Play Nice

Curled on my lap, he rests his head on my round stomach. His fingers trace the satin lining of an ivory blanket as we watch Winnie the Pooh And the Blustery Day. Quite possibly feeling a bit cramped beneath my son's head, Lila begins thrusting herself outward, seemingly in an effort to stop him from using her as his pillow.

In return, my son sits up, looks at me questioningly, then looks down to my stomach. He places a small hand on me, feeling for her to move again. She does. In return, he asserts himself as the eldest and begins smacking my stomach with the palm of his hand until I'm laughing so hard that he tumbles from my lap and face first into the plush sofa.

Their first fight.

Withdrawl

To combat my blogging withdrawl (while I actually have access to the internet for the day,) I thought I'd post a few entries. I've changed the time stamp to arrange them somewhat chronologically. I think...

Office Confessions

I've been sitting at this desk in my serene sage green office for the past two hours, looking quite official and busy, but accomplishing absolutely nothing relating to my job.

As we're still living in the land of internet-limbo, these eight hours are my only connection to the cyberworld and so rather than actually working to earn the paychecks that I've stuffed into my purse, I'm sprinting through the online-universe, soaking up as much fodder as I can squish into my skull.

Oh, the things that happen in a week, throughout the blogosphere and here in my own corner of reality.

My son is still dirty knee'd and scraped and bruised from our extended trip down to visit his five cousins at my in-laws house. There are three older boys, ranging in age from 6 to nearly 3, and The Boss plays among them as though they're interested in his ranting and babbling. He chases after them with all of the vim and vigor his doughy little body can muster - mouth open, cheeks squeezed, eyes wide, he dashes towards them, smiling. Laughing. Throwing his arms in the air with an exasperated "OH!" when they come to a stop to ponder a rock or plant or insect.

My heart hurts from swelling while watching him run after happiness with such determination, such joy - recklessly, fearlessly. In watching him, I found myself torn, repeatedly. Proud. Happy. Exhilarated. Excited. But also, worried, sad and nostalgic. He's truly a boy now, no longer my baby.

So, that's one corner of things.

Maybe, I'll spend the next few hours writing and posting as I'm able to. Not that I've been living an exciting life, full of revelations and whatnot - just the usual beads along the way.

Skin

This time, it's beautiful.

I am.

In the mirror, draped in shadow and streams of light, I see this body of mine through new eyes. Like a first encounter, meeting myself in this pregnancy, in this mirror. The skin of my stomach is tight, but smooth and unmarked. No fat to pinch between my fingertips. The light spreads over my skin, milky-white and it curves, naturally around me.

I see what I wouldn't look at before, what I spent months loathing while carrying my son.

I see that this is beautiful.

I am.

This time.

Ago (Meme)

Found this at One Word while wading through a weeksworth of online reading. And, since I love me a good Meme (especially while "on the clock") I thought I'd do it myself.

10 years ago
I was starting my senior year of high school. I fall into the category of people who do not consider high school to be the highlight of their life. Wouldn't go back if I could. The thought alone makes me shudder.

5 years ago
Graduated from college and began working in the school's Alumni/ae Department. My introduction to the 9 to 5 world of florescent lighting and office coffee (swill), chatter (gossip) and politics (turnover's galore) Again, wouldn't go back if I could.

1 year ago
We were given an offer on our condo and began the process of packing up our first home to move in with my parents "only for a few months..." Famous last words.

5 songs I know all the words to
(I've changed this to be five albums that I know all of the words to. Back when I listened to music more often - re: college - I listened to entire albums repeatedly, memorizing them in the process.)
Fashion Nugget - Cake
Galore - The Cure
Surfacing - Sarah McLachlan
No Angel - Dido
Everyone Else is Doing it, So Why Can't We - The Cranberries

Also, my brain is a vault of various hymns, oldies, showtunes and (more recently collected,) songs from children's television shows.

5 snacks
Hummus
Bread
Apple butter-chocolate chip cookies
Lowfat ice cream/yogurt
Berries (blueberries and strawberries especially)

5 things I'd do with $100 million dollars
Travel
Buy a big old farmhouse
Pay off Sallie Mae
Help people
Sip coffee and write all day long (inspired, of course, by the landscape surrounding my beautiful farmhouse.)

5 places I'd run away to
Sighisoara
Squam Lake
Coffee Break Cafe
The English countryside
A secluded beach town...

5 things I'd never wear
A parachute (My fear of heights and I have no intention of ever needing one.)
Shoes that cost more than $100/pair (I almost said $50)
A thong peeking out from the top of my jeans. (So glad this trend is fading)
A string bikini (far too modest for that)
Gaucho Pants (While very comfortable, they make me look like a load. Can't do it.)

5 favorite TV shows
Arrested Development (RIP)
The Office (British and American)
House
Barefoot Contessa
Paula's Home Cooking
(and most other Food Network shows...with the exception of Emeril)

5 greatest joys
My Faith
My Husband
My Son
Feeling my daughter move within me
Friendships

5 favorite toys
Computer (When not in internet-limbo land)
Husband (Not a toy, but lots of fun)
Blocks (Hours of toddler entertainment)
Kitchen Aid Mixer (I bake when I'm bored)
Digital Camera

Argh...The Wait Continues

Thank you all for your comments and patience while I've been in transition...

We're pretty much settled in, but are still having troubles with the internet. Apparently my husband needs to crawl beneath the house to do something to the cables in order for there to be enough signal for us to use a cable modem.

I'm trying *very* hard to be patient...it is not easy. Not only is my schoolwork and "business" suffering, but I feel as though it's been a lifetime since I've been able to sit and blog...not just post an update or some pictures, but really write.

Hopefully I will return soon. In the meantime, it'll be limited to visits to other's houses and my one day a week job in an office (because, clearly, working on strictly office work for an entire eight hour stretch would be far too tedious...)

Breathing Room...

Without going into a tirade about the local cable company who (still) has yet to connect our new home to the internet, I thought I'd take advantage of my inlaw's internet access to submit a long overdue post. (It's really quite eerie how dependant on computers and the internet I've become...these past two weeks have been filled with withdrawl. I've spent my naptimes either wandering around the house looking for things to clean, or actually napping, rather than sitting down to babble here.)

Here are some pictures of our new space. After months of living with my parents, somehow the hassle of packing and moving and living (temporarily)without an internet connection seems worth it.

Absolutely.

The entrance to the master bedroom

Pretty windows

(Sliding doors in the bedroom? Really?)

A new home for The Boss