right around the corner

My life as of late has looked a lot like this. Frosty outside, cozy inside. Slow mornings with coffee and my family, my dog sitting in the sun. The christmas cactus bloomed, just a couple months behind schedule. Muffins have been baked. And cards have been embroidered.


I can feel it in the air, though, that winter is almost at an end. It has been the coldest winter since we've lived here. Actually, it is reported to be the coldest winter this town has experienced for 30 years. And it was obvious! So much snow, and so many days where the temperature did not rise into the double digits. It has been hard having a busy toddler who brings his shoes to me at 7.30am demanding "go! go!", desperate to play outside. You just can't explain hypothermia to a one and a half year old, trust me.
I've been swimming in schoolwork lately. Not drowning, mind you, not yet. I've kept my head above water and will attempt to do so as the papers and exams pile up week after week. It is my last semester so I feel hopeful even while occasionally feeling overwhelmed. I just drink a lot of tea and try to stay on task.

Other than that, the weeks are just marching right along. Speaking of weeks, I am currently 25 weeks pregnant, and definitely appearing so. In a way it feels like June is a long way off, in another way, it feels like it is right around the corner. I am excited for our new family member!

It seems my winter fog has been lifting, and I have been feeling more active and more alive. I feel a stirring within me to get outside and get moving. I feel encouraged by the sun that's been showing its face, and intrigued by the crocuses popping up all over the yard.
How are you feeling as winter slowly turns to spring?

fall by the wayside

It's that time again - that "update because I feel guilty for not updating in so long" time. Sorry! It seems that I cannot juggle 5 college courses, full-time motherood, and regularly updating a blog. One had to fall by the wayside, and I guess it had to be the blog.

I had a birthday. I am now 26. I deliberated for days over what kind of birthday cake to make for myself. Some said I shouldn't make my own, but what do they know? If you make your own, you get to make whatever kind of cake you want. So that's exactly what I did. I ended up making a ginger-fig cake with lemon-cream cheese frosting. I don't mean to brag, but it turned out just perfect.

The night before my birthday, after the cake had cooled completely, I assembled it and frosted it. I actually felt nervous! I didn't want to mess up. I don't know why, but it was exciting to feel nervous over icing a cake.

It's been cold here and sometimes Finn and I feel stir crazy. We play outside at the park or swing on the porch swing when it's above freezing, but when it's below freezing we stay inside, or terrorize the local Barnes and Noble. Sometimes when we're stuck inside, Finn stares longingly out the window. It's pretty sad.

I think we've picked out a name for the baby due in June - Evelyn Jane. At least, it's at the top of our list right now. It still feels so strange to be pregnant again, especially while finishing my last semester. I wrote an essay for my Sociology class on violating norms - and I wrote that I violate a norm everyday by attending undergraduate classes while pregnant. I got a 100%.

In craft news, I have begun to make some Valentine's cards. I have never been a fan of the holiday, but I am a fan of embroidering card stock with embroidery floss. I'll take a picture soon and show you what I've made. Until then, so long.