i'm grateful for a baby houdini.

last night, for the first time in a long time, i brought jude in bed with us.

it was four o'clock and she kept baby-houdini'ing her way out of her swaddle.

as soon as i picked her up, she stopped fussing and i knew what needed to be done.

i brought her in bed and snuggled her close.

i put my left hand on the side of her head and played with her hair.

she held on tightly to my index finger 

while her other hand searched my face, 

occasionally grasping my nose or cheek with her freakishly strong baby grip.

when she was only a few weeks old, 

i used to bring her in bed every morning.

her body couldn't even stretch to my belly button.

now her little toes kick against my hips. 

her arms know how to reach

and her fingers know how to grasp.

i spent the next two hours watching her and cory sleep.

they both had an arm resting up against their forehead. 

their breath steady and slow.

their faces calm and unchanging. 

i spent those two hours falling more in love 

with each of them.

my sweet, patient husband

and my adorable, feisty baby. 

they are my people.

they are my world. 

a late afternoon snapshot.

tonight's dinner is prepped.

jude is napping in her crib

and i am on my bed, 

folding her [3-6 month!!!] clothes

and watching old episodes of project runway.

i love my little life.

good x a billion

my trip north was lovely.

i got to spend some much needed time with my family.

after dropping g-unit off with her sister,

i commandeered the front seat and put my ipod on blast.

jamie, ash and i spit like karmin and sang it with cee lo.

ash and i belted some adele,

 daddy joined me in singing along with dawn

and jamie and i finished the session with a little bob.

daddy took us to texas roadhouse for dinner.

their rolls are like manna from above.

i would have never thought to get anything other than steak, 

but mama and i both got salads

 and were pleasantly surprised by their deliciousness.

we finished the night off by watching dual survival

and alternating between killing stupid zombie[s] 

and battling it out on scrabble.

the next morning,

 sass had me do her hair before we headed out.

{i don't think my obsession with braids will ever stop}.

on the drive to pick up flowers for grandpa's grave,

ash and i introduced jamie to ni-ni and miss ultimate sexy baby.

it was so good to see our idaho family

and visit grandpa's grave. 

after our traditional cemetery visit and freeze out

{idaho's winds are beyond bitter and the cut like little knives},

we headed to aunt beth's for lunch.

jamie, ash and i stole borrowed mama's camera 

for a hipster photo shoot and explored the farm.

note to self:  get photos from mom's camera and upload them.

after back-to-back games of tag and duck-duck-goose

with some of the cutest children ever, 

i went for a stroll by the canal, climbed a potato cellar,

checked out a pile of old tires, breathed fresh air,

walked along the edge of growing potatoes,

thought, dreamed and smiled.

as much i say i despise idaho

for it's lack of excitement and bitter cold,

it's truly a beautiful place where anyone can find peace.

easy does it.

i did this today.

and it was incredible.

i wish i could transfer the emotions i felt to each of your hearts.

the peace and comfort.

i can tell you my result though.

simplify. simplify. simplify.

that's what i'm going to do.

that's all i can do.

simplify and have faith.

find quiet.

that's my goal this coming school year.

take the time to find quiet.

allow creativity to flow.

i need to get back into writing.

i need to get back into music.

i need to finish projects i've started and get my ideas rolling.

back to finding quiet.

we're so busy in this world.

everything happens so fast that we forget to take the time to breathe.

 i'm going to make it my goal to carve out that time.

won't you join me?