A Mindful Life

In between shopping for a new car seat, providing the usual care for Claire, doing laundry, buying groceries, vacuuming and mopping, watering outdoor plants, and making lemon buttermilk pies for a potluck, I’ve been squeezing in another book. The library books are momentarily set aside so I can complete a book I started months ago, [...]

My energy seems to have returned, which makes me feel cheerier and optimistic. This shift occurred over the weekend when I got some time to myself.
A Guatemalan friend recommended some authors to me, so on Thursday I dove into Antigua and My Life Before, by Marcela Serrano. I finished yesterday completely satisfied with the [...]

For reasons I don’t want to go into (mostly because they’re boring), the past couple days have been rough for me. I am raw and short on energy and patience. At a stoplight, I had my right turn blinker on. It’s an option to turn right on red (unless there’s sign prohibiting it). I was [...]

The humidity is cloying right now, and already it’s 74 degrees. I am hunkered down, mentally geared for another 100+ degree day cooped up in this non-air conditioned house with the windows and drapes closed to retain last night’s cool air. It reminds me of the northern winters I grew up in.
Oh, we will [...]

After a couple of months doing the “all done” sign with Claire, she recently started making the sign when I initiated — for example, after a meal, when I’d ask “All done?” and make the sign, she’d confirm it. But yesterday, she initiated the sign! When she was full, she raised her small hands and [...]

Outside the air quality suffers. The haze is thick, the scent is acrid. Smoke is visible at about a half-mile. It’s very odd, as the sun shines through, the sky is gray-white, and the horizon is obliterated. There are about 800 wildfires burning in Northern California (last I heard). So we aren’t going on many [...]

Also, recent firsts:

A ride on a carousel at Oak Meadow Park.
A short trip on the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad — she was fascinated.
Actually getting a Cheerio into her mouth — twice!

I have 45 minutes to write this, so we’ll see what pours out.
Today
I have a beautiful nine-month-old daughter who is pulling up and longs to stand by herself. She is starting to cruise. She’s becoming more aware and more of a little individual daily. Today I am physically and mentally healthy. Today I am in [...]

more graph humor and song chart memes

The temperature is 106.9F. Today I closed all the windows and curtains in the lower house levels, and left the skylight in the loft open with fans blowing upward to push heat out. It’s actually tolerable in here with the lights off.
Also, regular unleaded gas is now $4.79 per gallon.