Fresh Mommy: December 2011

Sunday Citar ~ A HAPPY LITTLE NEW YEAR TO YOU... and a Giveaway

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)
The linky will be open all week for you to link up your special New Year's post... and to get in on the GIVEAWAY AT THE END OF THIS POST!

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
From The Summer Day by Mary Oliver

I've been delving into books more and more lately, losing sleep, burying my head in the space of black and white while the words take me to another place. Stories and poems, learning and growing... and then a few words caught my eye and held me there, hovering in emotion. Wild and precious.

I could go on by saying that the littles and I cleaned out their room, again, to start fresh for the new year. That I'm proud of my girl who tried on every pair of shoes she owns and was quite pleased with herself as she meticulously and thoroughly lined up the remaining pairs in their place in the closet. Or that we came this close to converting Bray's crib, progressing him up to toddler bed, but found out some screws are missing and have to wait on Daddy to make a trip to Home Depot.

Yet I keep being drawn to these words that resonate with me. Wild and precious.

And I wonder if cleaning the kid's rooms, washing their sheets and converting a crib is what I should be doing... before I realize that I've been trying to live by this credo daily. Finding beauty in the small moments with my littles.

Sometimes it lies in praising my big girl for mastering the vacuum and wielding the hose to clean the corners of her room. Or letting little man show me the shoes that don't fit his growing feet anymore, either.

Sometimes it lies in heading out in the sunshine with a new box of chalk for midday sidewalk art.

Watching my girl spell out the words she knows while little brother draws giraffes and doggies along behind her.

And then pretending to understand exactly what he's saying and realizing after hearing "mammal" for the fifth time that he meant "animals" and not "Nemo" (which it clearly sounded like to me).

Sometimes it's as simple as taking a new Christmas present for a spin around the neighborhood.

Or spending the afternoon in "her climbing tree."

And not worrying so much that it's getting late for naps or that their clothes are getting dirty, and instead enjoying the heck out of the moment. Because that's what washing machines are for, and early bed times.

And sometimes it lies in the spontaneity of hearing fireworks outside and grabbing blankets and flashlights and heading out to our "hill" in the dark to lie down and watch the blasts light up the sky under to moon. Laughing while Brayden flails his arms and whispers "fireworks" and letting their excitement literally charge the very air we breathe while daddy runs up the street to buy some sparks of our own.

Tell me, what is it you plan to do in the new year with your one wild and precious life?

I plan to grab hold to everything that is around me, the colorful and the bland. To love those around me even more fiercely and find countless ways to show my appreciation, to be the friend that I always want to have. I plan to live a little more freely and open myself up more... letting go of the fears that hold me back.

Oh, and I plan to kiss someone special come midnight (I'm writing this Saturday night, so by Sunday, know that it happened. Lovin' fierce, baby).

Happy New Year friends, it's gonna be a good one. A wild and precious one.

I would love to have you join the Sunday Citar inspiration and have all of us come to your blog to read what quotes inspire you! Simply link within your post to my blog, and sign up with the linky below, leaving the link directly to your Sunday Citar post. Just click here if any of that sounds confusing, and please take a moment a visit at least three of the participants around you... you'll be glad you did!

A little look down blog header memory lane (which I think I need to update more often as well)...

And a few favorite posts from 2011...

The Big One

... And It Was Just Right.

Being Born Into Motherhood.

Get Naked, the best advice.

Spinning Balls and a Deep Breath.

Saying Goodbye to a Burnt Kitchen.

The beginning of KitchenWise.

Kids, Uncensored... things like this are said every week, I need to record it more often.

And now a little New Year's love for you all from one of my favorite places for cute kid's stuff, Tea Collection. When I was pregnant with Brayden, Chris and I wandered through a kitschy children's store and snatched up a blanket that, to this day, is still the first one I grab from his bin. The tag? Tea.

I drooled over the adorable clothes and now I love it when my kids are wearing anything with Tea on the tag... and we are so excited to have Tea Collection as a sponsor this month.

Some of my favorites are Brayden's cinnamon colored happy hoodie and Aliyah's go-with-everything tennies, skinny cord cargos and the Puebla graphic jacket (which is now on sale).

A $100 shopping spree to Tea Collection will be given to one lucky commenter on this post, and the giveaway is open all week.

The kids barely made it past ten and Chris and I are ringing in the New Year together. Have a fabulous New Year, friends!

A very wild and precious one too.

I Like It Here

I am habitually a procrastinator. I like to jump on things, I do... at least in theory. I have ideas. I make lists. I plan ahead. And then I realize half of the things that should already be done, aren't.

And also? When I find a place, a rhythm that I sink into and each step feels less like a step and more of a sway... I like it. I want to stay.

When I was pregnant with each of my beautiful children, with the one that made me a mama, and our joyful baby boy, I wanted to delay the birth. Well, with our first, she came early and there wasn't anything I could do about it. But even then, at three weeks before the day we'd planned, it was much too soon for me and I could've gone longer, generously longer. I didn't want to break out of the sweet melody we'd created with each other, me loving her from the outside, her from the inside. With our second born, we went two weeks past our original due date. TWO WEEKS. Yet still? A part of me could've stayed in that rhythm forever.

The point, I always get excited for the fresh new slate a new year brings. The knowing that we have a full year to write whatever story we want, to get up and do something, learn something, be something. There is a brand new melody in us just waiting to be written. And yet? Here's the yet... there's a part of me that likes this one, that doesn't feel ready. But isn't it always like that? On the curve of change comes the effort in getting there, the mistakes in reaching and the struggles in attaining something good. And sometimes that just scares me.

So I'm going to indulge in one more day, maybe two, of here. Yes, the Pa-Rum-Pum-Pum music has been filed away 'till next year, though a pretty tree still makes itself known with sparkly lights here and there, and yes, I've already been making lists, reflecting on some old ones and setting my sights high... but I've been doing most of it with lots of snuggles and hugs, and a couple of naps, on the couch with my littles whose early and late entrances into our lives has set the tone for their own.

Change is good, but here? Here is pretty good too.

I'll be back Sunday, or more likely sometime on Saturday, for a special New Year's post, and a LINKY for yours... I'd love it if you joined.

Hump Day Dump ~ In Between

Looking ahead to some great things coming up... some great things for all of you too! But right now? I'm enjoying the beauty that lingers from our merry weekend and reflecting on where we've been and what's coming in the next promising year.

Happy Hump Day!

Welcome to our tradition here on Fresh Mommy Blog... on Wednesdays, when I try to be wordless, I'm just going to dump the previous week's photos from my phone. A little piece of where we've been and what we've been up to. And the resulting collage? Well, I think it speaks so much more than I could. Welcome to Hump Day Dump. Link up with us... whether wordless or word-full, one photo or many, taken with your phone or not, you're all welcome here!

All of my photos were taken on an iPhone with the instagr.am app and were put together using Big Huge Labs mosaic maker... super simple and free. I'm on instagram as TabithaBlue. For more fabulous Wordless Wednesday memes, check out Supermom Alysha, 5 Minutes for Mom, Better in Bulk and Wordless Wednesday

KitchenWise:: Strawberry Face Mask (for Acne)

So I figured now was as good of a time as any, you know, when we're all a little overloaded on sugar and need a good cleansing, to offer a great, simple and easy way to get your skin glowing! And... just in time for your New Year's party as well.

This mask is great for helping to cleanse and clear the skin... but I also offer variations for other skin types as well.

I won't ramble on and on here, I'll just let the video do the talking.

Welcome to this week's episode of KitchenWise!

And as always, don't forget to wait for the bloopers :)

Please let me know what you think of this week's episode, and if you have any ideas, questions or suggestions for future episodes (something you'd like to try, but want someone else to be the "guinea pig") please tell!

And don't miss out on one of our other popular homemade body care products, the Mocha Sugar Body Polish... Yum.

The Stars Are Still Shining

I woke this morning and willed myself to get up and plug in the twinkling lights of our tree that's staying up a bit longer and the stars that line the fireplace mantle, as I slid my thoughts past the idea that Christmas is over, I'm not ready for the let-down. There's always such an excited build up of the season, so many things that make my heart swell, and of course, at some point the air has to be let out so my heart can go back to beating at a regular pace again. But now? I'm just not ready.

So today, and tomorrow perhaps, we left the unwrapped presents spread out on the living room floor while the kids played under the stars... literally. My fireplace stars.

It was good. It felt like Christmas, and I think we'll linger in this place a little longer.

Though our Christmas started a week ago, the gates flew open Friday night with our first real party of the season. With a house full of people we love, a countertop filled with sweet and savory things. And sugar, did I mention there was sugar?

Christmas Vacation filled the background while littles stayed up 'till midnight actually playing nice with each other the entire time (a Christmas miracle, I know), talk and laughter charged the air in the kitchen and games were played under the lights of the tree.

Christmas Eve day we caved and let busy little hands find something to build after opening one of the gifts that arrived on our doorstep earlier that week.

Thanks Auntie Gigi, the legos were a hit!

Not wanting to be outdone, Christmas Eve night showed off with our annual Unwrapping of the Christmas PJs.

Exciting, I know. But really, it is.

Posers.

But that didn't last long.

Blurry, yes, but I'm in love.

If you give a mouse a cookie... or if you give a kid a choice, Why yes, I'll have another. We gave the option of big or little, they chose little.

The Dueling Presents.

I think they were happy with their choice. Aliyah asked to stay up "Just a little later to hear the music with these!!"

Santa stayed up late building Brayden's big surprise, but by morning it was all entirely worth it. I even snuck Brayden into the big bed this morning while big sister slept in so that he wouldn't wander out and discover it before everyone was up and could see his reaction... and I don't think he minded the extra cuddle attention one bit. But by the time Aliyah woke, everyone was ready.

He was ready.

After opening up a few special requests of her own, like sparkly pink tights and sliding into her newly acquired goggles, Aliyah took the new trike for a spin.

Ahem, and so did I. But only because Brayden fervently requested, "Mommy ride! Mommy ride!"

Sometimes at Christmas I make elaborate breakfasts with multiple courses, or at least multiple dishes, but this time, I simply asked my family what they wanted. Chris conceded to whatever I decided and Aliyah brilliantly offered up "green Christmas tree pancakes" as a suggestion, to which Brayden echoed "pan-CAKES!"

So green Christmas tree pancakes it was. Green Christmas tree eggnog pancakes.

Followed by a trip to the beach.

A trip to the beach with gingerbread cookies, of course.

And Sandy the Sand-man (you know, since we couldn't build Frosty the Snowman this year).

Christmas dinner was had huddled with a group of close friends originally from Michigan as well, who are quickly becoming family, over a Floridian fare of coconut rice, a wide selection of fresh grilled fish (and a little fried Grouper), bacon wrapped scallops and stuffed jalepeños and desserts of key lime and apple pies and rum cake... It was a mix of North meets South, and the entire evening was perfectly delicious.

Dressed and ready to go. Notice the mess of toys on the floor? Yep, still there.

So now it's late, I've already been up twice tonight (before I've even gone to bed) to console a crying babe, and there's so much more I could say. But for now I'll leave it be. My heart is still big and swollen... and happy. We've not only survived our first Christmas in Florida, but our crimson handled, mistletoe lined mugs are overflowing and we're drinking it all in.