last day of may...

 It's kind of funny for me to reflect back on what my life was like around this same time one year ago.  I was anxiously expecting my new baby to arrive any day (although he showed up 12 days late with much prompting!).  We were on pins and needles with excitement to meet this little baby and to find out just how our lives would change...something it seemed we could only know for certain once it really happened.  It took me a long, long time to adjust to having a baby suddenly be a part of our family, my life, my world.  While I loved him wholeheartedly the very second I saw him, and still feel as though my heart may burst with so much love pretty much every time I look at him, it was a really immense and difficult change for me.  And almost a year later, I think I'm still adjusting! I've been thinking back now on how one prepares for a baby.  At least the way I prepared...and wow, being on the other side now some things seem so silly to me!  Here's what I did:  Get the nursery ready by spending copious amounts of time reading reviews and ordering/registering baby gear online, knit cute little socks & a sweater, make a mobile, sew a quilt, buy Dreft and wash up tiny adorable baby things, take childbirth & nursing classes, nest and organize the house from top to bottom, attend fun baby showers, dream about how snuggly cozy each day will be with a little one tucked in my arms, think about how he will nap all the time, anywhere I want to bring him, how I'll just toss the baby in a sling and continue on with my life, etc, etc.  But the reality for me was so different.  And I kept asking myself those first few weeks, and even asking some people...why didn't anyone tell me how HARD it is to have a baby, to be a mom?  At the time I felt like it was some big secret that everyone seemed to keep from me.  Maybe they didn't want to burst my bubble.  And I probably wouldn't have believed them anyways.  I mean, I knew there would be some sleepless nights and dirty diapers and crying jags...but that and all the other million little things in between, added up to a reality that took a whole lot of adjusting to.  The whole world looked different to me once this baby came into my world.  And I had no family close by to rely on...I didn't realize how much I would need that support or miss them.  I couldn't have my mom run over for an hour to hold my baby when I so desperately needed that.  And now I can still count on one hand, almost a year later, the times that he's slept through the night.  And he's never been much of a good napper.  Or really all that snuggly.  Plus, that tiny newborn infant period passes so quickly and in a bit of a blur of utter exhaustion, yet that seemed to be the period that I spent the most time before the baby preparing for, dreaming about, and thinking would go on and on forever!  Now looking back, I should have been preparing for all those days beyond infancy...the days of feeding him solids, helping him to sleep better (if possible?), baby-proofing our entire house better, learning how to potty train, how to deal with little tantrums effectively, discipline (still too young for much of that thankfully!), teaching him well...everything!..and so much more.  So now in many ways, my life is so completely new and different...and in other ways, its the same as ever.  I wouldn't change a thing.  I don't want to sound as though I have it hard.  Because I feel so blessed every single day.  And I can't imagine my life without this little boy now.  But it was just and still is something that has taken a lot of time to figure out...for me...probably not for everyone. And just when I think I've got it figured out, something changes and I have to figure things out all over again!  So, I'm not sure why I went on about that...but one thing that has gotten back to the same as ever is my affection for my little garden in the woods.  Last summer, my garden had a bit of a break from being tended to very much as I had no free time with a newborn. It was neglected, overrun with weeds and slugs. And at the time I didn't really care what happened to it.  I was overwhelmed and could barely manage to get just the basic things done.  But this spring, my plants all came back up again, giving me another chance at it.  And now that I once again have a little more time for frivolous things like "gardening"  (sorry, mum, I know that's not frivolous to you!), I can get back to taking care of it a little more properly.  Its been fun to see how many of the plants have become more established after being in the ground there for a few years now.  I finally finally have a 2 lovely little clusters of Lily-of-the-Valley plants (my favorite flower) that I can count on to come up each spring.  And the sweet Linnea plant (last photo) which I found near the cabin about 3 years ago and transplanted a little bit of in my garden is now finally going to enjoy its first bloom this summer!  All this reminds me that good things, most wonderful things in life, take time to establish, to adjust.

strawberry muffins...

I think strawberry muffins may be one of my favorite kind of muffins.  The strawberries taste so good smothered within a sweet, cake-y muffin...almost like it is filled with jam.  I made these ones earlier this week and even little baby Bub couldn't resist gobbling some of one up, still warm from the oven, as I held him in my lap.

P.S.  That little pink bowl with handles (I think originally a sugar bowl?) is one of my latest thrift store finds!  I looove little bowls and cups (and things that hold things I guess). This pink one (Fire King) with swirls was calling my name.  After about a year long thrifting/antiquing dry spell, I finally found some lovely things last week!  That is what makes the thrill of the hunt all the more exciting!

wild asparagus hunting

I get a little crazy this time of year about finding things to eat in the wild.  I don't know what it is?  So I took little Bub on his first "wild asparagus hunt" to my secret spot that I found a few years back.  We had some success...if you consider 2 stalks success. Not very much to sustain us but still exciting anyhow.  There were more coming up...just too little to pick yet...and some that were just past their picking prime.  Maybe in a few days we'll check back for more!

to catch a butterfly...

 We've been noticing lots of pretty butterflies around lately...like this big Monarch one that's been frequenting our plum tree blossoms.  On Saturday, the sky was so blue, the clouds sparse, and I hopped and danced my way around the tree to catch this one on my camera...it was so lightning fast, flitting around...and I'm sure the neighbors were wondering about me...just a bit.

sunshine and the supermoon

 

A week ago today we arrived home from a nice long vacation (part work for Hub) in sunny Florida.  Every single day was brilliantly sunny and in the 90s.  (I guess you just need to go in May to get hot weather...as opposed to the complaining I did about the weather the last time we were there.)  And I didn't mind it one bit.  When I go someplace like this I want it to be hot, the pool to feel refreshing, no jeans or sweaters necessary.  

In addition to hot weather, another thing we enjoy about vacationing is the food...and for some reason everything just tasted better, fresher there.  We ate so much fresh fruit every day...including the best ever Florida tree-ripened peaches!  Normally we like to eat out a lot too, but since having little baby Bub, eating out just isn't what it used to be.  Its often more relaxing to just stay in so he can be messy and roam around and not be strapped into a chair while we try to eat a nice dinner. So while we did eat out a few times (highlights being the Tilefish, 2nd to last photo, classico flatbread, and tempura haricot vert with a truffle aioli from bluezoo...Gruyere biscuits and truffled fries with a pickled ramp aioli from The Ravenous Pig), we had fun splurging a bit on some groceries from Whole Foods that we wouldn't perhaps typically buy back home...including the bakery treats of Parisian vanilla macarons (my first ones ever...so so good!) and fruit tarts (photos above)...and we made some really delicious dinners as well...like the Gruyere, fried egg, and asparagus on toasted baguette sandwiches (4th photo).  

It feels so good to be back home now, getting back into our old routines, yet trying to stick to a couple of new things I adopted while on vacation:

1-Taking at least one walk a day with little Bub...now that its warmer here we can actually do this one.  In Florida we went on multiple stroller walks a day and little Bub loooved them so much.  He loves being outside and he's even napping a little better too.

2-Going to bed earlier...In Florida I didn't have as much to do in the evenings as I can find to do around my house...things are always needing to be done here...so I often gave myself permission to hop in bed earlier because I was on vacation...and it felt so wonderful!  So I'm trying to maintain that as well and doing a so-so job!

P.S.  Oh, and that photo of the moon...yeah, that's my not-so-great, truly awful picture I took of the supermoon that occurred on May 5th...it was phenomenal to see in person and we had a great view of it coming up from our place in Florida...did you happen to see that?  wow!

mixed berry galette

While there are heaping piles of laundry to do and much other housework to be done, errands to be run, stacks of mail, paper, and other randomness covering the table/counter/dresser/desk/most any flat surface really, and a yard being overtaken by an astounding number of dandelions (yes, this is what coming home from a long vacation looks like), I found myself in the kitchen throwing together a galette.  I'm trying to tackle all that other stuff in bits and pieces.  I know it'll all get done eventually.  But I'm really craving some homemade food after being away from home for so long.  We did have a kitchen where we stayed while on vacation and we did mostly eat in (just easier with a little one), and we also had some amazing food (will share in a later post), but I still feel like churning out my own home-cooking now that we're back.  I've seen various galette recipes in magazines and cookbooks and they always look so effortless.  (I very loosely followed the peach-blackberry recipe in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.)  Also, I've been trying to clean out the freezer and noticed I still have quite a few frozen berries from last season.  So with a new berry season on the horizon, I decided to use most of my old ones up.  This galette is filled with black raspberries, blueberries, a few red raspberries, and a few gooseberries...all wild or from the garden!  And now I can't wait for more berry goodness soon to come!