a new year

Dear Sofie

It's New Years Eve. Your first. As I type this I'm rocking you to sleep, holding you close in the darkness and feeling your little tiny bits of hair on my cheek. This time last year your dad and I were having dinner at Taj Mahal, celebrating what we knew would be one of our last dinners out for a while. This year, we're waiting for Thai food to be delievered. When you're a bit older we will carry on a tradition from my family, having a family fondue on New Years Eve. I'm excited for that.

This has been a big year for us as a family. We became parents, we bought our first house, and in a few months I will be starting my own business. I feel so fortunate and so grateful for everything that we have and all of the love and support that surrounds us.

For 2013 I hope for continued health for those we love, patience to see you through your ups and downs, some financial security for your dad and I and for a little less hate and sickness in the world.

And for you to wake up tomorrow (after a GREAT nights sleep!) with a full set of teeth.

Happy New Year.

Love Mama

unexpected

Dear Sofie

We are 3 sleeps away from your first Christmas. Your mama is feeling a wee bit emotional these past few weeks. There is so much to be grateful for and so much happiness. You are a true joy and your dad and I still find ourselves in disbelief sometimes that you are ours. It's difficult to comprehend that you will be one year old in a few short months. I wished for a daughter that was strong willed, independant, fearless and curious. And I have to say, that I'm quite certain I got what I wished for. On Wednesday, you decided that you were finished with breastfeeding. Right now you have no idea how hard it is for me to say those words and accept that this part of our relationship is over. Maybe someday you will. This is something that both of us are supposed to be gradually introduced to -weaning- not stopping cold turkey. Its hard. And excrutiatingly painful.
A wonderful doula reminded me of important advice yesterday that I seem to forget easily. She told me to follow your lead. Let go, and follow your lead. Whenever I remind myself to do that, it always gets easier. For the last 2 nights you've slept better than you have in months. You've napped too. I was so hoping this was a nursing strike. But I'm seeing that you've grown and changed a little bit. And you're telling me that you're finished. So, my dear sweet girl, thank you for sharing these beautiful 10 and a half months with me as we figured this out together. Breastfeeding has been one of the most amazing and beautiful things I have ever done. I had assumed that I would continue to nurse you well into toddlerhood because we were just so successful with this whole thing. I see you have other plans and I can respect that.

I love you. Merry Christmas Sofie.

Love Mama

what's new?

hi friends,


i've been a little quiet on the blogging front lately. we've had a lot going on and just today i've taken the time to sit down, hold this cranky teether while she sleeps (lovingly!), put my feet up and let out a huge exhale. things are really, really good. scary, overwhelmingly, wonderfully good.

we bought our first house! we tore it apart because it was gross! m.'s family put it back together! we moved in!

and at the same time, everything came together for me to open my own (small) child care centre!


can you believe it? i'm still in this weird, numb, zombie-like state. oh wait, that's probably from sofie going on a sleeping-strike, not from life. sleep deprivation stinks! big time!


but yeah, we have an awesome townhouse that we will slowly put together to make our own. and come the spring i will be opening a small child care centre in the north end of halifax! my own child care centre!

dreams. coming. true.

and outside of the general horror that is teething, sofie is completely awesome. she's so funny and is getting so big. she moves around like nobodies business, gets into everything, laughs hysterically when i say no (!) and won't sleep more than 4 hours at a time. not even if you paid her one million dollars. i'm keeping my fingers crossed for big changes once all these freaking teeth come through. in the next year or so.

hopefully more updates (with pictures) as things come together. for now, trying to unpack, decorate for christmas, do business things, and be an awesome mom to sofie. a date with my husband would also be super fantastic.


night.

dear Sofie

you are nine months old little one. i haven't taken your monthly pictures yet but will soon. nine months is a big one. the past week i feel like i have watched you grow up a little bit right in front of my eyes. you started to crawl!! you crawl around like a little turtle, bouncing your butt in the air and scooting forward and back. you pull yourself up on the table and couch. you move very cautiously and are so proud of yourself. it is amazing to watch. you also seem wiser and funnier. i catch you watching me sometimes with a thoughtful look on your face, your eyes focused on me and i would give anything to know what you're thinking! you think it is something else when i wear a hat, you get a very thoughtful look on your face and smile a sweet little smile. you also think it's hilarious to whip your hat off your head and your socks off your feet. i think it's pretty funny too.

it's a dark, rainy night in November and you and i had a long day together. you have a little bit of a cold, those miserable teeth are still trying to break through and the sleeping situation has only slightly improved. i can't believe how much i have struggled with getting you to sleep. i have to say, it has completley taken me by surprise, i am very good at getting children to sleep. i have lots of practice and i've always managed to get the most resistant children at daycare to fall asleep. but you? wow, you are making me work harder than i ever have. you've had two temper tantrums now. two full blown, out of control temper tantrums where i have had to put you in your crib, walk away and let you cry. it has broken my heart. i'd like for that not to happen anymore.

but today, despite the general yuckiness, you brought me such joy. watching you, rocking you, nursing you, going for a walk in the pouring rain, all of it. i feel like you are a little bit 'bigger' and you understand so much. you just filled my heart with love and joy today. i was dreading putting you to bed tonight after our episode last night. i decided that maybe if we can get you attached to a toy then it would make this whole process easier. so we've introduced 'ted' to you. your nana brought him to the hospital the night you were born and he's a pretty cute teddy bear. today you laughed when you saw him and when i tucked him in between us while i rocked you to sleep, you snuggled him, laid your head against him and fell asleep on my chest. it was one of the most beautiful moments i've had with you so far, and there have been so many...i feel like this may have been a milestone moment with you tonight.  i feel so lucky to have you in my life. i hope that your dad and i can create the same amount of joy for you that you are bringing us. you are so loved.

demo

wow. the demo guys were in yesterday. they tore shit apart and were finished by 3.30! on sunday when we were there 'cleaning' i got pretty overwhelmed and thought, oh god, what have we done? the place was so dirty, so smelly, and just so all around gross. but going in last night after the guys had left... we both felt an overwhelming sense of relief. how can it look better all torn apart? it even smells better. no more nasty brown carpet, filthy linoleum, rotting laminate and beat up baseboards. phwef!
we've ordered all of our flooring, our bathroom vanity and our kitchen (i'm very excited!!!!). the floors will start to go down this weekend. i'm not sure when we'll paint. when should we paint? how do you paint with a baby? it took me forever to clean the fridge with her there bopping around. but i know things will look so so so much better once we get those nasty walls covered up. oh man, i'm so excited. it's going to be so fantastic.

now, back to the election.....

gnome

It's almost Halloween. Sofie's FIRST Halloween! When I was pregnant with her I saw a picture of an adorable baby dressed up as a gnome for Halloween and I thought, oh yes, this baby of ours will need to be a gnome. Originally, I had thought we would be a family of gnomes (nerd), because how fun is that?? Seriously. But between buying a house, taking care of a baby and trying to start a small business... ummm... there's been no time for costumes. Other than Sofies, of course.

So here she is. My mom made her the little tunic before she left, I attached the beard and Matthew & I constructed her little hat. I've been trying to knit her a red gnome hat and I'm a bit disappointed in myself that I couldn't manage to finish it. But please refer to above as to why I had to give up on knitting. And Sofie not sleeping for the last month hasn't done much for me or my eyeballs.

We dressed her up and took her down to the market yesterday for a pumpkin festival and kids costume contest. She loved seeing the other kids and fell asleep on the walk home. Success! Happy Halloween!!

8 months

happy 8 months baby girl

made

i made this baby doll quilt for sofie following the pattern in anna maria horners book, handmade beginnings. i adore this book. my mom has been busy over the summer making sofie all kinds of things from it, including edward, pictured on the right all wrapped up in his quilt.i'm not sure if i have more patience, if i'm more focused, or what, but since having sofie my knitting and sewing projects have been turning out really well. i love making things for her and i'm so proud of this quilt. stay tuned for pics of her ridiculously adorable halloween costume!!

library

dear sofie,

last friday we went to our first, 'babys 1st books' group at the library in halifax. you LOVED it. there were about 15 babies there, lots of toys on a big mat to play with and we sang songs and clapped our hands. we can go every friday morning until the end of november. we've just returned from the second session and i'm pretty sure you think this program is the best thing in life right now. aside from when dad comes home from work. that always makes you smile and squeal with delight. today you watched as mary-jane read a book about animals, she commented that you were the only baby paying attention to each page. you played with the toys and watched the other babies. this has quickly become one of my favourite things to do with you. it's so amazing for me too, to be there with you as your mom, not as an ECE that is putting on the circle. i like it. we hung around after the group and took out your very first library books! once i get your halloween costume finished, next on my list is a library bag for you, and it was a beautiful fall day for a walk today. it's a good friday sweet babe.

Sofies first library books and library card

Watching the big kids play

7 months

7 months old!

dear Sofie

It's 8.30pm on a Sunday and I am getting ready for bed. I haven't been writing to you nearly as much as I would like, and I haven't even put your 7 month old pictures on here yet. Almost 2 months ago you stopped sleeping like a champion and it is kicking my ass. And your dads ass too. I just want you to know that. We are zombies. It's inexplicable. You've started eating solid food and you love it. Pears and apples are your favourite! You eat vegetables too, so far you've eaten everything that we've introduced to you. And today we think you drank water from a cup, it was hard to tell if it was water or just drool. We'll keep practicing that one. You are such an amazing girl Sofie. We just love you so much. You are so happy and curious and strong and funny. People stop us every day to comment on how happy and beautiful you are. You also got TWO teeth at the same time! It was a miserable 3 weeks for us all, but they're here now and we think your top one is coming as well. And your hair is growing. You are changing so much, every day. It is amazing to watch and I am so happy to be your mama. I just think you're the best. Night night little girl. Please for the love of God sleep longer than a 3 hour stretch tonight. Please.

We bought you a pumpkin hat today. Because yesterday was the first day of Autumn and Autumn is my favourite.

feel inside

so freakin good ....

september

autumn is coming. my favourite season. right now i am excited about and grateful for:

+ getting out hand knit blankets for early morning snuggles

+ a rainy day 

+ squash roasting in the oven and making everything smell good

+ fresh peas cooling to become baby food

+ pizza dough rising on the counter

+ my mom coming for the weekend

+ planning halloween costumes

dear Sofie

Today we went to the doctor for your 6 month check up. I am happy to tell you that you continue to be one healthy girl. It's no secret that you are a tad on the chubby side, but let me tell you, this is a good thing. The doctor said you are strong, smart, curious, and happy. You weigh 18.7 pounds and are 27 inches long. I was thinking you were around 20 pounds, so I'm happy to hear you are a bit less. We were starting to worry that we would have to buy you a new car seat soon. You got your 6 month needles and barley batted an eye. I held your legs and sang the itsy bitsy spider to you. You smiled at me and laughed, got mildly irritated when he stuck you with the needle but then went back to making your happy baby sounds. You are a star little one.
As we were getting ready to leave he commented on your head size. You do have a large head, seemingly this appears to be the only thing so far that you've inherited from me. You are the spitting image of your dad. The doctor began to suggest that this may be a concern, perhaps there was swelling in your head? He asked again if big heads run in the family. I said yes, we call it the Farris head, me, your Papa and Uncle Matt have large ones. He decided to measure your mama's head, 'just for fun' and confirmed what I have always known. Huge head. Your mamas head is 59 cm around, apparently this is a lot, 'bigger than most mens' (?) and off the charts as they only measure to 57. So I guess I am some sort of freak. I apologize if I've passed this onto you. I don't see hats in your future. But this is how happy you've been for the last few days. You are amazing.

6 months

dear Sofie

as i type this you are asleep on my chest. exactly 6 months ago, at just about this time, you were born. your dad and i talked about that day today and looked at pictures. it's amazing how much you have grown and changed in 6 months. you make us so happy and grateful and we love you so very much. happy 6 months baby girl

dear Sofie

It's 2.30am and I am wide awake. In the last hour I have checked on you 4 times. For the record, you are sleeping peacefully in your crib.

This past month has been a strange one, you stopped sleeping through the night and have woken up crying almost every night. This is very unusual for you. The exceptions to this have been hotel stays: 2 nights in Saint John, NB and 2 nights in PEI where you slept like a champion? Maybe you're like your parents and love staying in hotels. Anyway, the nights haven't gotten any easier and for the past week you've been sleeping in our bed with us. I don't mind this at all, we both get good nights sleep. And I love snuggling with you and waking up to your huge blue eyes staring at me. But I've been worried about never being able to get you back into your crib ever.

Up until now I've just put you to sleep with nothing in the crib. I've been terrified of you suffocating on a blanket or bumper pad or your pajamas, or anything really. But you look so lonely in that big crib. And did I mention you haven't been sleeping and I'm officially exhausted? So tonight I put you to sleep with a warm blanket that your nana made for you (I know it's almost August and all of this defies logic, the blanket probably would have been helpful in March, but you were sleeping then). And like magic, you are peacefully asleep. This is the first night in a month that you haven't already woken up twice and it didn't take me 5 attempts to initially get you to sleep. You love that blanket. Each time I go in to check on you, you are snuggled up with that thing. But you are freaking me out because it's so close to your face that I have to gently pull it back so that I can see your nose.

God I'm tired. Sleep tight with your magic blanket Sofie. Since I'm awake I think I'll have a snack....

dear sofie

I want to record your milestones. That's one of the reasons why I write you these posts. Someday I will re-format them, print them off, and put them in your baby book. Speaking of, your baby book arrived in the mail last week and it is beautiful! Unfortunately, it made me feel like a bit of a delinquent parent because I haven't recorded a number of things: your first smile - I know it happened almost immediately, but your first 'true' smile? I'm not sure. Somewhere between your 2nd and 3rd month, is that good enough? I hope so.

Which brings us to last night. I'm pretty sure your dad and I experienced your first temper tantrum. You were wild last night. Around 6.45pm I started our regular evening routine. Bath followed by nursing in the rocking chair. At 8pm you were asleep in my arms and I walked you into your room. I rocked you for 5 minutes. From there, I have no idea what happened, but you woke up and didn't stop screaming until you passed out at 11.15pm. You have never done anything like that before. I tried every single thing in my arsenal of tactics and there was no stopping you. I've never had you scream that much and not be able to calm you down. You were kicking your legs and banging your fists like a 2 year old. I honestly didn't know babies could do that. And you pulled out some new cries too. From the sound and intensity of them, you.were.pissed.

So what the hell happened Sofie? Were you over-tired? Teething? Too hot? followed by too cold? Hungry? Not hungry? All of the above?

All I know is that I'm exhausted today and hoping to god that never happens again. Do you hear me? That shits not cool little one.

Love,
Mama.

dear sofie

One day I will read you all of these books. And when you're older the three of us will most definitely take a trip to Paris. It is one of your dads and my favourite places in the world. And exploring the city with you sounds absolutely magical. Plus, you'll need to practice your french miss Sofie Eloise.

Love, Mama.

how to draw a penguin

I stumbled upon Oliver Jefferes a few years ago while book shopping in Chapters. 'Lost and Found' quickly became one of my all-time favourite children's books. Since then, we have been building our Jefferes library for Sofie. We now have these lovely jems as well ::

His books are funny and heart-warming and great fun to read to kids. Here is a fun bit he did on how to draw a penguin.

5 months.

It is July and you are 5 months old. We are in full swing summer. I can hardly believe it.


Things I know about you so far ::
+ your favourite songs are Skinamarink & Eensy Weensy Spider
+ you love walks, you love looking up at trees
+ you are quiet & and contemplative first thing in the morning
+ you have a great sense of humor
+ you smile with your whole face
+ you do not like to be put up high in the air
+ you can roll over, although usually you get stuck on your belly and cry. This morning you did a full roll in your crib
+ you can sit up with me supporting you. You love to grab for things from this position
+ your hair is growing! it looks white blonde and light red
+ you make noises constantly - babbling, squealing, screeching, laughing, you have a lot to say

happy, happy 5 months with you Sofie-girl.

I love this post about childhood.

friday.

The weekend is here! What is everyone up to? The weather report looks less than appetizing, unfortunately. But M's family is coming for the weekend and our dear friends are having a baby celebration on Sunday, so really, I couldn't be happier.

+ I picked up one of these yesterday (and yes, I bought the owl print!). One of the most surprising things I've learned since Sofie is that labels & sizes mean nothing! Her size one diapers are' suggested' to fit until 9 months. Ha! She's not even 5 months yet and I'm pushing it to the max. Does anyone else find cloth diapers so confusing? There are far too many options. Already I forget everything from my millionth tutorial yesterday at Fiddleheads. Or maybe I'm just a dummy?

+ speaking of growing, Sofie needs an entire new wardrobe. Me too... *sigh*

+ ha! this story made me laugh

+ really eager to see this new Wes Anderson. He's so dreamy. The last weeks before Sofie was born we were dying to go to the movies and nothing was playing. NOTHING. Since February there have been at least 4 that I would love to see at the theatre... ah, irony.

+ I'm so excited for first batches of zuchinnis at the market, growing my own pea shoots, waiting patiently for my radishes and mojitos. that IS what I bought the mint plant for.

+ I joined this group, Breastfeeding Community of Practice. I'm pretty excited to be part of something new and contribute to the dialogue in NS around breastfeeding. I've met so many amazing mamas and doulas since having Sofie. The support has been amazing.

Happy Weekend!

celebrations

it's my b-day and i'm 34 today. it's also fathers day. my amazing husband is celebrating his first papa's day. we have much to celebrate this year.... 

she's pretty spectacular!

4 months

Sofie turned four months old yesterday! Our photo shoot didn't go so well. I think I'll start taking her monthly photos when she's in a good mood, not necessarily on the exact day. 3 out of 4 months she's been cranky on the 6th, go figure.

craft

first craft project since Sofie!

spring.

Dear Sofie,

It's been three and a half months of us spending our days together. You are getting so big and changing each day, it is truly amazing to watch and experience. Two week ago you started smiling with your whole face. You break into a grin, your face and eyes light up and you giggle with pure joy. Sometimes you have to look away because I think you are just too happy, too excited. It's unreal. Yesterday you started staring at strangers and doing this. We didn't get too far on our walk because people kept stopping to talk to you. You are pure joy.

Some of your favourite things these days are: staring up at trees and leaves from your stroller when we walk. We are having a stunning spring in Halifax, which is practically unheard of. I'm happy to say you are taking it all in. You haven't been napping as much during the day, I think because you are too interested in what's happening around you. You also love being naked and practicing your rolling on the floor. You can roll over on your side. You love this. You love squealing and your dad and I love listening to you.



We love you Sofie.

mama's day

I'm really excited for a first mothers day. I'm excited to spend the day just doing normal things with my little family. We have the car share booked for the morning, which will include a trip to TIBS for breakfast (perfect day for indulging in a delicious buttery croissant) then onto Kent to pick up some soil for my garden. Then home to do some planting on the terrace, the weather looks like it will be a nice day. Followed by an afternoon walk on the waterfront with a stop into Sugah! for half price ice cream! their ice cream is half priced all weekend for Open City festivities! Yum! So basically I'll spend the day eating and gardening. Perfect.

mother and child

albert groenheyde

Happy Weekend!

3 months

Dear Sofie,

You turned 3 months old a few days ago. 3 months! I remember the first few weeks with you thinking, I just need to make it to 3 months. Once we get to 3 months things will make sense. And now we are here and you are going through another growth spurt and I'm realizing it's not different at all from those first few weeks. You still cry the same way, I'm just better at figuring out what you need. And in between your crying periods, you smile. Today we sat for 45 minutes and I talked non-sense to you, just to keep you from a)fussing, b)screaming, c)nursing. It worked. You looked up at me and smiled and I talked and talked about nothing in particular. Sometimes in a French accent. Today you wanted to be fed every half hour. It was hard and it was a lot. It started last night at 2.30am and I just put you down to bed at 8.30pm. I'm hoping and hoping that you stay asleep for a good solid few hours. I'm so tired and my boobs are so sore.

We went to our breastfeeding support group today and you smiled at your other baby friends. There was an 8 day old baby there. That was how old you were when we went to our first group. As soon as I walked through the door on that day 3 months ago I burst into tears because I was having such a hard time feeding you and I just needed someone to help and make it easier. I love going to this group and talking to these women. I'm so thankful that it's close and you and I can easily walk there. Today it stopped pouring rain just long enough for us to get there and back. And as I was putting you to sleep this evening I realized how seemingly bizarre and also completely normal one of the conversations today was. We were talking about nursing around the clock and the wear and tear that it has on your body. I couldn't tell you how much water I've drank in the last day, how ravenously hungry I am all the time (even when I just finish dinner, all I can think about is, what's next?) and how worn out my body feels. Someone mentioned using coconut oil on your nipples to soothe them and the conversation quickly turned to the many uses of coconut oil including hand moisturizer and oil for cooking. And as I was rocking you tonight I thought how coocoo that would sound to some people. I envisioned your dad reaching for the tub of coconut oil now on our counter by the stove and stopping to think, wait, what has Jill used this for today? Seems totally normal to me but I'm sure not so to many. Maybe on par with having a placenta in your freezer? While mine was never in our freezer, I did get to see it after your birth. The nurse held it up for us to see and explained how it functioned and it was truly amazing to see.  I wonder what you'll think when you're older?

I love you little girl. I love you so much. Especially on days when you make me work so hard for a smile or a giggle.

Love Mama.

growing pains

On the night that I ended up going into labour, we put our first offer in on a house. Sofie was 6 days overdue and I was sure we still had another long week ahead of us with no baby. So it seemed reasonable to try to buy our first house. Naturally. After inspections and lots of back and forths with a 4 day old baby, that offer eventually fell apart. I wish I had been keeping track of how many times since then Sofie has gone to look at houses. She's kind of a pro now. I'm not sure if anyone else is trying to buy in Halifax right now but it is crazy. We've been outbid on every offer we've made, and every property we've seen has sold over asking, usually with multiple offers on them. It's a bit discouraging, to say the least. We're just looking for a place for this girl. Even though I know she'll be happy and amazing no matter where she is.

Wish us luck tonight!

creativity.

I am a lucky lady. Today I had the privledge of hearing Sir Ken Robinson speak right here in Halifax. He was the keynote speaker in a 2 day conference on Emergent Learning and Education for the 21st century. It was fabulous and so inspiring. I am hoping Sofie absorbed every bit of knowledge, hope, optimism and ingenuity from the almost 2 hours that he spoke. We quietly sat on the floor, in the back of the room, and I held her and nursed her for the first time ever in public. She was wonderful for the entire time. I felt lucky to be her momma and excited for the day when I can  hear her tell me her ideas and how she sees the world. What a great experience today was.

I've posted his TED talk before, but here it is again.

weight.

One of my favourite songs of all time. A great version of it. Growing up I always thought it was 'take a load off Fanny' and it was some reference to J.D. Salinger.

What a loss.

crunchy.

We are approaching 11 weeks with Sofie and things couldn't be better. She is such a beauty and a wonderful, happy baby. I love spending my days with her, we have adjusted into a really nice schedule without even realizing it. The latest development is that she wakes up from her afternoon nap around 4pm and sits in her bouncy chair laughing and cooing, watching me make dinner. I love being in the kitchen and having her there with me. I secretly hope she grows up to be a chef, a vegan chef would be spectacular!

My window for cooking time is still quite small, but just getting to this point feels great, and knowing that it will just get better and better. And speaking of cooking and eating, I decided to start slowly introducing cheese back into my diet and it's going really well. I don't think Sofie has any food sensitivities (phwef!). We just had a bumpy start for that first month. I still have a bunch of vegan recipes I want to try and I really love having a balance of vegetarian and vegan meals. This weekend I hope to try Pumpkin Seed Lentil burgers.

Yesterday I made a homemade granola bar/square recipe. I ate a ton of these while I was pregnant because they are so darn healthy (and delicious). It's a bit pricey up front for all of the ingredients. But I get a 9x9 pan out of these. And I picked all the nuts up at Bulk Barn and ended up getting enough for 3 batches. Here is the improvised recipe taken from Vive le Vegan:

1 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup toasted pecans (or walnuts)
1/2 cup toasted almond slivers (or whole almonds)
1/4 to 1/3 cup raisins
3 T flax seeds
1/4 to 1/3 cup honey
2 T cashew or almond butter
1 t molasses
1/4 t cinnamon
1/4 t salt

* toast nuts at 400 for a few minutes. they burn easily, be careful, nuts are expensive!
* i like to add around 1/3 cup chocolate chips for fun

In large bowl, combine nuts, seeds, raisins, flax. In saucepan over med-low heat, combine honey, molasses, nut butter, cinnamon & salt. Stir until just heated through, not boiling. Remove from heat and add to dry mixture. Stir well, transfer to lightly oiled dish. Press it down so it's compact. Put in the fridge until set. They cut pretty easily into bars or squares.

You can see a picture of mine on my tumblr blog, just click on the right. Enjoy!

seuss

love this picture by Dr. Seusss from 1925! see more right here on this beautiful website.

earth.

I've posted about this project before, One Day on Earth, and I'm stoked to see that they are finally screening the film this Earth Day. Spend 7 minutes watching this video, it's awesome.



One Day on Earth the music video - by Cut Chemist from One Day on Earth on Vimeo.

Dear Sofie,

We're your parents,

2008.

and we love you.

awake.

papas.

what a beauty. found here.

healthy.

A month ago I cut almost all dairy out of my diet. Not a true vegan, I'm still eating butter on occasion and foods with milk ingredients in them. I thought it may help Sofie with her colicky days and sensitive tummy. I've always been a healthy eater, being a vegetarian now for 19 years (!) and really enjoying cooking and trying new recipes. I read cookbooks like they're novels.

A month in, and I've never been eating healthier. Until recently I had never eaten kale, I tried it two or three times but was completely intimidated by it and turned off. It has quickly become a staple in our home and I'm eager to try new recipes with it. I've also always wanted to be drinking 'green' smoothies with crazy ingredients like spinach and garlic and swiss chard, but again, have been completely intimidated. But I've just taken stock of what I've eaten in the last 24 hours and am kind of amazed and impressed with myself. I'm also shocked at how relatively easy it is to incorporate vegan recipes into our lives. I have two great cookbooks that I would recommend to anyone, 'Vive Le Vegan' and 'Get it Ripe', my husband is a superstar at whipping up some of the recipes in there. Having a newborn has kept me from cooking.. a big adjustment for me. But I sit and feed her while M. makes us dinner and that's pretty nice too. So I just wanted to share some of the yummy stuff we've been snacking on:

last night's dinner: soba kale noodles from Get it Ripe and a thai cucumber salad from my friend Alexis' blog (not vegan, but you could omit the fish sauce. also we don't have dulse powder or arame so we omit that)

breakfast: 12 grain bread from Juliens with almond butter

snack: leftover soba noodles from last night & a ' green monster' smoothie

lunch: vegan protein burrito (I added 2 handfuls of kale)

snack: black bean dip & nachos

dinner: sweet potato & black bean burritos with cumin brown rice. this is my recipe that I've adapted and fine tuned. They are one of my favourite things to eat.

I feel like my body is sucking up every ounce of goodness and nutrition and I feel great putting all of these healthy and whole foods into not only my body, but Sofie's as well. Because I'm not sure if you've noticed, but breastfeeding is going very well for her. She's a beefcake. A delicious one.

Happy Eating!

my daughter

Some of my favourite pictures from the last 6 weeks. We are so in love with her.

saturday.

right now, i am:

smelling: spring in the air!

loving: sofie falling asleep on my chest under a hand knit blanket made by her momma

thinking: new furniture, planting gardens, growing babies

listening: new shins!

eating: carbs, grains, carbs, protein, did i mention carbs?

watching: sofie change and grow every day

feeling: more and more like a momma everyday, not just a caregiver. this one is ours!

grateful: healthy baby. loving family. wonderful friends. beautiful home. so much.

one month.