Brayden's party

To Kill a Mockingbird

It's hard to believe that in over two years of blogging, my favorite book has only gotten a passing mention in a list of books that everyone should read. That will be remedied today, on the 50th anniversary of it's publication. It's hard to put into words how I feel about this book. It's almost scripture to me.

This was on the news earlier. I have so much respect for the author and the characters she has created. I've said before that I wish she had written more, but I see her point about attempting to top TKAM being a futile attempt.

I love the names Harper, Atticus, Jem and Scout and used to want to possibly use them in a child's name (before Adam vetoed them). Atticus is hands down, my favorite. I have a reading journal where I kept track of some of the life lessons learned in TKAM, and most of them are from him (although I can't discount Calpurnia).

Here are some of the lessons from TKAM I strive to follow:

"Atticus Finch is the same in his house as he is on the public streets."

"Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win."

"Most people are (nice), Scout, when you finally see them."

Looking at these and some of the other lessons I had written down, I think it's time for me to relearn some of these. It's a good thing I bought the book yesterday (my first copy from 9th grade fell apart).

Birthday Suit

Wheeler Farm

We went to Wheeler Farm on Brayden's birthday with our neighbors Ashley and Bennett.


Bennett giving Brayden a birthday kiss


Family picture

Burp rags and bibs

After Brayden fell into his much-needed naptime slumber, I set about cleaning up after the awesomeness and mess that was yesterday. After finishing the front room, I began working on his room since I needed to find places for and put away all of his gifts he received for his very first birthday. I was having a hard time finding homes for everything when I realized... there was a whole drawer full of burp rags and bibs that hadn't been touched in months.

I've always been emotional when packing up the clothes he has grown out of, but I was even more so today packing these bunches of cloth up. Their dismissal brings about another finale of his babyhood, they are a prop he no longer needs. Just before I started to cry however, my boy awoke and wanted to nurse immediately. I remembered what I wrote on his birthday and looked at him cuddled up to me and realized he's still my baby for a little while longer.

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I cannot believe my beautiful boy is one year old today. I'm reminded by parenting advice I received when he was a newborn: the days make feel like they go on forever, but remember that the years fly by.



I love him so much. Seeing his bed-head golden hair every morning makes me happy even if he woke up earlier than I had wanted. Seeing his toothy grin makes me grin. Hearing his laugh while I tickle his chubby tummy or thighs is one of the small highlights of my life that matter more than the "big" ones. And while I'm on the subject of his legs, they really are chunky. Chunky enough for my neighbor Ashley to mention that B's calves are as big as Bennett's thighs!



I love this picture of him. To me, it embodies the life he has ahead of him, the possibilities that await him. The way he seems to be shrugging his arms seems to be him saying "Now what?" I cannot wait to see the person he becomes.



I love seeing his little hand in mine, especially since I know he won't want to at some point. In some ways he seems so big, and in some ways he is still such a baby. I guess that is what toddlerhood is all about, right? It almost feels like my present is composed of glimpses of his babyhood and foreshadowings of his future. I love being his momma.

Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives

No, this isn't a post about the soap opera Days of Our Lives (although I used to watch that in high school thru my early 20s. This is just a catch-up post, things I want to remember about my mostly mundane and repeatable days with some gems thrown in.

-Our 7th anniversary was on June 19th. Luckily, there has been no hint of the 7 year itch yet. :) We've definitely settled into a more mature phase though- we celebrated my going out to lunch at Cafe Rio and we took Brayden, our neighbor Ashley and her son Bennett with us. It was still a lot of fun though.

-Also on the 19th, Ashley took some amazing one year old photos of Brayden that are so precious to me... and don't even get me started on the fact that he is one tomorrow (that will have it's own post).

-Father's Day was nice. Adam had to work, but I made a yummy chicken and black bean casserole for his break and we had my parent's over as well.

-We went to Lagoon on the 22nd. It was so much fun! I love that some things from my childhood are still around for Brayden to enjoy, especially since so much has changed. I do miss the Fun House, but I'm glad Fascination is still around because it reminds me of my grandma. She would play all day while we went on rides.

-I've started pumping again because I'm donating milk to an adoptive mom who is trying to induce lactation but in the meantime wants to give her son donated milk. On that note, Brayden isn't even one until tomorrow, and I've already been judged for my plans to continue breastfeeding him (one was actually months ago, sadly enough). I tried to educate both of these women that the World Health Organization actually recommends breastfeeding until two, and besides it's an extremely personal decision that they shouldn't judge me for.

-Brayden really loves playing with Ashley's son Bennett... and I don't mind that I now have someone to watch my totally guilty and shameful pleasure with (The Bachelorette).

-I took flowers up to my midwife today since she delivered Brayden a year ago tomorrow. I just love her so much. And yes, I still refer to her as "my midwife" even though I haven't been a patient for about ten months. She told me I better go up there (she practices in Park City now) for my next and asked when that might be. Well, it does seem that once they hit one, the baby bug does begin to show up, but time will tell.