Davey got hitched.

My little brother got married last weekend.
Congratulations Dave and Lauren!

6 weeks old!

at 4 am.... always wanting to play?
at 6 pm, wide awake and happy


and cuter than ever! she sure can holler too-- don't be fooled by smiley pictures!

Family

What happens with an 80 year old woman, her three daughters, their families, and their families families' all living together in a 12 bedroom house on the beach of the Outer Banks? Fun... of course!!

snugglin'

We love you Josie. You are so much fun to be with. When you snuggle up against my chest and sleep, oh, you are so soft, so beautiful. You look like an angel. And believe it or not, sometimes when you sleep we can sleep too. And your dad, he can sleep a lot. In fact this morning, he slept till 9:30!
Look at those beautiful hands!
And, your smiles! We love it when you smile. We love it when you look at us and just start making all those adorable baby noises.
And when you check out your surroundings. Like my old room for example. Can you believe that all three of us fit in it now (even with your uncle Dave's books filling the shelves?) It's a tight squeeze... I only have a tiney tiny drawer now.. and you seem to take up most of the space around here.
How does a tiney tiny person like you seem to take up all the space? Why is our car packed to the brim when we go to camp for the weekend? Somehow over the last few years I was able to pretty much take a backpack with me everywhere I went... And live out of it for months if necessary. And now somehow that's just not enough.
And I have never, ever, done as much laundry as now. Probably the fact we are trying to use cloth diapers has something to do with it, and the fact that you and consequently, I, have spit up or pee on my clothes all the time. But, even so, we still love you to pieces.
Even though today, I held you almost the entire day. I don't know why you cried constantly through the night and through the day.

Sleeping takes on an entire different meaning. What is sleep anyhow? Do I really need it? (I've found that I can function on surprisingly little sleep these days. Amazing. ) So, what's life going to be like on the road for the next month? You've been an amazing traveler so far, so I do hope that's a picture of what is to come. I hope you are excited to meet all of your family, to go to the beach, to visit the southeast and the midwest. I bet all those people will have just as much fun with you as we do. And maybe, just maybe, you'll hold off on crying for at least an hour.

Home

I love the smell of cedar. Especially in the morning. It’s sweet earthy smell permeates my nose and I’m transported for a moment into those places I used to inhabit: the northwoods, the Adirondacks, the northern climates where summer lasts about a month if you are lucky. Places where the air is fresh and smells like rain, the clouds dance in the sky and you can watch them for hours as they change shape and become boats and horses and cars racing across the sky. Home.

In China they say that you can’t leave home for a month at least after a baby is born. I unfortunately didn’t have that luxury (at least, some call it a luxury). Two days after birth I was in a taxi weaving through the hot crowded streets of Beijing finding my way to an international clinic to receive a RH shot that is illegal to give in Chinese hospitals. (I had to go to an international clinic because I gave birth in a 100% Chinese hospital). When Josie was three days old we went with her to the American Consulate to apply for her passport and social security number. At four days old we drove to Tianjin and geared up the next 3 weeks of packing. At five days we went to church and climbed the unending steps to the worship hall with baby in arms. Granted, I was totally exhausted after that. Within the first week of life Josie had more visitors and met more people who loved her than most newborns I know. And when we arrived back in Tianjin, our lives only got busier as we prepared to pack up and say goodbye to our lives of the last 8 years. Although Dave did the majority of the packing and I was mostly inside with Josie, we still made it outside a fair amount and I never heard the end of grandmothers and pretty much everyone telling me I was out of place for brining her outside before she was a month old.

Yesterday Josie celebrated being one month old. And we took her to town- Potsdam, NY, that is. But before reaching that milestone she traveled across the world with her whole life in tow. And now we’re home, in Colton NY. Last week we spent time at Cranberry lake with our entire family. Josanna met her cousin Sophia, the one who is 8 hours and 35 minutes older than she is. Even though it is July, its cold and rainy much of the time and we enjoyed celebrating the 4th of July cozied up to a fire, talking, nursing, eating. It was good to be with family, together in one place.

And at one month, we have landed in a place for a time... a short time now, but a longer time later. (We will be traveling for a month for weddings and family visits next week). And I’m really loving the slower pace of life here and now. Even though I’m up much of the night with feeding Josie, it doesn’t matter that much because her father and uncles, and grandparents can give me a break in the morning. (Dave, David and my mom are currently helping out and giving me a breather). This morning I went for a little walk and was reminded just how much I love being in outdoor beautiful places. The birds are singing like crazy, the sun is reflecting off all the trees, there are clouds in the sky, and walking up the drive this morning I picked a little bit off the cedar tree, rubbed it between my fingers and took a deep breath. Yes, I’m home.