white apples . a blog

and away she rides

Every once in a while, in the crazy whirlwind that is toddlerhood, a moment, an idea, an experience stands out as transformative and magical. You can almost feel things clicking into place, as her worldview grows just a tiny bit. As mamas, I think we chase those moments. We yearn to create them. We run after them out in the big, wide world. We hoard them and protect them and manipulate them, all for the pure joy of watching our little one learn about herself and her world and for the selfish satisfaction of knowing that we are creating beautiful memories for her.

These are the things, the moments, that she talks about in the dark, just before she closes her eyes to go to sleep, when her mind races through her day and her words come tumbling out in a great rush and I can't tell whether she's talking to me or herself or her doll or the stars outside her window. That's how I know what moments have crystallized in her memory. That's how I know what she cherishes.

The big lesson for me was realizing how simple and small those moments could be. Riding a carousel. Running through a sprinkler. Building a fairy house. Baking a cake. Topping a pizza. Picking a blueberry. Splashing in a puddle. Meeting a new friend. A few days ago, Juniper was completely enamored with an ant that was crawling on her arm. "It tickles! It TICKLES! You're so tickly, Ant!" Later that night, she reminded me about the ant that visited her arm in the garden and gave her a tickle. Sometimes those moments are so small, it is easy for me to miss them all together.

Other times though, something big and new and wonderful comes along and I know my little girl will have much to chat about that night. A first. A first can't help but be magical in some way, right? Last week, Juni got her first horseback ride, thanks to her Grandmom. What is it with little girls and horses?

strawberry fields

Juniper has been harvesting plenty of strawberries from our plants on the back deck and in the vegetable beds. However, since she hasn't exactly been sharing with the rest of us, we made a trip to a local strawberry patch a few weeks ago to gather berries for strawberry lemonade. A certain little strawberry lover left with berry-stained hands and a very happy belly.

swinging a bat

Despite my best efforts, Juniper appears to be a budding little baseball fan. She watches games on TV. She swings her plastic bat in the yard. She wears her baseball cap everywhere. At the beginning of April, we went to a Georgia Tech-Duke baseball game at the Durham Bulls stadium. Only a handful of people showed up for the game, so Juni had free rein to run all over the stands, yelling and whooping and demanding ice cream. We were seated right behind home plate and, for some reason, every time the pitcher threw the ball, Juni would yell, "That's TERRIBLE!!" in her loud, high-pitched voice. She also perched herself near the on-deck circle and shouted, "Swinging a BAT????" to each batter. These poor college kids were just trying to play some baseball and they had to endure giggly heckling from my toddler and a loud and incessant bwah bwah bwah bwah bwahhhhh from my baby. This is what happens when my family heads to the ballpark.

"That's TERRIBLE!!!":

Seventh inning naptime:

welcoming spring

We had snow flurries yesterday morning and overnight freezes, but here are some glimpses of our first backyard picnic a couple of weekends ago.

Appreciating mama's pretty fabrics:

Building "vegetable houses" ie. raised vegetable beds:

Sporting:

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

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inspired by Amanda Soule. join in on her blog.

 

goodbye summer

With the much anticipated arrival of our little boy in October, this Fall promises to be one spent cozying up indoors with calming rituals and pumpkin-spiced goodies and the dizzying, disorienting, amazing new addition in our lives. Therefore, one last Summer adventure was in order.

Last weekend, our friend, Craig, invited us to stay at a lovely beach house in Emerald Isle, NC, with his family, his parents, and his sister's family. Juniper finally got to meet Ella and baby Hayden, and Charlie and I had a wonderful time chatting with friends, watching our children play, and enjoying the last bit of Summer by the shore.

Juniper is fearless when it comes to her love of the water. The hurricanes in the Atlantic had churned up the surf quite a bit, resulting in huge waves, strong currents, and rather dangerous swimming conditions. Without warning, Juni would charge toward the waterline, utterly delighting in the waves washing over her face and the currents dragging at her feet. Given how long it took to hoist my very pregnant self up off the sand each time she strayed, we are lucky Gina and Jennifer were there to hang on to her or I'm afraid she would have most certainly been carried out to sea to live with the mer-people.

Our final day there, we visited an area with calm, shallow tidal pools - much safer for our little wanderer and much easier on this mama's water-phobic nerves. Since our return, Juni has been begging to go back to the beach, squealing with delight at any photo of the ocean or the shoreline. Next Summer, little one.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

*** *** ***

inspired by Amanda Soule. join in on her blog.

let the picnicking begin

Now that the temperatures are sliding down from the high 90s and we're beginning to see a few glimpses of Fall, it is time for long walks outside and picnics in the park and lazing around outside. Fall is my favorite annual visitor and, in my opinion, this is the best time of year to break out the picnic blanket, pack up some just-made cookies, and head to the nearest greenish space to enjoy the cool, crispy air and the sounds of migrating birds.

These are scenes from a recent picnic at Duke Gardens. It was Family Day, so flocks of children took to the park, running here and there, digging in the dirt with sticky popsicle fingers. Juniper loved being in the middle of all the excitement. 

The photo above shows a glimpse of our new picnic blanket that I made just the day before (details at the end of the post) and one of Juni's Ice Cream dresses that I made earlier in the Summer (Oliver + S pattern, Anna Maria Horner Good Folks fabric in tangerine festival with coordinating solid).

August Travels, Part 3

Another day at the beach, in pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

      

August Travels, Part 2

The rest of our trip was spent at Charlie's family beach house near Essex, MA. Juniper took to the sea instantly, despite the frigid water temperatures and cool air, two things this Florida girl considers unacceptable for wading of any sort. My daughter, however, loved it, begging to go into the "bath" over and over again, though teeth chattered and lips turned purple. She splashed around in the water and stomped across the sand, gathering all manner of sea treasures and memories. 

While the breezy, cool air, soft sunlight, and much relaxation were completely enjoyable, nothing beats watching your little girl fall in love with the ocean for the very first time.