tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152673582024-03-17T22:43:02.560-07:00Kambam AdventuresMy life, three things at a timekambamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390506887598606797noreply@blogger.comBlogger424125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-2367933615152188292019-01-07T22:53:00.001-08:002019-06-26T14:16:58.859-07:003 Visits to Utah<p dir="ltr">We went to Utah three times in 2018</p>
<p dir="ltr">1. Summer<br>
Really, Utah in July was a pit stop on the way to our family reunion in Idaho, but it did have its own fun. We went to the Provo Independence Day Parade, which I grew up goinf to almost every year of my childhood. It was hotter than I remember, with less candy, and I'm second-guessing how fun parades are in general, but afterward we swam at a pool nearby and had pizza for lunch, so it was all very American. Porter hiked several peaks, I visited some friends, but the highlight of it all was Uncle Rob's 60th birthday. It was a luau and everyone on mom's side was there. Highlights include a Rob themed game Family Feud, catching up with cousins I rarely see, and everyone taping dollar bills to Rob and lifting him up in a chair. He loved it (who wouldn't), and his reaction to everything made everything doubly rewarding. </p>
<p dir="ltr">2. Fall<br>
We bought a minivan! Turns out there are more minivans on the market in Utah, driving down the price. Plus, Utah in October is delightful. I got what I wanted out of a van (it's not silver or gray, has dual climate control and third row seats that fold down for a mega trunk), and we've so far convinced Jamie that the build in DVD player only works after at least five hours of driving and after he has napped in the car. </p>
<p dir="ltr">3. Winter<br>
Christmas in Utah is just lovely. Aside from the hassle of cramming gifts and snow gear into carryon bags (too cheap to pay for checked bags!), everything else about the trip was merry and bright. I saw a bunch of mission friends who I love with this deep part of my heart I forget exists until I see them. We went sledding twice (once with my mom, once with Porter's), then it snowed the last few days we were there (but not so much it was hard to get around). We saw a Christmas light show with Scott and Joy, saw the lights at Temple Square Christmas Day night (say fewer crowds!), and listened to Christmas music all day every day. My mom has mountains of Christmas decorations (several of which I tried to get her to let me steal from her, unsuccessfully) and is filled with Christmas cheer. My dad carved me an Ivory Soap Jesus. It was a perfect holiday. </p>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-77216184042600487192019-01-07T21:55:00.001-08:002019-01-07T21:55:46.380-08:003 Favorite Books I Read in 2018<p dir="ltr">I read 35 books in 2018! That somehow feels like both a lot and barely any, especially when I look at how many books there are I have never read. There's probably some obscure word in Japanese for the anxiety of not being able to read all the books one wants to read. If not, there should be. </p>
<p dir="ltr">I may have read more than 35, but I rated 35 on Goodreads. Sometimes I forget to update, and I don't ever add the romance books I read unless they are unusual or unforgettable (the ones I read are usually neither, but I like them anyway). </p>
<p dir="ltr">Looking over the list, it's hard to pick favorites. None knocked me off my feet quite like Tell the Wolves I'm Home last year, but several really stuck with me. Like a good, solid meal. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>1. Pachinko</b> <br>
This hit a few major boxes for me: <br>
-Sweeping, multi-generational (four generations, multiple perspectives from each generation) <br>
-A time and/or place I have never thought about (Japanese people of Korean descent through most of the 1900s??)<br>
-Pulled off an omniscient narrator. This is impossible, but <u>Min</u> Jin Lee got you inside almost everyone's heads, sometimes even within the same paragraph, and still it felt personal </p>
<p dir="ltr">I couldn't tell you now what my takeaways from the book were, but I enjoyed it immensely. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>2. Fates and Furies</b><br>
Among the more literary and pretentious books I read a bunch of this year, Fates and Furies was fascinating. It was a microscope on a single relationship over the course of each person's life, the first half from his perspective, the second half from hers. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>3. Year of Wonder or Caleb's Crossing, both by Geraldine Brooks</b><br>
Year of Wonder is set in a small English town during the Plague. Caleb's Crossing follows the friendship between a white Puritan girl and Native American <u>boy</u> in Martha's Vineyard and Boston. </p>
<p dir="ltr">Both got me thinking about places and eras I never have before, both had strong, complex women as narrators. Both had me wishing I could have experienced life centuries ago (not that I'd want to be near the plague or the destruction of Native American civilization). </p>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-84806960555724518162018-12-02T19:45:00.000-08:002019-01-07T21:01:19.410-08:00Book Series: 3 Books on Growing up in Poverty<p dir="ltr">I recently inadvertently read three memoirs in a row that dealt were accounts of individuals who were raised in poverty by eccentric parents, who broke the cycle and ended up well-adjusted, successful adults.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>1. Educated by Tara Westover</b><br>
Tara grew up in SE Idaho in a survivalist family. They weren't so much poor as off the grid, paranoid about the government, and abusive. </p>
<p dir="ltr">The backdrop is beautiful, but what I thought Westover pulled off so well was her psychological journey. The innocence of her childhood, not questioning her crazy family and upbringing was clearly drawn as was the painful process of recognizing, then finally standing up for herself. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>2. Hillbilly Elegy </b><b><u>by</u></b><b> JD Vance</b><br>
Hillbilly Elegy follows JD through the hills of Appalachian Kentucky and Ohio. His dad was gone, his mom on drugs (like most of the people he knew), so he was raised by his tough as nails grandmother. He goes on become a Yale educated <u>lawyer</u></p>
<p dir="ltr">Vance describes a culture in crisis: addiction, lack of opportunity, and a fierce competitiveness and loyalty to the culture circling the drain. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>3. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls</b><br>
Jeanette grew up with an entrepreneur turned unemployed turned drunk father, and quirky, enabling mother. </p>
<p dir="ltr">It was hearbreaking to read about the transition from Jeanette as a little girl in poverty who doesn't know any better to a young woman deeply disappointed in her parents, then flying the roost. </p>
<p dir="ltr">A few takeaways from the series:<br>
-People really can screw up their kids, big time. It is terrible to see how profoundly the weaknesses of parents (addiction, mental illness, general selfishness) mess a kid up forever. <br>
-On the other hand, kids really are resilient. At some point, each of these writers comes to grip with the fact that the failings of their parents are unrelated to them as kids. They each show a lot of grace and forgiveness, which makes me wonder if that is an element of their success or possibly a byproduct of writing a good story. (They say writing is therapy. You have to give parents full fair treatment) <br>
-For each person, there were helpers along the way who gave Tara, JD, and Jeanette opportunities their parents otherwise kept from them. Teachers, religious and community leaders, extended family, siblings even. <br>
-Each of the parents, for all their flaws, taught very fiercely the lesson: YOU CAN DO ANYTHING. I have to think that lesson, even without much other parental support, was received and internalized by the children, each of whom went on to be very successful. </p>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-89298844708929616812018-12-02T19:35:00.001-08:002019-01-07T21:18:04.450-08:003 Ways to Use Old Hard Rice<p dir="ltr">I used to hate rice. After coming home from Thailand I literally didn't eat it for a year. At some point, something changed and now I could eat jasmine rice by the spoonful, like ice cream. Leftover rice, though, is not so good. It's crunchy and dry, it never soaks up the good stuff (whatever it is that's ladled over it) like it should.</p>
<p dir="ltr">So here's what I like to do with my leftovers:</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>1. Fried rice</b><br>
Every Asian country seems to do it differently. I never cared for fried rice from Chinese restaurants (or the Safeway Chinese counter), but homemade Chinese style fried rice can be excellent. First saute onions and garlic, then add hard veggies like carrots or broccoli, bell peppers or green beans, corn or peas. Add rice and stir it all up, then add sauce last. I've started experimenting with making my own stir fry sauces and like best ones with soy sauce, hoisin sauce, mirin, and ginger. When it's all combined garnish with green onions, cilantro, and lime</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>2. Rice pudding</b><br>
Because it makes spoonfuls of jasmine rice even more like ice cream. There is no end to how you can customize it. I'm partial to simply cinnamon or banana flavor, but recently saw a recipe for rice pudding with raspberries and pistachios. <br>
Add equal parts rice and milk, and heat until it's all creamy (20-30 minutes on a stove top, less in an instant pot, more in a slow cooker) </p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>3. Congee/jok/rice porridge</b> <br>
Thai style is with mushroom and ginger, garnished with little bit of vinegar and cilantro or green onions. You <u>can</u> add chicken, pork, seafood, peanuts. Basically cover the rice and whatever you want to cook with it with stock and simmer until it all breaks down. Great for a cold, winter day. </p>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-32494778195546370852018-12-02T17:11:00.000-08:002018-12-02T17:11:02.846-08:003 Things I'm Proud of TodayI bought a meditation cushion this year. I laugh, a bit embarrassed, when I tell people. It's mostly orange (for courage) and has an Anasazi pattern on the seat. It's filled with hemp seeds and was sold to me by a guy who was wearing a tunic, greeted me with a namaste bow, and either has had work done or had the glow of someone who doesn't eat meat, sugar, or anything processed. <br /><br />I got the cushion as a way of committing myself to a better meditation practice. I had visions of making a meditation corner, complete with vision board, my cushion, maybe some candles and diffused essential oils. I haven't made my corner yet, but my cushion is pulled out a lot, and not just as a stage for my son. Since my monkey brain still gets distracted if I sit in silence, I downloaded an app with a bunch of guided meditations (called Meditation Studio, if you're interested). Some help you calm for sleep, connect you with you senses, alleviate pain or stress. I listened to one today that was a pep talk. Among other things, the voice told me how awesome I am and how important it is to acknowledge the things we are proud of. <br /><br />Three things I'm proud of, today:<br /><b>1. I finished my book.</b><br /><br />I technically finished it a year ago, but it keeps getting better. It could be crap, though, and I'd still be proud of the fact that I finished.<div>
<br /><b>2. I thought of writing it in the first place</b><br /><br />Funny thing to be proud of, maybe, but I am. Not everyone would think of it. Not everyone would care. I did, and I do.</div>
<div>
<br /><b>3. I'm ready to publish it</b><br />Like I said, it keeps getting better. More than that, I've been working on the confidence to bring something important to me into the world. Some people don't have the hangups I do about making private things public, lucky them. But my hangups are shrinking. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
2019 is going to be a fun/scary/exciting/terrifying year </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
:) :| :O</div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-72586517668473019082018-06-15T17:27:00.000-07:002018-06-21T14:12:30.483-07:003 Thoughts on STUFFLast week I saw this video entitled <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AhSNsBs2Y0&feature=share">A Cluttered Life: Middle Class Abundance</a>. It's a super interesting 20 minutes and got me thinking, as I do frequently, about STUFF. The video talks about researchers who went into a number of middle class homes and documented every single item in the building, and then talked to the homeowners all about it. A few highlights:<br />
<br />
1. We have rituals built into our lives to acquire things, but not to get rid of them.<br />
Birthdays, Christmas, Mother's/Fathers Day, new school year, new seasons, new interests... All bring things into our lives, but aside from a vague notion of Spring Cleaning or if you happen to be moving, we don't impose decluttering in any sort of regular way. I almost always have a bin in my home - a purge pile of sorts. My preference is that I wait until it is overflowing (a month or so) and then put it into the trunk of my car, where it can sit for another couple months and I can change my mind about the things I thought I wanted to get rid of (Purgatory, you may call it). Finally, it can go to a donation center. Porter, for better or worse, sees any open bin and it is out in his car and to the drop-off in a day. Sometimes he just takes things from the home he thinks are useless and I'll find them in his car just in the nick of time. Who knows how many things I haven't caught in time!<br />
RESOLUTION: Get rid of stuff. Regularly. Some people have a 'One thing in, One thing out' rule, which I'm up for, at least in theory<br />
<br />
2. Most STUFF belongs to kids<br />
It's no surprise. Toys, clothes and supplies have a gravitational pull. It's easy enough to get rid of stuff that is broken or worn out, but if I'm not sentimental about it, my kid is, and if no one is I think 'maybe the next baby will want/use this' so we end up with bins of items that aren't being used and really we don't know if/how they will be used in the future, so they just sit. There's certainly a financial aspect to it. I've read a number of criticisms of the minimalist movement that point out how economic privilege is so often a factor in going minimal. I save old crap so I don't have to buy it again. But then again, if you're minimal in all ways, you're likely saving enough money that you could buy it again later if you need to.<br />
<br />
3. My current <i>stuff</i> mantra: Own it if you love it, only if you love it<br />
It's a mantra I often use when shopping. I'm a sucker for a deal and am prone to buying things because they are on sale or for perceived value. When traveling something seems so cool in the context of travels but is a dust collector at home. At thrift/consignment/antique/craigslist sales, something seems one of a kind and priced so much less than they would had it been new that I get duped into buying it. On the other hand, I'm a tightwad and hate spending money in general. So I have to remind myself that it's okay to buy something if I'm crazy about it, but if I'm not crazy about it, it's probably not worth it. So it should go for decluttering. If I love it, I should keep it, even if no one else gets it. If I don't (or someone in my family, I guess they should get a say too), then it should go.<br />
<br />
This should be simple...right?<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-91101919950938744622018-06-15T16:55:00.003-07:002018-06-15T16:55:35.765-07:003 Tips for International Travel with a Newborn<div>
Traveling internationally with an infant is possible! My best friend got married two months after Beau was born. IN CHINA. I, of course, am not one to pass up a life moment of a love one NOR an opportunity to board a jumbo jet, so I promised her immediately upon her announcing her engagement that, assuming we were all of sound health mentally and physically, I would be there.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
This is how:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>1. Plan ahead for necessary documentation</b></div>
<div>
Birth certificate</div>
<div>
Birth certificates take a weird amount of time to get processed. While pregnant, I called both the hospital where I'd be giving birth and the County Recorder to get an idea of timeline. While no one could give me anything concrete about how many days it actually would take to get processed, I was able to get a general idea of '10 days to 3 weeks' and that it would be fast if I picked up the birth certificate at the county in the Live Records office. After the baby was born, I called the hospital again to ask (some may say remind) about my birth certificate. After a week I called the county and got confirmation I could pick it up from the office. In total, 9 days after my birth, 8 days after we discharged (that's when they file the paperwork)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Passport</div>
<div>
Photo: In the week that I was waiting for the birth certificate, I got a viable passport photo. <b>Rules are: White background, eyes open, facing forward, ears visible, chin upright.</b> Because none of these things are very easy to count on for a newborn, I laid out a white sheet on a crib mattress on the floor and tried a few times throughout the week when baby was more alert. There is speculation that passport issuers go easy on enforcing rules on babies since they, you know, don't have their eyes open often and have no neck control, but given our timeline I didn't want to risk it. Pro tip: hold baby's head up by balancing him on your forearm, head in palm (fingers hidden from camera as much as possible), legs down by your elbow. Have another person stand and take the photo from above without blocking light. Print two copies at any photo center (We used Walgreens, Costco is cheaper, there are photo apps that would undoubtedly do the right cropping for you but it was worth $15 to me to make sure the photos were cropped right). </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Application: We printed and filled out the DS-11 Passport Application for Minor Child before baby was born so we only had to add his name and birth date to submit. Fortunately for us, our local library was having a passport fair the day after we got the birth certificate, so we were able to file it immediately. Note: BOTH PARENTS HAVE TO BE PRESENT.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Also necessary: photocopy of both parents' ID. The guy who was filing my application wasn't sure what to do since Beau had not yet been issues a Social Security Number (these take a few months to arrive) so he had me sign an affadavit that my child had not yet received a SSN. This might not be necessary, but again, considering the timeline, I didn't want to risk it.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
You can send everything in by mail, or if you live near a <a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/requirements/where-to-apply/passport-agencies.html">Passport Agency</a>, you can make an appointment and everything goes way quicker. If you have proof of travel and can appear in person, you can get a passport as soon as 2 days. I chose to pay to have mine expedited.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Visa-</div>
<div>
For US Citizens, most countries either don't require a visa or allow for visa on arrival. Some (China, India, Burma and Brazil that I'm aware of, require it in advance. In the case of China, the visa has to be secured from a regionally assigned embassy, in person. Mine was San Francisco and instead of going in person or sending it with someone I knew, I opted to use <a href="http://www.freechinavisa.org/feecalculator.php">FreeChinaVisa.com </a>. It was half the price of every other service I could find, they emailed me for additional information needed (color copy of both the photo and signed page of Porter's passport, even though he was not going to be traveling with us), and they offered online progress tracking. Processing at the embassy takes 4 days, I got the visa back in 8 days. Protip: the only photo service I could find that takes visa photos for China specifically was Costco. Again, there are apps that say they crop photos right, but there have been changes to the requirements lately and I didn't want to risk doing it wrong.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>2. Pack light</b></div>
<div>
Best thing about babies: they don't need anything! I brought mostly footie pajamas for him (newborn socks/shoes are a joke and I figured it was some semblance of germ control) plus a few cute outfits. I figured 5 diapers a day (I came home with extras), a brick of wipes in my suitcase and a ziploc bag of wipes for on the go (and a couple plastic grocery or pet waste bags for diaper disposal), and a pacifier. No food, no toys, no bathing supplies, no bedding supplies. I just had him in bed with me. Newborns don't roll! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>3. Practice nursing on the go</b></div>
<div>
No joke, this is such a life-saver. The very best thing about traveling with small children is that they sleep, eat, poop and are awake for very short stretches. For the airport/plane, wedding festivities and generally just not being at homeness that is inherent to traveling, you can't always count on there being a discreet, comfortable place to nurse. So, nurse on the go! There are tons of tutorials online depending on what kind of carrier you have and what your body is like. I brought an Ergo 360 and have small boobs (even when full of milk); for me I buckled the waistband just a bit lower than normal, unbuttoned the button-down shirt or dress I was wearing (and packed exclusively for ease of access), and helped baby get latched. Sometimes I wore a scarf, some shirts provide more coverage on the sides, sometimes, miraculously, I didn't need anything and baby just kind of nestled in. Eat, sleep, poop. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Lastly, there much that can be said for the mantra of 'I can do this. Baby can do this. Everything will be fine.' When baby blows out on the plane and you have to dab poop out of the carrier in a tiny bathroom, when literally the only time baby fusses is <i>during</i> your best friend's wedding vows, no biggie. Get out on the dance floor (I did, big time), go site-seeing, love wherever you are traveling.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Also, I got almost no photos. BOO! Can't win 'em all.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1w6KBZ1EkhHwxeA1wv_sMjSjvN3j2CddSphlBTWV4IizyYpcgNw-mMVCuaTe1diIIi8vzc7pj24GduMpHesoWctDIrz7-Q-1YPO_qoxr41nXeqx2dV4OSq5g2-iwawYBlzDm/s1600/20180403_101824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1w6KBZ1EkhHwxeA1wv_sMjSjvN3j2CddSphlBTWV4IizyYpcgNw-mMVCuaTe1diIIi8vzc7pj24GduMpHesoWctDIrz7-Q-1YPO_qoxr41nXeqx2dV4OSq5g2-iwawYBlzDm/s320/20180403_101824.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-74589492991801880022018-06-14T16:23:00.001-07:002018-06-14T16:23:50.575-07:003 half- formed thoughts on mommy brainMy baby is 20 weeks old now, or, in normal person speak, two and a half months. Talking about age in terms of weeks is ridiculous. And when I am mom/queen/master of the Universe, I will require age by week reports to stop at 12 weeks (really before then every week is so so so different it really does make sense). Among the many cultural aspects of parenthood I'd like to change: not being able to leave sleeping children in a locked car, giving gifts at children's birthday parties, and blaming everything on mommy brain.<br />
<br />
But actually though, mommy brain has been on my brain ever since I blamed something on it (likely stopping mid-sentence for the hundredth time), back-pedalled and just said I was tired and Porter said that actually:<br />
<br />
1. Mommy Brain is a scientifically proven thing! I don't know if this makes me feel better for feeling like an idiot or just confirms that my brain power is depressingly diminished. According to studies, when you have a new baby, the neural pathways that used to be hardwired for being functional at other things, namely EMPATHY. This is necessary because you suddenly have in your care a little creature who doesn't know how to communicate with you and the sooner you can discern which coo, cry and wiggle means I'm hungry/tired/full of gas, the better.<br />
<br />
2. I don't remember being this brain dead last time.<br />
Maybe because I just had one. Maybe because I went back to work 10 hours a week by month 4 so I was taking back some of those neural pathways. Maybe I just don't remember. All I can say is I feel dumb. I've always been someone who can make conversation with most anyone and chitty chat about garbage. Not at the moment. Errrything is rill slow.<br />
<br />
3. My brain is still there<br />
Every once in a while I'll get wrapped up in a conversation or passionate about a subject and I'll feel it. There will be a day when I'm back to normal (or at least close...right?)<br />
<br />
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-81329788736234848742018-05-02T15:59:00.000-07:002018-06-14T16:23:15.314-07:003 Months with my BeauHere's a belated publishing of a recap of the fourth trimester with my newest little one, in no particular order:<div>
<ul>
<li>It is unreal how quickly and how strongly Jamie has an affinity for his brother. He is most certainly mimicking my baby voice and some wording ("Don't worry, Beau, I'll keep you company!") but he loves his brother without instruction. I remember reading about how President Obama met some half-sibling for the first time in like his thirties and had an immediate affection for him (or her?). </li>
<li>I sleep so much better with a baby in bed with me than in a crib. It is amazing. I totally understand how people get preachy about bed-sharing. It was a game-changer for Jamie when I finally gave up getting him to sleep on his back in his crib. </li>
<li>Related: If I could bottle up one heart-melty parent moment I think it would be curling my body around this little tiny body curled up by me. </li>
</ul>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LIB2-eVZ3EuPiacNdCnLC6-MTQO3HpaUv5IJHGagfiprhmV3dkJ35vFmMvA6lp1csPPYaI98GUlHFmcsMK4ZcSnTAe8xDCkh9t3Mt-xXiapWsx9zr8yPe7q43en2tIqmaBdN/s1600/JKirkRichards_500px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LIB2-eVZ3EuPiacNdCnLC6-MTQO3HpaUv5IJHGagfiprhmV3dkJ35vFmMvA6lp1csPPYaI98GUlHFmcsMK4ZcSnTAe8xDCkh9t3Mt-xXiapWsx9zr8yPe7q43en2tIqmaBdN/s320/JKirkRichards_500px.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />(photo credit, my main <a href="http://www.jkirkrichards.com/">J Kirk Richards</a>, whose art never ceases to move me)</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Beau is currently in the in-between land of being over laying on his back but not being coordinated enough to hold his head totally upright or sit without falling over. </li>
<li>New baby poop is so much less stinky than 3-year old poop, but such a gross consistency.</li>
<li>Also, Jamie, one week after his third birthday decided he's over diapers. Hallelujah</li>
<li>And, newborn and size one diapers are laughably tiny. Their bodies are laughably tiny. </li>
<li>I feel a lot more tethered breastfeeding this time than last. Maybe because Jamie took a bottle so easily so I wasn't so so tethered. We're still working on getting Beau to take one.</li>
<li>Baby sounds are almost painfully cute. Beau has started babbling and I can't even.</li>
<li>Porter is just starting to get to know Beau. Between finishing our garage/ADU construction and taking care of Jamie, parenting is currently in a 'divine and conquer' state of being. My conquering here being, of course, resting, healing, and cuddling with this tiny human. I'll take it.</li>
<li>I've watched so much TV. It's so great. </li>
<li>Related: I think I'm dumber than I used to be. </li>
<li>I keep telling people how different Beau felt from Jamie from his very first moments. As Beau's cheeks are filling in, he's starting to look more like his brother. This makes me both very happy and a little sad. </li>
<li>Tiny babies are so easy to cart around, it's crazy. I totally understand how people get preachy about baby wearing and the ease of carriers. They make life so much easier. See: Beau came to China with me at 2 months old and rocked it.</li>
<li>I'm emerging from my hunkering down, slowly but surely. I am leaving my house, having thoughts I'd like to fully form into blog posts and other forms of writing, and ... (I literally finished this post without finishing this sentence and now going back I'd like to just leave it that way. Brain not totally back on, clearly)</li>
<li>I have been cooking a ton. Eating so much. I'm starving.</li>
<li>This time around body healing has been easily 250% better. Woot feels like an odd interjection here but it is truly how I feel.</li>
<li>I am so grateful for a healthy, full-term baby with quick labor, who eats and sleeps relatively normal. I spend a probably unhealthy amount of time feeling guilty that it is so often not the case.</li>
<li>I am so tremendously grateful for the village that made my first month especially, so easy. We had meals for almost an entire month; Porter took Jamie to the gym in the morning then straight to my mother in law's until afternoon so I could just have slow time with baby; my parents came, my sister came, my husband is such a dreamboat he just made life easy for me. Again, I think often how many people go through this phase alone, physically and/or emotionally and it sucks. Gratitude. Gratitude. Gratitude.</li>
</ul>
<div>
Photo dump:</div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2FckTTs4w4KWtTrnbv_yp-qdmybH1a8bXOCDGUFZVJn59-dQ2N6Bt3d_uYLSqWugWj6vBtZs50FOLtKmuZq1zg4zriHW1WmkyMgmS-snQIXaKv_PZzcMJK237q2kbDuE05GWq/s1600/FB_IMG_1517508462860.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2FckTTs4w4KWtTrnbv_yp-qdmybH1a8bXOCDGUFZVJn59-dQ2N6Bt3d_uYLSqWugWj6vBtZs50FOLtKmuZq1zg4zriHW1WmkyMgmS-snQIXaKv_PZzcMJK237q2kbDuE05GWq/s320/FB_IMG_1517508462860.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1NioajtEWj3-nbUJoydFqJBB854wrExeQjGWR7BY44-4-2FkauHZXIVPBYDwv0TtQSpmrtSc8DnhrnghoTYnC_3cmcHcYovymcR1iFgo6fe5L3UKQjhqYfXy7K4jrNFTacewI/s1600/20180203_120103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1NioajtEWj3-nbUJoydFqJBB854wrExeQjGWR7BY44-4-2FkauHZXIVPBYDwv0TtQSpmrtSc8DnhrnghoTYnC_3cmcHcYovymcR1iFgo6fe5L3UKQjhqYfXy7K4jrNFTacewI/s320/20180203_120103.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cAy0KRv8Rg4wCYiVHX7ER-1fjq8PJSnu0vyNfrXSArFfvG6r-rKeUliIZxW4hIF0s2xeGgIAdGH2JDOvUOHuLsj5kgJFEhyphenhyphenOTIY9rfYVkJiftJVrTl24xgsChY3uWnkeTvcI/s1600/20180205_160602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cAy0KRv8Rg4wCYiVHX7ER-1fjq8PJSnu0vyNfrXSArFfvG6r-rKeUliIZxW4hIF0s2xeGgIAdGH2JDOvUOHuLsj5kgJFEhyphenhyphenOTIY9rfYVkJiftJVrTl24xgsChY3uWnkeTvcI/s320/20180205_160602.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4QtqiQtGdTJDImA54gDWqfVH_BF5eEZ8MLIe-LQacNuJKOqjiLZZP7Dia56ewSQ9DB3F4xS3bkGk4uRJu54YAYKPiATxHiAuJ0vclclBX4QcOpRvFjL65tZXjgE0dOXK4ZNF/s1600/20180209_101449.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4QtqiQtGdTJDImA54gDWqfVH_BF5eEZ8MLIe-LQacNuJKOqjiLZZP7Dia56ewSQ9DB3F4xS3bkGk4uRJu54YAYKPiATxHiAuJ0vclclBX4QcOpRvFjL65tZXjgE0dOXK4ZNF/s320/20180209_101449.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcr8HAakyeeMNHtygFdG0AlKrCrE9topj7IisJ6Aznh6Mt8-3B6ljcEztJbxSrIC5A-joSwUbZRDgncPbf6btzGfGdK29Oo5PWzDqAAAYFQhV1gYFyQItDfaEHsq9rdY73itJT/s1600/20180209_185732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcr8HAakyeeMNHtygFdG0AlKrCrE9topj7IisJ6Aznh6Mt8-3B6ljcEztJbxSrIC5A-joSwUbZRDgncPbf6btzGfGdK29Oo5PWzDqAAAYFQhV1gYFyQItDfaEHsq9rdY73itJT/s320/20180209_185732.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfvv4O9JK6_Gx5UpaiZ1OnpplTmOW3WfULdpKhfFZ7Um7D5vSWbXnE-7ftKHS4bHYBZtgfjAtQj1bjLETgLpnRxI2Eo7vq-mK3rHBcg6lFGRXAo0xIlF2GDqBfAoyP4oFAjkT/s1600/20180210_090502.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfvv4O9JK6_Gx5UpaiZ1OnpplTmOW3WfULdpKhfFZ7Um7D5vSWbXnE-7ftKHS4bHYBZtgfjAtQj1bjLETgLpnRxI2Eo7vq-mK3rHBcg6lFGRXAo0xIlF2GDqBfAoyP4oFAjkT/s320/20180210_090502.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-Ch724f5v2zQ_E8tw1F2aw4urHLdzLpgq35mGF6JzqbHUaqfFwIi578uHRc5r1cwc8qJikPDbIUMUnVICUmYf3fsl5G-hH8DdKndYUhF_Rfc3zJ71VoscGwhg-C7ODc0CBMe/s1600/20180216_111303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-Ch724f5v2zQ_E8tw1F2aw4urHLdzLpgq35mGF6JzqbHUaqfFwIi578uHRc5r1cwc8qJikPDbIUMUnVICUmYf3fsl5G-hH8DdKndYUhF_Rfc3zJ71VoscGwhg-C7ODc0CBMe/s320/20180216_111303.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWClZVw6eL7HKeO9EIFfVWgof07NTGt386ULjvvMXw01Gzv15OGQ1ZO9kiw4xTnafC84hWejiXCkbqBPXcQC5_GbCAoyJAqK41Q4yMcfpRnpgZ973Y4XhgPPvtHtKOHcYws1vc/s1600/20180217_135745.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWClZVw6eL7HKeO9EIFfVWgof07NTGt386ULjvvMXw01Gzv15OGQ1ZO9kiw4xTnafC84hWejiXCkbqBPXcQC5_GbCAoyJAqK41Q4yMcfpRnpgZ973Y4XhgPPvtHtKOHcYws1vc/s320/20180217_135745.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxKLoR019clNFIHzn_4RAk2HssSO7LvNJSNj_jgoE4Tn2PDjAXKifNLpYAva4_lOOfdcca0Y3CH-4-LTBbnenFwtEzsFn_F3QMIDdJeM5umEAsu3by1PVL79CJEE6L5N-DSB7O/s1600/20180303_100250.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxKLoR019clNFIHzn_4RAk2HssSO7LvNJSNj_jgoE4Tn2PDjAXKifNLpYAva4_lOOfdcca0Y3CH-4-LTBbnenFwtEzsFn_F3QMIDdJeM5umEAsu3by1PVL79CJEE6L5N-DSB7O/s320/20180303_100250.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIpVKH1NwCxYY4eaItYWi0CqL6kUaGLQr5186Z3Gd9IfHur8igqfsoY47LAyLEGEnfiaJd2NqPhwY4cXIqqr_2il0kcrYBEpLszOahnusaGBtq819p_2r9oq-SjWDeE6oWYFkh/s1600/20180303_100258.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIpVKH1NwCxYY4eaItYWi0CqL6kUaGLQr5186Z3Gd9IfHur8igqfsoY47LAyLEGEnfiaJd2NqPhwY4cXIqqr_2il0kcrYBEpLszOahnusaGBtq819p_2r9oq-SjWDeE6oWYFkh/s320/20180303_100258.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy49CkB_ABf28T9Lr6_RCZEAndTZimpQ0fyCJ5dMZpWV2YuKbqidrn_4JsCF8dYEEu4CxQSkqDmwZv3bz7rMr5OXZxyO56YMk6IEie5o_TfLbD8taLf7M6xd5VGhkhBegfl3z8/s1600/FB_IMG_1521152259700.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy49CkB_ABf28T9Lr6_RCZEAndTZimpQ0fyCJ5dMZpWV2YuKbqidrn_4JsCF8dYEEu4CxQSkqDmwZv3bz7rMr5OXZxyO56YMk6IEie5o_TfLbD8taLf7M6xd5VGhkhBegfl3z8/s320/FB_IMG_1521152259700.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLOwqXtbqQCRcq4Gmo4MV0ELt7M1rYa8gkFM5Uus3a5_oRrr_MbMTwTviEFwxqUcOmWQ_E09PuB4QQvfIp364FfTa7Cz_EqdtRlfcyb9xFlRO4v3RuKwWXaoYE25elhqh6F_5p/s1600/20180320_090943.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLOwqXtbqQCRcq4Gmo4MV0ELt7M1rYa8gkFM5Uus3a5_oRrr_MbMTwTviEFwxqUcOmWQ_E09PuB4QQvfIp364FfTa7Cz_EqdtRlfcyb9xFlRO4v3RuKwWXaoYE25elhqh6F_5p/s320/20180320_090943.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXWtwHRY8SKWJyw6fHkUCzCbIYw4WIqSNDTm9Wc1fV8eVNtMcRpEDDT4Mc4DbVjxrSFH0QL5MOiqN0JD2fjsyug83FoaKQuic8eSmmPBJDbbzDkgJ4AbX9yscMD0OAWdlhB1vG/s1600/20180326_140509.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXWtwHRY8SKWJyw6fHkUCzCbIYw4WIqSNDTm9Wc1fV8eVNtMcRpEDDT4Mc4DbVjxrSFH0QL5MOiqN0JD2fjsyug83FoaKQuic8eSmmPBJDbbzDkgJ4AbX9yscMD0OAWdlhB1vG/s320/20180326_140509.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruMjG0VPBsRbAmb8k_eHiFWdLmF3ss9Cjd-EwPAYQaPOfkXEepWEF1Pz4Y5jnFbeLAS0aqqRPRsz62Pir8NSCGbGWn-E7HUtbPL9eHJke7Wr8SAWFL_JayUAdX9pAcn9Ro5Mm/s1600/20180402_122813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruMjG0VPBsRbAmb8k_eHiFWdLmF3ss9Cjd-EwPAYQaPOfkXEepWEF1Pz4Y5jnFbeLAS0aqqRPRsz62Pir8NSCGbGWn-E7HUtbPL9eHJke7Wr8SAWFL_JayUAdX9pAcn9Ro5Mm/s320/20180402_122813.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOg9xIowc882b46TLVgXzNh2zsdB2EJ73tgzyteBip473Co5G8DBk6euWAP22hKCb3oOcQrPXosbHV4AkeqaszfI5gZPaav9S7KoPgZNh9Auvg_FL01TDzpBBI1eC-FjUjHwm5/s1600/20180403_090113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOg9xIowc882b46TLVgXzNh2zsdB2EJ73tgzyteBip473Co5G8DBk6euWAP22hKCb3oOcQrPXosbHV4AkeqaszfI5gZPaav9S7KoPgZNh9Auvg_FL01TDzpBBI1eC-FjUjHwm5/s320/20180403_090113.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaD7KoOyfHY6cy6NkR_QTFd3rGBoL_IiVWywTP3Keqd1Gg2ow2VamZf_84-y1QjcLaO3vtSVTBCR9uuFbTc70efNLaSjx3yU6EJeFWHb-yZk75Mc27NoO3YFwYQVmYhhAzkNt5/s1600/20180403_084422.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaD7KoOyfHY6cy6NkR_QTFd3rGBoL_IiVWywTP3Keqd1Gg2ow2VamZf_84-y1QjcLaO3vtSVTBCR9uuFbTc70efNLaSjx3yU6EJeFWHb-yZk75Mc27NoO3YFwYQVmYhhAzkNt5/s320/20180403_084422.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8QXXA7gjw8fBGg7d7VOV0V5sVQEdsD6Vvp1D2Kq89Bi5OtaLkWV_4zDfWRXSX1rPSQa4cjW3daVbhuFGLy2q_PpZT6u9LzSphrEwzbPEdIIXtorHGFmLD5js84OckC1OCnjXS/s1600/20180403_101830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8QXXA7gjw8fBGg7d7VOV0V5sVQEdsD6Vvp1D2Kq89Bi5OtaLkWV_4zDfWRXSX1rPSQa4cjW3daVbhuFGLy2q_PpZT6u9LzSphrEwzbPEdIIXtorHGFmLD5js84OckC1OCnjXS/s320/20180403_101830.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1cotGMIm-CNJL7LSf1rLvJYO5em4kG350TdrBabLHeDN7ptnFiaM6J8_s8Bb9CcxZpXZJ0wlTuKLqU46B-66wWu2RUhZiTYxOynwzWDW8gdL78PKpLP5iMpDd9NRSeqLeG9Ex/s1600/20180410_130345.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1cotGMIm-CNJL7LSf1rLvJYO5em4kG350TdrBabLHeDN7ptnFiaM6J8_s8Bb9CcxZpXZJ0wlTuKLqU46B-66wWu2RUhZiTYxOynwzWDW8gdL78PKpLP5iMpDd9NRSeqLeG9Ex/s320/20180410_130345.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouFRnJBkd942U-6iEVYCfRB5TiDx7AHsAioeatUHMT5IJ33hKfOszv3g8fhSBDdolLr1kZnJnyiKUhp5tjhrQlWXsENqfQZJhnMJkxqHb_pYzxW9OmNZeq_22XDPnS27iL5Yu/s1600/20180414_155530.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouFRnJBkd942U-6iEVYCfRB5TiDx7AHsAioeatUHMT5IJ33hKfOszv3g8fhSBDdolLr1kZnJnyiKUhp5tjhrQlWXsENqfQZJhnMJkxqHb_pYzxW9OmNZeq_22XDPnS27iL5Yu/s320/20180414_155530.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-apITMXqwhBSfqGZ6mnEQV-zg45gDedFUcVRStzGn05rvAJJDVDcLTos9lrW8lTxMV3NiqlqVWEdmdYlKIcoCNOiQhjqYdGnMba3phseQWP21MI91sr6e2hf1ouZ-fO8cBGp/s1600/20180416_175929.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-apITMXqwhBSfqGZ6mnEQV-zg45gDedFUcVRStzGn05rvAJJDVDcLTos9lrW8lTxMV3NiqlqVWEdmdYlKIcoCNOiQhjqYdGnMba3phseQWP21MI91sr6e2hf1ouZ-fO8cBGp/s320/20180416_175929.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27wiLKEyJ72SL5UpxM06j-PlvAk8K3ecjhZeXrUGkgmNGHoAfqXhnmdLW2rHTgZEv0Q549zqG6IC_rSdh53ofvtXwuq2VfPUQ_LmAi5Tv_kEsv9UgEJAWveIO3rRsoNrUFMF5/s1600/20180423_141650.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27wiLKEyJ72SL5UpxM06j-PlvAk8K3ecjhZeXrUGkgmNGHoAfqXhnmdLW2rHTgZEv0Q549zqG6IC_rSdh53ofvtXwuq2VfPUQ_LmAi5Tv_kEsv9UgEJAWveIO3rRsoNrUFMF5/s320/20180423_141650.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplvPZLrn5yO2hADlpmwZpTGqzgo-QC1yQcUhdaP4eW3Ft1MQrNb2YW19p5DM8Y4JkAVEOnTPtaFjs7C9y8zt4M9FQLj-shnDyj8B8hY632J8jHu104d4MYN0AEx1riqf-MSEW/s1600/20180425_141926.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplvPZLrn5yO2hADlpmwZpTGqzgo-QC1yQcUhdaP4eW3Ft1MQrNb2YW19p5DM8Y4JkAVEOnTPtaFjs7C9y8zt4M9FQLj-shnDyj8B8hY632J8jHu104d4MYN0AEx1riqf-MSEW/s320/20180425_141926.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7PaTEuknfrRYD-SafchNcbUDV22l2ZXOld0EMXxzbO_IQXC6hHDABFybfhJQbPsjPAyoQdv3D-UF2FmjErkZ6at95s6LFHeZxUiBTXV25xOAe586l3XKLpSj3PGRy9-LEBeTt/s1600/20180426_081941.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7PaTEuknfrRYD-SafchNcbUDV22l2ZXOld0EMXxzbO_IQXC6hHDABFybfhJQbPsjPAyoQdv3D-UF2FmjErkZ6at95s6LFHeZxUiBTXV25xOAe586l3XKLpSj3PGRy9-LEBeTt/s320/20180426_081941.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd4QJKIgi00-gqfeBKkXgZrxwDDpFJlBX3mdW2llUZWWjdnNQMTvFOIwDIH-izujdYC9ldjISRjiWC6_8X7BTP5bxuaOrI529pL0Nqm-a5WeX7tEMf_VoqnlVVuCDy7osOMS61/s1600/20180426_130023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd4QJKIgi00-gqfeBKkXgZrxwDDpFJlBX3mdW2llUZWWjdnNQMTvFOIwDIH-izujdYC9ldjISRjiWC6_8X7BTP5bxuaOrI529pL0Nqm-a5WeX7tEMf_VoqnlVVuCDy7osOMS61/s320/20180426_130023.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUDH7BKGlIbqkrVqzi5I-EcKmDTyPRwCU5F3MOx4LlaUu5HAT9KSd2Tmx-DT-h6egiYWtbfYOuCRhwxZiVTaTLOQB1lPA5cGVvH4_ShCzpJrFhJtM8iNBNGxjc3tzVVkbU_1sp/s1600/20180429_063240.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUDH7BKGlIbqkrVqzi5I-EcKmDTyPRwCU5F3MOx4LlaUu5HAT9KSd2Tmx-DT-h6egiYWtbfYOuCRhwxZiVTaTLOQB1lPA5cGVvH4_ShCzpJrFhJtM8iNBNGxjc3tzVVkbU_1sp/s320/20180429_063240.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-669546021958206822018-01-29T10:57:00.000-08:002018-01-29T10:57:24.023-08:003 Things That Cause Disproportionate PAINI'm preparing for childbirth again and I'm uncomfortable well, most of the time. The pain of childbirth is talked about all the time, but it's gotten me thinking about things that are teeny tiny that cause unexpected amounts of pain or annoyance.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>1. Finger wounds (and stubbed toes)</b><br />
A nick from extra sharp knives, slamming a knuckle in a door, a hammer on the nail bed, being smacked by something heavy that your two-year-old threw at you (angry face emoji), paper cuts (oh dreaded paper cuts). All such small injuries, all such infinite pain. And why do they take so freaking long to heal??<br />
<br />
<b>2. Voice activated customer service</b><br />
Not physical pain, but I can't count how many times I've hung up on a robot (screaming AAARRRGHHHH and throwing my phone across the room). Usually it starts with a calm, collected request for "Customer Service" or "Operator." When repeated pleas are either not heard or receive a perky "I'm sorry, I'm still not understanding, did you want to talk to billing?" my voice gets louder, more terse, and more impatient. <br />
<br />
<b>3. Cold/canker sores</b><br />
I was teaching a lesson to my Young Women's class a while back and recounted this one month in college that I remember still <i>so viscerally</i>. I was working the early AM shift so I was getting no sleep, I didn't love my classes, I was probably going to break up with my boyfriend (not that we were fighting, turns out we just didn't like each other that much), and to top it off: I had a canker sore that just about made me want to die. Of all the awful things that could have happened to me in college, the pain I remember most strongly is that of the canker sore. It pushed me over the edge of misery.<br />
<br />
I've never been prone to cold sores (thank heaven), but I've had plenty of canker sores. As it seems, they are just tiny little bumps inside your lip. But don't be fooled, they make life hell.Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-38122895517186420242018-01-25T10:37:00.000-08:002018-01-25T10:37:38.328-08:00Top Three Reads of 2017I came across some excellent books this past year. Top three:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Are-All-Completely-Beside-Ourselves/dp/0142180823">1. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joyce Fowler</a><br />
<br />
This I picked at random from the Overdrive app through my library. It was available, I don't think I read the summary, and it ended up on my Kindle. I hate to give too much away because I enjoyed SO MUCH some surprising elements of the story that most summaries I've read give away.<br />
<br />
Basically it's about a woman reflecting on her childhood (I thought it was a memoir until I read more about the novel afterward). She has a dysfunctional relationship with her family, two long-lost siblings she reunites with to different degrees. One review called her a "breathtakingly droll 22-year-old narrator" which I kind of love. As a narrator, Rosemary does an excellent job portraying the holes in our memories of childhood we piece together in adulthood, and how our personal identities and self-perception are shaped in families.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gut-Inside-Story-Bodys-Underrated/dp/1771641495/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1516731204&sr=1-1&keywords=gut+giulia+enders">2. Gut: The Inside Story of our Most Underrated Organ by Giulia Enders</a><br />
<br />
My digestive system has always basically sucked and, allergists/gastroenterologists/doctors be damned, no one seems to know why. SO I've taken to reading a lot of these public-accessible sciency books about the digestive system. Gut is my favorite so far. It's not trying too hard to be entertaining, is actually backed up by science, and is still accessible as a non-physician.<br />
<br />
Favorite sections were on the Gut Brain (especially as it relates to emotions) and the world of probiotics (I am SOLD).<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Tell-Wolves-Carol-Rifka-Brunt/dp/0812982851/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1516731798&sr=1-1&keywords=tell+the+wolves+i%27m+home+by+carol+rifka+brunt">3. Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rivka Brunt</a><br />
<br />
I picked this up from a Little Free Library in town (a favorite way to find random books). After reading the first page I said - out loud, to myself - "I am going to like this book." The voice is so strong and the setting so unique, I could tell immediately it would be enjoyable to read. I didn't expect to spend so much time thinking about the characters and their situation during and after reading it.<br />
<br />
The story follows June, a teenaged misfit whose best friend in the whole world is her uncle Finn. When her uncle dies of AIDS (in the 80's, in New York), she is befriended by his partner Toby (whom she'd never known about when Finn was alive). June's character feels very real and, perhaps because I was an oblivious teenage girl (not quite as emo as June, but still very much in my own world), I identified with her coming to understand her uncle's life. I've heard plenty of stories of the AIDS epidemic in the 80's, especially from a public health perspective, but never anything as personal. Even though the AIDS crisis was in the background of most of the story, it felt very real.<br />
<br />
2018 has so far left me in a reading rut (I've started at least 8 books and haven't gotten more than a chapter or two in any of them), but I'm hopeful excellent reads will show up.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-70547922390670770952018-01-23T09:59:00.001-08:002018-01-23T09:59:08.136-08:003 Things on Longing<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On longing </span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-e4cbd3cf-ef95-3c85-8318-7dab60635a0b" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the kind of post that I'd likely read and roll my eyes at, but it's been on my mind a lot- what moves me. What I long for. What stirs my soul.</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On a recent long car ride to the Washington Coast, I thought </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<ol style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Adventure in the great wide somewhere </span></div>
</li>
</ol>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Last month I went to visit my sister and while there we took her four girls to see the new live action Beauty and the Beast. It was Jamie's first time in a movie theater. It did not go well for him (thanks to a giant bag of popcorn he lasted until the beginning of Be Our Guest), I did get to fully enjoy my favorite song in all of Beauty of the Beast, the opening number, Little Town. Even better, actually, is the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUhOzf0KQXU">reprise,</a> where Belle, disgusted and mystified at Gaston’s advances, escapes to a beautiful mountain meadow and sings about what she really wants out of life:</span></div>
<b><span><br /></span>
</b><br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>I want adventure in the great wide somewhere. I want it more than I can tell. </b></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The moment is beautiful and moving even as an adult and I was surprised at how overcome with emotion it made me. I remember having a similar reaction as a little girl when watching the scene and it hasn't gone away. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I never had a Gaston or provincial life, but there's something stirring about Belle’s throwing her hands out to the universe telling it, I want you, Universe. I don't know what experiences are out there that I'm chasing, but I want them from somewhere deep inside me. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5Oni8_k5twU" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2. Beautiful things and beautiful words</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A few years ago I attended the <a href="https://www.bellevuearts.org/artsfair">Bellevue Arts and Crafts Fair</a> for the first time. I went by myself, it was the middle of summer. Some 500 stalls of painters and sculptors and artisans (and popsicle sellers. It was a million degrees out) set up shop in the parking garage of the mall. The setting is nothing pretty, quiet the opposite. But I wandered around with literal pangs of, I don't know, some combination of awe and adoration and lust for all the beautiful things on display and for sale. I was overcome by a desperate, pulsing desire to fill my home and my life with beautiful things. I feel it from time to time, though I rarely seek it out. There is so much art out there I think is ugly, pretentious, or downright weird. But when it strikes, I feel it down to my sternum. The last time it struck was a drive by of this giant statue in downtown Seattle (On 9th and Mercer if you want to see it), The Meeting of the Minds (by Spanish artist Jaume Pluma). IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL. It's two people sitting cross-legged, facing each other. Their bodies are made up of letters and different language characters. If I could buy a shelf-sized version (this one is 12 ft tall) I would. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjarRnsfpIifBSNK4qbifUNMk_mp-6W2hCJkNu3BDFdZhOVHXYBWj5Xm61d_m9evsFSNEt_xGkr842wXpXIe35qLhvm-XRcAo5TmWGFRMA2r92zudWZAOpTT-GTFzy_6OCIUTUB/s1600/meeting+of+the+minds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjarRnsfpIifBSNK4qbifUNMk_mp-6W2hCJkNu3BDFdZhOVHXYBWj5Xm61d_m9evsFSNEt_xGkr842wXpXIe35qLhvm-XRcAo5TmWGFRMA2r92zudWZAOpTT-GTFzy_6OCIUTUB/s320/meeting+of+the+minds.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I have started being drawn to poetry, which elicits similar pangs. I think there might be even more crappy and ho-hum poetry than there is crappy visual art, if that's possible, but I'm trying to wade through it to find poets and styles that I'd exceptional. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">3. Connection with the great web of humanity</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My best friend/self help guru Brene Brown (she's not really, it just feels like it because I refer to her research so often) talks a lot about how human beings are hardwired for human connection. It fuels the development of civilization, from vast geopolitical happenings to interactions between neighbors and family. In adulthood I've come to realize that I am more of an introvert than anyone would have ever guessed. I always pegged myself as an extrovert -- I am comfortable in big groups, generally social, and enjoy gatherings -- but it turns out I get burnt out by all of these things. And, contrary to what many introverts will say, being an introvert isn't necessarily about hating people or being a loner, but rather being fueled my smaller, deeper connections. It's harder to seek these out, I've realized, than simply being surrounded by people. It requires being vulnerable (gulp...) and taking time to let trust accumulate (I'm all for rushing toward friendly intimacy, but apparently it doesn't work like that). </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I feel this not only with people I know but, in this gigantic impossible way, with the world. I want to connect with you know, everyone. Everywhere. Simple, right?</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While in New York in June, I bought this print that says </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i>"I'm in love with cities I've never been to and people I've never met"</i></b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPlwNJHPcDTGUDGJMq9xQjUharXTfWnOj4I-6PkFmp4Fltv55q2b9wdnQN5VGL39D2jptsFRoOl0ZgYAiSx3x0VUeEaONrCPwSs_XjtUBB-1zob3B4QfuTvGRvnD-YqsvSg-ZC/s1600/20180123_095344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1222" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPlwNJHPcDTGUDGJMq9xQjUharXTfWnOj4I-6PkFmp4Fltv55q2b9wdnQN5VGL39D2jptsFRoOl0ZgYAiSx3x0VUeEaONrCPwSs_XjtUBB-1zob3B4QfuTvGRvnD-YqsvSg-ZC/s320/20180123_095344.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes. I am. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-20386488469145524742017-09-22T16:49:00.000-07:002017-09-22T16:49:02.996-07:003 Reasons I Haven't Been Blogging<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">I've been absent from blogging since spring for three reasons.</span><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">1. First, I've never really considered myself a 'blogger' in the sense of actively recruiting and writing for readers. I like to write. I have thoughts and opinions and memories I want to keep. I started my blog when I went to Africa in 2005, when blogging was different than it is now. All that to say, my last post was viewed over 60,000 times, I still get emails and messages about it, and I've not really known how to follow up. I'm not interested in making my blog one dedicated to Interfaith Marriage strategies, even though there are internet strategists who would tell me it would be wise, because it's one tiny part of my life. It has felt really wonderful and validating to have my words read, shared and appreciated so widely by people of all faiths and in all places on the belief spectrum. It is awesome to be helpful, or at least a voice of solidarity for people in a life situation similar to mine. But following up on such a widely read post is a bit intimidating.</span><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">2. Second, I'm pregnant. I'm almost halfway now, and just in the last few weeks getting back the energy I need to function in my day to day life, let alone 'extra' interests like writing. I swear there is something in the brain and body of a woman in her first trimester that ferociously defends the woman's ability to so anything but grow a fetus. Major props to Serena Williams. </span><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">3. Third, I'm writing a book! I finished a draft in the spring just before getting pregnant and I've been trying to funnel the energy I do have toward editing and preparing it for the terrifying process of querying publishing. It's uncharted territory for me and I give major props to anyone who creates, improves and sells anything that comes from a stray idea nugget. The process thus far has tapped into a lot of latent creative energy I've had stewing for years. It's also brought up a lot of little fears and shame gremlins I didn't realize I had. At this point I feel pretty guarded and unsure of what will come of it all, but it has been a worthwhile endeavor thus far and I expect it to continue to be so.</span><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><br style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: "Roboto Slab", "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-variant-ligatures: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">So now I'm backlogged with the thoughts and snippets of ideas on my phone notekeeper that I'm pulling together. We'll just see how many make it to Publish!</span></span>Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-23602574710482848012017-05-09T16:40:00.001-07:002017-05-09T16:40:33.846-07:00Jamie's 3 Favorite PhrasesOh the beauty of a child who communicates! In theory, this should mean fewer tantrums... right?<br />
<br />
1. Dump it<br />
Food. Toys. Clothes. Well, anything that can be dumped.<br />
<br />
2. Jamie do it<br />
He's two, of course he wants to do it himself.<br />
<br />
3. Open it/Close it<br />
These mean the same thing, and cover the scope of demanding I open a sealed granola bar and also put back together the pieces of that granola bar that he has crumbled.Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-15023382405758363682017-04-22T19:30:00.000-07:002017-04-23T07:48:45.227-07:003 things I'd like to tell people whose spouse (or loved one) has a change of faithThree years ago, my dear and wonderful husband let me know he no longer believed in the teachings of the LDS Church. It's the church I was raised in, that he and his mom joined when he was young, and the vehicle to God we both committed to in our marriage vows. It wasn't a complete surprise - both Porter and I have long discussed things we didn't love about the Church and some of the more questionable aspects of Church history and doctrine. For me, these discussions were part of a well-rounded look at faith. I believe strongly in questioning and disbelieve strongly in the perfection of church leaders, history and doctrine. For Porter, though, who sees the world in much starker black and white than I do, the cracks and imperfections all added up to a pretty dramatic change in belief system. Dramatic for him because he believed it for so long with such fervor. Dramatic for me because, well, I never expected to be married to someone who was not a practicing Mormon.<br />
<br />
There was a while where the whole thing felt very sad to me. I had a lot of fears about what this meant for me and my future children, and sadly, I admit, what people would think about me and him and our future family. Feeling the way I feel now (spoiler alert: life is still good, my marriage is great, and my eternity isn't screwed), I feel a little bit silly admitting that I cried when he stopped wearing garments, started having occasional coffee breath, and couldn't attend my brother's temple wedding. I like to say I got automatically to A-OK, but it took a bit of time to mourn certain aspects of life that were going to be different now. It has taken a while for us to get into a groove about how we talk about the things that are important to us. And now I'm feeling ready to talk about it in a more public (read:internet) way.<br />
<br />
So, here are a few things I've picked up over the last few years that I wish I could have heard all at once, for anyone going through something similar.<br />
<br />
<b>1. Your life is not over. Your marriage is not over. Your eternity is not screwed. </b><br />
<b><br /></b>
This is the one thing I wish I could shout from the rooftops and into the hearts of anyone whose spouse goes through a faith transition. I also sometimes want to shout it at other people when I'm feeling defensive.<br />
<br />
A month or so after the first round of conversations Porter and I had untangling his change, a woman in my ward gave a talk in church and mentioned her 'adamantly ex-Mormon husband.' I caught her in the hallway later and, as casually as I could (because casual was the only way I could do it at that point), I told her I liked her talk, and oh, by the way, my husband doesn't think the church is true anymore and how do you <i>deal</i>? She's the first person who I have ever met (or at least noticed) who didn't treat a non-member or non-practicing spouse as something entirely devastating, nor something to be afraid of.<br />
<br />
She shrugged and smiled (and not in a benevolently sympathetic way that makes you feel like you're being pitied. That's the WORST.) and said 'You know, it's honestly not that big of a deal. I mean, I'd love to go ski with him on Sundays because I like to ski, but it really doesn't change all that much about our marriage.'<br />
<br />
MIND BLOWN.<br />
<br />
There's a narrative around people who 'leave' the church that they are bound to go 'off the deep end' and that it's 'so terribly sad' for the person who chooses to stay. I get that. I've thought it. Here's the facts: the person you married is still the person you married and if love was there before, it's likely still there now. And yes, there are conflicts that come up when two people disagree, especially on things as fundamental as faith (and double especially when that faith is as all life-encompassing as being Mormon is). But marriage is, by definition and by covenant, a commitment to one another. Conflict and compromise are part of the deal. And honestly, 95% of the time, churchy things do not come up.<br />
<br />
How to deal with those 5% of life where two majorly differing world views makes decision-making difficult?<br />
<br />
<b>2. Respect Breeds Respect</b><br />
<br />
We have a tendency in the Church to feel a hard-earned sense of moral superiority when it comes to leading life right. Most Mormons I know (myself included), have clocked a lot of hours on knees in prayer, searching for guidance from God as well as at church, in fellow church-members' homes, in service, etc. We aren't willy-nilly about our beliefs and that can feel a little bit like we deserve to sit up on a high horse in either self-righteousness or, as is often the case for people whose spouses change their faith, anger or betrayal. The way we talk about our faith is peppered with strong words like KNOW and TRUTH and AGENCY. We don't realize we do this, I think (I hope), but even when we are trying to be understanding that someone else may have the gall (or lack of discipline/faith/respect/pick your derisive explanation of choice) to come to different conclusions about what they use their agency to know to be true, it is often cloaked in a sweetly smug, 'Oh, you'll figure it out eventually. I had doubts once too. And if you don't get the answer I got, just keep trying. You'll agree with me eventually...'<br />
<br />
This is not OK.<br />
<br />
If you truly believe in agency and faith and what the Plan of Salvation teaches about the importance of one's personal journey, you should <i>double super extra</i> support that your spouse is on a journey. And no, you don't get to call it something temporary just to make yourself feel better. Maybe your spouse will indeed change their mind somewhere down the line, but making your love contingent on their maybe someday return to your once shared beliefs is condescending to your spouse and honestly, negates what you say you believe about agency and the plan of salvation. I'm not crazy about the term inactive for this reason. I also choose to not say that my husband 'left the Church.' He hasn't left, his relationship with it is just different now.<br />
<br />
I am very fortunate to be married to a person who fully supports me in my desire to be 100% still super duper Mormon. He comes with me to church often enough, encourages me in my callings and supports parenting a Mormon baby. Maybe he would do these things regardless of my behavior, because he is wonderful and supportive by nature, but I feel fairly certain that if I tried to shame him into church activity, argued until he broke, or treated him like he was an immoral piece of garbage for coming to different conclusions than me, he would not be quite so gracious.<br />
<br />
There was a time when Porter was actually pretty angry with the Church. It's a common thing for people who believe something so fiercely to feel a potent mix of being let down and betrayed by the God and institution that meant so much to them. NOTE: These are valid feelings, even if you disagree with them. And it's important that your spouse knows that you are there with them, no matter what. If you are with them - and I mean with them in the truest, most empathetic sense - they will be with you on the things that matter to you. Respect them and they will respect you.<br />
<br />
Again, doesn't mean there isn't conflict. We've had our tousles with subjects all sorts of things, to name a few: tithing, church attendance on vacation, and whether or not I'm OK having a coffee maker in the house (it was a firm no for a long time, it just weirded me out. I'm OK with it now, but Porter still hasn't gotten one).<br />
<br />
*Important to note: this is a work in progress for both of us<br />
<br />
<b>3. You are not alone. There is a place for you.</b><br />
<br />
One of the most frustrating things I encounter is this idea that families and people who don't fit the usual configuration are somehow less-than. No one overtly says this, of course. Quite the opposite, there are a BILLION quotes and comments about how the gospel is for everyone and we shouldn't be measuring success against the stable couple with beautiful, faithful children. But we do this, of course. Everyone does somewhere in their lives. We are hard-wired to want to fit in and terrified at our very core of being different. I came from that family- the family whose kids all grew up singing in the choir and got married in the temple. My parents go on temple dates. We all get really into our callings (usually we're teachers because, you know, we're all great speakers and have such a wise understanding of the gospel...).<br />
<br />
So it was a big shock for me to realize that was not going to be <i>my</i> family. And for a while I felt very self-conscious about it. Until I started looking around to see how many people also aren't <i>that </i>family. I'll tell you what, it's most families. Here's the rub, though, <i>no one talks about it.</i> During the first few months I was processing all this stuff, I was serving in Young Women's with a woman whose husband was in a very similar place and we NEVER talked about it. In the three wards I've been in since then, I have an unconscious habit of counting all the people who attend church alone, or who have different configurations of some kind. It's more than half of the ward, always. But NO ONE TALKS ABOUT IT.<br />
<br />
So this blog post is part of trying to change that. I spent a year hoping no one would notice my usually absent husband, then a year talking about my non-practicing husband in a vague way that I'm sure most people didn't catch, and now finally, I realize that I am part of the problem if I don't talk about it. The way you talk about it matters, too. The woman I talked with who shrugged and smiled about her adamantly ex-Mormon husband was an inspiration to me. Like her, I'm not interested in soft-eyed pity from church members who feel inspired by my 'sticking with him.' Quite the opposite. I don't want pity (who does, really?). I don't want my husband to be on the ward project list (he wants that even less). I want them to see how wonderful a husband and father and human being he is. I want people who feel different to feel okay in their differences. And I want to be able to participate in my church community as I am - no secrets, no shame, just reality. So far I have that. A note to any of you Faith Changers out there reading this, most Mormons genuinely do want you to feel comfortable around them, don't want you to feel judged or excluded. Most people, I've found, just don't know how to act or what to say to convey the fact that where you're at spiritually doesn't impact your ability to participate/not participate in church services and activities to whatever degree you want. And in the face of not knowing, most people just don't say or do anything. It can look the same as judgment/exclusion, but I promise, it isn't (usually :) ).<br />
<br />
If anyone out there in internetland is going through something like this and wants to talk about it with me, I'm happy to. I won't pat your leg or tell you they will come around, but I'll listen and tell you it's OK. It's not <i>going to be OK someday </i>(when they come back, when you divorce and remarry someone more stalwart, when you also inevitably also choose to leave)<i>. </i>It already is OK. You might just not know it yet.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh8qrJkERyzpxIgsfkJBJ739xHDXZlKkMe0i_hNDJ-UfpBewwfro42pgdbLG-Oxl2cA69Ych0d6mLKvNtFaDMbKY00A3OhE1Mylm1xr5hxLp67qwZbp4uzWACvNjtogBx1pc33/s1600/IMG_0242.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh8qrJkERyzpxIgsfkJBJ739xHDXZlKkMe0i_hNDJ-UfpBewwfro42pgdbLG-Oxl2cA69Ych0d6mLKvNtFaDMbKY00A3OhE1Mylm1xr5hxLp67qwZbp4uzWACvNjtogBx1pc33/s320/IMG_0242.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com68tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-7756803341318287232017-03-14T16:30:00.000-07:002017-03-14T16:30:24.538-07:003 Songs for GO TIMEWhen I need to get a move on, when my brain is in la-la land, when I need to find motivation deep down somewhere, I don't just need a high energy playlist, I need songs with rill good hooks. These are my go-to songs, with hooks that get you moving within seconds:<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
1. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcJiJ8JHMoA">For the Thrill by Victoria Monet</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Embed not working, no idea why. This is a girl's jam. It's about knowing yourself and fighting for getting yours.<br />
<br />
"Some will want your love, some will want your pain, some will want the blood from your veins. Some are hanging onto every word you say waiting til you fall from you reign. But that's okaaaaaay. Rub it in their faaaaace. Keep on Runnin."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
2. Thrift Shop by Macklemore<br />
<br />
Still. It's so fun.<br />
<br />
"Imma take your grampa's style, Imma take your grandpa's style. No for real, ask your grandpa, can I have his hand me downs?"<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yvAHunkGcJc/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yvAHunkGcJc?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
3. Pusher Love Girl by Justin Timberlake<br />
<br />
JT so smooth. This was the opener for his concert and the intro automatically gets you grooving.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/P8mNfNQOm0A/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/P8mNfNQOm0A?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
<br /></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-1859046414202388472017-03-12T22:10:00.000-07:002017-03-12T22:10:13.146-07:00How I travel It's no secret that I love to travel, and travel a lot. Sometimes as a family, sometimes just with Porter, sometimes just with the baby, sometimes with just a friend. I'm very lucky. It's also my hobby and passion and when people ask How I make it happen, I say:<br />
<br />
<b>1. I Prioritize</b><br />
<br />
I don't shop, and when I do I buy on clearance or at thrift stores (with rare exception). We don't go out to dinner so often, we go to movies barely ever. My car is almost 20 years old, Porter's is 10+ years old. I love traveling and it costs money so the money I have to spend on non-essentials, I try to keep budgeted toward trips.<br />
<br />
While traveling, I employ what I call the Skimp-Save-Splurge Strategy. (I just made that up, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to copyright it). Basically, when we are in Europe we eat free hotel breakfast, baguettes, cheese, and salami throughout the day (and trail mix/granola bars I pack from home), so we can afford a few really shmancy meals where I don't have to sweat about the price tag. For hotels, we stay at cheap-o places most of the time and if possible, a few nights somewhere that feels luxurious. We walk and take public transportation more than is always my preference (no taxis, if possible), do fewer organized tours than is Porter's preference and skip shopping sprees (coworkers and children do not need gifts, they just don't). We've Couch-surfed (officially, through the website and literally, just stayed with friends) and camped and swiped free breakfast food to eat throughout the day - but have also eaten expensive meals and paid a lot for boats, guides, and keepsakes that felt important.<br />
<br />
At home and while traveling I often go back to the mantra: Pay for it if you love it, but only if you love it.<br />
<br />
<b>2. Gaming the system (miles and points)</b><br />
<br />
I also haven't paid for a plane ticket in over 5 years. Some of this is because I can fly standby (see #3), but mostly I play the game of credit card points and miles. I sign up for cards, meet the bonuses, pay off the credit card (always!), and rack them up. I'm partial to the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, but there are tons of other ways to do it out there. For the last two years we've had the Southwest Companion Pass, which means you can buy one ticket (with cash or with points) and your Companion can fly for free (plus taxes, $5.60). Add in that babies fly free and we've taken several trips where all three of us cost $11.20 total out of pocket (plus points, of course, which feel like funny money).<br />
<br />
For a while I compulsively read blogs dedicated to the game (Million Mile Secrets, Travel is Free, The Points Guyn are some favorites) for tips and tricks, reminders about category bonuses and heads up about promotions. It can get overwhelming pretty fast, but if you pick a system/airline, you can can learn all the upcoming promotions for that system/airline and all the ways to maximize your points. Then booking isn't quite so daunting.<br />
<br />
What also feels like gaming the system is we AirBNB our house whenever we can when we're gone. It's a hassle to clean and prep the house while also packing for a trip, and we don't always get bookings that cover the whole time, but usually it covers the cost of a specific tour we want to do or a few nights in a nice hotel.<br />
<br />
<b>3. Connections/Luck</b><br />
Porter's mom was a flight attendant for United and I am currently listed as her +1, which gives me major flight benefits (standby flights and a lap child FTW!). She is also an avid traveler, and generous travel partner when we travel with her, and generous Nana/caretaker so we can leave Jamie behind sometimes. Porter also makes thousands of dollars of purchases for his business which makes credit card points easier to rack up than most everyday spending. Not everyone has these, I realize.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-11659390032323779272017-03-08T13:02:00.004-08:002017-03-08T13:02:47.807-08:003 Nonprofit Organizations That Support WomenIt's International Women's Day, one of those holidays, like International Sandwich Day, National Hug Your Dog Day and others, that is basically made up. Maybe it gets used for marketing, maybe it's all about the warm fuzzies, but I have grown to really appreciate it. Fact is, women are amazing and women are, in fact, at a disadvantage most everywhere in the world. But the world is trying to fix it. LOTS of people in the world. So many it's hard to know who to support.<br />
<br />
So here are three organizations I know about, and a link to a bigger list of bigger organizations.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.womenforafghanwomen.org/">1. Women for Afghan Women</a><br />
<br />
I'm reading a book right now called <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Lovers-Afghanistans-Families-Escaped-Killing/dp/0062378821">The Lovers by Rod Nordland</a>. It's about a star-crossed couple in Afghanistan who are on the run from the woman's family's threats of honor killing her for running off with and marrying the man. Throughout the book, the author highlights a number of stories of basically how screwed women are in Afghanistan (I know, no surprise) and how there are a number of women's shelters that have popped up to protect them. Women for Afghan Women is an organization he worked with extensively and recommends. They operate shelters, transitional housing and mediation for families in conflict, as well as advocacy and training on the ground to improve the situation of women in the country. So they don't get acid thrown on their faces for BS reasons. (PS, There's no good reason to throw acid)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWIfhN3dE3cORAgCYsBZFYh9m5H6qA6azHoJLfMeKjXo7upsgj_zA-ZzF22L6hjjwK4u72rSk4JOXhxsO63fGPEGe4MbdXlMJSTWswyvp5WoUxdEoR6OPfwpluN33liCX87u5/s1600/afghan+woman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWIfhN3dE3cORAgCYsBZFYh9m5H6qA6azHoJLfMeKjXo7upsgj_zA-ZzF22L6hjjwK4u72rSk4JOXhxsO63fGPEGe4MbdXlMJSTWswyvp5WoUxdEoR6OPfwpluN33liCX87u5/s320/afghan+woman.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
2. <a href="https://www.daysforgirls.org/">Days for Girls</a><br />
<br />
My aunt is currently doing and awesome drive for supplies to head to support Syrian Refugees, and the local chapter of Days for Girls made so many kits for her she couldn't fit them all in her car, so I'm taking another full load for her this weekend. Days for Girls provides feminine hygiene solutions for women in the developing world. Periods basically mess with girls all over the world, and more than just cramps and crankiness. Girls are often pulled out of school and they often have to deal with periods in a very unhygienic way. Days for Girls not only collects supplies to be distributed around the world but also does training in local communities that help provide kits and jobs (read: stability) to local women.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNPwTIC2jnGWV6omCIQFI0jJL-dEhdxnPAeZSivsQQIlTyHxkc6_JLU-_AI3wLL5tgn3oWor-6PTapHXCZPR1AIxqPYu72gBVT9GpAoQSa0vHgyWDrz2hXPHr3whUmdW0yT9FV/s1600/Days-for-Girls-International-Every-Girl.-Everywhere.-Period..png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNPwTIC2jnGWV6omCIQFI0jJL-dEhdxnPAeZSivsQQIlTyHxkc6_JLU-_AI3wLL5tgn3oWor-6PTapHXCZPR1AIxqPYu72gBVT9GpAoQSa0vHgyWDrz2hXPHr3whUmdW0yT9FV/s320/Days-for-Girls-International-Every-Girl.-Everywhere.-Period..png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
3. <a href="http://anewaop.org/">ANEW - Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Employment for Women</a><br />
<br />
We worked with this group when I worked at Habitat for Humanity and they are AWESOME. Simple, they train women in trades and help them get jobs. It's an inspiring community and a successful mission. They do great work. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9Z8kmRzadicnZ1tKVhwPPhMIUPBY8sKKwtEkHBA7ODISOPfTU1zsMQXb1g-gJkKZB3hk1sYv_KlJcynKwmf0UehMqZn0RKeNedBjNjsagvAvaVcgb72uCVzrcgOoxMq8AnV1/s1600/ANEW-Class-81-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9Z8kmRzadicnZ1tKVhwPPhMIUPBY8sKKwtEkHBA7ODISOPfTU1zsMQXb1g-gJkKZB3hk1sYv_KlJcynKwmf0UehMqZn0RKeNedBjNjsagvAvaVcgb72uCVzrcgOoxMq8AnV1/s400/ANEW-Class-81-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="http://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/features/news/a21209/where-to-donate-volunteer-international-womens-day/"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>More ideas here</b> </span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=2133"><span style="font-size: x-large;">And some more</span></a><br />
<br />
Here's a video I saw almost 10 years ago that I think literally made my heart stop. I've thought about it a lot over the last decade. How the impact a girl can make on herself, her family, her community, and the world is incalculable.<br />
<br />
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5kxysX4MmOU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-50244092283216224212017-03-04T21:36:00.000-08:002017-03-04T21:36:00.171-08:003 Favorite Things About My New BathroomWe remodeled our bathroom a few months ago! I don't know why there's a ! ending that sentence, it was mostly a long, awful, decision-laden process that I was sure throughout would make me feel like it was a total waste of money.<br />
<br />
But it wasn't! There's that ! again. Note: I hate remodel projects. Hate laboring over a million stupid decisions. Hate spending money. Hate seeing on the final invoice a straight up 17% overhead charge. BOO FOR NOT BEING SELF-SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO DO IT ALL ON MY OWN.<br />
<br />
Buuuut I do love the outcome. My favorite things;<br />
<br />
1. The cast-iron pan.<br />
<br />
Okay most people probably can't tell it's cast-iron. But I do. We got a great deal on it and I feel like ever so subtly it jibes with the 1901-ness of our house.<br />
<br />
2. The tile border<br />
<br />
This was one of those decisions I thought about for weeks. We knew we wanted 2" white hex tiles. But didn't know if we wanted black tiles. And if so, how many. And in what pattern. After a million Houzz and Pinterest and blog views, I decided I wanted a dotted border. The tile place couldn't sell us sheets of black, only sheets with randomly placed black hexes (dumb). But the tile guy was able to put it all together, and I LOVE IT.<br />
<br />
3. THE PAINT COLOR<br />
<br />
All in caps because I love it that much. Halfway through the decision-making process I swear I had a vision of what color I wanted so it was just a matter of finding it in the paint swatches. This never happens to me. I saw it in my brain. I found it in the store. It was painted. And it is perfection.<br />
<br />
The vintage mirror and matching stained built-in shelves are pretty nice too...<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEVlF4J69C524NYipzb-hTeQXvETzvfwmvUaHHumURLDEU7bRMLHkzAEV67k109SDuAhdrgCtPJhnq5RSUiH77OZRmAzhgLGruxJOOp5198U5yRssoK_vh2u3UJug1CQAuNxyq/s1600/20161205_171534.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEVlF4J69C524NYipzb-hTeQXvETzvfwmvUaHHumURLDEU7bRMLHkzAEV67k109SDuAhdrgCtPJhnq5RSUiH77OZRmAzhgLGruxJOOp5198U5yRssoK_vh2u3UJug1CQAuNxyq/s320/20161205_171534.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmXDeTVyxnDxiZTjIUCvd1H05pk87bDc3ZOeRR5sCM2jJboWL-4NCqA5ltkODihUOZByYdp_AYMFM6vliUtA07k3onOi7FZU4bdfjXShgT-IqbzUKzzN8R5zyr7wY497zb_ydV/s1600/20161222_214528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmXDeTVyxnDxiZTjIUCvd1H05pk87bDc3ZOeRR5sCM2jJboWL-4NCqA5ltkODihUOZByYdp_AYMFM6vliUtA07k3onOi7FZU4bdfjXShgT-IqbzUKzzN8R5zyr7wY497zb_ydV/s320/20161222_214528.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYdGWpTIirk0WTSVTJe9tDQgJobn_KMJlXng_7EBVSSxZ1Prsrcn08n8MvEm8cnDASWHuRjscU1o26cp3ce2DrsJgJ5vrB2S5sAB5N_GnTCHoYLj4wSW66iU_rbOEanw0OaLE/s1600/20161221_100148.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYdGWpTIirk0WTSVTJe9tDQgJobn_KMJlXng_7EBVSSxZ1Prsrcn08n8MvEm8cnDASWHuRjscU1o26cp3ce2DrsJgJ5vrB2S5sAB5N_GnTCHoYLj4wSW66iU_rbOEanw0OaLE/s320/20161221_100148.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-32828874170676525492017-02-17T20:29:00.000-08:002017-02-17T20:29:00.302-08:003 Pieces of a Perfect Bangkok Experience<div dir="ltr">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSsJpjLizDLNItvvvTb7SLnb3HNSx5reoMPysqt44jsImKoE1A8vEoO9LdSd9bBA5EvL1Edy0NrQZRjuP5FFpDko8RZfBc3_Qm5aI_Q1JPrNzKXuX7ASueEP1LkNw5BVUA_6R/s1600/bangkok.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSsJpjLizDLNItvvvTb7SLnb3HNSx5reoMPysqt44jsImKoE1A8vEoO9LdSd9bBA5EvL1Edy0NrQZRjuP5FFpDko8RZfBc3_Qm5aI_Q1JPrNzKXuX7ASueEP1LkNw5BVUA_6R/s640/bangkok.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm asked from time to time for advice on how to do Bangkok (twice this week!). Well, how to travel Thailand in general, but since the city is an urban mess of 6 million people, intimidating traffic and an unwieldy language, Bangkok is really what needs the most advice.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Plus Bangkok has my heart, it really does. It's massive and sprawling and filled with life. It's fragrant in every good and nasty way your nose can handle. There is extreme luxury and devastating poverty, as well as a red lit underbelly that can make your stomach turn. The real name of Bangkok isn't even Bangkok, that's just the name of one neighborhood that's a whole lot easier than the full name:</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<i>The city of angels, the great city, the residence of the Emerald Buddha, the impregnable city (of Ayutthaya) of God Indra, the grand capital of the world endowed with nine precious gems, the happy city, abounding in an enormous Royal Palace that resembles the heavenly abode where reigns the reincarnated god, a city given by Indra and built by Vishnukarn</i></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Even if Ayutthaya and Vishnukarn mean nothing to you, the fact remains: Bangkok is a great city, the city of angels, a grand capital, abounding in wealth, happiness, like a heavenly abode.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
I heart it.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
But sadly, if you just show up in Bangkok and wander around, you'll probably not like it very much (because you know, traffic, poverty, scammers, etc.)</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
So here are my favorite things to recommend to people:</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>1. Wats</b> (Buddhist temples): You can't leave Bangkok without seeing GOLD. There are more wats in Bangkok than Mormon chapels in Utah, and they are a whole lot more gilded with gold and spectacle. If you wander around long enough, you'll probably just bump into one, but I highly recommend going to at least one of the big ones:</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
-The Grand Palace (Wat Prakaew/Temple of the Emerald Buddha). The first time I went, I was literally brought to my knees at the grandeur of the jade Buddha (and the mountain of gold upon which he sits).<br />
-Wat Po (Reclining Buddha). The biggest Buddha in town.<br />
-Wat Arun. The wat you can climb for a view of the river.<br />
-Wat Saket (Golden Mountain). The wat you can climb in circles for a different view.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
This link has all these, plus others, and a handy map marking them all: <a href="http://www.bangkok.com/magazine/10-temples.htm">http://www.bangkok.com/magazine/10-temples.htm</a></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>2. Markets/shopping:</b> My preference is for dinky neighborhood markets selling the seconds from the Abercrombie and Hollister factories nearby (among other things), or markets on college campuses (They seemed to always have the coolest clothes) but they are a little hard to find unless you're really wandering. Markets are most active in the afternoon and evening, but there are ones open earlier too. The further you get out tourist-town (Kao San/Sukhumvit/Patpong) the cooler stuff you'll find</div>
<div dir="ltr">
Chatujak Market is a <i>massive</i> market sort of on the outskirts of town. It's only open on the weekend, and the morning is actually better.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
-The Lumphini Night Bazaar used to be my favorite to recommend, due to its proximity to my favorite park, Suan Lumphini, but it's gone now, and most of the vendors have moved over to <b>Asiatique</b>, which is cool, but obviously built by a developer. It's right on the river, there's a ferris wheel, shops, and food, so you can't really go wrong, but sadly it feels almost like it could be a southern California outdoor mall. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
A lot of markets are conveniently located at subway/skytrain stops, my favorite being <b>Victory Monument</b>. It's massive, with indoor and outdoor shops and food all around a giant roundabout. This is also where you can catch a van/minibus to outside of Bangkok if you are persistent enough to figure it out. The market at <b>On Nut</b> station is smaller but still great.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Beyond these, walking up Sukhumvit, between 3 and about 30, there are tons of shops, and Kao San Road, of course, where all the backpackers congregate. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
I actually haven't actually been to most of the markets in this link, but they look rad and I will go next time I'm in BKK: <a href="http://bk.asia-city.com/shopping/article/bangkok-night-markets">http://bk.asia-city.com/shopping/article/bangkok-night-markets</a></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>3. Touristy things you pay for</b>:<br />
<b>
Ancient City</b> is not very easily accessible, but there are usually people advertising tours there anywhere there are hotels. It's cheaper still to take the Skytrain to Bang Na and then a taxi from there. It is my <b>number one favorite thing to recommend if people</b> can't spend too much time outside the city or beaches. Basically it's a 300+ acre park with full scale recreations of famous places around Thailand. You can bike around or rent a golf cart, climb all over everything. It's a blast. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Other things I've done and enjoyed:</div>
<div dir="ltr">
-Thai cooking class. There are lots offered, I've never heard a bad review. Thai food is the best. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
-Thai Massage. Hard to go 50 feet without running into a massage place. Not all are created equal, sadly. I have gotten a lot of really crappy massages and haven't been able to figure out how best to identify which ones are legit. Something about the way they posture, like the most casual they are, the worse the massage is. I took a week-long Thai massage class that was awesome.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
-Muay Thai fight. Okay I've never actually been but it does look awesome, and I will one of these days</div>
<div dir="ltr">
-Cultural performance. I've been to a few and they are usually really pretty cool. Thai music and dance is something else and these are a good way to experience it.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
-River Cruise. I've done just one and it was very cheesy, but at night is quite a magical view from the Chao Praya river</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Beyond these, I must advise everyone going to Thailand to prepare to EAT STREET FOOD. Don't be nervous. It's amazing and clean and the very best thing about the country. [Some recommendations of what to ask for: <a href="https://theculturetrip.com/asia/thailand/articles/14-mouth-watering-thai-street-foods-you-ll-love/">https://theculturetrip.com/asia/thailand/articles/14-mouth-watering-thai-street-foods-you-ll-love/</a>]</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>Remaining tips:</b></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>Where to stay?</b> </div>
<div dir="ltr">
This one's totally based on preference. I usually stay in the Sukhumvit area (between streets 10 and 25 or so) because I know it best and it's super central and easy to get on public transportation to anywhere else. Most backpackers stay near Kao San Road, which is across the river. I've been over there and it's just fine. If you're going for posh, there are some luxury places on the river. A little less convenient to get to, but plenty posh to make up for it. The good and bad of Bangkok is that everything awesome is all spread out, so no hotel is close to everything. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>Getting around</b></div>
<div dir="ltr">
I usually take a taxi from the airport to your hotel at first, it's just easier. They'll ask if you want to go surface streets or take the toll way (tang duan) and it's worth the toll for the speed. There is a public transportation option, but I don't know much about it. I'm always tired and disoriented when I land. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
After that, the skytrain (BTS) and subway (MRT) are super easy and go most places. It's pretty cheap and all stops are posted and announced in English. (Guide here: <a href="https://www.off-the-path.com/en/getting-around-bangkok-a-transportation-guide/">https://www.off-the-path.com/en/getting-around-bangkok-a-transportation-guide/</a>)</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
For short trips, or getting from the Skytrain down a long road, I recommend trying out motorcycle taxis (Guide here: <a href="http://www.iamwannee.com/a-guide-to-bangkok-motorcycle-taxis/">http://www.iamwannee.com/a-guide-to-bangkok-motorcycle-taxis/</a>). Generally stay away from tuk tuks. They are loud, expensive, and seems like most of the time are trying to rip you off. </div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
If you're feeling adventurous, I love taking the canal boats (Klongs). They are crowded and confusing and the water is actually pretty gross, but there is something seriously wonderful. And they can be waaaay faster than other modes of transportation. No traffic jams! (Basic guide here: <a href="http://www.bangkok.com/attraction-waterway/">http://www.bangkok.com/attraction-waterway/</a>)</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<b>Just outside Bangkok</b></div>
<div dir="ltr">
There aren't really any good beaches. Pattaya isn't so far but it's gross. Hua Hin is where people I know have gone. If you want really amazing beaches, you've got to go all the way down south, more than a day trip from Bangkok.</div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
Other quick trips I recommend are:</div>
<div dir="ltr">
</div>
<ol>
<li> Kanchanaburi and the Bridge Over the River Kwai. There are some cool waterfalls </li>
<li>Ayuttaya. It's got cool ruins</li>
<li>Lopburi. Lots of monkeys</li>
</ol>
<br />
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr">
<br /></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-57558868202103477322017-02-13T18:23:00.000-08:002017-02-13T18:23:09.116-08:003 Celebrity Couple CrushesCan't we just be friends, or neighbors?<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>1. John Krazinski and Emily Blunt</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ask Jimmy Kimmel, they make any party more fun. They seem just that right mix of ambitious, laid-back, fun, and serious. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbl3qUIgno2sZsBRIgxJlVjchJefxgMCdNZNNs1jwxnZLml4XgK3iWcklmyeLImeZp5FGA0oQgZ6VEbVrgpes-Uv3_FssMJJXGd1dStq40U1Wx3kIWbeYMPGxD6iGNuAl1UsMl/s1600/425_emily_blunt_john_krasin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbl3qUIgno2sZsBRIgxJlVjchJefxgMCdNZNNs1jwxnZLml4XgK3iWcklmyeLImeZp5FGA0oQgZ6VEbVrgpes-Uv3_FssMJJXGd1dStq40U1Wx3kIWbeYMPGxD6iGNuAl1UsMl/s320/425_emily_blunt_john_krasin.jpg" width="213" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br style="font-family: "roboto slab", "times new roman", serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;" /><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>2. Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The fact that they are married to each other makes me think he must be as smart as she is and she must be as funny as he is. They are so cool.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhItM39s9g57Ig1atfajqR_QrZaPEDptElOtdt2aL4hTBTw7WmIV1iH39Gax2sBY4kxXCkXepw5Qx8nGqs6a08OppGw9xhXZDNVtXlCF4jrd7xsCU3rMDu-GUYgwCHLsFU4RTud/s1600/Olivia-Wilde-Jason-Sudeikis-held-hands-while-walking-through.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhItM39s9g57Ig1atfajqR_QrZaPEDptElOtdt2aL4hTBTw7WmIV1iH39Gax2sBY4kxXCkXepw5Qx8nGqs6a08OppGw9xhXZDNVtXlCF4jrd7xsCU3rMDu-GUYgwCHLsFU4RTud/s320/Olivia-Wilde-Jason-Sudeikis-held-hands-while-walking-through.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>3. Tim and Faith</b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">For real though, are they not the greatest?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "roboto slab" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KqECvUhj3evIU4LQynFXj-MC7cOsCLddzeOUqWL2n5erkLV6Ed-YhyjzPhMozzbf9Lif60nHZaV8lPv_sOnJ87R5Q0y5u43ZgWAjNcn3gW-bpZXJpbFy2YRc0RmYOkZdLX2V/s1600/tim+and+faith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; white-space: normal;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KqECvUhj3evIU4LQynFXj-MC7cOsCLddzeOUqWL2n5erkLV6Ed-YhyjzPhMozzbf9Lif60nHZaV8lPv_sOnJ87R5Q0y5u43ZgWAjNcn3gW-bpZXJpbFy2YRc0RmYOkZdLX2V/s320/tim+and+faith.jpg" width="217" /></a></span></span>Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-26903474567053828002017-02-07T19:05:00.000-08:002017-02-07T19:05:01.599-08:00 My JamieI don't know how to keep up with this kid, literally on a minute to minute basis and more generally, recording his little life.<br />
<br />
MAN ALIVE, my child is adorable. It is amazing how many times a day I watch him with total crazy eyes, dumbfounded at the little fireworks going off in my soul. I just luuuurrrrrve him (you know, when I'm not dead tired or pulling my hair out).<br />
<br />
Some things I want to remember someday:<br />
<ul>
<li>Any time he wants to go somewhere, he'll whine "goooiing! going!" If he wants you to come, he'll pull you with a "coming! coming!"</li>
<li>He likes having blocks and toys shoved in his shirt</li>
<li>He likes having pillows chucked at his face, kind of hard</li>
<li>He is increasingly obsessed with Lambie, which is cute but also awful, dirty and I realize, precarious. We have multiple to switch out as needed</li>
<li>He is most snuggly right when he wakes up</li>
<li>He loves Cars and Trucks and Things That Go by Richard Scarry</li>
<li>He loves playing with cars, trucks, trains, and things that go. And balls</li>
<li>He is obsessed with Nannie</li>
<li>His cheeks are the perfect combination of warm, soft, and springy. They are my #1 favorite thing about him</li>
<li>His S words often leave off the first letter (i.e. swing is wing, spoon is poon)</li>
<li>I am more often momma than mommy or mom</li>
<li>He took immediately to my dad, even though they don't see each other much </li>
<li>He has a love/hate relationship with the Rumba (more like obsessed/terrified)</li>
<li>His best dance moves are a little shimmy, a spin, and jumping (he actually gets air!)</li>
<li>The most common comment I get when we are out and about is "he is all boy"</li>
<li>He is hit and miss with naps. I spend a lot of time driving around with him asleep in the car. Sucky nap days are when I feel the worst about myself as a mom</li>
<li>His favorite toys that are not toys are a hammer, screwdriver and measuring tape</li>
<li>Porter is a natural dad. He is as delighted as I am at Jamie's antics</li>
<li>He's good at blowing kisses and giving high fives, but especially like pounding knuckles, which he does even to himself, it sounds like 'bunnit'</li>
<li>He hasn't been around tiny babies much, but the few times he has he has been gentle and wide-eyed</li>
<li>His surprise/confused face is awesome</li>
<li>He is especially ticklish in his thighs and neck (the itsy bitsy spider gets them all)</li>
<li>He always laughs at us when we pray over a meal</li>
<li>Almost any bad mood is fixed by a few minutes playing outside</li>
<li>When I cry, he wipes my tears and starts crying</li>
<li>When Porter and I kiss near him, he will always run up and try to get it on the action</li>
<li>He eats pretty good, mostly. He'll be a bottomless pit for a few days then eat barely anything for a few days</li>
<li>HE IS MY BABY, no matter how big he gets</li>
</ul>
'Photo Dump<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioWWE7R1inBXvHMZ_4JUGSVxJVBCBKoDnJIqFPMmWaR4gVW8Hy0r4vcLCOvPnzRUKQXlkouS6qHN7HiWoi4b9hv0oa9IyS-T4G-o3gGFXPFj-f_8llv_v9gO6lt0UH7kKMfNA/s1600/20170121_150013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioWWE7R1inBXvHMZ_4JUGSVxJVBCBKoDnJIqFPMmWaR4gVW8Hy0r4vcLCOvPnzRUKQXlkouS6qHN7HiWoi4b9hv0oa9IyS-T4G-o3gGFXPFj-f_8llv_v9gO6lt0UH7kKMfNA/s320/20170121_150013.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPOFuzqR7g0jLdBti6lz7AfJ_pPnRv6UaIO8nt54CQerIwJToVEJkWgabhSOxkgHROp3J7hkAGScYde7qrP4zDc8xgt_IAx4Ml0CKwextm0Ryv5EiPaSMw1TEQSX78BGbnMCS/s1600/20170117_132919.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPOFuzqR7g0jLdBti6lz7AfJ_pPnRv6UaIO8nt54CQerIwJToVEJkWgabhSOxkgHROp3J7hkAGScYde7qrP4zDc8xgt_IAx4Ml0CKwextm0Ryv5EiPaSMw1TEQSX78BGbnMCS/s320/20170117_132919.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXDgpBiODq6me9GIQ9FURHeGMgHs97-syK97Eu_Cmd-D7775YNdmU-K2pIQYuH4bQ7sxSz3eYTK7-Bf-MDpDGcM6B-gh9h5EYZu4qdtxBGH1Y7XUY0B9DXuTkSHVX_dRRLQMj6/s1600/20170118_101931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXDgpBiODq6me9GIQ9FURHeGMgHs97-syK97Eu_Cmd-D7775YNdmU-K2pIQYuH4bQ7sxSz3eYTK7-Bf-MDpDGcM6B-gh9h5EYZu4qdtxBGH1Y7XUY0B9DXuTkSHVX_dRRLQMj6/s320/20170118_101931.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilpC4J9CODm7HoCX-lQMynWqjER_gXNiYtlxQ3S0O7qFcsH2MLUud4OvuOMM4c5XLA4FJxco8doCu9-eMhdmL3VXMw2asiWCLIlLE6JzMehSpDdnrVJXjBALiZTnNqVj_0uSIn/s1600/20170115_172430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilpC4J9CODm7HoCX-lQMynWqjER_gXNiYtlxQ3S0O7qFcsH2MLUud4OvuOMM4c5XLA4FJxco8doCu9-eMhdmL3VXMw2asiWCLIlLE6JzMehSpDdnrVJXjBALiZTnNqVj_0uSIn/s320/20170115_172430.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg88ZX-yUCIG-21OE_ZwS9a15S89C3Vt_uOL6AuTX3fdpd8H7ofySJZSA0gLG_EEciYHOtiHDo8xPWv-t78GWlz7aKyz8SdHQm3QxZyIB4u95H2nlE-8J4YInf2m5E4ZjKgODa3/s1600/20170115_101340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg88ZX-yUCIG-21OE_ZwS9a15S89C3Vt_uOL6AuTX3fdpd8H7ofySJZSA0gLG_EEciYHOtiHDo8xPWv-t78GWlz7aKyz8SdHQm3QxZyIB4u95H2nlE-8J4YInf2m5E4ZjKgODa3/s320/20170115_101340.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbJqebtZKykhy_DyDFzXfIy_qlkkqL6b2aKdwJpzMR9r0aGmiyYYULGw2Hel7BCJOKmBKTV5KRP8ciRqLjo0pMLROZ9MV5pt7g_Ct-ZXUM0V8sLoYumSxJARArxfqywnKobUL/s1600/20170111_080251.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbJqebtZKykhy_DyDFzXfIy_qlkkqL6b2aKdwJpzMR9r0aGmiyYYULGw2Hel7BCJOKmBKTV5KRP8ciRqLjo0pMLROZ9MV5pt7g_Ct-ZXUM0V8sLoYumSxJARArxfqywnKobUL/s320/20170111_080251.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuLUTIJc-f3CwnrIlr1_jymuWHFPtvZKCPFWKKPQ50ls5cLYQzeQQsRW_46pEJVHtRF2OnoCG55WP3G9CiVWUCYSgDey-NbsXQ9vVhLDxusQALz4zvq9ONprkhV4FPrZ7yFAD/s1600/IMG_9779.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuLUTIJc-f3CwnrIlr1_jymuWHFPtvZKCPFWKKPQ50ls5cLYQzeQQsRW_46pEJVHtRF2OnoCG55WP3G9CiVWUCYSgDey-NbsXQ9vVhLDxusQALz4zvq9ONprkhV4FPrZ7yFAD/s320/IMG_9779.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDJ4wp0K0TrQuk63qrMgGzZ48VZ2nEFmUleMATZ1Wn8W9pgI9rwEpXePnQZ_xHzfAyXOAxn_ujyr-t3JqOA4Tz0LtRKDoQLy19yJLrM3KFZeSPOcUaV8xzccJeJR6txI-8eCk5/s1600/Resized_20161225_081848.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDJ4wp0K0TrQuk63qrMgGzZ48VZ2nEFmUleMATZ1Wn8W9pgI9rwEpXePnQZ_xHzfAyXOAxn_ujyr-t3JqOA4Tz0LtRKDoQLy19yJLrM3KFZeSPOcUaV8xzccJeJR6txI-8eCk5/s320/Resized_20161225_081848.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvuU3rFu4LuIyS0g1iqH_QeEsrXAbJDVf4VEh-PqQS_UTA_sk2LNNlDRYXGTJmdMk-nHzRpHxN4ScbGgGDsmc_89mw-6wm8VN2BgQfBOC76LjEnboqd41eaJ3hKW3vxK0exUa/s1600/20161222_160308.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvuU3rFu4LuIyS0g1iqH_QeEsrXAbJDVf4VEh-PqQS_UTA_sk2LNNlDRYXGTJmdMk-nHzRpHxN4ScbGgGDsmc_89mw-6wm8VN2BgQfBOC76LjEnboqd41eaJ3hKW3vxK0exUa/s320/20161222_160308.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja7wmFn2OtVEJLmkLgFk6bqhlrVCnUVtht-RlJJb1UDKKnpZrUb-NqmUxc9fIWefAXmWg0RZfWJsF1cmJ1HKxEUx3upcqCxRDTYPOLvCPV3CLnmwlmOqCsvxNfHTOzA4yI9vav/s1600/IMG_9706.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja7wmFn2OtVEJLmkLgFk6bqhlrVCnUVtht-RlJJb1UDKKnpZrUb-NqmUxc9fIWefAXmWg0RZfWJsF1cmJ1HKxEUx3upcqCxRDTYPOLvCPV3CLnmwlmOqCsvxNfHTOzA4yI9vav/s320/IMG_9706.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO5kGVUxmvNllFfA-J4qozEVSS1_lgxhGX3LA0EqnUfUOUyKbh-9YCzpubpV-Q49S7OyO5uP5eYhWKV4Y5e9FS7PAdmL9YNHYDAwhFEFhLtZRHx9kYQOYGa9tihDurBANaOtqr/s1600/20161221_100148.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO5kGVUxmvNllFfA-J4qozEVSS1_lgxhGX3LA0EqnUfUOUyKbh-9YCzpubpV-Q49S7OyO5uP5eYhWKV4Y5e9FS7PAdmL9YNHYDAwhFEFhLtZRHx9kYQOYGa9tihDurBANaOtqr/s320/20161221_100148.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRrTZU_f3H0DfwvX1eR4O5mX29OGPTPEzBDmI6pW1oX_o6YmGdDlHwvjRbzVPC-TLH9quX1zemQbRRZrsaZNV97SdE83SfUCMoonj8el3_Kpe6WnJiVP1Rj6JNxut8xajNuzJN/s1600/20161218_090257.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRrTZU_f3H0DfwvX1eR4O5mX29OGPTPEzBDmI6pW1oX_o6YmGdDlHwvjRbzVPC-TLH9quX1zemQbRRZrsaZNV97SdE83SfUCMoonj8el3_Kpe6WnJiVP1Rj6JNxut8xajNuzJN/s320/20161218_090257.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFsdnljdrixmy00t-Z5N-zl8z2kWM87RZZg7fcFddl-M_05c4oNF-LJzDRfkoXLqzXeVO9tHUUgR0eV-mJPZrK6ru7HX8v4oAg-xYBYDC5IWBhyphenhyphentlLA574M9Wj9p-zUnwOMxN/s1600/photo0.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFsdnljdrixmy00t-Z5N-zl8z2kWM87RZZg7fcFddl-M_05c4oNF-LJzDRfkoXLqzXeVO9tHUUgR0eV-mJPZrK6ru7HX8v4oAg-xYBYDC5IWBhyphenhyphentlLA574M9Wj9p-zUnwOMxN/s320/photo0.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_DLuNd0nVELTjHQWNVKh84DeVa6cn_0Qkn29r-xW2w-perpfTwcbYfHIONz8gpjpf-PpLCbH8l-7o_wk5vJcOq8lLNFpiza7Aj77KDJJeh4aeo6C5WnlCCe8tziORrCds92Q/s1600/B4E6BB46-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_DLuNd0nVELTjHQWNVKh84DeVa6cn_0Qkn29r-xW2w-perpfTwcbYfHIONz8gpjpf-PpLCbH8l-7o_wk5vJcOq8lLNFpiza7Aj77KDJJeh4aeo6C5WnlCCe8tziORrCds92Q/s320/B4E6BB46-.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqPH5ydypOZQ3Z9ILDaO6B7qC14V1q0e6g0Hggn1zafxkAHV8Sd7UiYn3QOMbchLTJ9Zz5xDKkYtTqB4vBdOH2itYhxABYhIrQ1YX6JC6uK-D5MmoC-QcrImdN1iW_fhuGi508/s1600/Screenshot_20161209-224518.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqPH5ydypOZQ3Z9ILDaO6B7qC14V1q0e6g0Hggn1zafxkAHV8Sd7UiYn3QOMbchLTJ9Zz5xDKkYtTqB4vBdOH2itYhxABYhIrQ1YX6JC6uK-D5MmoC-QcrImdN1iW_fhuGi508/s320/Screenshot_20161209-224518.png" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhppXigDMeN9c2FZVRBY42TGvbFx5v675Pf1n_DLcOnNEad1H14FaONapHeOdm_uPPAeGzgmWK-jHKAHA92Gj41ywGxSKcr632XNRhO2su_0QeyLtAO_qQqlOVoXjNF2K7rtoAL/s1600/FullSizeR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhppXigDMeN9c2FZVRBY42TGvbFx5v675Pf1n_DLcOnNEad1H14FaONapHeOdm_uPPAeGzgmWK-jHKAHA92Gj41ywGxSKcr632XNRhO2su_0QeyLtAO_qQqlOVoXjNF2K7rtoAL/s320/FullSizeR.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMn0ymuSTwq2dyG19NWPIiY0LXIz7OVjV5gdAFjTXei8EB0x815KFmfqIwIdCirXxt6Z_Fd-VWoK5d-zMIBz3x0gIid2nIBewUB91abTn7VzNYZ36xGDP2yXDmtHHmPOBtF_Bu/s1600/20161123_151951.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMn0ymuSTwq2dyG19NWPIiY0LXIz7OVjV5gdAFjTXei8EB0x815KFmfqIwIdCirXxt6Z_Fd-VWoK5d-zMIBz3x0gIid2nIBewUB91abTn7VzNYZ36xGDP2yXDmtHHmPOBtF_Bu/s320/20161123_151951.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx91yat7LUC7jDvywYqTsPQK7FQOwXIMtmV91vVhuMUBcm062VN8P58H_aGYwJU-YrikJCqQLFmA3yfGKnjzbyvCew5WYSTcuJ376ZypwT7LRu4nC5c1FA9ikGvvao8cOWvjxQ/s1600/20161120_150145.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx91yat7LUC7jDvywYqTsPQK7FQOwXIMtmV91vVhuMUBcm062VN8P58H_aGYwJU-YrikJCqQLFmA3yfGKnjzbyvCew5WYSTcuJ376ZypwT7LRu4nC5c1FA9ikGvvao8cOWvjxQ/s320/20161120_150145.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7XpNiuMa7vv9sz9T52Xh4WUOjskRRc88KlGdBrjsSxDl7I8wgP9Q_83ytkCs5RYnMLSaibDwRFSoq8I223fDsYADiFqHOBbXdXF7tXun_eUx1AeyBhqFkpH6NQ2eKLcPK2Ose/s1600/IMG_9138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7XpNiuMa7vv9sz9T52Xh4WUOjskRRc88KlGdBrjsSxDl7I8wgP9Q_83ytkCs5RYnMLSaibDwRFSoq8I223fDsYADiFqHOBbXdXF7tXun_eUx1AeyBhqFkpH6NQ2eKLcPK2Ose/s320/IMG_9138.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5diiDO7RYjw7Ft_UgtRG1RNQgE5EawUi0peswRi6dcOmjwYce7DceGE0EjH1MBP8lTgYUHYOBN44hBn_MIQHEA2_1-UpsyK4foWEgpZ6K8L6RC6v7GRhDJbEhyphenhyphene017eQzWOnp/s1600/20161020_112433.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5diiDO7RYjw7Ft_UgtRG1RNQgE5EawUi0peswRi6dcOmjwYce7DceGE0EjH1MBP8lTgYUHYOBN44hBn_MIQHEA2_1-UpsyK4foWEgpZ6K8L6RC6v7GRhDJbEhyphenhyphene017eQzWOnp/s320/20161020_112433.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAd0LyA7QhkNyNWlXr9DvBeuugbfYsAvIkVUvsnfzwOQXLaMiHG-X8TuSHERV5N0OX2C0QP_grwdsosibQD9T-qW-csus7IN3_k_gfSNBjL0ob38J18DSQaUv4o6wvAnNrfjgo/s1600/20161018_154806.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAd0LyA7QhkNyNWlXr9DvBeuugbfYsAvIkVUvsnfzwOQXLaMiHG-X8TuSHERV5N0OX2C0QP_grwdsosibQD9T-qW-csus7IN3_k_gfSNBjL0ob38J18DSQaUv4o6wvAnNrfjgo/s320/20161018_154806.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkb6_2qTeO3QQpY5WTymnCU0Rss0AfIFyxoPOFx_-ijBHD1zl__SDEBtWoGr6R-0H_ITjE7Je43x_nNwZhr6RJkImm06atcKJZ8n4oMUtW53Oss0SFmWb9YnnYbPpLxEX3BQLt/s1600/20161013_115209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkb6_2qTeO3QQpY5WTymnCU0Rss0AfIFyxoPOFx_-ijBHD1zl__SDEBtWoGr6R-0H_ITjE7Je43x_nNwZhr6RJkImm06atcKJZ8n4oMUtW53Oss0SFmWb9YnnYbPpLxEX3BQLt/s320/20161013_115209.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdOkhJ9FHiRTvzlc1Ggbh-hVnVKSMNmqbEDDjdPRLn7g2jRackW7hKSp7EF-KEYCBbrA_WKBfCVGa0Wle5BYBDdpQ1QnvjYVF1a-gwrPRWe4grf14hjD8IB5Z89eROssoUE-z9/s1600/20161011_183944.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdOkhJ9FHiRTvzlc1Ggbh-hVnVKSMNmqbEDDjdPRLn7g2jRackW7hKSp7EF-KEYCBbrA_WKBfCVGa0Wle5BYBDdpQ1QnvjYVF1a-gwrPRWe4grf14hjD8IB5Z89eROssoUE-z9/s320/20161011_183944.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRH6APVFIAFkmSXqOS5JxoExLuibqj7Z1euLYV67VMC6q9Jpi1JoD3MniVz_lNomAcBBwS5t5B8qBBLGYxVHBHpox2iKF4Ui3M3SyITDzMEggriRyLnYubAqJNuPq83GyDQOJj/s1600/20161010_092723.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRH6APVFIAFkmSXqOS5JxoExLuibqj7Z1euLYV67VMC6q9Jpi1JoD3MniVz_lNomAcBBwS5t5B8qBBLGYxVHBHpox2iKF4Ui3M3SyITDzMEggriRyLnYubAqJNuPq83GyDQOJj/s320/20161010_092723.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBoSIqHTw8HVxyCdn0U8azCCrWNUDAKLnbgRzeoQgNWPkjOVoKxeMn87x1W-dSeyg84HeMLi8YItM3GFvkCuYjGQ6A0cAvckGYg2QqsM9iVGFToPb4cIP7VKnz5aBZ8hn3oXD/s1600/IMG_6341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBoSIqHTw8HVxyCdn0U8azCCrWNUDAKLnbgRzeoQgNWPkjOVoKxeMn87x1W-dSeyg84HeMLi8YItM3GFvkCuYjGQ6A0cAvckGYg2QqsM9iVGFToPb4cIP7VKnz5aBZ8hn3oXD/s320/IMG_6341.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihw17dn76HFsEMNqtpiLZ6XI35eQ9Lxdr0mICSlMS4rOpE2FXR1B-kNuuqHIrO9iDf_lOPbvXSQFbcCRgtGrvSu6AfvZS-pA_KwS6AGCv5bgJkKANgcbJAqRjI3kGBqxsc415l/s1600/20160920_081457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihw17dn76HFsEMNqtpiLZ6XI35eQ9Lxdr0mICSlMS4rOpE2FXR1B-kNuuqHIrO9iDf_lOPbvXSQFbcCRgtGrvSu6AfvZS-pA_KwS6AGCv5bgJkKANgcbJAqRjI3kGBqxsc415l/s320/20160920_081457.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2BxZ9fCghBU4pOh2MquojJBLWzsHcIPNOcG43Vifw63OC1T5g5F-YmJTVThUn2KbKUE_43Wa7IxGSO-vQZlTtihg0IAq2ByUJWPtMCzs6SjPf4OD_A-8sZzXJzdB_7NVKRhXT/s1600/20160912_150545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2BxZ9fCghBU4pOh2MquojJBLWzsHcIPNOcG43Vifw63OC1T5g5F-YmJTVThUn2KbKUE_43Wa7IxGSO-vQZlTtihg0IAq2ByUJWPtMCzs6SjPf4OD_A-8sZzXJzdB_7NVKRhXT/s320/20160912_150545.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5BFTlj33qRvfAAAak_zHCI2zQnMfMXoWnKI-RHFz_HaCQAzCu22OTquHcrxTLXpQWOKz9Hg0CP-5UKXiy2Eg5xSzS9Bq6EENZy4y_ggk1_H6FIBi9CMlkCXkzw4XBmY7L72rS/s1600/20160910_140653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5BFTlj33qRvfAAAak_zHCI2zQnMfMXoWnKI-RHFz_HaCQAzCu22OTquHcrxTLXpQWOKz9Hg0CP-5UKXiy2Eg5xSzS9Bq6EENZy4y_ggk1_H6FIBi9CMlkCXkzw4XBmY7L72rS/s320/20160910_140653.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirt-4nf2ozWcvGhR40WW8bpZXUDur9fmUsUjinmVROPx49NzZdmCb6DojoqhpqOhUxXC0JRiI6Fg8RM6QKCDLDdZV4ZZ5CNDEpyKfa2TYmcV27_hqqKpPZqZB5rhrTCF5vgJT0/s1600/20160829_124011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirt-4nf2ozWcvGhR40WW8bpZXUDur9fmUsUjinmVROPx49NzZdmCb6DojoqhpqOhUxXC0JRiI6Fg8RM6QKCDLDdZV4ZZ5CNDEpyKfa2TYmcV27_hqqKpPZqZB5rhrTCF5vgJT0/s320/20160829_124011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFxnH711i51ET_bgx4sokNk-o97UPdx8uKNaRLXdNWQ-eb5Cm6FReL3AbW1duRTlwgMK31_v-dEEcHZhn9L19-kcBze_gy3QEMosZRIDjvqHqerRSTpVNB5Y35WMZpPoqnvJC/s1600/20160822_135445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFxnH711i51ET_bgx4sokNk-o97UPdx8uKNaRLXdNWQ-eb5Cm6FReL3AbW1duRTlwgMK31_v-dEEcHZhn9L19-kcBze_gy3QEMosZRIDjvqHqerRSTpVNB5Y35WMZpPoqnvJC/s320/20160822_135445.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU5M34NAsjXoHfkv4tPEqiAIv47nbLpOaAi0g9sPbyVDakWQI8_r8mAGl_4aWXqydSAQ5ttC7Fq3MxhyLXT1fVI2MQ7oy9POuw1dJ30wuCqAyVtd0xxGq9azGjoqKJf-QhcCB9/s1600/20160817_125635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU5M34NAsjXoHfkv4tPEqiAIv47nbLpOaAi0g9sPbyVDakWQI8_r8mAGl_4aWXqydSAQ5ttC7Fq3MxhyLXT1fVI2MQ7oy9POuw1dJ30wuCqAyVtd0xxGq9azGjoqKJf-QhcCB9/s320/20160817_125635.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfyUQtbz1KOu9a22BTTcTjSWFTV-iRJXGtkDan_PsSdeq1FSmZ0oi1KD4ZGcAO_-Snw8iNrxxm3DhndW0OfHhJGfaCIQrhLkSgSxQuRVOCOBy1EJZ4JRQFZ73cK1svdZNx8lc/s1600/20160716_141500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfyUQtbz1KOu9a22BTTcTjSWFTV-iRJXGtkDan_PsSdeq1FSmZ0oi1KD4ZGcAO_-Snw8iNrxxm3DhndW0OfHhJGfaCIQrhLkSgSxQuRVOCOBy1EJZ4JRQFZ73cK1svdZNx8lc/s320/20160716_141500.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-65735830439354810782017-02-03T22:30:00.000-08:002017-02-03T22:30:02.905-08:003 Best Scenes in Age of AdalineI was sick a while back and, as is custom, used my stuffy nose and sore throat as carte blanche for watching a lot of movies. I had heard mostly all awful things about The Age of Adeline, a sappy fantastical movie about a woman who doesn't age, so spends her time alone, lovely and interesting. I think Blake Lively, while surely a bit pretentious and obnoxiously perfect, is actually quite lovely and seems to be relatively grounded for how beautiful and celebrity she is. And she did great as Adeline, who was beautiful and grounded and who made me cry because I was sick and the story was sentimental and lovely.<br />
<br />
Three best moments:<br />
<br />
1. It's New Year's Eve and Jenny goes to meet her old blind friend, who thinks she is old too, Jenny and Ellis lock eyes and in slow motion just LOOK. STARE. Time stops. THEY FALL IN LOVE IN A MOMENT. It's breathtaking.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/nbrhkY_dDv0/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nbrhkY_dDv0?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
2. When Jenny meets Ellis' dad, William, it turns out she had known him years before and she had disappeared when they gotten too close. He sees her, freaks, and everyone tried to play it off as not the awkwardness that it was. Harrison Ford is stricken and vulnerable and moving as this man who sees someone he loved so much walk in the door.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zkR_E8jw6qE/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zkR_E8jw6qE?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
Link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkR_E8jw6qE">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkR_E8jw6qE</a><br />
<br />
3. At the end of the movie, Jenny gets hit by a car and finally decides to tell Ellis her secret about not ever aging. When her 85-year-old daughter comes to visit her in the hospital and introduces herself to Ellis as Jenny's grandmother, Jenny smiles and tells her daughter that Ellis knows. Ellen Burstyn gets beautifully emotional, as one would when your mother looks 28 and you're looking into retirement homes and you've been holding onto this secret forever. Also, if you've encouraged your mother all her life to open up and LOVE already. "<i>He knows</i>." She is visibly relieved of so much worry, and hugs Ellis, who is understandably still reeling.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Jxs8p22Pq_Y/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Jxs8p22Pq_Y?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
Link: <a href="https://youtu.be/Jxs8p22Pq_Y">https://youtu.be/Jxs8p22Pq_Y</a><br />
<br />
Give it a chance.Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-25606668134878451332017-01-31T22:46:00.000-08:002017-01-31T22:46:04.218-08:00How Great the Goodness of God (Three Great Goods)At church a while back the Sunday School lesson was called How Great the Goodness of God. I think it covered one of the first ways God is so great, but it got me thinking about others:<br />
<br />
1. God has perfect love<br />
<br />
A concept that is pretty hard to understand. Feeling true love from my parents (I seriously lucked out in that department), I get it on some level. Finding the love of my life helped me understand a little bit more. Having a baby seriously leveled me up in understanding unconditional love. But when I think about God, love is overwhelmingly the characteristic I think of.<br />
<br />
My grandpa used to tell this story that feels almost too special to share on the internet (but I'll share what I can). He was sick with cancer, so sick doctors asked him if he wanted to die at home or at the hospital. The family had a big fast for him, with lots of prayers and a special blessing (I was 2 at the time, not super helpful, I'm sure). And he was healed. Like 100% of his cancer was gone in a matter of days, doctors were scratching their heads healed. But healing isn't the memorable part, though he did live another 25 years. He recounts this experience he had praying so sincerely (with the gravity someone being sent home to die can only muster) and feeling an intense and all-consuming love. In the last years of my grandpa's life he told a lot of the same stories on repeat so I heard the experience regularly and even in his recounting of it, I could feel the reality my grandpa was feeling even in recounting the experience and felt an extension of that love every time I heard the story. I've heard other similar brushes with death (or life, as it were) or touches with heaven that recount similar explosions of love.<br />
<br />
2. God has perfect understanding<br />
<br />
Meaning we don't have to explain ourselves so much. Nor do we need to judge or make excuses for anyone else. God knows are hearts, He knows our personal experiences, our losses and fears, our greatest joys. He knows when we've acted out of weakness and when we're doing our best, and when we know better and are justifying things to ourselves.<br />
<br />
The great lesson from all this understanding is not that God is planning a big fat 'Gotcha!' when it comes to judgment, or that there is any chance of God sneering at us, rubbing our faults in our noses, but rather that all this understanding adds up to complete and total mercy. We've got a listening ear when we are going through hard things that no one gets, and a generous and loving perspective when we just really kind of suck at life.<br />
<br />
Research shows that what drives shame and furthermore what drives the downward spiral of sadness and poor decision-making is a lack of connection with others. We're hard-wired to feel connected and when we feel alone and misunderstood, we go haywire and bad feels worse. God's perfect understanding is an antidote to this lack of connection. It is our tether to our self-worth and inherent value.<br />
<br />
3. God is perfectly beautiful<br />
<br />
He has created beauty, including imperfections. I understand why people don't get into religion. I get why people don't believe in <i>my</i> religion, but I look at the world around me and the experience of human life and it is impossible for me to not believe in a higher power. It's not the science of how humans work that makes me believe, it's poetry and sunrises and best friends and intimacy and music and intuition and all these things that make us human. There is a lot of ugliness and hate in the world (feels like especially so lately), but in thinking about that ugliness, I've been drawn toward all these sparks of beauty. In them I feel God.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15267358.post-1590815589257256292017-01-19T22:40:00.000-08:002017-01-19T22:40:00.939-08:003 Ways to Enjoy German Christmas MarketsA couple months ago Trish told me she and her best friend Pat wanted to watch Jamie and could Porter and I go out of town for a week or so? Yes, my mother-in-law is the best person on the planet, and yes I realize how lucky I am.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Throw in the stand-by connection and the world was very seriously our oyster. I went to the Christmas market in Prague like 10 years ago and it was so magical. I has been on my mind lately, so we Googled 'Best Christmas Markets in Germany', picked a couple and hoped there would be space on the plane (there was). </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
1. Big town<br />
We chose Cologne for its proximity to Frankfurt (the airport we had to fly into), and that it boasted six different Christmas Markets AND an unreal cathedral. The cathedral was, in fact, unreal. Very Pillars of the Earth and Gothic looking. We stayed in a simple, but very adorable little inn that everyone kept taking pictures of. (Sidenote: They did not have shampoo. I did not pack shampoo, nor did I buy shampoo. My hair did not appreciate any of this.)<br />
<br />
The train lets you out right by the cathedral, which is right by the river, and the cutest parts of the town (and most of the Christmas Markets), so we didn't venture far from that area. We arrived on a Thursday morning and thought it was a bit crowded until we saw what Friday and Saturday looked like. Shoulder to shoulder packed, everywhere. It was insane. Sure, vendors came from all over Europe (most notable/delicious, a Nougaterie (fresh nougat maker) from France and sausage maker from southern Italy). There were candles and wood carvings and adorable German things everywhere. Cheap brats and hashbrowns with applesauce and people lingering and being generally festive. Pretzels for days. It was awesome. One market had an ice rink with a portion dedicated to what looked like ice bocce. In another town we barely stopped in (Mainz), there was a nativity pyramid a full story high.<br />
<br />
<div>
2. Small town<br />
<br />
After Cologne we stayed just one night in a town called Cochem, which is in the Mosel Valley (the wine region) and spend an afternoon in Koblenz, where the Mosel and Rhine converge. We took the train along the Rhine while listening to Rick Steve's Best of the Rhine, which was a play by play of cute towns and castle along our way. The Christmas Market in Cochem was much smaller (though I did end up buying most of my stuff there... because choices are too much for me), but the town was adorable and quaint and the perfect opposite to Cologne's busyness. Added bonus, the town had its very own castle, where there was a live nativity.<br />
<br />
3 Religious<br />
<br />
Porter and I noted that we both had the idea that Germany is very secular, along with much of Europe. Maybe it's just that the Christmas spirit is especially difficult to dampen, but I was surprised at how religious many places felt. Even among the shops, there was a lot of care taken to display religious items well. During the live nativity, there were several times where the group broke out into Christmas hymns. It all felt very much like worship and not just tradition. </div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit2_6cL4RTtCyQ2b1CT-nVv8ug1di2e5UUDf_E81eqQ5Zf2IsXX3iqhWXnaNWR0eB0gGRCNlsa04TbyRraTT-FZK8PAzyZ6q5r2D1VrrMCDnSgJfspwkVFcwr6pOhKIxLaWZ07/s1600/20161211_172602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit2_6cL4RTtCyQ2b1CT-nVv8ug1di2e5UUDf_E81eqQ5Zf2IsXX3iqhWXnaNWR0eB0gGRCNlsa04TbyRraTT-FZK8PAzyZ6q5r2D1VrrMCDnSgJfspwkVFcwr6pOhKIxLaWZ07/s320/20161211_172602.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq34wOVVzhVFfAr57HMou7Yj0GNaLgm2RUwK2_BhWhKN1EqvRZnt31rUVf7ZYkA9nnLgoVqh09sYaFONV2QUWStAmXKbMNxNNpcaZViXFa4a55q2KQ8NzPdW7Bt7SntG7G1F3F/s1600/20161210_181019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq34wOVVzhVFfAr57HMou7Yj0GNaLgm2RUwK2_BhWhKN1EqvRZnt31rUVf7ZYkA9nnLgoVqh09sYaFONV2QUWStAmXKbMNxNNpcaZViXFa4a55q2KQ8NzPdW7Bt7SntG7G1F3F/s320/20161210_181019.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZ98TWIOjk02qhgep74NkeTCxj3bazfiqJz8p4XLKqCmInqgM1opDezBt-Aqe4be9DHcwLmnInUGZkMDgg-59Ka5qxNkptws7OO7wDt1hMV9_DqmJUDvx9hiY7Ni1XjiqjE1D/s1600/20161210_175732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZ98TWIOjk02qhgep74NkeTCxj3bazfiqJz8p4XLKqCmInqgM1opDezBt-Aqe4be9DHcwLmnInUGZkMDgg-59Ka5qxNkptws7OO7wDt1hMV9_DqmJUDvx9hiY7Ni1XjiqjE1D/s320/20161210_175732.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVzYwucE9RoBMtiL596ObwHx8av_N4U6IcTqbAJT9lupTyqkk7cpf17dV-ggiwOVe38DH63JQSvXvG5hQmnTJKXP7Dog8BqO-IvrrBYTvMxIq2nxfHKQsejrolM6vBIjFfqwg/s1600/20161210_142726.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVzYwucE9RoBMtiL596ObwHx8av_N4U6IcTqbAJT9lupTyqkk7cpf17dV-ggiwOVe38DH63JQSvXvG5hQmnTJKXP7Dog8BqO-IvrrBYTvMxIq2nxfHKQsejrolM6vBIjFfqwg/s320/20161210_142726.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhydHqYnpG8M-oJOI6K3YzzM7ThMKSU4wML5QKEO5MWMxyLS3A_5eGP2CH4NWAHX6rdUbhNooMydDYWi-Z6fKZ-vkgbBSmpJsnG6Y4Qv6Z3siI-3wp7dqM-H8rnXAytHEZtOBhf/s1600/20161209_165701.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhydHqYnpG8M-oJOI6K3YzzM7ThMKSU4wML5QKEO5MWMxyLS3A_5eGP2CH4NWAHX6rdUbhNooMydDYWi-Z6fKZ-vkgbBSmpJsnG6Y4Qv6Z3siI-3wp7dqM-H8rnXAytHEZtOBhf/s320/20161209_165701.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJl7bwhODFAHjUZ8_NATtRp88y8Pdpvn6F03plWLS-YVHzm_ghj8M8ZzSHN7j0C6hyRjjf0zrfT024j9E2qPlP1MEVUo4eczY641D2otv9kdza-AKtsHmu_SaR-Uqyg0wyT1j/s1600/20161209_162643.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJl7bwhODFAHjUZ8_NATtRp88y8Pdpvn6F03plWLS-YVHzm_ghj8M8ZzSHN7j0C6hyRjjf0zrfT024j9E2qPlP1MEVUo4eczY641D2otv9kdza-AKtsHmu_SaR-Uqyg0wyT1j/s320/20161209_162643.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
Of course we were total geeks about FaceTiming with Jamie. The connection was awful but it was encouraging to see him having such a good time at Auntie Pat and Unc Floyd's house.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwJIKIF-MU5kQPH62J67zwssxJU2yI5ePPUG8ZFqjLfgZTn3b8J6JE6ZOVzVIriC9ImvoouCngVUBKF72h5T_nLmYHi2UKI5h57dHu14_L_FWwwDVnQRB8DLE2Hb6BCDIRcFy/s1600/Screenshot_20161209-224518.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwJIKIF-MU5kQPH62J67zwssxJU2yI5ePPUG8ZFqjLfgZTn3b8J6JE6ZOVzVIriC9ImvoouCngVUBKF72h5T_nLmYHi2UKI5h57dHu14_L_FWwwDVnQRB8DLE2Hb6BCDIRcFy/s320/Screenshot_20161209-224518.png" width="180" /></a><br />
<br />
Isn't my Porter handsome?<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnlyBI58tRgw3iSjDGtBp_lsRdTLcIpkBRoIo4h-H2ohxslR5CGn54C4oxSKTD8hy2jH6UV3VCxMxx1DDO2QP0DyhnZD2lhSz9hsFhv1qhE-Q04h2KgFLVqRplviP3PniRmzo/s1600/20161211_175103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnlyBI58tRgw3iSjDGtBp_lsRdTLcIpkBRoIo4h-H2ohxslR5CGn54C4oxSKTD8hy2jH6UV3VCxMxx1DDO2QP0DyhnZD2lhSz9hsFhv1qhE-Q04h2KgFLVqRplviP3PniRmzo/s320/20161211_175103.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Kamihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10688511861554902541noreply@blogger.com0