And Now Some More Snow

I thought that the snow was over. Not sure why, it is only February, so winter is really not yet over. I guess it just seemed like we have had so much snow already that we couldn't possibly get any more. I was wrong.

Another six inches...

At least this time, it wasn't measured in feet.

What we were dealing with at the end of January

Also, this time, the Baby got to play. Every other snowfall has been too deep. This one was perfect.

At first he was curious. Then he discovered that it wasn't as easy to move around.

Then he decided it was time for spring.

Writer's Workshop: A Vacation to Remember

It wasn't so much a vacation, as it was a trip. Vacations are supposed to be relaxing, and this was anything but. It was the Baby's first time on a plane, and it wasn't even a short ride. Traveling from New York to London with a nine month old was interesting to say the least. The fact that we flew out after one of the big January storms, but thankfully not the biggest, made it all that much more stressful. Our flight wasn't canceled, which was great since we had a very important reason to be traveling.

My grandmother's one hundredth birthday.

Yes, she turned one hundred years old. And she did receive her card from the Queen.

More importantly for me, she got to meet her fourth great-grandson. And he got to meet his great-grandmother.

And they loved each other.

Linking up with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop.

What I Love About Me

Sometimes I forget to appreciate myself. It is especially easy in this bad weather, where nothing seems good anymore.

When my husband came home yesterday with a dozen gorgeous roses, it showed me how much he loves me. He doesn't do flowers, he's very allergic, so I've accepted that I just don't get them. That made me start to think about why I should love myself, which I seem to have forgotten.

So in the spirit of The Mommyologist's Mom Sexy Valentine's Day Bash, here are ten of my reasons to love myself.

1. I'm a geek. I'm a huge fan of Star Wars and I have been since I was little. Friends know not to question my Star Wars knowledge, and I still can't get them to play Star Wars Trivial Pursuit with me (which I own more than one version). But I don't limit myself to Star Wars! I'm pretty much into science fiction in general. I'm a huge fan of Doctor Who, Stargate (all three series) and even Star Trek.
2. I'm good at computers. In another life (pre-baby), I was even a web developer. I wouldn't be able to jump right back in without bringing myself up to speed, but I'm still the person that gets called when anyone has a computer problem.
3. I'm a huge Broadway buff. I miss the days when I would perform in musicals, and was serious about dancing. Now I really just get to sing along to the music in the car.
4. I'm smart and I love to learn. I worked hard all through school, and it paid off. Even now, I still like learning new things.
5. I am a wealth of random knowledge, and I love to share it.
6. I'm a reader. I love books, and I love to read. I just need some more time to do it.
7. I'm hot. I'm back in the shape that I was at the end of high school, at the peak of my dancing "career". Due to a very restrictive diet because of a dairy/soy allergy I've managed to loose all the baby weight, the first year of marriage weight, the post college weight and the freshman 15...
8. I will do anything for my baby. He's allergic to dairy and soy, so I haven't had any in over eight months. That was huge, almost everything has dairy or soy. And I'm a big fan of cheese and chocolate.
9. I am fiercely loyal. I stick by friends when they need me, and even when they don't.
10. The Baby loves me unconditionally. Anyone that perfect must have a good reason to love me like that.

Explained in Thirty Seconds

Day 1 of the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog Challenge on SITS (a few days late).

I had a hard time with this, mostly because I'm not sure where I am going with this blog. Today (if today was Monday, which it obviously isn't, but let's pretend) I am supposed to write an elevator pitch for my blog. How do you explain in thirty seconds something that you aren't sure about?

So I pulled from my "About Me" page, which I had worked so hard on.

It reminded me of where I started. Even though I haven't been blogging all that long, I had lost what I wanted to do here. I'm afraid that I was starting to think of this as a "baby" blog, which it was never intended to be. This blog is supposed to be my release, my path. While I will talk about the baby, and some of the things that we are doing, he isn't my focus here. I am.

So, my new (work in progress) elevator pitch:

A new stay-at-home-mom trying to guide her family through the changes of their new lives while not loosing herself in the process.

The Challenge

To help motivate me, I'm going to join the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog challenge with the SITS Girls. I'm late starting, so I am going to be playing catch-up, and I hope that it won't take me too long.

This is me throwing my hat into the ring.

Early in the morning

About a month ago, I had to take an early morning trip into the city to fulfill some bridesmaid duties. Due to the limited Sunday train schedule, I arrived much earlier than I needed to. Since it was one of those rare times when I was sans baby, I grabbed a hot tea and explored. It was cold, so I was glad to have the tea. At least it wasn't snowing, being the weekend before the storm(s).

I had forgotten how peaceful the city can be, especially early in the morning. There are fewer people, and less traffic.

Taking in the sites and sounds reminded me how much I miss the city.

Sometimes I miss my old life where I could quietly walk around Manhattan, not having to worry about where I can change a diaper, or when (and where) I can breastfeed.

Not having to worry about how to get around, if the subway didn't go where I wanted, I could easily jump in a cab.

And while sometimes I miss walking through Times Square before it gets crowded, I wouldn't change my life now for anything.

You Capture: Happy

I'm a little late getting this up, but I couldn't resist.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

This weather is killing me. We've had snow, snow and now some more snow. To be followed by freezing rain. This winter has been awful, we've been stuck inside when I really do have an outdoor baby. We are going a little stir crazy not getting out. I miss my mommy group, I miss the baby classes at the library and I really miss the stroller walks that I took with friends when the streets weren't covered in snow and ice.

To make it all even more annoying, we came so close to going to Florida this weekend, but the plans fell through. I was really looking forward the sun, to not having to bundle up, to being somewhere that I have never been before.

Oh well, I know that we can get through this. How long until spring?