WW: Balance.

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony.” -Thomas Merton

Cooper's got a brand new trick he'd like to share:

[caption id="attachment_1295" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Look mom, no hands![/caption]

He can balance his sippy cup on his high chair y'all. He is SO proud, and once he gets that cup good and steady he throws his hands back with great pride. It got me thinking about the art of balance.

"Next to love, balance is the most important thing." -John Wooden

Oh, the art of balance. We've all struggled to find it - between work and home life, friends and spouses...and finding personal time in the midst of it all. If you read about balance, you'll find many opinions on how to achieve it; some are very task-oriented and some very zen.  Today I came across this article that identifies five aspects of life that should be a focus in order to feel balanced: physical, mental, spiritual, emotional and material.

I feel like it's hard to sometimes be aware of what throws you all out of whack; have you ever felt off but couldn't figure out why? But once we do figure it out, we've than got to then act, be intentional. Now, I'll be the first to admit, I know a lot of things that I need to do to keep me centered and balanced but I definitely don't always do them. IE: those awesome trips to the gym that I never regret but always put off, or that time spent reading a good book versus turning on the TV during some free time...you get the gist.

Here are some critical points the article makes on achieving balance:

1. Physical. 1) get sufficient exercise, 2) get sufficient rest, 3) eat healthier, 4) pick a hobby that you enjoy.

2. Mental. 1) plan out your day and set goals, 2) write but keep it positive, 3) find out and develop your talents, 4) keep a diary or journal, 5) read, 6) try to set goals that are reasonable to achieve.

3. Spiritual. 1) pray effectively (or meditate), 2) communicate with nature, 3) study the bible.

4. Social/emotional. 1) do a good deed for another, 2) cooperate with people, 3) listen to people.

5. Material. 1) get a good education, 2) the job has to be the one you love, 3) money is not that important.

I love this. I kind-of want to print it out, frame it, and keep it on my bedside table. You can read the original article on Wiki here: How to Have a Balanced Lifestyle.

"The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that and live that way, you are a really wise man." -Euripides

Thanks, Coop, for the reminder; so far you are excellent at balancing those important things in your life.

Cheers, Lauren 

Weekend rewind.

How was everyone's weekend? Ours was, well, snowy.



Thus, we spent a lot of time indoors, I got to leave the house unaccompanied for 5 whole hours for a baby shower, ordered pizza, made Baked Tacos. Oh and then Jeff made a quick run to Target to grab a new monitor and came home with everything BUT the monitor. Target gets confusing, y'all.

I continue to get more and more giddy about Boy Meets World pilot, and you can imagine my  excitement when news broke over the weekend that Mr. Feeny joined the cast! Remember Mr. Feeny?



As a child of the 90s, I am obviously expecting this show to be an instant success. Between this news and Jonathan Taylor Thomas being back on TV, I kinda feel like I'm back in grade school. I vividly remember writing in my diary that I wanted to marry JTT, and I didn't understand why no one took me seriously. 

Also this weekend I learned the definition of a "hipster." Not to be confused with a, hippie, a hipster is someone who is trendy but not mainstream. Also, "hipsters" wears glasses but don't really need too. See this girl, total hipster.



Onto health, I read this weekend that salt is killer. I knew this of course, however you forget what foods sodium is in, which is like ALL of them, especially bread and cheese. I try to keep this house stock-full of the Paleo-style foods: fresh veggies and fruits, but cheese is a definite staple that we need to keep an eye on. I like this quote from the article:

“One way you can have more control is to shop the perimeter of the supermarket,” said ABC News’ chief health and medical editor Dr. Richard Besser. “That’s where you will find fresh fruits and vegetables, meats and dairy products.  When you cook with these ingredients you have control over how much salt you take in.”

You can check out the full article here: 1 in 10 US Deaths Blamed on Salt.

In sports news, two Nascar guys got into a fight and Flordia Gulf Coast is like, really good at basketball- but more importantly  they have a spa and dorms on the BEACH on their campus. How did I not know about this school when I was applying?

I'll leave you with some adorable pictures that we got back this weekend of Coop's one year old shoot (thanks agan Liz Fendell Photography)! He can rock a bowtie y'all. And melt my heart.

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” – Henry David Thoreau

Happy week y'all,

Lauren

WW: God.

Odds are you are one of the 18-million people tuning in to watch The Bible on the History Channel each week. And I am sure you are aware that the Catholic faith recently chose their 266th Pope. Did you watch it? A magical and powerful piece of history. I'm not Catholic, but I felt the gravity of the moment. The Catholic faith is practicing Lent, the Jewish faith soon celebrates Passover, and in a couple weeks Christians celebrate Easter. No matter where your personal beliefs lie, God and faith are making national news lately.

“Because God is with you all the time, no place is any closer to God than the place where you are right now.” -Rick Warren

I am a lover of history, just one credit shy of having a minor in religion. So, obvi, I am one of the 18-million watching the Bible. Historians agree that the Bible is THE most accredited book of all times. Because it makes such enormous claims, the Bible has been evaluated, studied and argued on both sides of the aisle for years. I am certainly no expert, but I'm a studied journalist, and always search for the facts and the truth in a story. Are the books in The Bible true? Well the facts are there, many historically verified, it's simply a matter of how you choose to read them.

People can be so quick to dismiss the fact that God exists. But, y'all...what if He does? Imagine that for a second. This is one of those questions that most people, I assume, have asked themselves. And this is a big question. An important one.

Investigative journalist Lee Strobel, who wrote The Case for Christ, asked himself this question after his wife became a Christian. Not religious at the time he wrote the book, he decided to investigate the New Testament and see if it held up against investigative standards. He wanted to know if the stories were real or just wishful thinking. He asks the questions: How reliable is the New Testament? Does evidence exist for Jesus outside the Bible? Is there any reason to believe the resurrection was an actual historical event?

Sometimes it's hard to imagine a world or time period different than the one we're in. It can seem almost unfathomable to think of the world outside the parameters of how we see it. But the realm of God is WAY outside our parameters and it seems like lately, He is reminding us about Him. In my opinion it is hard for people to make any decision about God unless they read about Him. Like any relationship, you need to spend time with a person, ask them questions, learn about past history, see their interaction with friends and family, etc. - all of this to really  understand their character...to know them.

“If you wish to know God, you must know his Word. If you wish to perceive His power, you must see how He works by his Word. If you wish to know His purpose before it comes to pass, you can only discover it by His Word.” -C.H. Spurgeon

Religion has made headlines lately, and I for one, have enjoyed the conversation.

To the journey, Lauren

History Channel Showtime Listings

 

 

 

Happenings.

A lot's been happening at our house over the last couple weeks. Okay, when I say a lot, that's probably a bit of an exaggeration. Here's a little update on life lately.

Cooper is one year + one month old tomorrow! We took his one-year photos last weekend, and UPDATE: he's still pretty cute. Our sweet and talented friend Liz took our photos. You can see a few on her blog:  www.lizfendellphotography.blogspot.com.

My husband and I celebrated 3 years of marriage. So far, each year has been better than the one before, which is pretty awesome.



We spent St. Patricks Day at Pearl Street last weekend (yep the street that this blog is named after). They had a festival full of Guinness, Irish Dancers and green beer, and we had fun with our friends and their kiddos - all boys! Last year we went with Cooper in a baby sling, just shy of one month old. Throwback:

[caption id="attachment_1172" align="aligncenter" width="490"] St. Paddys Day 2012 - Coop was almost one month old :)[/caption]

And photos from this year's festivities:

[caption id="attachment_1174" align="aligncenter" width="644"] St. Paddy's 2013: Thomas loves touching Coop's head.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1173" align="aligncenter" width="490"] The boys. Rocking the festival.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1175" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Coop and Morrison.[/caption]

(Sidenote: did you know that St. Patrick's Day is the celebration of Saint Patrick spreading Christianity into Ireland? Pretty cool, if you ask me. And thoughtful of us Americans to celebrate the occasion).

It's been warming up in Denver so we are finally able to spend time playing in the backyard. This is SO great, because a) it gives Cooper endless things to get into, and b) something about spending time outside is good for the spirit...and for the stay-at-home-mom. Not good for cleanliness though. Baths are now happening before dinner. Look how happy he is though...





Cooper is not walking on his own yet, though he walks all around the house holding on to furniture, walls, walker toys, etc. He also crawls faster somehow. The most exciting news at our house...Cooper eats again! Yahoo! It's been a tough winter, he had a mild case of RSV, a couple viruses, and when he is sick he won't touch food. In fact he will throw it up. Immediately. Alas, it's looking up for him these days, and he now loves cheese and bread, eggs, peas, bananas and canteloupe. He is down to one nap a day which means mommy needs to fill her time more. He likes to throw things FAR, and he still thinks it's funny to play peek-a-boo, except now he does it with his own hands which he thinks is pretty cool. Still not much hair, 6 teeth, one big gap, and Size 4 shoe. He is confident, smart and sassy. Oh and he also is drinking whole milk like a CHAMP. He drinks at least 3 cups or more a day and we go through a gallon in a week!

In related news, milk now gets delivered to the house. That's right all you city-folk, we have a milk man who delivers milk and eggs once a week on our front porch. Pretty awesome.



It's all about the little things, right? Milk in a box is one of them.

Cheers, Lauren

WW: Little things.

"Enjoy the little things, because one day you may wake up and realize they were the big things." -Robert Brault

Every now and then I have to wake Cooper up from a nap. It is going against everything my mother told me which is to NEVER, EVER under ANY circumstances wake a sleeping baby. But unfortch, I had to the other day, as we had a Little Gym class to go to. I peeked in his room and saw this:

[caption id="attachment_1016" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Love.[/caption]

Sleeping babies are peaceful. You can't help but just stop and watch. I was acutely aware of what a fleeting moment this was; our sleeping baby, quickly en route to becoming a toddler. I've read about the benefits of senses and blogged about how taking time to be aware of them (sight, touch, smell, taste) is a huge contributor to being a grateful (and happy) person.

Life can move fast, and I love the simple reminder to just stop for a moment and take it all in, because you can't get these little moments back. This little guy sleeping was a gift. (Especially when he didn't wake up as I started flashing...ANNOYING mom)!

Doesn't it always seem like the smallest moments are the most fulfilling? Having a great conversation with a friend over  a glass of wine, or a blue sky sunny walk with the dogs.  Happy moments are all around us when we keep our eyes open and don't rush through the day from one task to another.

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going to fast- you also miss the sense of where you are going and why." -Eddie Cantor

[caption id="attachment_1151" align="alignleft" width="490"] Because life's a hoot.[/caption]

Take time to take it in.

xox
Lauren

Hot-mess mama.

I've kinda started embracing the fact that I'm sort-of a hot mess mom.

[caption id="attachment_1023" align="aligncenter" width="320"] Kinda how I feel sometimes.[/caption]

For those don't know, there is a HUGE difference between babies that just sit up and babies that can crawl and walk. They become little terrors. Like tornadoes. It gets messy y'all.  I can't tell you how many times my husband comes home these days, sees tupperware, zip lock bags- or any other item that inhabits the bottom drawer in my kitchen- on the floor and says "you know, you should really give Cooper more boundaries." The other day I couldn't find a credit card and I told the hubs that I knew exactly where it was, in those couch pillows where my 12-month old had most certainly stuffed it. It was. See above "boundaries" comment.

If you're a mom you know there are so many opinions out there to measure yourself up against. How to discipline your baby or child, what to feed him, what not to feed him, attachment parenting, parent-directed parenting...all while keeping your house (and let's face it...yourself) together. I've only got one crawler and it can be, busy. God bless you folks with two or more.

"Life didn't come with a fool-proof manual."

In a perfect world my little guy would sit in the playroom and play with his toys rather than tear apart my kitchen and bathroom- but that's just not reality.  I read an article about the importance of discipline and creating a "yes" house-environment. Meaning, create an environment where there's not opportunities that cause you to need to tell a kid no. No temptations. Hah! When I read this I wanted to ask them...do you have a baby? Do they like, move around? Impossible.

[caption id="attachment_1026" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Coop's favorite drawer in the kitchen. Oh, who am I kidding, they're all his favorite.[/caption]

I've kind of beat myself up over the fact that I may be too lax of a mom or allow him to do things that he shouldn't. I don't teach him baby sign language- am I prohibiting his language development? I let him cry in the pack-in-play for 5-minutes am I creating an insecurity in my child? This is just parenting, forget the insecurities I have about the house! I constantly feel the need to explain myself or apologize, but you know what, I'm embracing it now. And I'm hear to tell you that I 100% do not have my shit together all the time. There. I said it.

What I do know is that my son knows that I adore him, he is a happy, curious, logical boy, and he knows the word no. So, if there are a few ziplock bags on the floor to clean up every now and then, I'm fine with it.

"Don't sweat the small stuff, and it's all small stuff." -Richard Carlson

Now I need to go find my keys.

xox
Lauren

P.S. for all those on the quest to get more organized, take a peek a this article about the 7 habits of highly organized people. And, good luck.

http://www.operationorganization-mn.com/2011/09/7-habits-of-highly-organized-people.html