A photo journal comprised of my thoughts on motherhood and other life happenings, as well as some of professional work as a photographer. Southern California is home.
I’m so undecided about how to celebrate Hooper’s birthday. I’m not sure whether to do a friends party and a family party or just a family party. I had the same debate last year and we opted to have a very small family gathering. There’s not a lot of time to schedule two parties as Thanksgiving is just after his birthday and combining friends with family makes for a bigger celebration than our little home could handle. So the debate continues…
What I’m not debating is what to get him for his birthday. We’re not generally into the filling the toy chest game, but there are a few things he’s shown interest in and a few things I like for him. Above are some things we’re contemplating buying the little guy for his big day. The teepee is at the top of my list… seriously, how cool is that thing?
I’m behind in sharing some snippets from our Father’s Day weekend. Actually, I’m behind in a lot of things lately due to the fact we have not been living in our house. We’ve been a bit discombobulated this week, but construction on our kitchen is nearing an end and soon things will be back to normal… Until Van arrives, that is. Anyway, here’s some bits and pieces from our Father’s Day weekend.
There was card reading in bed.
Followed by book reading in bed.
Some cinnabons were consumed.
Cartoons were watched.
Afternoon beers were had.
We played in the pool.
Hooper played with janitorial items.
Hooper opened and closed the fence. Over and over.
Sarah played fetch.
Helicopters and airplanes flew overhead. Hooper pointed each and every one out.
Someone gave an abundance of daddy day hugs during his bath. Okay, he was really holding on for dear life as he suddenly hates the water poured over his head. But someone else (aka. Papa) ate it all up. So did I, hence all the photos.
Alas, the inevitable occurred. It all ended in another hug/grab on for dear life and in the end, everyone was happy.
We spent the rest of the afternoon in Santa Barbara at a family barbecue. It was a nice end to a nice day and we came home with some extra chocolate chip cookies, so you know, the day was pretty stellar.
Hooper has a new favorite word: “Papa”. It’s asked as a question of sorts in the morning: “Papa?” To which I normally answer, “Papa’s at work”, and Hooper proclaims, “ka” (aka “work”). He then ventures out of his room and proceeds to survey the house, leading me to the closed bedroom door where he once again questions “Papa?”. I open the door to prove he’s not there and then it’s on to something else. It’s no wonder he’s taken to the guy. I’m pretty smitten with him too. Hooper, soon-to-be-Van, and I… were lucky folks. I wonder when the transition will occur that our boys want nothing to do with me and everything to do with their too-cool-for-school dad. And when it does occur, looking in from the outside really won’t be so bad if it means peering in these two (soon to be three)…
Happy Father’s Day, Papa. Fatherhood sure looks good on you. Watching you as the man of the house really ruffles my feathers in the best kinda way. I love you.
And an extended Happy Father’s Day to my own dad, who will always be the man I measure others against.
Wishing all the dad’s out there a very special Father’s Day. Now man up and go do the dishes.
Mother’s Day morning started with sun shining through our window and birds chirping. Sounds dreamy, right? It was. Willy rolled over and reached to the side of his bed and handed me a beautiful handmade card with the most lovely words inside.
I felt special instantly. I unwrapped my gift and was pleasantly surprised to be the new owner of this lovely vintage dress (It appeared on my Mother’s Day gift guide here). I added it to my post pregnancy prize pack.
Then I heard the sweetest little “Ma-ma” spoken over the monitor. Willy and I rolled out of bed to find this little monster standing in his crib, ready to go.
We listened to some music while we got ready for the day and headed off to brunch at a restaurant nestled back in the Simi Valley hills with extended family. Hooper wiggled his way from person to person, entertaining everyone with a captivating game of peek-a-boo. When we arrived back home at noon, well past his usual nap time, we put Hooper down. It took him quite a while to fall asleep, but sleep he did. He didn’t make another peep until almost five o’clock. I had the luxury of taking a long nap myself, which I think my body really needed. I have a feeling the baby has dropped as I’ve been having a significant increase in pressure and have since adopted the well-known pregnancy waddle. So yes, it was nice to rest. When we were all awake, we headed to Lowes to pick out some plants.
Willy agreed to take some photos of Hooper and I without any hesitation. Another mother’s day gift. Unfortunately, a little someone did not want to cooperate.
This looks like a cute mother-son photo where the son wants to be lifted up into his mama’s arms, right?
Not the case. He’s crying because he wants to sit in the drivers seat of the car and play with all the buttons and steering wheel. This is his new favorite thing.
I tried explaining to him that today was Mother’s Day and that his mama really wanted a couple nice photos with him.
He then told me that if I wanted photos with him, that I’d have to chase him. So, I did.
And this was the result: Mama holding a crying toddler. Well, I tried.
Even Papa tried.
Nothing worked.
So I took a picture by myself instead.
I snapped a few shots of Hooper on his giraffe (I’ll share the rest soon) and we called it a wrap.
We capped the day off with dinner out, put Hooper to bed, and stayed up and watched a movie. It was lovely.
Last year was my first Mother’s Day with a baby in hand. It felt like my birthday. Not because I got lots of gifts, though I did get a few special ones, but because I woke up with that same excitement in knowing that the day was not only special, but special for me. And getting to share the day with all the other woman that make the same sacrifices and share the same struggles feels really special. Mother’s Day has become my new favorite holiday and that little boy just waking now in his crib and that little munchkin fluttering about in my belly are the reasons why. My husband and my boys are my world and today is a day for me to reflect on just how lucky and fortunate I am.
I have a few special little tidbits to share. Interspersed are some of my favorite photos of me and my little guy from his first year. Let’s get started!
An article published in Market Watch determined an average of what stay-at-home-moms would make if they were paid an annual salary for their work. That’s right, stay-at-home-moms check your mailboxes for that annual check of $113,000 for your 95 hours of work per week. Working moms can add $67,000 to their annual salaries for the additional work they do when they come home from work. Score! If only…
Next I’d like to share a wonderful “Letter to Motherhood” written by the beautiful Melissa of Dear Baby. She also writes for Babble and she posted this sweet letter some time ago. I’ve come back to it many times because it’s just so beautifully and perfectly stated. She writes:
What is motherhood but the very best chance to learn what you are made of? It will strip you down to nothing. Make you doubt yourself a thousand times. And it will make you roar with a fierceness you’ve never before seen. It will search your heart for your greatest fears and the bravest of all your intentions and set them out on display.
It breaks you. It saves you. It steals the girl you were. All of her. You’ll never sleep like her or be as carefree as she once was, but she’d never believe the courage or the selflessness she’ll one day possess in you. Motherhood replaces her with someone who understands love on a level the girl you were never could.
It’s okay to sometimes wish you could go back and live a day in her shoes. A day to bask in the decadence of irresponsibility. But if she could look forward: If she could see herself tested, how her fears have been faced, how the question “Am I strong enough to survive this?” is answered with a resounding yes, time after time. She’d feel damn proud to become the woman that awaits her.
Beautifully written, right? I couldn’t agree with her words more.
And lastly, The Giving Tree Movie, spoken by Shel Silverstein in 1973. This has always been one of my favorite books from childhood, but I’ve never been able to fully relate to it until now. Because now, as a mother, I am the giving tree. I feel like gifting each mother a nice big bucket of water to keep their leaves bountiful and their roots growing. So yes, water yourselves this Mother’s day. We all deserve it.
And a special Happy Mother’s Day wish to my own mother who always lends an open ear and always helps me keep things in perspective. I love you, mom!
Hooper eats crayons. Sure, he proceeds to spit out the wax particles but it doesn’t stop him from sticking that colorful stick in his mouth every time we go to a restaurant. That is, until we went out the other night and the waiter handed him a couple colored pencils. He attempted to take a bite, it didn’t work out, and I think he even made a line or two on the paper. What an invention those colored pencils are.
It was my mom’s birthday on Cinco de Mayo, so I broke out a few colored pencils I had in the drawer in hopes he’d draw a little something in her card. Instead, he was more interested with taking the pencils out of the container and then putting them back in. The word “interested”, by the way, is a complete and utter understatement. Check it out for yourself, the boy was absolutely enthralled. Dead concentration caught on film, or that little disc thing we call a memory card.
As a side note, Willy and I took my parents out that night to Cafe Bizou in Sherman Oaks (highly recommended to anyone in the area) and ran into Chuck McCann, the man who does nearly all the voices in animation and television. He had us going coo-coo for coco puffs in no time. He was an instant hit with Hooper and Willy and through their frequent trips outside to play, these three became quite smitten with each other.
Happy Cinco de Mayo. Hope you all are spending this beautiful Saturday with a chilled Corona and some homemade salsa. I have a few things to share, starting with this photo of Hooper @ 22 weeks in his “No Hablo” onesie. Want a onesie similar? You can find one here or here.
I also put together a special Cinco de May edition of Mamas & Tykes:
I feel very fortunate to have this weekend off to spend with my best friend and family. I hope everyone has a beautiful Sunday. Enjoy these photos of a 5 month old Hooper in his little vintage bunny romper.
