snowy night.

We didn't have much snow in 2020. Finally, a magical snow storm arrived on 1/27/21. It was the really good kind of snow that you can use to  build a snowperson. Since we wouldn't be able to enjoy it the next morning, we ran outside in the night to make some snow angels, have a snow ball fight & build the snow versions of Zara & Ellie. The photos are blurry but I do love them::

I love to jog in the snow & enjoyed a couple miles while I could.::

Good Bones.

 I think about this poem all the time & sometimes it makes me cry...

Good Bones by Maggie Smith.

Life is short, though I keep this from my children.

Life is short, and I’ve shortened mine

in a thousand delicious, ill-advised ways,

a thousand deliciously ill-advised ways

I’ll keep from my children. The world is at least

fifty percent terrible, and that’s a conservative

estimate, though I keep this from my children.

For every bird there is a stone thrown at a bird.

For every loved child, a child broken, bagged,

sunk in a lake. Life is short and the world

is at least half terrible, and for every kind

stranger, there is one who would break you,

though I keep this from my children. I am trying

to sell them the world. Any decent realtor,

walking you through a real shithole, chirps on

about good bones: This place could be beautiful,

right? You could make this place beautiful.

weekend snippets!

I got bangs this weekend! They were my reward for a lot of hard work and a celebration of the end of post partum depression :) It really is over and gone. I am beyond relieved. 

We love our little zoo and have grown to appreciate our winter visits. It was a great family stroll through the snow this Saturday::

Zara look so cute back there::

Jonas and I tried a new ramen place & they had the best (deconstructed) key lime pie in the universe:: 

Zara made a barrier with her toy chest and cushions to keep Eleanor away from her play area. It rarely works. But she got many solid hours of play in anyway::

We made Valentine crafts & listened to Disney princess songs::

We have never been to the Iroquois Park Overlook even though we go to the park often. I thought you could drive pretty close to it. You cannot! We ended up on a steep, muddy trail. Eleanor was crying on Jonas' shoulders. I fell in the mud. Zara was having the time of her life & thought it was the best. It actually ended up being a great time and our little ones loved running around at the top. It was worth the muddy trail.::

No hard feelings 2020...

 ...or maybe just a few.....

In reality, I feel so lucky for every day, my family's health and for shifted perspectives this year. 

I am thankful and ready for the fresh start of the new one though! 

We had a nice NYE. Just another night at home. It was a long day & my poor babies were the last ones at daycare but we made the best of the day we had left. We danced a little, took some photos, watched Soul & cuddled. 

Eleanor was the best. She loved dancing and wearing a crown. She is our little goofball:::

They love the Trolls soundtrack::

Zara had a different pose for every photo:::

2020 deserved a custom banner to send it on its way::

Normal night means Blue Apron but I seriously love every meal they send ::

Jonas' mom sent this set of wax. It is called Wachsgiessen. Jonas used to do this as a kid. We had a great time and I hope to adopt the tradition now! Once the wax melts, you pour it into water and interpret the shapes it makes. They are supposed to predict what the new year will bring:::

I am loving my new book of poetry by Kate Baer. She has a New Year poem in there, so I thought I would share...

New Year by Kate Baer

Look at it, cold and wet like a newborn
calf. I want to tell it everything—how we
struggled, how we tore out our hair and
thumbed through rusted nails just to
stand for its birth. I want to say: look how
far we’ve come. Promise our resolutions.

But what does a baby care for oaths and
pledges? It only wants to live.