the most happy fella

My little guy is so dang happy. He puts the Happy back in Happy Sad's step. He coo's and arghhh's and smiles the most sincere, beguiling smiles. He is perfect and he is finding his place in our world seamlessly. I am so far gone in love with him, it's not even funny.


That's one of the super cool things about the second born. Instead of feeling all bleary eyed and overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions -- wonder, love, frustration, unknowing, amazement -- like I did with Eliana, I can just totally celebrate little Soli. That's not well put. Of course I celebrated Elie. But this time it feels so truly of the moment. So perfectly now. I felt like with Eliana she and I were in our own little world so much of the time. With Solomon, it's that all four of us are in our world all of the time. He's made us totally whole. He is my love.


And as our summer at home reaches a high note, we anticipate a new adventure. We head to the coast on Sunday to try our hands at two weeks of beach camping in Washington. We'll be joined by a posse of splendorious, childless friends who selflessly engage and appreciate our little chickens. While friends in all their stages (or not) of childbearing are crucial, friends without kids who really love yours are pretty rockin' to be with.

Matt and Amy spent last week with us and showered Eliana with more fun than she knew what to do with. When I had to race off to teach yoga and Jeff wasn't home yet to watch the kids, I left them with Matt without a second thought. It was four nights of lavish, long meals late into the night on a candlelit porch while the little ones slept inside. I realized that I can't do that with most of my friends normally because they all have to get home to be with their kiddos. If we have dinners together, they have to end so we can all put the kids to bed. But when the party's at your house, you roll in for books and nursings, then sneak out for wine and oysters. It was an awesome visit. And I'm psyched we'll be seeing them again so soon.




Goodness me. So much to appreciate. Montana summer. New and old friends. First and second born. Husbands. Which reminds me. Jeff and I went on a belated anniversary date the other night. Awesome! No wonder marriage councilors make the big bucks by telling struggling couples to enjoy each other. If we could swing it, I'd do date night all the time. We'll try for once a month. We sat in the restaurant for three hours and had way too big a bill, but it was all worth it. Just to feel present with each other. Just to remember that the love in our family can focus in on its nucleus and still shimmer and shine.




I love my husband. I love the way he loves our children. He and Happy are insanely tight right now. They play hard together, long extensive games of make-believe and rough stuff and Jeter and Posada. I am so, so blessed to have such a devoted husband. We watched our anniversary video the other week and laughed and laughed at how young everyone seemed. So carefree. So open and guileless. We snuggled on the sofa while we watched. We are lucky.

So a post that was supposed to focus on all the love I have for my three month old son has turned into a post about all the love I have for my world -- probably a healthy and positive trajectory. So much to love. So much to celebrate. Swanky new double strollers.


Friends who have the perfect bassinet for your big boy and your small room waiting to be had in their garage. Naked tea parties on overcast days.


Budding friendships.




Eliana's beautiful artwork hanging in the kitchen. The way her daddy perfectly measures the space between each piece and then asks me again, Hey, where's the sticky tack? Halibut cheeks. Halibut cheeks when Eliana eats more than the two of us combined and spouts, I want more! Fresh string beans with lots of salty butter. Mama, I'll always love you, randomly but gut-wrenchingly stated as we walk out of the elevator and into the doctor's office. New choreography spilling forth out of nowhere. New music. To Eliana's new magnifying glass that identifies bugs. And to dad for running back home to retrieve it when we forgot to bring it the first go 'round to the creek.



Little elfin grins. Understanding that the more detail I go into, the more goodness I'll have to fall back on. That happiness goes on and on. Lives in the moments.