Bloggers I Love : Wildflowers Photography

So remember the post I did at the beginning of the week about my new airstream dream?

Well Joy of Wildflowers Photography is actually doing it!

She, her husband, and her four children are traveling around the country via trailer for the next year.

Not sure I'd be up for quite that long of a trek, but her photos leave me inspired and hopeful for future family road trips.

Dream it, love it, live it.

Love the simplicity, the whimsy, the sanctuary.

You can follow Joy and her adventures, here.

- e



On My Heart : Motherhood

Tonight BW is working late , so I took the opportunity to get some extra sunggles in with Annie B .

She was restless as she tried to fall asleep .

She rolled one direction , then the next , until she finally settled on my chest .

It's one of my favorite sensations - the weight of her as she lays on me .

I tried to lay so perfectly still , taking in the moment , in complete awe that I have been entrusted with such a beautiful little soul .

I love her so much , it hurts .

One day too soon , she will find herself too big to wrap herself around me .

The snuggles will be few and far between .
And the weight on my chest will be a different one entirely .
But she will always and forever be my sweetest baby girl .

People often tell me I have a very worried mind .
Tragedies involving children tend to weigh heavily on my heart and stay cemented in my brain .
They leave my stomach in knots .
And until I can shake them , they leave me feeling completely and utterly terrified .

What if I lost her ?

I saw this quote on the lovely Casey Wiegand's blog , and felt it completely resonate within me :

"Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." Elizabeth Stone

I have to remember that I am not in control .
I have to surrender that which I cannot control .
All I can do is hold her tight and have faith .

- e







Life's Messy Moments

This morning I was going through my morning ritual , answering emails and sipping my Starbucks (for free today , thank you very much ) , and checking the blogs that I frequent , when I came across a post that had me reliving one of my " new mom " moments .

One of my absolute favorite blogs , The Rockstar Diaries , has partnered with Clorox to do a great giveaway , and asked that we share one of our messiest moments with them .

This is what I wrote :

While I've had many messy moments in my life involving shoes covered in dog poop , a baby smeared head to toe in chocolate pudding , or a husband arriving home from flag football with the guys massacred by grass stains , the most memorable for me personally was one of the first times that I flew by myself with Annie , who was 7 months old at the time .

Let's just say that I was grateful that the paparazzi wasn't there to catch a photo of me as I got off the plane with my baby strapped  to my front Bjorn-style caked in a fresh layer of spit up , juggling my three bags , with no make up on and Dr . Pepper spilled all over my shirt .

It was , for me , the quintessential " I'm a new mom and I'm a mess - get over it " moments .

And yes , I legitimately think about what I would look like if the paparazzi snapped a photo of me out and about . Except in this scenario , I would have preferred to arrive at the airport with my child in tow looking impossibly fresh and completely together . 

For those of you that know me well - I imagine you're thinking right about now , " you would ".

But come on , you know you do it too . 

Here's to the messy moments . . .



Which are totally worth it when they end like this . . .

SMITTEN .

- e