normal~ish

this moment

{this moment, a soulemama tradition}

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.  A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

to hit and to miss

People and places are on my mind.  Those that will be sadly missed (here) and those bound to be new hits (there).  Such are the mental lists generated by me, on the cusp of relocation.  Although it might be nice to know what our new address is going to be before I start daydreaming about the quick jaunt to Whole Foods to stock the mythical refrigerator.  But ... too late.  Daydreams, lists, hopes, and tough farewells are a-swirling at chez normal~ish.

To sadly miss:

• Family.  My parents, a few short miles from our door.  I know that we've taken this for granted.  Just how much we've taken it for granted will soon become glaringly obvious.  Sniff, sniff.  This will be hard.
• Friends.  I feel so lucky + grateful to have a wonderful tribe of mama friends here.  People with the same goals and struggles in parenting.  And the privilege of witnessing families growing up together?  Priceless.
• Home.  Oh, I do love this house. The creaky spots in the floor where we swayed and bounced our newborn babies.  The cozy play area in the backyard.  Stump park.  Room to run.  The reading nook.  Sigh.

• Coffee!  Silly, but .... not.  We start our days with coffee from our favorite local haunt.  It's such a part of the rhythm of our lives here.  My iced Americano (extra ice, room for cream) will never be the same elsewhere.  We are so spoiled!
• Our (friendly, tiny, personal, low-tech, independent) natural foods store.  Love.
• The nearby nature center, bursting with memories of nature play + chatting with friends.
• Our quirky neighborhood and being walkable to the children's museum, library, post office, coffee house (!!), etc.
• Proximity to Chicagoland + Lake Michigan.
• All of the area farms that provide us with clean, fresh food.  Our favorite egg farmstand.  Saturday Farmers' Market.

Future hits:

• Family.  While my parents will be farther away, Eric's entire family will be very near!  The boys will especially love playing with their cousins more often.  Grandpa, Grandma, aunties, uncles, cousins, and more.  Yay!
• Although it may soon be sold, Grandpa + Grandma's lake house is such fun.  Fishing, boating, sand play (and Henry's latest favorite:  "seaweed" play).

• A few more city (ish) amenities.  More diversity.  More options.
• (aforementioned) Whole Foods!  One-stop shopping.  No more running to multiple stores to complete our weird shopping list.  And we always hit the hot/cold bar to feed the kids when we're traveling -- can't wait to have access to it anytime.
• OK, two-stop shopping.  Because, also:  Trader Joe's.  I need to formulate a plan to deal with the potential constant supply of vanilla Joe-Joe's sandwich cookies.  Hmmmm.
• Speaking of shopping:  Anthropologie.  Oh dear.
• The famous Henry Doorly Zoo.
• Fontenelle Nature Center -- a new special spot for nature play?   (looking forward to checking out their current exhibit on the Ice Age right away -- Henry will love it!).
• Independent bookstores!
• New restaurants to try -- and a few old favorites in closer proximity (Cheesecake Factory's avocado eggrolls and vanilla bean cheesecake - yum!).
• Exploration.  Discovery.  Finding our new groove.

McFoster's Natural Kind Cafe, Omaha:  one happy discovery already

Yes.  Good things, just waiting to be hits.

westward ho!

Life is taking us down a new path.  An adventure.  Westward we go!

As of yesterday, Eric is unemployed.  He said farewell to his job of 10 years, turned in his trusty security badge, and walked out that familiar door for the last time.  The next stepping stone on his career path awaits his July 18 arrival.

In the meantime, we have a house to ready for sale.  Possessions to shed.  Boxes to pack.  Fresh, new mindsets to adopt.  We're pushing the "reset" button on life.

We've been planted here for the majority of our adult lives.  The years have gone so fast and been so full.  Here, we put down roots.  Here, our little family tree grew.  It's a bittersweet thing, saying goodbye, but also, hello.

They say change is the only constant in life.  Even so, it can sneak up on a person.  For quite some time, big change had been percolating around here, but always on the back burner.  I guess we did our best to ignore it.  Then, suddenly, there it is, spilling out, demanding attention and thought and reflection and decisions.  We decided:  YES.

Yes to adventure.  Yes to fresh starts.  Yes to spreading wings.  Yes to lightness.  Yes to now.

The question marks are many.  Will there be a farmhouse?  A city apartment?  A love affair with the new surroundings?  Easy transitions or growing pains?  Will this be a swift springboard or a long, slow porch swing?

Nebraska, 2011.  The slate is blank and we are ready.

 

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All photos above were taken at Arbor Day Farm in Nebraska City, Nebraska

 

six

six years old, Henry-style:

cake:  chocolate (black bean, of course!  the best!) with peanut butter-honey filling and icing.

gifts:  prehistoric mammal figures and books;  smithsonian natural history book;  digital microscope;  his first watch;  his first remote-control vehicle;  snake + bug books.

party:  grandpa + grandma for dinner / play / cake;  backyard campfire;  party hat;  balloons;  staying up late;  blowing out the candles outside, in the dark, by firefly light.