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| Playing in the shade. |
This is my new favorite photograph of Halle. I love the light in her eyes and the two dimples above her mouth. I love her little-chick tufts of fine brown hair interspersed with gold.
Today we're up early. It's always hard at first to meet the day before sunrise (even with a roly-poly smile machine for company) but by 5:45, coffee percolating and breakfast close behind, I'm grateful for the early wake-up calls. For one thing, my breakfasts have improved: homemade granola with yogurt and roasted blackberries, whole wheat waffles with blueberries, peanut butter and syrup. But it also affords me a little extra time with Halle before I go to work--and she goes back to sleep--and, if I play my cards right, time to do this. Write. Think. Do projects. Starting next Tuesday Tom and I will get up at 5am at least twice a week to go for family walk/jogs, followed by family breakfasts. Morning is such a beautiful, quiet, empty time. Time to fill it up with pleasure.
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| Some serious reading. |
Halle has changed a great deal since my last posting in May. She has a throaty giggle. She rolls over (to the left). She often sleeps on her side, one leg flung over the co-sleeper onto our bed. She grabs toys and drinks water from our cups. She eats bananas, brown rice cereal, mashed potatoes, and beets, with varying degrees of preference and interest. This Sunday I'll make applesauce and we'll try that. We've discovered that Halle loves nature: trees, flowers, shadows, birds, cats, dogs, light. She tentatively runs chubby fingers through the grass before plunging her face into it. Last Sunday she met two llamas, who were far less delighted than she to make acquaintance. Perhaps my favorite new habit of Halle's is the way she opens her mouth really wide when excited, like she's going to eat your nose or the nearest available toy. In fact, yesterday she put my whole nose in her mouth. Which if you've seen my nose is quite a feat.
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| Being silly in Boston. |
Working and being a mom is difficult, but I think I'm gaining some sort of stride and balance. At least I'm not collapsing in tears each night under a pile of dirty laundry and strained beets (though I did scrape a sizable amount of dried rice cereal off of my neck last night, and my feelings about being peed on are becoming, shall we say, laissez-faire). This past month has been especially nice because Tom's been home most evenings and on the weekends. Since we're about to launch into the next 10-month theatre season, I've been soaking up--and attempting to take advantage of--his presence in the house. Guess who's
making dinner buying pizza tonight?
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| Spending a chill Father's Day at the beach. |
I don't want to make life sound idyllic, because it's not. But it's just been so much brighter these last six months. And that's something to get up for.
