Some of you know that I have a deep love for New Orleans. I know I've talked a lot about my trips there, and how it's changed my life.

Please join me in saying a prayer for the whole Gulf Coast this weekend, lighting a candle, thinking positive thoughts (whatever good juju you have to send)I have spent so much breath trying to explain why it ( Read more... )

Number of new teeth visible in baby's mouth this morning: 2
Number of additional new teeth just below the surface: 2
Number of times anyone in this house slept more than 45 uninterrupted minutes in a row last night: 0

Today she has six teeth and is working on seven and eight. Yikes.

The other day, I complained to my husband that I never got to spend a day just doing whatever I wanted to do. Folks, parenthood has a remarkable way of changing up everything that you do. Right now, we're dealing with the inevitable arrival of teeth numbers five and six, with seven and eight close behind; with that comes crappy sleep, a surge of ( Read more... )

I forgot to write this down when it happened, but want to remember it ( Read more... )

I spend a lot of my time each day holding and rocking the baby. She naps best on my lap. Some days I lament the cluttered house and things left undone. But other days I cherish every minute of it and feel like I'm really doing what matters ( Read more... )

I was just playing with Laura on the floor mat, pulling her to a standing position and saying her name and telling her what a good baby she is. (And she is ( Read more... )

So two nights ago, I was relaxing in the bathtub, reading a book, drinking a beer (it's good for milk production!), and my husband came upstairs with the baby. The normal routine is this: I hang out in the tub for half an hour or so, then he brings her upstairs, undresses her, and gives her to me to bathe, and then we all go to bed.

I was engrossed ( Read more... )

 There were tornadoes in my husband's hometown yesterday!

This is his aunt's beautiful Victorian house, the one I always wanted to buy from her and turn into a bed-and-breakfast.

The house has been condemned and will be demolished tomorrow.


( Read more... )

For the past two nights, I've dreamed of an old friend, dreams full of questions. I suppose the details are pretty unimportant, but...I felt weary, sad, lonesome. Disappointed all over again. Full of questions.

Three in the morning is a strange time. While most people sleep, a few are awake: the souls manning the 24-hour drugstore, doctors and ( Read more... )

Happier memories!

This photo was taken during a trip to Maggie Valley, NC. I think this was 1989 or 1990. We went through Asheville, took a tour of the Biltmore house, then on to Ghost Town in the Sky to ride the rides, then home on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Yes, my hair did look like that. Yes, I am posting this picture.

( I'll even make it public for your enjoyment. )