Life as I know it – Page 13

December 14, 2011January 4, 2012

That home of which I spoke

So the other weekend I took D down to Peoria to visit my dad and his side of the family. I only make it down there about twice a year max, simply because it’s usually a 3.5+ hour drive and I’m pretty lazy. Not kidding.

But we had a wonderful visit. We spent time with one of my aunts, who absolutely adores D; my grandma, who is also head-over-heels for this little girl; one of my uncles who my dad brought into town to stay the weekend with us; one of my aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mom’s side; and of course my dad and his girlfriend. It was really nice to just sit and be with everyone, and not feel like we had to constantly rush around or worry about gifts, like we do when we visit closer to Christmas. Plus there was no snow – a HUGE bonus when making the drive by myself with a 16 month old passenger.

Here are a couple snapshots from our trip, just because. I haven’t lived in Peoria since I went to college, and the home where I spent half of my formative years was sold when my parents divorced and my mom moved to the Chicagoland area. So it’s always kind of weird going back to my hometown without having an actual home there. Fortunately we are blessed to have family who loves us and always opens their doors.

Because who likes to wear shoes and socks when they travel?

D and her Great-Grandma Ruby, engrossed in a book

p10 — D and Grandpa, reading by the fire

D watching the Bears game w/her Great-Uncle Nate

December 5, 2011December 3, 2011

Home?

The house I never lived in, but it always felt like mine.

The land, the courts, the Pine Forest.

Heaven for a kid.

Home?

The skyline to which I never gave a second thought while I was there.

But now each time I see it coming in I get a warm sense of belonging.

I never realized how pretty that water tower is.

Home?

The road upon which I traveled more times than I can count.

The restaurant, the farms, the hills we passed each time which comprised our over the river and through the woods.

Can it really have been 15 years ago? It feels like yesterday.

Home?

The houses of those so dear who are still there, even though mine was gone years ago.

The houses that will always welcome, no matter how far I go or how long I stay away between visits.

The houses of my family, from where I came.

Home?

A new house where I now rock my own babe.

One new face with one the same.

The next generation to be raised.

Home?

Home.

December 1, 2011September 1, 2014

Help for Delaney

You guys, I know I’ve asked for your help before (like here and here), but I’m asking again. My friend Kelli over at Momma Needs a Beer has a beautiful little niece who is struggling for her life. I can’t even type out all the details because the keys are too blurry through tears. Whenever I hear stories like this I just can’t help putting myself in their shoes if the same were to happen to D, and I selfishly pray that it never does.

But please go read Delaney’s story here and see if you can help. She is on home-care hospice, and her little family could use any and all bits of assistance. You can straight up donate to The Delaney Rose Fund through PayPal, Kelli is hosting a Thirty-One fundraiser (i just bought an awesome scarf), or if you live in their area you can sign up to take them a meal (last name: Flatter, password: delaney). And if you can’t do any of the above, that’s ok – just please send them your thoughts and prayers.

This holiday season will probably be pretty tough for the Flatters, so I thank you for anything you can do. And even though I don’t know them personally, I think I can speak for them in saying they do too.

November 24, 2011November 22, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, wherever and however you may celebrate it. Eat, drink, be merry, relax, watch some football, and take time to really enjoy everything for which you have to be thankful. And then eat some more. For if you’re like me, the subsequent Thanksgiving meals are just as good as the original. Turkey and stuffing and probably more pie at 9pm? Why thanks!

There are far too many who will not be happy this Thanksgiving, so please let our thoughts be with them as well. If you are so inclined, maybe volunteer an hour or two at a local food pantry or donate to your city’s rescue mission or maybe even take some leftovers to a family you know who needs them. I’m sure they would be eternally grateful.

I’ll be taking a break to spend the long weekend with family and friends, so I’ll see you next week. Happy Thanksgiving!

p.s. You might want to check back sometime on Sunday, though. I may or may not have a special treat in store for you...

November 23, 2011November 22, 2011

7 years + 1 week ago

7 years and 1 week ago today, I started my current job. I meant to write about it on the actual 7 year anniversary, but then I just never quite got around to it. So I figured 1 week late isn’t too bad, right?

7 years. That sounds like a long time. Does it feel like it’s been 7 years? Yeah, I guess it actually does – R and I got married, we bought a house, we had a baby, and a bunch of stuff in between. My company has been through a lot of changes since the day I started, too. A LOT. We grew immensely. Then the markets around the world crashed and we shrank. Immensely. We’re now going on what, 4 years of cutbacks in my office? 4ish I’d say. And yes, I know how fortunate I am to still have my job. Trust me.

This is the job for which I’ve worked my entire financial world career so far. It’s what I longed for when I started on Wall Street, what I found myself daydreaming of when I took that year off to bartend and play, and what I worked my way up to each year since beginning at this company. To be perfectly honest, I don’t see myself going anywhere from here. And that is 100% ok with me.

I have the flexibility to leave early enough in the afternoons that I don’t feel like I never see R and D, I get a nice chunk of vacation time each year, I get over a week of paid sick days annually, and we have outstanding benefits. And I don’t want the added responsibility a move up the next rung in the ladder would entail. I don’t want to manage people, I don’t want to manage a portfolio, I don’t want to deal with investors. I’m good at what I do, and I like being right where I am.

Funny, though, how now my daydreams are constantly away from my office. Of spending days at home raising D, of not worrying about how many sick days I have left for the year, of not having to make sure there’s someone around who’s capable of covering my work when we go on vacation or I need a day off.

Will there be 7 more years for me here? We shall see…

November 22, 2011December 6, 2011

Capture the Everyday

Remember Mel from Week in My Life fame? Well she also does a weekly link-up entitled Capture the Everyday. The challenges are to capture images that represent our everyday, with a different “topic” each week. I haven’t linked up before, but this week’s was just too fitting not to participate – capture something for which you are thankful.

I am so incredibly fortunate to have many, many things in my life for which to be thankful – my health, my sanity, my family, my friends, my well-being, my home, my job… But when I think of for what I am most thankful, the answer is pretty obvious. This…

And this…

Head on over to Adventuroo to see more of this week’s Capture the Everyday:

And for what are you most thankful now, in this season of giving, as well as in your own everyday?

November 17, 2011February 10, 2012

A mama in the darkness

Tiny hands explore my face as I rock you with your bottle.

The left one grazes my chin and cheek, searching for a strand of hair to twirl. The right one feels my ear and finds my earring. Usually it twists your own hair, but tonight you want mine.

I hope I always remember their touch, their tiny strokes.

Will there be more someday? Right now it is just me and you, and you have all of me.

Your legs dangle off my lap, not kicking about tonight. Calm, ready for bed. You’re getting so big.

Your warm head, fresh from a bath, nestled in the bend of my left elbow. It fits perfectly.

I rock, you drink. It’s early, but you’re tired already and I can tell it’s time.

The snuffles and grunts as you swallow the last milk of the day soon turn into the slow breaths and little snores of your slumber. Sleep comes easily tonight.

I watch you, breathing in every second and trying to etch the memory in my mind for all time.

I smile down at you in the darkness, your eyelids having fluttered shut for the final time for sleep. Tears well up in my eyes, for I know this era is fleeting.

I don’t want it to go.

They say we have to give this up soon, but not tonight. Not now.

You don’t need to be burped anymore, but I put you on my shoulder when the bottle is done anyway. I love when you sleep up there. You fit.

Your little left hand falls to rest on my left shoulder as you turn yourself around, getting comfortable in your dreams. I kiss it, then your cheek as I lay you in your crib. Face down, knees pulled in underneath you, bottom up in the air. Your favorite position.

I love you. Every piece of you. Every fiber of your being and every sparkle of your soul, wherever it may take you. Hopefully not too far away.

I will always love you like this. Forever.

This was originally intended to only be a little ode to D, but it just so happens to fit in with a couple writing prompts. So I’m linking up at both Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop and Heather’s Just Write.