silence reigns

We have internet access at home once again! 

I promise to sit down and put together a real blog post sometime this week. Tonight, I'm too weary to do anything but sit on the couch, eat pumpkin cookies and watch a show with my handsome husband. 

Goodnight.

take this empty house and make it home

We've moved into our new home, and have been living there for less than a week. I apologize for my long absence on this blog--we are without internet for the next week and I am only able to blog this lazy Saturday morning thanks to a coffee shop and Walter's willingness to nap in the Ergo.

It has been so heartening to see the barren rooms of a stranger's house become our warm home. Matthew baked an angel food cake our very first night in the home--christening the oven, as it were.

Walter loves his new home and has been having a wonderful time exploring it. I am so thankful for our neighbor-friends who have spent most of the week helping me out.

Ah, the baby's awake and I must attend.

it's official

We are homeowners!

Showing Walt his new home.

Living room

Larger bedroom with built-in wardrobe.

We can't wait to be all moved in! I can't think of anything else to say right now, other than how daunting the prospect of actually moving is. I'm sure it will be no time at all before we feel quite at home in our new place. 

Goodnight.

day is done

Baby's fast asleep--exhausted from a very busy day. I'm weary too, and it feels good to curl up on the couch and relax. 

I made some hamburger buns today using King Arthur Flour's recipe--I highly recommend it. 

Walter's little friend, whom I'll call Peter, came over to play this afternoon. Peter built towers of blocks which Walter delighted in knocking to the ground, and the boys enjoyed working with play dough. Walter loves having another child to play with. I'm looking forward to Walt having a baby brother or sister one of these days...

I bought some little moccasins (on sale!) for Walter from Nowali. I love how they go on like socks but have little leather soles. Walter seems to like them too! 

Goodnight, all. 

Beach Exploration

We began our morning with Mass, followed by our Sunday tradition of coffee at the Steaming Bean down in Pismo Beach. We usually meet with friends for brunch, but I've been feeling ill on-again, off-again, so just to be safe, we're keeping to ourselves today.

We took Walter to Avila Beach--we'd never been over there before. It was beautiful. We saw sea otters and fishing boats, high-reaching cliffs and wild succulents.

And the best part? Walter came home and took a nice long nap.

Happy Sunday!

Written Saturday, Posted Sunday

After an early morning shower.

My handsome husband!

Playing at the coffee shop.

Fun at the nearby water park!

A very peculiar lemon we picked.

Hello, all! Time for my weekly sum-up of our day-to-day. I'm hoping to begin posting more than once per week once we're moved into our new home.

Where to begin?

We've had a rough week. This is mostly due to having begun a new bedtime routine with Walter. I used to nurse him until he finally fell asleep (this could take over an hour and he would wake up numerous times afterwards). This week, I've been nursing him and then handing him to Matthew. Matthew's been laying him in his pack-and-play and rubbing Walter's belly until he falls asleep. There have been some short periods of angry tears which have been hard to listen to, but it's working. Matthew has also been able to soothe him back to sleep if he wakes up before we've gone to bed. I bring him into our bed around 11pm or so, and he spends the rest of the night tucked between us. He still wakes up at least a couple of times (he's never been a good sleeper) but I'm sure in time he will begin to sleep for longer and longer stretches. It's worth it, as he's been waking up more cheerfully in the morning and he even takes longer naps!

Friday, I needed a way to wear Walter out so he would take a good afternoon nap. It was dreadfully hot outside, but I put him in the stroller and pushed him to the park. It's very shady there, and best of all there is a water play area! This was Walter's first time in the water and he loved it. There were a bunch of other babies there as well, and it was a great way to cool down and have fun.

We think we'll start moving into our new home this coming week! I'm very excited. There are boxes all over this apartment, and I'm very ready to begin unpacking them in our new space. Several of my friends have volunteered to help me, so I'm feeling very blessed.

Matthew and I found some citrus trees near his work, and we've been gathering lots of lemons (and sometimes grapefruits!) on the weekends. So far, Matthew's made a lemon tart, lemon cocktails, and lots of lemonade. Mmm!

I've also been experimenting with more lacto-fermentation. I admit I'm not very good at catching them when they're just fermented enough to go into the refrigerator, so some batches have gotten too mushy for eating. I made some pickles that turned out well, though.

That's all for this week!

Sunday

Matthew and Walter peer out of the telescope and spy some seagulls.

Walter looks dubiously out at the sea.

We drove down to the beach this morning for Mass, and as is our tradition, stopped for coffee afterwards at the Steaming Bean. We pulled out the stroller and took Walt for a short jaunt down the beach. The air was full of salt, but it felt clean and invigorating. I was reminded for the millionth time how lucky we are to raise our boy in such a beautiful place. 

 

Matthew got free tickets to a music festival through his work. The live music was fantastic, there was beer and gelato to be had, and some friends of ours met us there. What more do you need to have the perfect afternoon? We laid a quilt out on the grass and enjoyed ourselves. Walter had a great time picking up acorns and little stones and clapping his hands to the music. 

And now it is time for a bath and a bedtime story.

First Year

Well, it's been a year, folks. One year since we loaded up our trailer, kissed our families goodbye, and made the long drive to our new hometown. We unpacked our boxes and made an empty apartment our home. 

Now we are re-packing our belongings, and moving again--though this time, not nearly as far away. We're moving into the city, to a home we can truly call ours. 

Tonight, even as we celebrate the end of our first year here, I catch myself thinking about the place we came from. The grey, rain-filled days, cold winter nights, boarding the city bus in all kinds of rough weather. These memories can hardly compete with California's never-ending summer and gentle lifestyle. Still, I find myself longing to cover my sundresses with woolen sweaters, trading iced tea for steaming mugs, and once again seeking shelter in warm coffee shops that were a second home to me in my school days. 

As they say, the grass is always greener...