No Day But Today: March 2014

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Deja vu.

I knew when I took this picture the other day that it looked familiar...

Flashback to when Charlotte was the same age as Madeleine...

My grinny girls.

I love you so.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Grammie vacation.

While we were on our Hawaiian escape, the girls had a vacation of their own to Walla Walla with Grammie. And they had the time of their lives!

It was such fun talking about the trip and watching the anticipation grow in our girls' eyes.

A getaway all their own.

Thankfully mom updated me with my daily dose of picture updates, because as much as I know that time away to focus on your spouse and the two of you as a couple is so very important...

I missed my girls like crazy.

They make my world go round.

I don't think I've stopped kissing them and breathing them in all week long.

Hawaiian getaway.

Last week we escaped for a little bit. Just Nick and I.

And to say it was much needed would be an understatement.

(ummm, hello did you read my post a few weeks back? Not my brightest of days.)

But this made our getaway all the more special.

It was a work trip, which means there were some meetings...but it also means it's fancy....on someone else's dime...

with drinks...and massages...and golf... and sunset dinners...and cabanas....and naps...and yogilates...and reading...and more naps...

Hawaii, even with the rain you gave us a couple of the days, you were so lovely.

Thank you for filling our Vitamin D dosage a bit.

(intended for Mr. and Mrs. Garcia....a delicious mix up)

Until next time aloha state!

St. Paddy

(BTW did you know it's St. Paddy and not St. Patty?? At least according to Karen Fuller, and she's pretty much an expert in my book. I had no clue until this year...)

But moving on.

Another holiday was celebrated...the green one. And even though the leprechaun who visited this year really threw things together last minute, the girls were still in awe.

Or maybe that was just the sugar setting in.

Either way, any excuse to celebrate and we'll run with it.

Another holiday...another sugar high.

Win, Win.

Monday, March 10, 2014

It seems so often we read about and talk about 'work-life balance.'
As if there is this perfect solution out there just waiting for us, and if we can figure it out...instead of teetering along, one way and then another, we could reach that perfect balance.
Lately, I'm just not so sure that exists. Or at least, I don't know that balance is the right word for it.
Balance seems to imply that everything is equal...not too much on one side or the other, everything perfectly aligned.
I don't know about you, but that just isn't how my life works.

For me, it's a pendulum.

There are times when the pendulum is swung in the direction of managing it all, finding my calm amidst our often crazy days, feeling like I'm putting my best parenting foot forward, being productive at work, finding time for myself, my husband, my friends...

And then there are other times.

Other times like last week, when the pendulum swings so far to the other side...and so quickly, that it literally shocks me. Times when I feel the passing of time so profoundly that it takes my breath away. Times when the lists of things I need to do and accomplish don't let my mind shut off, and leave me feeling paralyzed as to what my next step should be. Times when I feel like there is never.enough.time. Times when a feel a bit out of myself.

Yeah, that was last week.

Admittedly, I think that the weather had a very large effect on my mood. I can normally handle the drizzle and the rain that we get here, but with the exception of a few clear moments and sunshine peeking out...the last couple of weeks have brought with it incessant rain. Like the kind of rain that people who aren't from Seattle imagine it to be like all the time. Pretty much non-stop.

I read a really good post from Seattle Mama Doc last week and the first line of it completely resonated with me:

"Today my heart is stuck in my typical quarterly crisis about how I’m spending time on earth. Each goodbye with the boys (and in my case my girls) leaves me a bit emptied..."

Yes. Yes. Yes, I thought.
Am I creating the life I want to for my girls? Am I doing it right? How do I find this sought after balance?
I want to work. I love to work and believe I am a better mom when I have some separation from my girls. I love my career.
And yet...I need more. More time to not feel rushed. More time to have no plans. More time to clear my head.

I don't have the solution yet. I have some ideas on how to get that pendulum back on the other side of things, I have some dreams, and I will continue to work towards those.

But in the meantime...I had a weekend 100% filled with my family. It included playdates, and outings and friends over and naps...but I was with my girls the whole time, and it was exactly what I needed.
And wouldn't you know...the sun did come out a bit.
I feel myself returning.

And as my little optimist Charlotte reminded me this weekend...rain makes the flowers grow.

Indeed it does baby, indeed it does.

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Daddy Daughter Dance 2014.

Last weekend Charlotte and Nicholas attended the first of what I hope will be many, many Daddy Daughter dances.

(thanks Brookie for letting us know about it!)

A special night just for the two of them.

Her own special date.

I'm not sure if it was the anticipation of the big event, the getting ready in her fancy dress, the helping daddy pick out his outfit, the deciding what items to bring in her purse, or the "pickup" of his date including pink flowers for his girl...but the whole event left me a pile of sappy happiness.

It really was quite magical.