy toddler

luca whistles*

this moment*itty bitty supers

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

inspired by Soule Mama.

weekend celebrations*

 we had a busy-fun weekend of festivities in our house! harper turned five on saturday and we had a little birthday celebration for both the boys that evening.

luca got this little tube of farm animals and hasn't stopped playing with them since!

harper got a new bike helmet and a little bell for his handle bars!

 i got a hammock for mother's day and it has quickly become the very favorite place to share cuddles. never mind that my kids refer to it as a "rope swing"...

 

luca had some candle blowing practice on his real birthday a few days ago so he was all over it when it was cake time at the party! 

i hope you all had a fabulous mother's day weekend, sweet friends! 

xo

luca turns TWO*

adorable brothers.

new wheels.

niko's amazing handmade gift for luca.

niko also made his cake!

birthday boy!

i can hardly believe my sweet baby boy is two years old. it was a lovely day for a birthday celebration, but unfortunately i woke up with a terrible migraine. i get them every 3-4 weeks. i felt it coming on when we went to bed last night but hoped (oh, how i hoped!!) that i would feel better this morning. no such luck. my sweet husband let me sleep in a little and then he played with the boys out front until lunch time. i mostly laid on the couch feeling sick but i did go out to see my little guy on his new birthday bike and hear him ring his bell over and over. harper is now requesting a bell for his bike!

after lunch luca and i curled up together and napped on the couch while harper watched a movie. it was a long and cozy nap, exactly what i needed. 

when the big kids came home from school we played in backyard, blowing bubbles, watching chickens and observing garden progress. niko baked the most delicious chocolate cake with buttercream frosting for her baby brother. she also made him that amazing poster pictured above - she has been working on it for weeks. i can't wait to find the perfect place to display it for him! such a special gift ♥

as i nursed my sweet little luca to sleep tonight i thought about holding him in my arms and nursing him for the very first time two years ago. i am overcome with love and gratitude for this family of mine. i really am a lucky, lucky mama!

here is the blog post where i announced luca's birth, and here we finally decided on a name for our new baby boy. in this post he was one week old and i pleaded for him to "grow slow". and here is his first birthday post.

happiest birthday, love. we are blessed beyond measure to have you in our lives!

growing like a wildflower*

little luca. he is growing big entirely too fast *sigh*

next month, the first week of next month to be exact, he will be two years old. i just now allowed myself to count even though i said i wouldn't. nine days. nine days left of this one year old "little" guy. i picked up a gently used tricycle with a long handle that we can guide him along with complete with a bell on the handle bar. it was his big birthday gift and has been hiding in the garage. a few days ago while we were out back doing yard work i suddenly realized he was no longer playing on the slide. we all abandoned our chores to look for him. then we heard the tiny chime from that bell coming from the garage. 

he loves his new trike.

welcoming the weekend*

 today ::

* rain * coffee, glorious coffee * the last load of vacation laundry washed, folded and put away * a movie and snuggles with my sweet kiddos * chicken coop building by the mister * mama made soap carefully poured into wooden whiskey box molds * mac n' cheese dinner * warm bathes and early tuck in *

a proper welcome to the weekend!

well friends, we are home from our little spring break mountain get away. we came home yesterday afternoon and reluctantly abandoned our vacation schedules and got right back into the daily rhythm of our home.

oh, and i thought i would share with you the big, huge mess my little luca made the day before we left for our mountain trip.

 this is my oven door just seconds after a pretty rock from esme's collection went through it (you can see the point of entry over there on the bottom-right corner) the safety glass splintered into millions of tiny little cracks and barely held up long enough for us to get something (our shower curtain) under it. immediately after the plastic shower liner was placed on the floor the whole glass door fell out.

 leaving me with this. it looks like it will be a pretty penny to replace the glass and i could barely sleep that night because i was so upset. but my patient husband and sweet friends pointed out that it really could have been a whole lot worse, like the new sliding glass door or our huge front picture window or the new television screen. so i am currently {trying desperately} to look at the bright side of things and not obsessing about things like the hard earned funds i was saving for a brand new camera going right into my oven door instead... sigh.

on a brighter note, i have finally stocked my organics shop with wonderful smell better butter and tiny heiny diaper balm and foaming wipe wash! and lovely hand made, organic soap is on it's way to the shop later this spring! to celebrate i am going to have a little inspired mama giveaway, so check back tomorrow for details!

happiest friday, friends!

xoxo

in like a fish * out like a light

we bought luca little arm floaties and he paddled all over the pool squealing " weeee, weeee, weeeee!!"

then we came back to our room and he nursed and fell into deep sleep. he hasn't even had lunch yet.

we are smack dab in the middle of vacation schedule and loving every second! happy spring break, friends!

this is what we do.

 creative blog posts sit in the very back room of my busy brain waiting {sometimes not so patiently} for me to dust them off and share them with you. knitting projects travel on their needles into the next season. oh well, they will be ready to wear next year. and housework, oh housework... 

our littlest guy is a tornado tucked inside an adorable, ginger-haired package. if i go to use the rest room he tears up the mail. when i retreat to the kitchen to prepare a meal he gets my favorite lip gloss from my bedroom and chews it up. when i give him cheerios in a small cup he flings them across the floors.

 i tried to take a few photos of him today. he wasn't much interested.

these giggles happened when i kissed him over and over saying "why didn't mama get tidy little babies?!" in a silly voice. haha, funny.

messy moment caught in a photo. breakfast yogurt dolloped onto freshly washed hair.

i tried to wipe it out with a wet wash rag. of course that didn't work so i re-bathed him.

this is what we do.

cozy*love

luca and i recently had our photos taken for a local photographer's blog series. she took pictures of fifteen mamas and their nurslings for a beautiful celebration of breastfeeding. 

we had our photos taken at a park at sunset in front of the prettiest frozen pond. i was thrilled that she was able to get a couple lovely captures because little luca was much more interested in chasing his big brother and sister around the park than sitting down for mama milk and snuggles.

if you would like to check out the rest of this wonderful series start with this post. then view the photos here. she will be posting photos of mamas and their babes for the next three weeks so be sure to pop in for a visit each day!.

by the way, luca, i can hardly believe you are 20 months old already. oh time, if i could just catch you in a bottle... but instead i will treasure each and every snapshot of you growing and changing, sweet boy. i will never forget running my fingers through your long, strawberry curls while you nurse or gazing into your eyes while you drift off to sleep. my mama heart will always remember ♥

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sweet*teeth

it was an impulsive purchase, at the fabric store of all places. we don't do it often and we went straight into the bathroom and brush-brush-brushed when we were finished. and it was fun.

too, too good.

itty-bitty, rough and tumble, hurt and broken.

we ended 2011 with an tiny broken arm. no good. it happened in the car two wednesdays ago while we were out looking at christmas lights. i sat in the back seat with the kids and let them unbuckle while we watched this light show. when it was time to drive i put luca in his rear facing car seat then daddy came around to push the seat next to him forward so we could access the third row and sweet baby's teeny little arm got caught and pulled back with the seat. ouch. we sat in the car for another 15 or 20 minutes trying to console him and decide if a trip to the ER was necessary. he finally calmed down so we drove home and looked him over again. no swelling, no bruising or even redness and full movement of both the wrist and elbow with no pain. we put him in his jammies and i nursed him to sleep.

the next several days he was his happy little self but would fall on it or bump it or be pulled by harper and cry and cradle his arm. just when i was ready to take him to the doctor he would be fine and playing. we really thought he may have just sprained it. finally on wednesday, that's right, and entire week after the initial injury, he fell off a dining room chair and i had had enough and took him to urgent care. while i attempted to  sign him in he ran through the waiting room, climbed on chairs and even tried to rearrange their furniture. the gal at the front desk actually questioned whether he was really hurt. i told her i didn't know, that was why we were there. 

a brief doctor examination and x-rays of tiny arm confirmed it was indeed broken. one minor break in one of the bones right in the middle of his forearm, between the wrist and elbow. an appointment was made with an orthopedic specialist for friday afternoon and we were sent home with a small-ish sling. small-ish as in it fit harper and esmé pretty well, but not luca. turns out 19 month old kiddos do not like to wear slings and will angrily tear them right off in a hot second.

this is luca waiting to see the orthopedic specialist on friday. climbing, playing, happy as can be. she looked his x-rays over and informed us that both bones were actually broken - one is more "smashed and dented" and the other fractured.  my poor, sweet little guy. i feel sick that he was hurt for so long before we had him seen. and of course his gentle, loving daddy feels absolutely terrible too.

since both bones are involved he had to be casted all the way up over his elbow. bright red cast, it matches his shoes. he will wear it for four weeks. i keep thinking that if i would have listened to my mama instincts and taken him in that night we would already have a week in the cast behind us. but i am trying to not beat myself up.i am working hard to conscientiously let go of all the stress and guilt. passing on the tension and loving on my boy. that is precisely where i am today. healing hearts and healing bones in a one day at a time, one hour at a time, one breath at a time process. 

 small people are resiliant, mamas and papas less so, but we are all going to be alright.

brand new year blessings to us all, friends. 

happy 2012