The Reading Promise

Kristin Brozina (aka Alice Ozma) is a girl from my hometown. Her dad was the librarian at the elementary school where my Mom launched her teaching career. Her dad is a free spirit known for finding baseball tickets, walking miles in an umbrella hat, and taking my Mom and I on excursions to Philly to see the Children's Museum, the Zoo, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

More importantly, Jim Brozina will be remembered for the promise he made to his daughter.
1,000 nights of books read aloud over nine years.

Growing up my parents read to me each night until I hit 4th grade and declared I was OVER story time. Those nights are ingrained in my memory. My mom would lay on my bed, my dad on the floor, and we would read together, laugh together, and talk about our day. Nothing came between the Fislers and storytime. In fact my mom was known for bidding company adieu so that my bedtime ritual was not disturbed.

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For the past year, each night, Mr. R. has read aloud to me. We conqured both volumes of Sherlock Holmes, a Stephanie Plum novel, The Throes of Democracy, and most recently The Tudors.

Now that we have a Pip I hope we can follow in the footsteps of Jim and Kristin. I already have a reading list in my head. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie, The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, Treasure Island, The Hobbit, Mary Poppins... seriously, my wheels are spinning.

There is no substitute for books in the life of a child.” - May Ellen Chase

mmm...

Introducing Piper to my additction.

Starbucks, new magazines, and a sleeping baby... yay!

Rain, Rain

 We have been having glorious afternoon rain showers here in (almost always) sunny Florida. The skies darken between 2 and 4 PM and we hunkerdown on the comfy couch for an afternoon symphony of rain drops and the occasional clap of thunder and crash of lightening.

I love the rain. It reminds me to slow down, enjoy a cup of tea, take a nap, or sink into the chaise next to my super cute hubs and enjoy a good cuddle.

This little girl, (Sophie), however wishes the rain would GO AWAY!

It's totally interrupting afternoon walk time.

A Two Pint Night

Some nights just call for ice cream.

(tonight also called for swimming and homemade pizza.)

We are at a stalemate for which flavor is best.

Red Velvet Cake vs. Creme Brulee

As you know, my vote is always for red velvet...and apparently so is Simon's.

(I turned my back for only a second, I swear.)

Liquid Gold

Who knew we would be trading the wine space in our fridge for breast milk?

Made my Monday

1. The number of people who are praying with us for Mr. R.'s opportunity. It's amazing that we have been blessed with usch awesome friends. God knew what he was doing when he introduced us to all of you. You guys are seriously ROCKSTARS!

2. Piper was an amazing napper today. Three daytime naps for 90 minutes each, which allowed me a trip to the grocery store and an afternoon workout. (I am not sure if I should tell you that she made up for all that good behavior by being a terror from 5:00 PM until 8:30. But she is currently sleeping now and looks like an angel so all is forgiven.)

3. We have had smores for dessert the past 5 nights. I learned that putting peanut butter on one of the graham crackers in the smore sandwich is as close to an earthly heaven as I will ever get.

4. We got rain, glorious rain in Florida today! No, the drought is not solved, but our grass is green again and I no longer feel like I am being cooked alive when we leave the house.

5. My Mom sent us an amazing care package today. She remembered that Mr. R. and I just discovered the TV show "The Middle" and she sent us season #1 along with a gift for Pip.

6. Napping when the baby naps is the BEST ADVICE ever. I fought it for a long time prentending like I was Superwoman and could survive on very little/almost no sleep. But this napping thing is glorious. I am signed up for a summer full of mid morning and afternoon naps and I love it.

7. I got invited to a book club starting this Saturday. We are reading Beth Moore's, So Long Insecurity. I read it last year with friends from school, but it's a powerful book that deals with a VERY tough life lesson, and I think I could use a refresher.

8. Piper makes the most adorable baby noises in her sleep. They are grunting, snoring, snorting sounds that are followed by breathy sighs. She makes me fall in love with her all over again.

Happy Monday!

Here's to being thankful for today, to being present and making the most out of the everyday.

Our New Normal

Yes, that is a vaccum parked right next to Miss Piper's swing.

It is on high.

And it's SUPER LOUD.

And yes, it put her to sleep in 10 minutes.

Bring It!

This morning with much trepedation we took Piper to church. I fed her, dressed her, rocked her, and carried a sweet sleepy baby into the service. And then she promptly woke up. She cooed, fussed, ate and in the last five minutes of the service she finally slept. We conquered church! Bring on the next outing the Martins are ready!

Last night Mr. R. was offered a new job opportunity. It would be a great step in his career and we are waiting once again to find out if his resume and talents will be accepted. Of course this new change is scary and we are approaching it with much hope and also a little fear. But to be honest, when I look at the big world that surronds out little family and all the possibilities it holds, I can't help but say. "Bring it! We are ready!"

P.S. If you are the praying kind we would appreciate a few said over Mr. R. as his resume is examined and reviewed in the coming days.

Rainbow Bright

I am so in love with those chubby little legs.

A Happy Anniversary

You know I love a party... I love holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, basically any chance to celebrate with cake and a fun party dress. But this year, on our big 5th anniversary, I didn't have a plan. Instead I had a baby who was not sleeping, a basket full of laundry (covered in spit up), and not a cupcake in sight. Our fussy baby would not allow a dinner out and to be honest I am not ready to leave her alone with a babysitter.

 So we improvised, a bottle of sangria (thanks Rachel!), crockpot fajitas, and grocery store doughnuts. Mr. R. rocked our little girl to sleep in his pajamas while I prepped dinner. In an attempt to be festive I donned a cardigan over my nursing tank. We settled in for a Netflix movie and quality time on our IKEA chaises.

Mr. R. bought me a pair of earrings from Anthropologie for Christmas two years ago. I lost one of those earrings while delivering Piper. I wore them to the hospital, but they never made it home. Today I searched for their replacements.

I fell in love with the cupcake earrings. They are nothing like the earring I lost but they remind me of all the cupcakes Mr. R. and I have eaten together the past 5 years. The birthday cupcakes, date night cupcakes, Christmas cupcakes, DC cupcakes, Luli's cupcakes, Valentine's cupcakes, We're pregnant! cupcakes, baby shower cupcakes, and now 5 years together cupcakes. Best anniversary present ever!

Wait, I take that back, Piper has been sleeping for 4 hours and I was able to do all the laundry, take a LONG shower, catch up on blogs, and make dinner... that might just be the best present ever.

Mirror, Mirror

Who's the fairest of them all?

5 years!

Today marks 5 years of marriage to Mr. R.

In the past five years, we have finished graduate school, traveled to four countries, adopted two puppies...

We moved 3 times, bought our first home, had a baby!, left two good jobs in hopes of finding great ones,

and started a new life 800 miles from our families.

Mr. R. you are the peanutbutter to my chocolate, the vanilla syrup to my latte, and the powdered sugar to my doughnut.

I know you like to joke that you wrestled me into marriage... You love to brag that you always knew I was the one, that you had plans for our future from the very beginning.

But I'll have you know I felt the very same way.

I just like to make you work for it :)

Mr. R. you carved a spot in my heart early on.

You make my soul sing, my cheeks blush, my heart flutter, and my smile grow.

Here's to 100 more years by your side.

Now, let's break out those cupcakes!
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A date with Miss Pip

 Last night Mr. R. had his monthly Young Republican meeting, this meant that the Pipsqueak and I were on our own for the evening. We headed downtown to stroll the plaza, people watch, and Piper chose to dine alfresco. And by the grace of God she fell asleep on the way home. And, drum roll please, she slept for 4 hours!

It gets easier...

My friend Jess, who is mom to a 20 month old and a newborn, recently blogged about waiting for life to get easier. As I type this Piper is snoozing in her bassinet, clean clothes are being folded, and the dishwasher is running. Mr. R. made dinner and life seems easy.

But just two hours ago, I was at my wits end. Piper had not slept for more than 1 hour ALL DAY. Combine that with the 4 hours of sleep I got last night and we are talking about one tired Mama. She spent most of this afternoon crying and early evening crying/fussing/fighting sleep. I needed to run an errand and thought a ride might calm her. She was quiet for the 1st twenty minutes an then proceeded to scream (bloody murder) until we reached our desitination. I had my 6 week check up today an it turn out my breastfeeding woes are due to thrush. Will the doctor visits ever end?

Our house is messy. Laundry needs to be done. I didn't get to the gym today. Dark circles are taking over my eyes. Mr. R. is working longer hours. Piper thinks my parent led schedule is a joke. At 6 weeks old, she is the most stubborn person I know.

This is the new season of parenthood that we are in. This is a season I prayed for. This is a season that gave me that cute little girl I get to call my own. And this season will end. And she will grow. And she will eventually sleep at night. And one day I know I will miss when she was a cuddly chubby baby. And it will get easier.

Photos taken by our talented friend Cheryl Miner. 

Made my Monday

• Pip slept in 4 hour stretches last night. Four continuous hours of sleep is my equivalent of heaven right now.
• Pip and I walked two miles around our neighborhood while I chatted with Danielle. I haven't seen her in weeks and it was great to catch up. (Also if you have any stroller recommendations, send them her way!)
• I had a great two mile run while listening to Pandora's praise and worship station. (Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!)
• Jeff watched Pip so I could go swimming for an hour. 
• Mr. Green Monster is back in my life.
• Jenna's Cuban black beans are AMAZING! I want to eat the whole pot
• The only thing I have left on my to-do list is a shower, clean pajamas, and quality time with my new book.

Happy Father's Day!

I fell in love with Mr. R. because of his intelligence, his drive, his quick wit, and his work ethic.
I had no idea he would be such a caring & loving father. 

When I see the two of them interact my heart melts. 

He has become an excellent swaddler, a quick diaper changer, burper extraordinaire, and singer of silly songs. 

I love him more each day. 

Parenthood is a scary ride, full of decisions, confusion, and trial and error.
I consider myself very lucky to have him by my side. 

Happy Father's Day Mr. R.!

Rainy Saturday

The rain is beating down on our little roof right now. And I have plans to stay right here on our comfy couch. Pip is softly snoring and the original 1960's Italian Job in playing on our TV. Dinner will be eaten on TV trays and it's comfort food at it's best. Slow cooker sausage, sauteed peppers and onions, and sweet tea. A few months ago I would have lamented that the rain was canceling my fabulous plans or hindering my ability to run a million errands, but now I am content to stay put and enjoy my little family.

"When the whole world fits inside of your arms, do you really need to pay attention to the alarm? Wake up slow. Take it slow" 

- Jack Johnson

The fourth trimester:

It's been 5 weeks since Miss Piper came into my life and she really did change everything. I think the hardest adjustment for me has been my lack of "me" time. My life now revolves around a three hour feeding schedule and my "me" time is now when I clean the house, catch up on laundry, do the dishes, and if I am lucky shower. Gone are the long luxurious showers and the make-up and hair routine.

In fact today I wanted to run, do the dishes, and shower in a 2 hour nap window. This meant I ran 2 miles (in 22 minutes), came home and fed Piper, took a shower while Mr. R. burped her, and finally finished emptying and loading yesterday's dishes while she had tummy time.

She is currently napping again (hence the reason I have time to post) and will hopefully stay down for another 20 minutes so I can start dinner.

In the next few weeks I hope to start blogging about our new normal. The good, the bad, and the lessons we are learning along the way. Wish me luck!

Pip is ONE MONTH old!

Piper celebrated her 1st month on Earth last Sunday, June 12th.

It's crazy to think that Jeff and I have been parents for almost 5 weeks now!

Piper's One Month Stats: 

She is weighing over 6 pounds and is almost 20 inches long.

She loves morning naps, but is not a fan of sleeping at night. 

She wears newborn diapers and clothes, but can fit into a few 0-3 month outfits.

Piper loves water and bath time.

She recently discovered her hands and loves to grab onto our fingers, her ears, and stroke her hair.

Aunt Nicole came to visit this month and Pip loved the extra attention.

Her current hobbies include: eating every three hours, being mesmerized by the ceiling fan, and staring at herself in the playmat mirror.

Playing Catch-Up

A quick recap of our week.

Mr. R. spent his days working and attending zoning board meetings. 

Piper has been refusing to sleep at night (AGAIN!) and we are now trying a parent led feeding and sleeping schedule. We aren't doing cry it out, but we are being more strict with her wake, sleep, eat times.

Nicole and I have been playing catch-up. I haven't seen her in FOREVER! And phone calls are great, but no substitute for real girlfriend time. I would like to say we have been super productive, but in truth we have been lounging by the pool, laying out at the beach, napping, eating, shopping, and TV watching. She leaves tomorrow and my heart hurts already! I might just hold her hostage.

I absolutely love this picture of Nicole and Piper. The best part of having a baby and a real awesome best friend is watching them interact together. Nicole loves on Piper like she is her own baby. And Piper is totally infatuated with her Aunt Nicole. 

That's what (best) friends are for...

• to embrace an entire day of pajama wearing
• to not make fun of your crazy bed head
• to help clean out your very messy classroom
• to rent three movies and redbox for a chick-flick movie marathon
• to make a dinner out of gummi bears, popcorn, and reeses pieces
• to help walk your dogs 
• to clean spit-up from your furniture
• to laugh with you when you spout ridiculous information from the parenting book
• to help sneak in your husband's father's day gift
• to partake in Sonic Happy Hour simply because it's Monday and we can
• to remember old times and laugh at our stupidty
• to reenact our stupidity and then laugh harder

Now, if only I could convince her to MOVE HERE!