Testing!

So I’m thinking about starting to blog again.  Let’s see if this works.

Harper is nine months old

It’s hard to believe that my baby girl is nine months old! We decided to celebrate with lunch downtown at our favorite restaurant, Casa Maya, which moved to a beautiful building across the street from its old location.

The owners greeted us with warm smiles as we’ve been going there for years but hadn’t been since early in in my pregnancy. Harper was a champ and loved their guac (the best!) and had a few bites of my Ropa Vieja and plantains. The staff there lived how inquisitive she was and said hi to her each time they passed.

After lunch we headed over to the fort and enjoyed the warm, sunny day.

Happy nine month birthday, baby girl!

But mom, I don’t like carrots!

Today we started Harper on solids. We’ve been anxiously awaiting this day for a few weeks, reading up on which food should be her first, how it should be prepared, if we should make it ourselves or if we should buy it.

So last night while we were at Publix, such exciting plans for a Friday night!, we decided to get a few jars of organic baby food. After we got home we decided that carrots would be the magical food to start Harper on.

We got her all suited up, got the carrots ready, and in when the first spoonful.

I think it’s safe to say that after her first few bites, baby girl doesn’t like carrots!

Wordless Wednesday: Chef Harper

aka Yoda ears 🙂

Wordless Wednesday: Out for a walk

Hoppy Easter!

Hoppy Easter, friends! Enjoy today with your friends and loved ones.

Cherish the small blessings in life

It’s so easy to get caught up in everyday life that sometimes I forget how special the little blessings can be. Things are certainly not all roses over here. In fact, the last three months have been some of the most difficult that I’ve experienced in my short time on this Earth and they certainly won’t be my last. But life always has ups and downs and not everything makes sense or turns out the way that I want it to. It’s not my plan, so why should it? Perhaps that is the most difficult thing to accept.

One thing that has really helped is to cherish the small blessings that life has given me instead of focusing on what it hasn’t.

Enjoy each and every little moment. Celebrate them. Live for them.

Life is too short to be waiting for the BIG things to happen when the small things happen every day.

What small blessing are you celebrating today?

Happy St. Patty’s Day!

Carl and I don’t usually do anything big and exciting for St. Patty’s Day but this year is a little different. While we still won’t be drinking green beer or eating corned beef and cabbage we are spending it with our family since we made the quick trip home to see Carl’s uncles who are in town with their families. It’s been a few years since we’ve seen then so I’m thankful that we are able to be here.

There is laughter and love all around, despite some of the difficult and sad conversations that are also going on.

One thing is for sure, this little one brightens up everyone’s day! Have a great one and hug the ones you love.

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A button and a zipper

For the last seven or eight months every piece of clothing I wore had some kind of elastic waistband to it.

Many women that I talked to loved this part of pregnancy but I couldn’t wait to wear a pair of jeans with a zipper and a button again.

When I was four weeks post-partum I made the mistake of trying on my largest pair of jeans-they were too small. Like super tight in the thighs and a good three or four inches from zipping up. Nice.

I immediately sent a text message to Hilary lamenting the size of my giant ass and she assured me that it is totally normal to still be wearing maternity clothes several weeks after giving birth. I wiped the tears off of my face and decided to wait a few more weeks before trying again.

Yesterday was the day but instead of trying on those jeans (which I still don’t think will fit) I decided to go buy a new pair to fit my new body. This may seem silly, to spend money on clothes when I’m working on not wearing them for long, but it makes me feel so much better about myself if the clothes that I am wearing make me feel good. Even if I don’t like the size.

Yay for zippers and buttons!

Cleared

Yesterday was my six week post-partum check up.

I have to admit that I was a little nervous about the appointment because I wasn’t sure what to expect. It was fine, which is more than I can say for the last two times I was in the office because of complications with my c-section incision (again another story for another time).

The doctor checked out my scar, talked to me about some lady stuff and then said the words I’ve been waiting to hear for what felt like the last nine months, “You are cleared for all physical activity.” I almost shed a tear; I can run again! It was music to my ears!

Obviously I’m not about to go out and run a marathon or anything (yet!), but today I did lace up my running shoes and go for a nice long walk. Only this time my view was a little different when I looked down. Instead of seeing just my feet, I saw a stroller handle too.

Instead of going out by myself or with friends, I was with my daughter.

My daughter. It still brings a smile to my face when I say that.

So even though I’m a few weeks away from strapping on my shoes and going for a run, I’ll get there.

And you know you’ll read all about it.