01 March 2012

love the overlapping


screen shot of some design work getting done during naptime. hurrah.

i love that my pieces of life get to overlap. i am so happy that i get to blog, design, mother, eat, pray, love. my life looks like a scrap quilt and has been weaving steadily for a few months (settling into a house has been such a blessing)! the threads are all tightly woven and the pattern is coming together so nicely. i love what i do and love interacting with people all over the world via the internet. it's so rad. i have the opportunity to design from home and play with my boy in all the waking hours. the overlapping is my favorite.

i know as a small business owner, one might plot down exact times and increments in which work will get done. and, of course, i do that in some cases. on the other hand, usually, i work when there is time to work and rest when there is time to rest. fold laundry in the down times and splash dinner together when i can and read aloud whenever he asks me to and clean when the monday motivation hits. i've come into a routine of spontaneous design and i am relishing in it. our trio works like a well-oiled machine these days. and yes, i'm noticing all of this because i know the birth of our new babe will rock our routine to oblivion. so we're milking it. in fact i took a relaxing bath in the middle of the day last week. i don't remember the last time i had sunshine filter through on a peaceful bathing hour. you should try it. daytime bubble baths may be a new thing for this second trimester. benj and i are going on lots of little mommy & me outings. dan and i are staying up chatting rather than channel surfing. am doing my best to utilize my time wisely while still enjoying every mild minute of it. i can't wait to meet our little addition, yet i'm cautious of the changes a new baby will bring. i keep reminding benji (and myself) that little babies cry. a lot. oh but the little slug phase of snuggling and the scent of a newborn's head and seeing our family grow and letting our hearts burst open in a brand new way. i'm in such happy anticipation. i'd love some advice on the matter. how did you prepare for a teeny swaddled babe? and what about preparing older siblings for what lies ahead? 

p.s. off the subject, but hilarious. did you see oprah on jimmy kimmel? we missed the oscars but tuned in for this episode and laughed ourselves silly.

p.s. remember how i said spring is in the air? well it has been snowy and rainy and windy ever since i typed that in. oh well. happy march. at least we're marching toward finding-out-the-gender day. hooray.

10 comments:

Hil said...

You are amazing Marta. I love your quilt metaphor and feel very much the same as you as far as balance and pattern in my life right now. I am so darn excited to meet your new little one! It will most definitely rock your world, but in the greatest way imaginable. Benj will be such a caring and sweet big brother. We read Little Guy a bunch of books on being a big brother before Tiny came. I think that helped quite a bit. We also let him help us get the nursery ready and fold the itty bitty baby clothes. To be quite honest, you can't fully prepare the older siblings for the huge change that will come into their world, but you can at least try to get them used to baby things being around the house. :) Best of luck. Can't wait to see your growing baby bump next week!

{amy k.} said...

you never cease to amaze me. the thing i love about your blog, it's clear where your priorities are. it's clear how much you love and cherish your family. i hope someday to be as organized and able to cleanly overlap as you!

Anonymous said...

I too feel like I am constantly quilting, haha! Great analogy Mart! And yes, we just watched the Oprah bit the other night. How great was Fight Club Book Club?!

Cathy said...

I had my then 3.5 year son pretty much involved from the start: he came to dr. appointments with me to hear the heart beat and "see" the baby on the monitor. When he was asked what he wanted, he answered a sister and was right (sibling intuition?) He helped us paint the new room and picked a gift to bring to the hospital when she arrived. We discussed what he would be abble to do to help as a big brother. I found that he was patient when she cried or needed to take a nap but arranged to have his dad or I do things with him alone so he didn't feel completely ignored. I was lucky because he loved her from the start and still loves to cuddle with her now that he is 6.5 year old. I am very happy for you 3 and I know that B with be a great big brother!

Claire said...

Well this just made me smile real big. In fact, my little smile got bigger and bigger as I read. I feel like I'm in the calm before the storm right now; our baby is coming this month (!) and perhaps sooner than I had planned. I find myself savoring every shower, every morning to sleep in, every half hour where I have nothing I really HAVE to do.

I'll think of you as I (try to) give myself a pedicure and pack the hospital bag and make any last minute purchases. Life moves so quickly! But that's what makes it so exciting.

Thanks for this wonderful post. Have a wonderful day, no matter how blustery it is out the window.

Brooke said...

Cute post, helped me re-appreciate my humble little life with Chad and Joshy :) Thanks Mart, you are a doll.

quilter5706 said...

Marta: I really enjoy reading your posts. Helps us keep up on our dear friends in Utah. We are so excited for the three of you and your upcoming new addition. We appreciated the friendship that we share and hope to be able to see all of you soon.

Anonymous said...

So excited for you! Can I just say, I dreamed I met your trio. And I totally nerded out talking really fast about how I've been ready your blog for years. :) you were lovely as I'm sure you are in real life.

jularun7 said...

first, love my logo. :) and your quilt analogy gave me a lot of strength. it's hard to balance everything but to think about it all being your fabric just shifted my perspective in a beautiful way .. thank you so so much.

Christina said...

I loved this post. I remember talking to my pediatrician about how to help my first adjust for the arrival of my second, and I've used his tips ever since. The biggest thing for me is to involve the older child as much as possible. Using phrases like "our baby" or even "his baby" to help Benji feel some ownership goes a long way in helping them to feel included instead of displaced. I quickly had to let go of expectations about the perfect way to hold a baby, soothe a baby, etc., because the older siblings will have their own way of doing those things, and really no one is worse for the wear at the end of it.

And I agree- milk it while you can before the change. I remember the week before #2 arrived having moments with my first and crying that it would be the last time we did x,y,z just the two of us. As for preparing myself/family for the baby, I love to fill my freezer with meals, clean like the dickens, and then lower my expectations because things won't be the same again, and that's perfectly wonderful.

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