.

2011-05-04T08:03:00.001-07:00

at the drive-in.

2011-04-13T20:58:00.002-07:00

strong kids.

2011-04-10T19:59:00.002-07:00

2011-04-09T07:03:00.001-07:00

One Vast Garden

"I find one vast garden spread out all over the universe.

All plants, all human beings, all higher mind bodies

are about in this garden in various ways ,

each has his own uniqueness and beauty.

Their presence and variety give me great delight.

Every one of you adds with his special feature to the glory of the garden."

By: Sri Ananandamayi Ma

2011-04-05T09:16:00.004-07:00

Above are some snippets of the painting I'm working on for Art|Everywhere . This painting is on a beastly four by eight foot sheet of birch plywood. I think it is coming together nicely. The transformative powers of creating art are a reason I love life and love living.

This year I am taking part in Art| Everywhere with my friend Ella Davies. She creates these whimsical, fantastical creatures. I have always admired her sense of color, her creativity, and the ease by which she executes her lines while drawing. We are working separately, but will come together to create the actual installation. I can't wait to see what she comes up with, and how it goes together with my pieces.

Today is Ella's 9th birthday. I can't wait to see what she's doing at the age of 10. Happy Birthday, Ella!

happiness.

2011-03-31T20:46:00.003-07:00

family.
this is the week where I have really seen Henry and Annie come together as best friends, as brother and sister. Last night they begged me to let them stay together in Henry's room. I replied "just for a bit." After they snuggled up, I couldn't resist listening in- they have started having wonderful conversations. They were quiet for a bit, and then I heard Henry tell Annie "I love you, Annie." Annie replied "Love you, Henry." And then my heart melted in to a billion golden drops of pure heavenly sunshine. A moment Mommy's live for. I'm so glad they have each other, and I'm so glad Mike and I have them.

34.

2011-03-24T17:38:00.003-07:00

fire walk with me.

2011-03-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

wedding show at norfolk botanical gardens

2011-03-20T19:40:00.002-07:00

she got it from her mama.

2011-03-14T20:15:00.001-07:00

found out today that my proposal was accepted for the 2011 Art| Everywhere event on granby street. I'm participating this year with Ella Davies, a very talented little lady I know. I'm excited.

and then there was the earthquake in japan.

2011-03-12T19:20:00.002-08:00

i'm internalizing the chaos.

Tiger Blood.

2011-03-10T20:39:00.000-08:00

aka- Winning. Duh.

2011-03-10T07:21:00.000-08:00

2011-03-08T21:33:00.001-08:00

My girl.

My men.

My family feels so complete.

studio posy

2011-03-06T19:12:00.002-08:00

the ball that is my floral design business has finally started to roll. yes!

wpa

2011-03-05T21:06:00.002-08:00

My brother Thom has opened an architecture firm here in Norfolk with his colleague, Mel. I'm so proud of him. The kids like his new space a lot.

2011-03-04T21:06:00.002-08:00

Art|Everywhere proposal in today. Last year was so amazing. I'm hoping to duplicate the magic again this year.

2011-03-04T06:38:00.000-08:00

2011-03-02T13:02:00.001-08:00

2011-02-10T18:47:00.000-08:00

summertime.

2010-07-05T18:38:00.002-07:00

We have been having an amazing summer so far. Beach trips, rad Whispering Winds wizardry, sun sets, lots of bicycle riding, vegetable growing, Fun art events, and the kids and I joined a pool- Julie and I are pretending to be housewives circle early 1980's. The shot above was taken in Hatteras a few weeks ago. Met up with some friends, the Lakes, visiting from San Francisco. They have the right idea about life.
Also, an excellent skate park is nearing full completion right around the corner from our house. This is making Mike very happy, which is making me happy, too.

2010-04-18T21:35:00.002-07:00

Revisiting my old spot once again. Annie has been sleeping through the night for long enough that mommy has been able to regain a (tiny) shred of her sanity; enough that when I sweep the floors I don't have a dustpan full of my pulled out hair. Yes Ma'am! Maintaining my personal register! For the sake of unofficial official documentation, above is what Mike and I are looking like these days. Yes Sir!

rainy day december.

2009-12-05T18:49:00.003-08:00

A lazy cold and rainy saturday. Laundry, and Playmobil pirates. Mike took the kids to WRV to find a nice skate set-up for Henry.

"water kites"

2009-08-21T18:15:00.001-07:00

coming home from busch gardens this week, we crossed over the hampton roads bridge tunnel and their were scads of beautiful sailboats dotting the bay. henry exclaimed "water kites!" i just loved this.

okay, so i am garden crazy.

2009-08-18T20:47:00.010-07:00

I truly believe that everything we need to know about ourselves, our lives, and our place in the universe can be understood by looking in the garden. Plants and how they grow, the insects and animals that they bring, each provide a very simple model for our own lives and how we live them and even where they will bring us. Preparing the land, sowing some seeds, and then weeding said garden is a lot cheaper and less invasive than visiting a shrink and becoming a slave to antidepressants. Seriously.

I am in love with flowers in the visceral sense, and respond to this through the production that takes place, in my case, through floral arrangements. Much like painting for me, my combing flowers (like paint colors) is an emotional response. It is only after an acceptably pleasing arrangement has been made, that i realize that science was also at work. It is easier for me to go to the flower market and pick out the specimens I desire for a final product than actually growing such things in my yard. That is a much more difficult task. But a task that I yearn and strive for. It is sometimes painful to look at my pathetic weed-torn yard, with amazing visualizations of perennial borders and english-style cutting gardens, and savory herb patches and vegetable rows throughout, spanning through my mind. One can only dream, and hope that all of that dreaming might bring one closer to a full-on palpable realization of garden salvation.

So I sort of tended my weeds this summer. Lack of funds meant lack of new plants. Some people graciously donated some starts of perennials from their yards- some delicious ground covers, and a nice start of some long coveted spiderwort from my friend Theresa. My mom took pity on me and brought some elephant ears, dahlia tubers, and planted a couple of symmetrical annual borders for me to flank our new brick steps in the backyard. She gave me some more hostas, and some lily of the valleys- a plant that had started from a piece from her great-aunts garden (i lovvvvvvve heirloom plants!!). I planted some tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, squash and zucchini. The tomatoes and cucumbers have been successful. It is very hard to garden with a new baby, because the problem arises that there is no where to put the baby while you garden. I tried at first with the new native carrier, but she kept almost tumbling out. And the baby bjorn carrier kept her secure, but then she was hanging right on the front of me and it was hard to use my hands and even see what I was doing. I would have kept her in the playyard, but she screamed. I would have put her on the ground, but there was a multi-fold attack of first: mayflies, early to late spring, then giant cicada-eating wasps, early to mid-summer, and then a horrible proliferation of mosquitos- now. So, I did the best I could. The squash and the zucchini succombed to an early death from some kind of a powdery mildew rot. I found a good home remedy for this, but time got away from me. Everything else did well. (not mentioning the round-up debacle of 2009- oh wait, i just mentioned it....)

So yes, I'm obsessed, and looking forward to next year when I can let Henry and Annie run off and play in the sprinkler while I really get down to business. In the fall Mike and I are going to build our long-awaited outdoor fireplace so that we can properly roast our oysters and drink beer outdoors on cool fall nights and cold winter ones grounded in a set space; instead of just hovering around the grill. This will dictate a new hardscape that I look forward to tackling. Above are some pictures of my giant elephant ears (some grew four feet at least in length...), Henry bringing me handfuls of premature cherry tomatoes... and my sunflowers. You can sort of see my morning glories in the background. Note: plant your morning glory seeds with your moonflowers, next to your sunflowers (and maybe throw in lots of nasturtiam seeds). You will have color all day by easy to grow seeds (and you can eat the nasturtiam flowers with your salad and feel all fancy and whatever).

When your vegetables start growing, combine them with whatever else you like from the farmer's market, simmer them on the stove in some olive oil with some chopped up garlic (hopefully the giant elephant variety that maybe a dear neighbor gives you) on low, toss them together with some cooked extra wide egg noodles, maybe some capers, or crumbled feta or goat's cheese, drink a glass of chilled pinot grigio with it, and taste heaven. next night- chop and repeat. and then, chop and repeat.

In my butterfly garden...

2009-08-18T20:18:00.004-07:00

Even if you are indifferent to these little creatures, but want nice hardy perennials that are prolific bloomers, you can't go wrong with all varieties of the butterfly bush or lantana. Every summer I can count on both returning, each year with more ferocity than the last. I have a few different types of both plants. Lantana ranges in color from vivid oranges, to yellows, to yellow/pink, to a beautiful lavender with silvery foliage. The latter variety is a bit more compact in my garden, and trails low to the ground. I had a lovely whitish/lemon colored lantana last summer (called "lemon sorbet" it was gorgeous...), but it fell victim to deadly round-up- my husband is round-up crazy, and sometimes fails to ask before he sprays. Beware of this systemic killer!! But seriously, if you are on a budget and want fail-proof plants, lantana it is. Some of my orange and yellow/pink varieties have grown into full-on shrubs. It would be most cost-effective to buy them when they are on clearance in the garden center at the end of the summer, and plant them then or in the fall.

The butterfly bush will quickly grow in to a tree if you let it. With flower clusters ranging in hue from deep purple with brilliant orange throats, to silvery lavender clusters with yellow-orange centers, these plants are practically indestructible. One year one of mine was invaded by a pest mid-summer. I treated it and then chopped it down to the trunk. By fall it had grown back and was producing blooms as if nothing had happened.

Two of my favorite plants, creating a gorgeous summer spectacle.

collage work.

2009-07-29T19:38:00.004-07:00

See sillies, I've been up to a little more than raising two kids these day! I was so happy to be invited to be part of a show back in March at the New Belmont here in Norfolk. I had been working on some stuff here and there, but after I became a part of this show I really wanted to pump out some new work. Pump out the jamz I did, at least fifteen new solid pieces. Not sure how I found the time, but it was a great feeling after I did. It wasn't necessarily the proper venue (is it really ever??) for the work, per se, but I was just so grateful for the opportunity to show some work. Thanks so much to everyone who made it out to the show that night!!

Lately I have been wanting to return to painting, but in giant (this would be at least a 6' or...5' /4' or something like that for me...) format. I have a lot of new ideas, but I don't want to be all slap-dash about it all. It must be quality, or I'll be wasting my time, money, resources. I would really like for it to be a series of maybe seven paintings (not necessarily all on the "giant" scale), thoughtfully (and well)-executed from start to finish. This is going to take some time- to gather the proper materials, organize my space, and also figure out a do-able schedule. When Henry starts school in the fall, and when the air turns crisp- this may be the proper time to start. I am so ready...

yeah. these kids again...

2009-07-29T18:36:00.005-07:00

I was just uploading some pictures to iphoto and found myself at the beginning of October when Annie was born. She just took her first steps last Sunday and is becoming such a little girl. That tiny baby stage has passed now, and her first birthday is not far off. Suddenly she seems so smart and so... long. The months and days that comprise the time between then, when it was just me and Henry home together to the present, to me and Annie and Henry have been nothing short of exhausting. Hence the lack of updates here. Mike has been working twelve hour days, and I often find myself questioning by 10:30 am how I will make it through another day. 8-8 is a looonnnng day of watching two other people and not really having a single moment to yourself. I mean seriously, these little people even follow you into the bathroom. People who don't have any kids won't understand this, people who do, will. Someone told me the other night that my Facebook status updates are boring; that it is always "Annie did this" and "Henry did that." The same person's updates usually center around their work or their "hobbies." I guess the kids are my work And my hobbies these days. (so eat it!!) Between changing diapers, feeding them, and keeping their little minds and bodies stimulated, the day (and my physical/mental capacity) leaves little time for much else. This is a personal dilemma at times, dealing with the sacrifice that is the decision to become a stay at home mother, and neglecting making a pay check, painting, being social, etc.. For me it was never a question as to whether I would take that on, and I was lucky enough to be able to do it. Some days it doesn't feel so lucky, but I have absolutely no regrets. While I was looking at Annie's first pictures I had the realization that I've been doing this for nine months, and that I've made it through. (And accomplished being here with Henry for two years before then). While it has seemed like an eternity, it has really gone by rather quickly. Big hurdles have been passed (Henry is finally close to being potty-trained- only one accident today!) and he starts school at the end of August. And then on to another chapter. And before I know it, this time will seem so distant, and I'll be yearning for these days, and wishing them back again (maybe only after a big glass of wine). I just know I will.
Tonight at the grocery store the woman behind us in the checkout lane was marveling at how happy my children seemed, and I told her yes, they really are. I couldn't help feeling so proud. They are happy, and it wasn't easy, lady (she should have seen them at 11:30 today when Henry was screaming from the time out chair).
I will so miss my babies being "babies"... seriously.

new additions to the family:

2009-07-23T22:05:00.003-07:00

new rides: my element, and the 1960 dodge dart.

hatteras '09.

2009-07-23T21:43:00.009-07:00

My uncle has a permanent camper in Hatteras and gave us the keys to set up camp for a few days. When we arrived we discovered that surly wasps had taken over our proposed shelter for the weekend. Needless to say we sought another lodging option. Frisco Woods, just down the road, ended up being the perfect outcome. A nice cabin, access to deserted beaches, and the perfect shallow sound. I am dreaming of a quick return.

untitled.

2009-07-23T21:29:00.003-07:00

I snapped a shot at the exact moment Henry and Annie had noticed Auntie Beth arriving in front of the house. The other day I asked him who his most favorite person in the world was and he said, coyly, "spitball" (the horrible nickname mike taught henry in place of a sweet and simple "auntie beth"). I love that my kids love her so.

foreverever and a day...

2009-07-23T21:20:00.003-07:00

It has been even more than forevereverever and a day. For my dear remaining one reader, I vow to begin updating here again. Poor Annie is going to look back and wonder why months passed before she got an update; compared with Henry's near daily postings of 2006-07. I love you girl, just the same. Here we go...

egads.

2009-05-05T15:27:00.005-07:00

egads. annie is officially sitting up on her own and crawling. (photo from easter... unrelated...)

henry...

2009-04-20T17:27:00.003-07:00

(Henry's first shower- he loves to take showers now. he digs the tile work and fancy faucets)

...we are in the throes of the "terrible two's," but i don't love him any less.

vultures.

2009-04-20T15:53:00.004-07:00

These giant birds have been hanging out in the marsh behind our house. They are vultures, I think. When they spread their wings, the span must be at least five and a half feet. There is an old dead tree on the other side of the marsh from our yard; I call it the "Georgia O'Keefe Tree" because it reminds me of her paintings- although it is actually more Dali-esque... anyhow, the vultures have been congregating on and around this dead tree. About six of them. Every once in awhile they take turns swooping around in circles up to the deep part of the river and then back again. Mike thinks it is some sort of ominous sign, but I don't like to think this way. I like to think that this is just nature at work. It is a cycle.

portal to hell.

2009-04-07T08:16:00.003-07:00

The kids and I are sequestered in my bedroom right now because there are three plumbers drilling holes through my kitchen floor. One thing that doesn't go with three male plumbers is 'nipples.' That's right. When you are a nursing mommy certain situations prove themselves to be a bit awkward. I just don't feel comfortable whipping my boobs out in front of just anybody. I lured Henry in from his dirt pile in the backyard with the promise of allowing him to watch one of his dvd's. He proceeded to repeat "rock garden" over and over again. I eventually figured out that this meant "motorcycle". I am slowly becoming fluent in Henry.
He loves this collection of dvds that his grammy got him for easter last year. Construction vehicles, construction sites, motorcycles, monster trucks, fire trucks. You get the idea. Testosterone type stuff. Each one is led by a "genie" that accompanies two kids on an adventure. They are all super creepy to me. I told Henry that if a man that looks like this "genie" ever approaches him, he must yell "stranger danger" and run away as fast as he can. The construction site one actually sends a chill down my spine. Something about it is just "off." I truly believe this dvd could be a portal to hell. Seriously.

kidlet update.

2009-03-24T17:39:00.003-08:00

I must be dreaming because it is 9:39 pm and I'm sitting on the couch enjoying a glass of wine while both of the children are sleeping in their rooms. Yes. Annie is sleeping. In her crib. Amazing! It has taken a long time to get to this point, but just in the last three weeks there has been a big change in her. She started sitting up without toppling over two weeks ago. She started eating solids maybe about three and a half weeks ago. Her pediatrician gave us the go ahead, and she was so interested in what we were eating, when we were eating (to the point of emulating chewing and drooling all over herself) that we decided she was ready. I gave her the rice cereal maybe once or twice and just jumped right in to the regular first foods. Three days of one thing exclusively, beginning with pears, then applesauce, then bananas, then squash, and now we are on to green peas! She is such a good little eater, she has a meal of a veggie and a fruit once a day. She could probably do more, but for now I don't want to mess up my milk supply so for now I'm going to keep it to one meal of solids. She has never taken a bottle and seems ready for the cup (she grabs the rinsing cup when I'm bathing her and tries to sip from it), so I have a sippy cup ready to go for the next time I have to leave her during a feeding.

Henry's words have also started just spilling out. We are so thrilled! Whole sentences are coming now, complete with prepositions. He is saying the funniest things. My favorites are 'back-pack' (it sounds like 'pack-back'), 'spit ball' ('speet bawl' our new nickname for auntie beth!) and 't-ball' (sounds like 'speed ball' hmm.). He loves the Velvet Underground and tries to sing along to 'Run,Run, Run' complete with reverb and screeching guitar sounds. I love it. We started potty training last weekend and that is going pretty well. He is enrolled to start preschool in the fall at Trinity. It is a five day a week half-day program. He is so excited about this, and I can't wait for him to make some little friends. He is such a sweet little boy and just an awesome kid all-around.

Sorry to bore everyone with this stuff, but I hadn't updated in so long, and so much has happened worth noting. I love to be able to look back on Henry's first year here so I can remember when he first started sitting up and what his first foods were. I haven't updated as much with Annie because I'm so much busier now, so I had to squeeze in some news. My birthday was yesterday- I'm 32 now. And every year life just gets better and better, if that's possible.

been busy.

2009-03-19T15:10:00.002-08:00

My brother said I needed to update this space; funny, coming from someone who updates their blog quarterly. I digress.
So I've been super busy raising two kidlets in such a way that I hope will lead them to be sympathetic, honest, fun, creative, intelligent, hard-working, inspired individuals with good ethics and excellent manners. This takes constant supervision and action on my part. It leaves me too tired to blog. Secondly, I've been busy cleaning up their messes. You wouldn't believe the amount of mess that such little people are capable of creating. It is mind-boggling. And often-times it really, really stinks. One of those kids hasn't ever taken a bottle, so I've been feeding her solely with my body for the past four and a half months. This is also tiresome. It does give me computer time, because I peruse the intranet on the old ibook when she's nursing. But it is never enough time to blog using any sort of serious thought. So I waste my time on facebook. and dlisted. She has just started solids, though, and is even sitting up! Before I know it, she'll be an angry adolescent who refuses to speak to me in any sort of meaningful capacity. I presume I'll be able to begin regular blogging at least by then. I have also been staying up late to work on new collage pieces for an art show at the New Belmont. It is in honor of women's history month. I am by no means really an historical woman, per se, but I am a feminist and I have squeezed two babies out of my vagina. Somehow this pre-qualified me to be in the show. I'm very pleased with the work- come and check it out, friends!

for my friends who are having problems with verizon... CEO's email address and phone # to his assistant.

2009-02-23T20:36:00.003-08:00

*note- Quite some time ago Mike and I were charged by Verizon for services that we never received. After dealing with a year of total bullshit from them we had had enough. I did a bit of sleuthing online and found the verizon ceo's email address. After a year of total b.s. I sent an email to this man, and approximately a half an hour later I received an email from his assistant... needless to say, it pays to be persistent: it was all resolved within a couple of months. here is a copy of my email. The ceo's email address follows... I have never felt closer to hell than I did when dealing with this customer service nightmare...

"need customer service here!‏
From: marissa DiGirolamo (marissadigirolamo@hotmail.com)
Sent: Tue 5/20/08 4:46 PM
To: ivan.seidenberg@verizon.com; ivan.seidenberg@core.verizon.com
Cc: marissadigirolamo@hotmail.com

May 20, 2008

Mr. Seidenberg,

I am contacting you after having exhausted and re-exhausted all of the other possible
avenues of arriving at a solution to my dilemma. What I have on my hands here is to
me nothing short of a customer service nightmare in which I am sinking in the depths of
a 'no-exit' sort of purgatory, and am desperately seeking resolution. I am hoping that you
may be able to assist me and my family.

My husband and I were satisfied Verizon customers until we decided we no longer needed
our home phone (because we had our trusty Verizon Wireless). We wished to keep our Verizon
Internet service intact, but were told that this service would have to be disconnected and a "dry loop"
would have to be installed in its place to accommodate the connection lost when we cancelled our
telephone service. This was fine, however after weeks of our reconnection date being rolled back,
we decided we could no longer live happily or productively without our internet and proceeded to
terminate our relationship with your company. This was on February 6, 2007.

During the month of July in 2007 we received a letter from a debt collector stating that
they were attempting to collect a debt for Verizon in the amount of $89.85. We were shocked,
as our account was paid in full through the time of cancellation. Upon contacting your company,
Sir, to try to determine what this charge was, it was revealed that we had been charged $29.95
during the months of February, March, and April of 2007 for the dry-loop service which was
never even established! This amounted totalled $89.85, and we were told that it was a misunderstanding
and our account would be credited and the debt collector would be notified. No problem.
Except that this same exact predicament has occurred three more times, with a grand total of four
times. This amounts to At Least approximately nine hours of phone calls speaking with representatives
and being shuffled around from various Verizon company departments here and abroad. Multiply these
approximate nine hours , by oh, about 89.85 and you might understand the amount of headaches, frustration, and stress this has caused. Did I mention that I am five months pregnant? Doesn't it bother you that your fine
company is causing such stress in the lives of pregnant women? I spent an hour and a half this morning
speaking with pleasant Cheryl in Pennsylvania and quiet Ciolat and 'trying to be helpful' Mohammed in
India who told me this would be resolved. However I have heard these words before, and I am not
convinced this will ever go away.

Which is why I am writing to you. The account # in question is ********70957547. That is the account #
which was assigned to the dry loop connection that never existed. Our old telephone # at the
time was 757 *** 1785. The account # associated with that number was *********772 00Y. The
account was in my husband's name, *****l DiGirolamo. It is under that account # above that the three erroneous charges of $29.95 appear. My husband who works very hard has wasted so many of his lunch
breaks so that he could try to resolve this, because your department which handles such calls is only open
from 8am until 6pm, which are the hours of his workday. It was his name on the account, so he
has been the one who has had to call all of these times. We are about to begin construction on
our home, and it would be horrible if an error on the part of your company, sir, has blemished our
credit and endangered this endeavor. This "dry loop" which was never even created but for which we have
been charged and made to suffer for have made me feel like I am trapped in just that: a dry-loop,
Mr. Seidenberg.

Please let me know if you can be of any assistance in this matter. I have a blog that is really just a small
blog; but my stat counter reveals that I get an average of about 40 unique visitors a day. Not a lot, really,
but wouldn't it be great if you could resolve the matter and I could post your reply letter of help so that all
of my visitors could see what a great CEO you are and read about how Verizon is a fine company after all?
If this doesn't work then I will have to do the contrary, only after contacting my local state regulators.
Really, thank you in advance for any help you may be able to provide.

Regards,

Marissa DiGirolamo"

What follows is the message back I received from the CEO's assistant:

"Dear Mrs. DiGirolamo:

Thank you for your recent correspondence to Ivan Seidenberg, Chairman of Verizon. I have been asked to respond on his behalf.

I am sorry that you have had such a difficult time in resolving a billing issue related to cancelled DSL service. I will be happy to insure that it has been cared for, I would like the opportunity to discuss with you. Please call be at your earliest convenience on 1(800) 483-5288 or directly on the number below.

Thank you,
Lois O'Connor
VERIZON
Executive Customer Relations
(212) 321-8459"

Please note that it still took a couple of months for the issue to be resolved. It was obnoxiously frustrating, but I do think it is over. I hope. (if not, I think I know who to contact.)

I hope this helps anyone who is having problems with Verizon.

2009-02-18T12:42:00.002-08:00

blahblahblahblah. I've got the winter blahs. (And btw I'm sick of facebook now- haha, go figure.) I am really ready for the spring. And some sleep would be nice, too.

a rare encounter:

2009-02-05T21:20:00.002-08:00

My sweet babies.

unicorns!! and rainbows!!!!!!!

2009-02-05T13:47:00.004-08:00

This reminds me of when I was a kid and collected stickers. And stuck them everywhere, much to my mom's dismay. Once I got a hello kitty stamp, and stamped a million hello kitties onto my bedroom door. It is what little girls do! Here is a grown-up version:

(hit the cornify button)

marissa is.... addicted to facebook.

2009-02-03T17:14:00.003-08:00

i am sort of addicted to facebook. my eyes are going to roll out of my head. and i know i'm not alone on this one.

People (especially people who don't even know what it is) scoff at this, but whatever. As a
C.A.S.A.H.M. (cool ass stay at home mom) it is such a wonderful way to feel connected, socially, to the rest of the world.
It is warming my heart to reconnect with old friends whom I'd lost touch with. How in the world did C.A.S.A.H.M.'s survive
without this wonderful world wide web?? How??

2009-02-02T17:41:00.002-08:00

My sun room, which was supposed to be my "reading books/listening to music room," has been taken over by trucks. And balls. And matchbox cars.

2009-02-01T10:37:00.004-08:00

Henry thought Elmo might be hungry for a crayon.

zzzzzzzzz.

2009-01-26T16:42:00.004-08:00

We have been busy hibernating. Regular programming to resume shortly: I'd like to begin February with super-regular updates, 2007-style. We'll see. Each day, life with two little kids is a reminder that I really can't get overly ambitious about anything. And boy do I mean anything... I've decided I'm making no apologies though, and just enjoying my little ones.

busy noel

2008-12-23T20:36:00.010-08:00

I haven't posted in forever and a day due to an insanely hectic and stressful holiday season. The normal busy-ness of christmastime compounded with keeping up with a two year old and a newborn (adjusting to life with both and not just one has proved to be a challenge) and also trying to finish up the massive renovation/addition...
Henry has been busy perusing the pages of Target's holiday toy catalogue... This time of year is so different when you are an adult with young kids. I am more excited to give Henry his presents than I am to receive any of my own. Ahh, to be a kid again...
I refer to this toy catalogue as "Henry porn." The pages are well-worn. This is him before a nap.

We finally got a tree and I was able to properly decorate for Christmas. (don't let all of those packages fool you... my mom brought over the presents she got us early, because she thought that it looked too 'bare' without them)

I have been savoring my time with this little one too. She is so unbelievably sweet. I am just in love with her... I am trying to make the most of my days, as crazy as they are.

trying to create a "handmade christmas" -----

and failing miserably. Loved ones who are expecting gifts: please, please, please excuse my major lameness this year. You know I'd give you the moon if I could. Unfortunately money is tight, and due to the fact that I haven't actually slept in a bed in over two and a half months, inspiration is running a little low. I'll make it up to you in the coming year, I promise.

even though I haven't been able to do my dishes in the kitchen sink... I have been doing my dishes in the bathroom sink for the past month while waiting for our granite countertops to be cut and our plumber to connect our kitchen plumbing. I have enjoyed bathing some things in our new bathroom sink more than others.... I am just glad I talked Mike into getting the double sinks. Annie seems to enjoy them....

Annie is more than likely our last baby, and I am going to so miss the sweet and tiny perfection, the wonderful compactness that is an infant. Nothing in this world is quite as sweet and dear as a baby.... I will forever remember dancing Annie through her fussy evenings next to our tree from this year... and the feeling of watching Henry hang his first ornament, with his tiny, agile and determined hands.
Merry Christmas, friends, and wishing you a happy, happy new year!

paper cut house

2008-12-09T12:53:00.002-08:00

So the title of this blog has been bouncing around for forever and it is getting on my nerves. What the hell was I thinking with the whole 'starfish' business? A totally ridiculous name, really. I do have somewhat of a connection to the name; however not enough to live with it or like it any longer.

I have painted sporadically over the past sixteen or seventeen years or so, and it has always been a major passion of mine. It is a medium that I love and cannot live without. Work output has always been sporadic; some years there are months of work released at fever pitch; some years there are spells drier than the Atacama Desert.

Around eight years ago I began really dabbling with collage and instantly fell so in love with it. I ended up filling an entire book with collages, pages front and back. Last fall/winter my output was satisfactory, enough so that I decided I would open and etsy shop and begin offering some affordable prints for sale. Cassie designed a nice shop banner for me and I set up my account. Approximately a week later I began projectile vomiting around the clock (I became pregnant) and sort of lost my drive to be creative or enterprising.

Lately, even on no sleep, the stress of the big renovation, pushing another baby out of my vagina, dealing with a gregarious toddler, etc. the inspiration has been stirring. I can feel some more work coming and I just have to roll with it. I am officially changing the name of this blog to the name of my etsy shop, Paper Cut House. It will still be a blog mostly for me to look back on so I can remember what was up with me and Mike and the kids at a certain point in history. There will maybe still be some stuff for you, too. I'll announce here when the shop is up and running, but I'm shooting for late January.

Is my kitchen floor supposed to look like that?

2008-11-29T20:03:00.002-08:00

The renovations continue, six months since we broke ground and still going strong. If someone had told me early summer that the house wouldn't be finished by Thanksgiving week, I never would have believed them. We are getting so close though. I will be so happy when I can wake up and know I can relax; that my house won't be full of people hammering, nailing, and sawing; that I won't have to get the kids out for damage control. Things are really shaping up- the master bathroom was finished this evening, and it is gorgeous if I may say so. It looks even more amazing than I ever envisioned that it would.
Our kitchen will be transformed this week- new cabinets, new countertops. Another wall came down this week, and Mike and his dad removed everything down to the sub floor in preparation for tile to be installed. I can't wait to post pictures when it is all done. (really though, I just can't wait for it to be ALL DONE....)

napster.

2008-11-29T19:54:00.004-08:00

donkey balls (inspired by beth and Dov C.)

2008-11-26T19:09:00.003-08:00

What in the hell is this bull? Please don't tell me you people are loving this. Mineral washed jeans from American Apparel?!? It looks like what was popular when I was in the sixth grade, and subsequently what I wore. I was in love with my high wasted, tapered leg jeans, slouchy suede boots and denim jacket. I kept pins on the 'lapel' of my jacket. I insisted on sleeping in it. Cassie and I loved to make our moms take us to Foxmore's at the mall so they could buy us super fancy "brooches." We wore some really hideous crap back then. Painting wooden crap while wearing acid washed bubble skirts and whatnot (we liked to craft some ugly "country craft"-y poo. remember, this was 20 years ago. Hearts, sheep, ducks. cringe. The crafting was usually followed by Cassie correographing some intricate MC hammer dance for us to "perform" in her mauve bedroom. I'll tell you some other time about the 'booger wall'. Anyhow- I digress). But this just blows my mind, these acid washed jeans in '08. Do you guys remember how there used to be actual grit in the pockets of acid washed clothes, from the mineral wash process. I wonder if the American Apparel jeans come with the grit. Are you people buying this? Are 'hipster' nerds in nyc and at cobrasnake parties wearing this?

little owl.

2008-11-25T10:13:00.001-08:00

annie, wearing henry's old owl hat. those chubby cheeks. those eyelashes. those lips. sighhh. (forgive me for gushing)

cabbie

2008-11-18T15:08:00.003-08:00

Colic update-
I'm probably jinxing myself here, but- Annie hasn't cried uncontrollably late at night for the past three nights. Knock on wood it will continue this way. (post note- I must have jinxed myself. I started writing this yesterday afternoon and didn't finish it. And she did cry her head off last night....). There is a slight catch though- I have to hold her in my lap and basically keep her at my boobs from 8pm until 9am the next morning. And really, that is becoming a 24 hour thing. I sleep in the chair holding her, and then when I wake up I carry her around in the sling (I'll post at a later time about the New Native Carrier- so indispensable!). Some people might say it is my fault, because I am spoiling her, and setting a precedent... but whatever. She is just one of those "high needs babies." I also really don't believe you can spoil an infant. I think they should be held and loved as much as is humanly possible. I think she is having a growth spurt, which would explain her wanting to eat every hour. I've heard this referred to as "frequency days." It is wearing me out, but I feel like it is so worth it, that I wouldn't give it up for anything (the breastfeeding that is). So human pacifier I am momentarily...

Mike says that he thinks she looks like a grumpy old cab driver. When he gets home from work he asks her if she had any good fares that day. Not very nice.

lovely and amazing

2008-11-13T15:53:00.005-08:00

I have struggled to update here lately- my fatigue has limited my brain's ability to... to... um, what was I saying? Chasing after a two year old and taking care of an infant has left little time to do much else except for those two things. Not to mention the construction that continues on our house. As I am typing there are people knocking down drywall, electricians drilling holes, and our tile guys cutting tile with a wet saw. Throw two kids in and a barking chihuahua. It is loud and raucous. Hopefully it will all be wrapped up by christmas. Perhaps then we can all breathe again. Mike keeps saying that we will laugh about all of this one day. hmmmm.

Annie is lovely and amazing. Despite the "colic" she seems to have developed. The first couple of weeks she was so sweet and docile, and never cried. By the third week she began what we referred to as her "witching hour" during which she would cry off and on inconsolably. This witching hour has extended to lasting three hours a night, at the least, and the crying has turned into shrill screaming. Henry was not always the easiest baby, but he never cried like this. Nobody can quite explain what 'colic' is, and everyone seems to have their own theory; but whatever it is, Annie fits the description to a 't'. Mike and I just sort of hand her back and forth, trying all combinations of swaddling, noise machine, rocking, loud shooshing, bouncing, swinging. Does anyone have experience dealing with this? The worst part of it is is that it happens between 9ishpm through 12:30 am. And then I still have to feed her every two and one half hours through the night. We are both so sleepy we walk around like zombies during the day. If any one has any colic tips we would so appreciate it. I told Mike- "don't worry, love. we'll laugh about this one day."

yes we can, yes we did!!

2008-11-04T20:57:00.003-08:00

(my view of Obama at a rally on February 10th 2008)

I am so moved by this amazing moment in time. My heart swells with emotion and leaves me speechless.

Welcome to the World!

2008-10-17T19:32:00.004-07:00

Annie Elena
born 10/14/2008
7 lbs 1 oz

When I am a little less exhausted I'll tell you about it...

40 weeks and six days...

2008-10-13T13:08:00.004-07:00

So. Tomorrow I am officially one week past my due date. According to my doctors my body just likes being pregnant too much; the environment too cozy, the little ones have no reason to leave. This is more than I can bare, however. Philosophically resistant to the idea of any sort of induction a week ago, I told them this morning to just get her out of there, even if they had to cut her out. Oh what a week overdue can do to one's convictions... Contractions woke me up at a quarter to five this morning and I am definitely making progress. If she doesn't come on her own this evening, I will be admitted to the hospital tomorrow early am to begin the induction process. Tonight is a full moon- maybe that will bring her out. My little wolf baby.

She is a good girl though, waiting until we were able to get somewhat settled into the new part of the house. I made it through a week at the inlaws; the new hardwood floors are beautiful. Our wonderful families helped us empty the pod yesterday, so we are all moved back in. We were able to sleep in our new room last night; it is so nice and strange to have all of this extra room now.
Another few weeks and we should have our loose ends tied up and be settled in with the baby.

Thanks for the warm wishes via email and phone messages (Julie, love ya) and we'll let you know when Annie arrives. I'm hoping she will be outside of my body by this time tomorrow. Stockley Gardens is this weekend, and I hate missing that...

and we're off.

2008-10-06T04:52:00.004-07:00

a picture of Annie and me, 10/06-

The bags and boxes have been packed; our house is empty now so that the hardwood floors can be done and the addition can be sort of finished (Mike talked me into it, much to my dismay). I have a doctor's appointment this morning- Annie is due tomorrow; we shall see. Last night I felt very, um, vomit-ous, but it may have just been from moving everything out of my house while nine months pregnant (really, ten months). This will probably be my last post for awhile, unless she is two weeks overdue as Henry was. Au Revoir for now, friends.

Baby Hands!

2008-10-05T18:57:00.003-07:00

Kristen Wiig is so hilarious. This totally cracked me up.

in summary...

2008-09-30T18:48:00.004-07:00

1.

Last weekend was my fifth wedding anniversary. These have been the very best five years of my life, easily. It probably has something to do with the fact that Mike D. makes me happier than anyone else on this earth. He has the best attitude towards life and it keeps me in check. He helps me to see the bigger picture. He doesn't care what others think and is the most honest and caring person. He doesn't dwell on the negative, doesn't ever complain or feel sorry for himself, and can always be counted upon to 'do the right thing'. Before I met him I was up and down and broody all of the time. He keeps me consistent. He always gives me the most perfect, unconditional love. Michael is someone who really knows how to live, and I'm so glad we get to live this life together. He is the coolest dude I know and makes me laugh. He helps me to not be so serious. Mike- I love to love to love you...

2. We have walls!

The sheet rock/ drywall has been hung and sanded, the painting has commenced. The days do not cease to be crazy. Today started with a delivery of the wood for our new hardwood floors at 7:50 am and continued with the guy doing the under-tile work in our shower, Mike's dad doing odd-jobs, my parents helping with painting, my plumber, hvac, and electrician all doing their thing, and the sheetrockers finishing sanding. All of this and signing checks and chasing after a two year old with plaster dust everywhere and making lunch for everyone and... I'm ready to check into a spa. Or a sanatorium.

3. The baby.
She is due in about six days. Unfortunately my doctor will not be on call this Saturday or next week after Wednesday through the weekend. They are giving me the option of induction, but I really hate that idea. I had to be induced with Henry as he was two weeks overdue, and I have to say I'd avoid that again if I could. It is a longer, more tiring and more painful birth process. I was looking forward to going into labor naturally and unfettered by an IV drip of vile Pitocin. Also, Mike talked me in to having all of the wood floors in the house refinished when they lay the new- which means we have to Move Out Of Our House Completely by this Sunday, two days before I'm due. I have to pack up a Pod this week with all of our belongings so that we can go live with my inlaws for a week right in the midst of giving birth. I am not completely happy with any of this. I have never muttered 'serenity now' so many times under my breath. Mike keeps reminding me that it didn't work for Frank Costanza. Oh yeah.

Annie.

2008-09-18T14:44:00.003-07:00

Did I mention that I think we finally decided on a name for our dear little soon to arrive daughter?

We have been struggling with what to name her. We struggled the same way when I was pregnant with Henry. A growing list of names, deciding on one finally, and then changing our minds quickly. It is the sort of thing that is not to be taken lightly, this naming of another human being. As with Henry, I just knew that I would know when we had found the right name for our little girl.

It is hard to find names that sound nice with our very long, very Italian and hard to pronounce last name. We like old names, but we don't want to choose something too popular. I always enjoyed having a name that was different. There was only one other Marissa I encountered growing up, and she spelled her name differently and didn't even go to my school. The old names we like are so popular now; I am sure our daughter will have multiple Isabelle's, Ava's, Sophia's and Hannah's in her kindergarten class. We settled on Alice for a little while- I liked the Alice in Wonderland reference, and it sounded so nice with Henry, another name requisite. After a few weeks of sitting with 'Alice' something about it changed. It just didn't sound right somehow. That is when I went back to our very first name we liked- 'Annie.'

1) My favorite doctor in the world is Dr. Annie Williams. She is the person who delivered Henry. She has delivered hundreds and hundreds of babies throughout her career, and yet she acts like each baby is her first. I swear she even had a tear the first time she held Henry. She always has a bright red manicure and is full of the most wonderful and complete seeming joy and gusto, if you will, for life. If this is an example of an Annie, then that sounds good to me.

2) When I was a little kid I was also obsessed with the movie "Annie." I watched it a million times growing up. In the third grade I convinced my mom to let me cut my long brown hair short and get a perm. Both. At the same time. Needless to say, this jump-started the beginning of a painfully long and yucky awkward stage. I would never have pulled off that Annie look unless I had dyed my hair a carrot-ish shade of orange-y red and wore an apple-red dress all of the time. But man did I love that zany orphan.

3) Woody Allen, one of my most favorite directors of all time made 'Annie Hall' one of my most favorite films of all time. I love Annie Hall and all of her endearingly silly quircks.

Still going back and forth between Alice and Annie I had sort of a bizarre experience that clinched the deal. I was down at the city building permit office and met the nicest woman. She was flirting with Henry while I met with the framing/foundation supervisor. When I had to pay for a plan revision, she was the one who helped me. We started chatting about babies and whatnot. She said she had decided not to have any more children after her first was born many, many years ago; but that much later she and her husband became foster parents to a little boy no one wanted. He was a severely autistic child who had basically been left in a room alone, completely feral, by his birth parents. Ignored and unloved, he was six but acted more like a one year old, unable to talk or interact with others. She went on to tell me that the state didn't want to allow her to adopt him because she was a black woman and he was a white child, but eventually the adoption went through because no one else would have him, she fought the system so hard, and he had thrived so much under her care. This story was so moving that it nearly made me cry. I didn't know what else to say to her except she was a great example of how all people should be. She said that he has been her son for seven years now, and that he is able to talk and interact fairly well with others, and that she wouldn't trade him for the world.

As I turned to leave she called out 'oh yeah, what's the name of that baby in your tummy?'. I told her I wasn't sure yet, but we thought 'Annie'. She just looked back at me and smiled and slowly turned her nameplate around on her desk- her name was Annie. She said "See, it was meant to be- you and I were supposed to talk today!" My pregnant hormones kicked in and I started to cry as she came around to hug me. It was wierd, unexplainable, and a tad embarrassing to be crying in the city building office with all of the gruff contractors around. But it felt like it was meant to be in this utterly weird inexplicable way, just the same as Annie feels so, so much to me like she was so completely meant to be...

and the walls came tumbling down...

2008-09-17T16:28:00.003-07:00

This is the scene I returned home to this evening:

The back wall of the house is down, and the old part sort of resembles a doll-house, with its cut-out openings. It makes me think of 'Being John Malkovich'.... I half expect to see John Cusack's character standing above our house, dangling one of his marionette dolls next to our dining room table. I guess there's no turning back now.
p.s. like my pink hard hat? a present from Michael.

Two.

2008-09-16T15:14:00.004-07:00

Last Saturday my little guy turned two. We tried so hard in the midst of the current chaos that has become our lives to just have a relaxed day full of fun Henry things to celebrate. We only went to Home Depot once on Saturday. And once on Sunday. The poor guy is probably as sick of looking at lighting fixtures, plumbing materials, and refrigerators as I am. I thought it would be so excellent to get to pick all of these things out, but you reach a point where all of the features start blending together and you just pick something to be done with it, already. I'm sure being REALLY pregnant has something to do with feeling so over it. I desperately want to nest- to clean and organize and prepare. But I just can't do it properly with everything so... half- done. We finally settled on a refrigerator and purchased it. I know this sounds as exciting as drying a head of lettuce, but it was, because you have no idea how many refrigerators we looked at over the course of the summer. Yes, I am now that asshole who is writing about her new refrigerator on her blog.

Anyhow. We went to the zoo. I love being a member, because we go regularly enough that there is no pressure to see the entire park. Henry is always cool with a quick visit because he knows we'll soon return. Some days we go just to see the monkeys. Other days we just watch the turtles and walk around the butterfly garden. Lately Henry has wanted to go just to see the progress of construction on the new exhibit being built. I am fine with just watching the cranes and bulldozers. We followed our trip to the zoo with lunch at Doumar's, Henry's favorite lunch spot. I swear, we can't drive past Doumar's without Henry pointing wildly towards the building. I used to love going there when I was a kid, too, so it makes sense. An enduring love and tradition for a favorite local spot.

As I feel sort of mournful that my dear first born is growing so quickly and is no longer a wee little baby, I look with anticipation to the birth of my second. Only three more weeks to go. She is getting so big in there that I can no longer sit without slumping backwards- her little body is jammed up in my ribs. The once a week doctor's visits commenced a couple of weeks ago. Every time I take the elevator trip up to wonderful Dr. Annie William's office I cross my fingers that she will show no signs of coming early. So far, so good. Tomorrow the back wall of our house has to come down, thus opening up everything to the addition. This is a tad overwhelming, but also a great sign- once that wall comes down, there is absolutely no stalling or turning back. Time for insulation, sheet rock, dry wall, tile, hardwood floors. The hvac, plumbing, and electrical roughing-in is nearly finished. Fingers crossed. Three more weeks.

hocus pocus.

2008-08-29T06:14:00.004-07:00

Here is that Silver Apples song that I was referring to in the last post. Catchy, non? Complete with footage of Henry golfing it up, summer style. It is bizarre how he intuitively grasps all of these different sports. Mike is very athletic, but this is relegated mostly to skateboarding. We both did the usual organized sports as kids- soccer, swimming, basketball, softball, cheerleading (shhhh); but we don't watch any football and certainly don't run off to play golf on the weekends. But when Henry sees a football, basketball, or soccer ball he literally freaks out. Someone got him a little golf set at the beginning of the summer and the rest is history. If we want him to be happy at a cookout or some other outdoor event, we just bring along a club and some balls. Yep, my son loves balls!!

Henry, Golf Genius from Marissa on Vimeo.

Also, as promised: The Whispering Winds blurb we put together. Totally ridiculous.

"From the ashes of shoegaze, psychedelic, 2step, and western swing springs forth Whispering Winds.
Whispering Winds are pushing the boundaries of wizardry through the implementation of such magical
musical devices as delay, reverb, wah-wah, and phaser. They have more tricks up their sleeves than
both Siegfried and Roy AND their two wily tigers. Traveling across a musical spectrum punctuated
by both extreme repetition and simple pop, the Winds weave magical tapestries of layered sound which
may or may not bend your mind. "

Come out to the show. Saturday night at The Boot. It "may or may not bend your mind."

2008-08-28T10:13:00.004-07:00

In the traditional sense I am by no means a very religious person.
However:
Thank

the Almighty

One,

hallelujah!!!!!! We have walls (sort of). And a roof (sort of).

Craziness abounds here as the planning of fifty billion projects (all to be carried out at once) continues. The building of a home and managing without a general contractor, which includes enough details that I'm sure my brain might soon explode; the very, very soon birth which is about to occur and includes me more than I wish to be included at this point (I wish Mike could absorb the baby from me by some marvel of osmosis and then push her out for me- he is such a dear man, I'm sure he'd do it if possible); the planning of a best friend's baby shower (whose little guy will also be arriving shortly); and last but certainly not least, the organizing of what I desperately want to be an awesome and unforgettable birthday weekend for my most favorite almost two year old, sweet Henry. There is so much more in between, but those are the main things I'm trying to focus on.
Speaking of 'focusing on', I can't get this damn Silver Apples song out of my mind called 'Hocus Pocus'. It is so catchy that if you heard it right now you'd be humming it too. I can't find a video of it on you tube, but here is a taste of some silver apples:

and there you go.
Speaking of music (and to make this post even more rambling than it already is)- my husband and brother are in a band together along with some other friends, and they happen to be playing this weekend (Saturday at The Boot). It is their first show after developing their songs and practicing for a year. I am looking forward to this. I helped Mike write the most ridiculous press release this weekend. I'll have to post it here later.

holy crap!

2008-08-18T10:45:00.005-07:00

I have just been too busy lately to write anything of substance here. My sincere apologies to my dear three readers.
This was in my email inbox today:

Holy Crap! But at least we finally got this stuff:

All of the wood was delivered last Thursday. The windows are arriving later this week; french doors, etc. next week. I had a doctor's appointment this morning and all seems to be well with the little lady. I have my next appointment in two weeks and then after that I will have to see my doctor every week until she is born. Where did the time go?

pickle

2008-08-18T10:44:00.002-07:00

for beth:

yummy pickles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm a... chair!

2008-08-07T16:16:00.002-07:00

Thanks for the link, Suzy!

a la plage

2008-08-06T10:33:00.001-07:00

These days I can't get enough of this:

or this:

Living so close to the beach is something I would never take for granted.

heart attack waiting to happen.

2008-08-01T08:42:00.003-07:00

We adore our little house. When I discovered our sweet 1938 cape cod in a quaint little neighborhood with giant trees and winding roads near our favorite Norfolk places, I knew we had found our home. We knew that it was small, but with a large backyard there was potential for expansion. And then our family began its expansion. At the point Henry arrived we began seriously contemplating a major addition. And when that second little line arrived on that pregnancy test this past late winter, we knew it was time to stop contemplating and get the ball rolling. Having an architect for a brother really came in handy at this point, as we were able to sit down with Thom and get him to flesh out the current attainable version of our 'dream home' (my actual dream home consists of secluded acres of land, lots of glass and steel, and ocean views). We simply need a larger kitchen/family room area, another full bathroom, and an extra bedroom, preferably a large master bedroom with a nice big walk-in closet. Oh yeah, and a screened-in porch that the family room and master bedroom could both open up into through nice sets of french doors.

We contemplated just moving to a larger house, but we couldn't find anything in our price range that matched our current location or the criteria by which we deem housing suitable for our family needs. With plans in hand, we were somehow able to secure funding in this god-awful market. We decided to act as the general contractors ourselves to save money. Mike's mom has run a breakfast/lunch shop for 25 years, and she has many regular customers who work in various areas of construction. Foundation guys, plumbers, electricians, etc. Through her and some of our own connections we were able to lock-down some people to help us get the addition done. People warned us of the stress this type of thing causes, and how it always runs over-budget and over-deadline. But I was so excited that we were moving forward with this thing that I didn't even allow that part to phase me.

At first the novelty of having a port-A-potty and a giant back hoe in our yard was very exciting. (Our name is even stenciled neatly on the front of the port-a-potty- hello this years christmas cards!!) Things moved pretty quickly past the environmental/preliminary building inspections we needed to obtain permits, etc.; the foundation was quickly dug, concrete filled in, sand dumped, bricks beautifully laid. Now we are just waiting on a building supplier to come up with the necessary materials from our blueprints so that we can order what we need to frame it up. This has been the most frustrating part, thus far. Which is ridiculous, because it shouldn't be. We have already dumped one supplier and are just waiting on another (anyone reading this about to build something? DON'T USE PRO BUILD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). Long story. Will save it for some other time. Let's just say that I'm not playing mrs. nice guy any longer. And this time around I might even take freaking prisoners, dammit.

Needless to say, the novelty of the back hoe and even the port a potty have sort of worn off. Perhaps I will feel better about everything once the materials are delivered and the framing begins. In the mean time I'll just keep my fingers crossed that this baby doesn't arrive any time before she is supposed to. And the next time we decide to build something, it won't be with a crazy two year old running around and another one on the way. Actually, the next time we realize we need to build something, we will probably just move.

man in the van

2008-07-29T17:10:00.001-07:00

Look at my nerds:

with their matching shoes:

M.I.A.

2008-07-29T14:34:00.003-07:00

I am cranky and tired and need a vacation. A 'laying on the beach in Mexico' kind of vacation.
If you are feeling the same, check out my girl below. She'll perk you right up, promise. I just have to make it through to Friday- deerhunter at The Boot. holler.

bucket head.

2008-07-11T09:00:00.006-07:00

It has been forever and a day since I've posted... I have been staying quite busy with my pregnancy. Our little lady is just kicking away, and my anticipation of her arrival is filled with such happiness. My love for little Henry just grows so much every day; the thought that this sort of love will be doubled soon just blows my mind. I think back often to when I was in the last months of pregnancy with Henry. There is so much waiting and wondering; wanting to see and hold this tiny person that has been growing inside of you (for what seems like an eternity). There is nesting, worrying and wondering, a bit of apprehension about how things will change. Then the baby is born, and nothing could really prepare you for the reality of it. Before Henry I had zero experience with babies. I had various stints as a babysitter, but nothing that prepared me for the reality of dealing with an infant. Those first months are so sleepless and tiring, and your body is still trying to re-acclimate itself from the toll of pregnancy. It takes quite a while for things to reach an even keel again (not that they will ever be the same- which is a good thing, it just takes a while to realize this). This pregnancy is so different in that I feel more prepared. I thought I was so prepared last time, with all of my baby manuals, gear, etc. This time around I am more prepared without any of those things.

Henry will be two in a very short couple of months. Every night we carry out the same bedtime routine- after dinner and a bath Mike and I snuggle with him on the couch and unwind with a little Sesame Street. And every night I think "kid, where have you been all of my life??!! you are truly the bees knees!!" and then I realize- oh yes, you have been inside of my heart this whole time. all of my love, my hopes, and dreams. And now you are outside of me, my love, and Mike's love all out there in the open. And I guess this is the part that really scares the hell out of parents, because of course you want to protect your love with all of your will and might. But you also have to set it free. There is a balance, and I guess most of my every days are about trying to figure out that balance. And here there is another little one inside, kicking away, a whole bunch of love waiting to be set free. I will miss being pregnant- I feel more beautiful and strangely alive this way (maybe it is because I felt so awful and wished so much for death the first few months of "morning" sickness); there is something so primal and amazingly spiritual and even animalistic about being pregnant.
I wish I could bottle all of this up and really remember it forever, because this is likely the last time I will be pregnant. Two is a great number, and I think we are sticking with it.

We have undertaken a huge project, which is another big reason why I haven't updated in awhile. I can't wait to share news of it here, but it will be just a bit longer. Let's just say that every morning when I wake up and look out the window, I mutter under my breath: we must be insane. But more on that later.

I'll leave you with some lovely shots of Henry and I fooling around and of him raiding my tupperware drawer. The kid loves to put stuff on his head. Bowls, buckets, boxes, pots and pans. What can I say? We lovingly refer to him sometimes as "bucket head." Well, he is his father's son!

(he likes to put stuff on my head, too)

flower shop.

2008-06-20T09:17:00.003-07:00

We are working on the flowers for a big wedding this weekend, and I couldn't help but to share some shots of what we are working with. I absolutely love it when the flowers come in and I'm able to enjoy the way they look en masse, after having been processed (our way of saying cleaned, i.e. stems re-cut and foliage that will be below a water line removed) but before being arranged. This wedding is at the Botanical Gardens, and the bride wanted tropical colors of deep yellows, oranges, fuschias, with bright whites and greens, and pale pinks thrown in. The lighting isn't great in my mom's living room so it was hard to get some good images, but you get the idea. Gorgeous, gorgeousness. Hundreds of orchids, lilies, and roses. I'm off now to continue working- we just received an amazing shipment of 100+ gloriosa lilies- splendid!!

yee haw.

2008-06-16T17:27:00.009-07:00

We had to make a run to the Bass Pro Shop this weekend to get a gift certificate for Mike's dad for father's day. We had never been to this big box 'wilderness' shop before, but had heard some buzz surrounding the place for their kid-wowing giant fish tank and awesome collection of 'stuffed animals.' A tad naive and certainly not a hunter, I had imagined a big selection of cool plush animals; but lo and behold it was a collection of stuffed formerly living animals. Oh. Duh. I wish not to offend any one reading here, but this place was a redneck's fantasy land. Pork rinds? Check. Camo travel neck pillow? Why check, of course. For people who typically scoff at all things 'redneck', we somehow managed to have a bit of fun- much to the non-amusement of the staff. Mike said he kept waiting for Jeff Foxworthy to jump out at us from behind the merchandise displays; it was really sales people who were monitoring us because of all the picture taking and maniacal laughter. And when we were done, we were done (I couldn't take Mike yelling "Git 'er done! one more time). We rushed away to try to shake off some of the camo vibe, stopping just long enough to admire a few Obama bumper stickers scattered about the lot. Who would have known?

nice fish tank. maybe try the marine science museum instead, though.

where did Mike and Henry go?

don't shoot!!

"bucky done gun" (p.s. attention girls who are six months pregnant- if you attempt to wear a belted dress, you will shudder if there is any photographic evidence. I love that dress, but the belt just isn't gonna work any more...)

pork rinds? check, sir!!

camo neck pillows? why, check it is!

arctic cat. vroom.

father's day weekend

2008-06-13T11:06:00.003-07:00

Early on Friday I determined that we would just proclaim the whole weekend "father's day weekend." This is mostly because I am lame and lack the patience to wait to bestow Michael's father's day gifts upon him until Sunday. I have been very nonchalant about it, telling him not to be dissapointed by a very small present and that things would be very low-key. He has been wanting a seat for the back of his bike (his bicycle, not motorcycle- I'll never let Henry on the back of his Triumph. ever.) so that he and Henry can cruise around the neighborhood. He takes this alone time with Henry quite seriously, and believe me, I am always happy to oblige. So I got him a sweet little cocoon seat for Henry to ride in. Also, both of our ancient ipods died at nearly the same time. We have been ipod-less for about a month now, and it is beginning to really get to us. Mowing the grass and riding in the car are impaired tasks minus the ipod. Not to mention all of the whining I've heard about the cd detritus growing in the car. Technology has spoiled us and there is absolutely no turning back at this point.... so I snuck over to the Apple store this week and picked up a nice little 8gb nano for him. (The thing is ridiculously tiny by the way. It seems like it should have some more meat on its bones for the cost. But that's just me...) And last but not least, I ordered a swell little print from Etsy a couple weeks ago by none other than the awesome Ashley G. She is linked to the right as "kitty genius." I have admired her work for some time, and am thrilled to at last own one of her prints. Perhaps this part of the gift has ended up being a little more for me than him.... hmmmmm. But certainly we will both enjoy looking at it and living with it.

I went out as much as I could because despite working really long hours, Mike always has time for both me and Henry. And it is always quality time. I love him more than anything in this world (well of course Henry is close behind) and always feel happy when I can really show him. I try to every day (keeping the sweet tea pitcher full), but who doesn't like scoring some sweet loot every once in awhile?!

bump watch '08

2008-06-12T06:07:00.003-07:00

Me and Twittering Bird compare baby bumps. This was taken a couple of weeks ago; we have both popped a lot more since then... She will probably kill me for posting this (even though it is not even a bad shot), but I seem to remember a picture she posted a couple of years ago on Flickr in which I was very pregnant with Henry at the fair in Chincoteague, and it was an ultra unflattering shot of me eating a french fry or something. So there you have it.

Obama!

2008-06-03T19:40:00.003-07:00

Tonight feels like such an historical evening as Obama is clearly our nominee. His speech tonight was so beautiful and
moving; I look towards the future now with a feeling of hopefulness.

Happy Birthday Brother

2008-06-02T08:44:00.004-07:00

You are the best-est, most goofiest big brother, drunkle, and friend we could ever wish for.
Happy Birthday, old man. This photo is a little off-season as you can see, but I really like
the shadow of mom touching your arm as it is projected on the wall behind you.

it's a...

2008-05-28T05:35:00.004-07:00

So did I mention that we are having a girl? It was determined by some higher power that my sex shall not be outnumbered in this family. We are over the moon. I love this baby girl so much already... can't imagine how much I'll love her by the time she arrives. I just hope she doesn't hate me one day for displaying her privates in sonographic form here on this blog in this way.

sorry, another rip from the "intraweb"...

2008-05-22T09:09:00.002-07:00

something to cheer you (and me) up after that last clip...
The Free Design/ Stereolab

ahhh. my blood pressure just lowered significantly!

2008-05-15T09:21:00.003-07:00

My mom alerted me to this clip which she had caught one night on msnbc a week or so ago. I dug it up and am posting it here because a) it makes me feel less alone in the world as in 'thank god I'm not alone in feeling this pissed off about our illustrious president, what in the hell is going on in this country???' and b) I feel so thankful to be living in a country wherein commentary such as this can be aired in the public media. Mr. Olberman's phones are surely tapped, but that's just a whole different story. and finally, c) it calls our president out with exact evidence that he is a lying, blubbering fool surrounded by very dangerous people who have made a mockery of the essence of our 'democracy'. The clip is long, but it is worth it to watch for the fine finish, I assure you.

expensive donuts, amazing utter closeness, and other things

2008-05-13T08:29:00.006-07:00

I'm still glowing from an excellent Mother's Day weekend. On Sunday we hosted a family brunch. These days I love so much to have people gathered in my house, eating together, relaxing, and enjoying each other's company. As long as it only lasts for a few hours (which is the beauty of a brunch). I've been realizing more and more lately how lucky we are to be surrounded by such great friends and family. Their proximity means that we can get together often, but for shorter amounts of time. I kid, I kid. But I am serious about loving my family more than ever lately. It could be because I am busy building my own strong and loving family. Perhaps I am just becoming more mom-like... mom-like without the 'mom jeans.' ever.

I will be nineteen weeks along tomorrow, and this is the part of pregnancy that I love. There is a rush of excitement and happiness that I can't quite explain- a strange sort of pure awareness. As I write this I can feel the baby rolling over inside of me and this sensation moves me- literally and emotionally. I guess I could say it is the extreme exact opposite of feeling loneliness. Which I am prone to, and I think some people just are, and I think there is absolutely nothing wrong and actually something great about the experience of feeling or being lonely. If any of that made sense. But for now I relish this sense of Amazing Utter Closeness.

Along with the giddy happiness comes the crying easily part. So cliche, yes I know, but whatever. This weekend I cried when I realized how much we spent on a dozen donuts and two pastries from the French Bakery (beware: a trip to the French Bakery might set you back um, I don't know, a good chunk of your monthly mortgage payment. Seriously. Beware.). Something else that made me cry was the mother's day card that Mike gave me on Sunday morning. It included a beautiful photo booth strip of him with Henry (My Favorite Men) and a little drawing by Henry. All attached to a fig tree, which Mike and I have been talking about wanting to get and plant forever. It was so thoughtful and touching that you would have cried too, dammit.

monday etceteras

2008-05-05T13:00:00.003-07:00

Henry is napping so I am taking a break, sitting on the couch. This is what I see- my pansies in the window box through the screen; they are all leggy and looking very end-of-the-season, but I admire them nonetheless. I love this spring weather, warm but not hot. Cool, open-window weather. I can hear my neighbors children just arriving home from school. They are running, laughing and screaming into their backyard.

Some roses from the garden. They actually smell really nice- a sweet fragrant lemon-y scent. I love how big and floppy the petals are. They look almost like peonies from a distance, or crepe paper flowers. Lately I have been blown away by the climbing roses I've seen. That will have to be a new addition to the yard next spring.

Some cucumbers waiting to be planted. The Five Points Farmers Market re-opened this weekend in a new spot just down the street from us. We scored lots of great veggies and fresh local butter. We also scored a new Saturday morning ritual!

maple park

2008-04-30T09:12:00.007-07:00

Another stop on Saturday brought us to the Currituck Skatepark (also known as Maple Skatepark). It is located right next to the small Currituck Airport just across the state line in North Carolina. I couldn't believe that on a Saturday afternoon there was only one other skater there. There was something sort of eerie about the place- this nice little park in the middle of (what felt like) nowhere, with tiny little prop planes taking off and landing at regular intervals. It has an 11 ft vert keyhole with pool coping and an open flow bowl attached. For awhile we were the only ones there, so Henry was able to run around the keyhole section and watch his daddy dropping in while I shot some little digital clips.
I like how the bright sun reflecting off of the concrete blew out some of my shots, making them look sort of vague, much like an old memory is sometimes remembered.

day trippers, yeah.

2008-04-30T08:31:00.005-07:00

On Saturday we had a nice little day on the Outer Banks. Jockey's Ridge was our main stop, and is always amazing- it makes me feel like I am in that one desert scene from The Doors film... but without the illicit drug use. H. seemed to enjoy his first giant sand dune experience. I have so many wonderful memories of visiting the ridge as a child- the bright, wonderful kites, the hang gliders, rolling down the steep and sandy cliffs. It has been awhile since I last visited Nags Head, and I was sort of shocked at how built up it has become. It is a sad thing to see all of the crappy and tacky strip malls that have popped up. I guess people really don't care that technically this sweet little land mass is just a barrier island after all. It seems nothing is sacred, especially when people see all of those dollar signs looming about.

Exactly seventeen weeks pregnant, today. Two weeks from tomorrow we get to have a look-see at our little love and find out the um, nature of its, um, parts. Two nights ago I felt the first kicks- I had forgotten just how amazing and strange that feels.

I dug an old Beta Band album out of my closet on Monday morning and that has been my soundtrack for the week. It is the three e.p.'s album, and I remember buying it in London. That is a freaking good album.

california dreaming

2008-04-16T11:23:00.007-07:00

I came across this and thought it was pretty cool. I have been thinking alot about the west coast lately. I have a strange strong and sudden urge to move to northern california. You can keep the southern part and even L.A. as far as the living goes (and save it for a nice visit)... but those parts above LA... they just really get me thinking. Anyhow, it is a time lapse video of a drive from L.A. to New York. By Michel and Oliver Gondry (for French musician Laquer). I can't wait to drive across the country one day (and fly back for the return portion, "prolly"). We could old school camper it up, family style!! One of those silver air streams would be nice. I can just see us now...

some flowers around the house right now:

2008-04-15T08:46:00.002-07:00

From top to bottom are the orchids; looking a little droopy but still hanging on from my birthday weeks ago. Some dogwood and azalea branches on the mantle, collected from around the yard. I love the simplicity of a single flowering spring branch placed loosely in a vase. The bottom pictures are of esperanza and spray roses. Those esparanza roses are giant, with stems that are literally three feet tall. They are sometimes called 'cabbage roses' because their blooms have a lovely and slight greenish hue and its multiple layers of petals unfurl like a big old head of cabbage. These were bought yesterday so that we could do a dry run on some things in preparation for a wedding at the end of the month. The bride has awesome, over the top taste. She requested that her bouquet be modeled after the promo pics of Sarah Jessica Parker's (well, Carrie's, actually) bouquet from her wedding with Big in the upcoming Sex and The City movie. I love our bride's with bold and daring taste.
Her centerpieces are extravagant and over the top as well!!

Last night I ate a big bowl of black-eyed peas, some collard greens (some strange southern leftovers sent over by Mike's mom), and then finished it all off with a big bowl of cheerios, a banana, and two shots of chocolate milk (we found this heavenly organic whole chocolate milk- it is like drinking chocolate pudding). I feel like an alley cat scrounging for stray morsels of 'this' and 'that'. Yesterday I almost ran over someone because they were taking too long to cross the street and I NEEDED MY VEGGIE DELITE ON WHOLE WHEAT RIGHT NOW!!!! My appetite was not at all like this when I was pregnant with Henry. What could be different this time around? I'm wondering if it is a girl this time??

Bows + Arrows

2008-04-14T15:02:00.002-07:00

This past weekend was fabulous. Yummy food, good times with good friends, an amazing show, a gem of a thrift..... but more on that some other time.
We scored free tickets to see The Walkmen on Saturday night, and the show did not disappoint. I don't understand how Hamilton Leithauser has any bit of voice left if he sings with such ferocity for every show (which I have heard he does). They played all of the old favorites, and some new stuff which sounded quite different, but quite good.
Mike and I dipped out early before the last band and entered the pregnant woman's paradise: Doumar's!! Now that the morning sickness has passed my appetite reaches waves of near-insatiability. Nothing a hot fudge sunday can't remedy, though. Even after an earlier dinner with two Rangels and three maki, I was able to lick the bowl clean. I figure I lost at least 15 pounds over the last several weeks, so it is time to put some of that weight back. Right?
Our good buddy Matt was visiting from Seattle and hung out a bit on Sunday. He is a veritable landmine when it comes to great film suggestions; my netflix queue has now been restocked and fine-tuned.
I had a doctor's appointment this morning. The baby has a healthy heartbeat and was doing a little gymnastics routine in my tummy in reaction to the doppler (the device the doc. uses to hear/measure the heartbeat). Fifteen weeks and..... 27? more to go... there is a long road ahead... paved with many fudge sundaes and lots of sushi, I predict.

Henry and Liam

2008-04-08T11:06:00.004-07:00

Our good friend David was in town from NYC this weekend; during his visit he brought his son Liam over for a little playdate with Henry. Henry had so much fun with his new little friend. I couldn't believe how well they played together, even though it was still mostly 'parallel play.' Our little guy generously tried to share all of his toys and snacks with Liam. He even tried to give him the pacifier right out of his mouth. Who knew he would become such a generous little tot? I was sort of blown away by the whole thing... I think Henry is more ready for a little brother or sister than we had realized.
Liam told Henry all about life in Brooklyn. I think Henry is ready for a trip to the city.

oh god, not another nature photo.

2008-04-04T11:54:00.003-08:00

That's right, another nature photo; and this one goes out to my dear husband who made fun of my last post and how.... wistful it sounded. I'd much prefer a lovely shot of the dogwood in the front yard than some poop yanked from You Tube, thank you very much. hmph. And I'm not even mentioning any grammatical errors or painful misspellings. so there.
Henry is hanging out with his grandparents this afternoon so that I could run some errands and have some free time. It is so nice to have a moment to myself, and so necessary. When you have young children it is impossible to even go to the bathroom alone; so having an afternoon off is a real treat. I went to a couple of local nurseries just to enjoy the weather and have a little look-see at what types of plants are coming in these days. I even managed to pick up a couple of great little specimens for super cheap- I'm sure you'll see pictures of them in the coming week! haha.
Happy weekend, friends.

Things which I am loving lately:

2008-03-31T07:19:00.008-08:00

my pieris japonica shrubs. the little blossoms are so amazing; they look like strings of tiny pearls.

the grapevines weaving themselves around the yard, with their perfect spiraled tendrils. i love how climbing vines cling.

these gorgeous orchids given to me on my birthday- by those who know the quickest way to the core of my heart.

watching the mud holes in the marsh out back. if you wait silently, for long enough, you might catch a glimpse of the inhabitants- tiny fiddler crabs seeking respite from the hungry herons.

the moss and lichens spreading across our bulkhead.

the explosions of forsythia. quiet spring fireworks.

carpets of petals all about. when the wind picks them up, it is pure heaven.

All of these things I am loving lately are dying to become paintings. The colors, the lines, textures, patterns, spaces, and voids... But I am just so dang tired lately. I really loved being pregnant the last time (once the morning sickness ended), but this pregnancy is really knocking the wind out of me. They (medical journals) say that a pregnant body is working harder while resting than a nonpregnant body is when mountain-climbing. I imagine I am reaching the summit, right about now. I know how hard and why my body is working as it is, and this brings me peace. I know it will be easier sometime during the fourth month... soon, soon, soon... For now I'll just keep trying to formulate those paintings in my mind.

Best Birthday/Easter, Ever

2008-03-23T17:21:00.001-08:00

Bright, bright sunny day

2008-03-22T07:49:00.002-08:00

Just dropping in to say a quick hello, and Happy Spring! Really this is my favorite time of year; I love the feeling of renewal that comes with the changing of the season. And really, how could one not be moved by all of the beautiful blossoms and also by how GREEN everything seems these recent days?

Last night I dyed easter eggs with my mother in law- something I hadn't done in a very long time. It was great fun, and I can't wait to set up a little easter egg hunt for Henry. Today I will be making and decorating cupcakes and sugar cookies with my Mom. It is a great way to celebrate my birthday weekend- yep, I turn the big 3-1 tomorrow. I've decided I rather like my early 30's. The morning sickness seems to be tapering off, and that combined with everything else leaves me with so much to be thankful for! Happy Easter dear friends, and hope your weekend is sunny and bright.

looking up into the sky...

2008-03-14T09:08:00.012-08:00

Although it may seem as if we had fallen off the face of the Earth by the looks of this page, we have not. I have just been in a quiet, contemplative mood, and haven't felt much like blogging. We have been enjoying the warmer weather by going to the zoo and playing in the backyard. Our bathroom renovations are nearly complete; just a little paint touch up will finish off that project.

Henry turned 18 months old yesterday. I can't believe how independent he is becoming. We put him to work in the backyard, picking up pinecones for us.

Yesterday, just as twilight was setting in, he looked up and discovered the moon. Goodnight, moon.

Life is exciting these days. I hadn't planned to report this so soon, but since I am days away from the end of my first trimester, and I feel as if the whole world already knows (my husband was very excited to share the news with anyone who'd listen)- we will be welcoming our second baby into the world next fall! I have been so unbelievably sick the past several weeks, I haven't fully been able to enjoy it or soak in the good news, but I see better times just around the corner. Hopefully.

Just waiting...

2008-02-27T06:26:00.000-08:00

..for warmer weather, so we can go outside and really play.

2008-02-20T05:42:00.002-08:00

I have been under the weather for the last couple of weeks, and just haven't felt up to posting. I was tired of seeing my Obama post each time I came to my page (even though I am way excited over his recent wins-Wisconsin last night!) so I'm just refreshing the page a little. I'll check back in when I'm feeling better. Is it just me, or has the month of February seemed to lag on forever??

Supa Dupa Tuesday!!!!

2008-02-11T17:58:00.001-08:00

Wahoo!!

The crowd that made it into the building was 18,000 people strong. this doesn't count all the people who got turned away at the door due to capacity.

It was so great to see the kids involved. I watched these little ones painting their signs before the start of the rally.

On Sunday evening I had the amazing opportunity to hear Barack Obama speak at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. It was exhilirating from the moment we arrived- huge crowds of excited people waiting happily despite the line that seemed to snake on forever and the heavy winds that were anything but "whispering". I actually felt a huge surge of emotion as I walked to the end of the line- the diversity of the crowd and this sort of uniting force that seemed to bind us all together for a moment was undeniable. I felt like I was a part of history that is being made at this very moment.
Once through the massive line and at the threshold of the building, people raced into the convention center like they were about to see an impromptu show by their favorite band of all time for free. Obama was eloquent, inspiring, and everything I thought he would be in person. His message and platform are strong and clear- I just hope enough people hear it and believe in it. For once, in a very, very long time, I'd be proud to speak of and recognize my president.
Get out there and vote people. It is supa dupa Tuesday!!

2008-02-07T20:02:00.001-08:00

Raj-pooot!

Spring Fever.

2008-02-07T10:52:00.000-08:00

The first daffodil of the season has bloomed!

A little tulip arrangement I put together for myself... hey, I think all girls should buy flowers for themselves once in awhile (or once a week).

Our old and beautiful camellias are beginning to bloom their hearts out. I had to bring some indoors. Nothing makes me happier than to be able to make a bouquet from flowers I cut in the yard.

The white ones seem to be blooming a little early this year.

I let Henry help me in the garden. He likes to play in the dirt. I think that it is important to let kids explore and get messy if they want to.