hmm

i had this funny day where i kept thinking in writing, if that makes sense. so, i made a list, attempting to turn these thoughts into words, except they wouldn't be blog-words until at least 8 pm, because my family's laptop goes to and fro with jeremy during the day. then i got to thinking about how words were written down before computers, and i promise, the first thing i thought of was jane eyre, how the author of jane eyre (charlotte bronte :) ), hand-wrote jane eyre. right? it was a small thought but a good one. it did not, however, inspire me to first write out this entry by hand. anyway,

here's the list:

to blog:

about trains

parade book

being new

pretending it's spring vs. accepting it's winter

whimsy

settling in

herb garden

joseph's anger as expressed by low keys on the piano - so appropriate and understandable

here are the thoughts inspired now as i look at the list:

1. we pulled up to a stop sign on sunday morning, running a tad late for church, and the railroad crossing guards started blinking and coming down. i consider this one of the best parts of my neighborhood, that at any given time, one can be caught behind a train on their way to wherever they were going, and regardless of how late or just on time they were going to be, the train will set that back about 4-7 minutes. or, if you are joseph sitting in the middle of the back seat, it's one of the most anticipated moments of the week, the railroad crossing guards that we see in books, act out with the train set, note with "ding-ding-ding-ding" at every sight of a yellow x sign, these guards are actually moving before your very eyes. and. there's about to be a train. i wonder how many 19-month-old little boys living in train-obsessed 19-month-old land get this opportunity every day. and for me, the train was a welcome you-cannot-get-there-on-time-if-you-try pause. i liked it.

2. parade. it's one of my favorite library books ever.

3. being new. eh. another time. (it's hard, though.)

4. this morning i couldn't stop trying to decide if i was going to pretend it's an early, cold start to spring in february or accept the fact that it's still winter. then it started snowing, making success at the non-reality early-spring invention very difficult to achieve.

5. whimsy. joseph's room is all whimsy. i like what donald miller's friend, bob, says about whimsy: "...it's that nagging idea that life could be magical; it could be special if we were only willing to take a few risks." hmm.. it's better within the context of the paragraph.

6. settling in is difficult for me because i keep pretending that i don't need to, as if i'm going to be going back to something else that i'm already settled into. i'll talk about that another time too. yes, i'm probably avoiding difficult subjects.

7. joseph and i planted an herb garden sent to us by his grammie. i can't wait until we get to see little green sprouts coming out of the soil. oh spring, please come soon. little herbs, can you help spring to come soon?

8. oh man. the best for last. this morning, joseph got really frustrated with his train set. sometimes he can't figure out how to get the engine with magnetic cars through the tunnel by pushing gently, so a lot of the time, the train comes apart in the middle of the tunnel or goes off the track. or, in this morning's case, a car or two comes apart and he makes his own little train wreck in frustration. after the train wreck, he was still really upset, so he stood up, marched over to the piano, lifted the cover off the keys, and (staring at me) banged on the lowest notes. i was actually really impressed because it struck me as such an appropriate expression of trainwreck-induced anger. it was realllly funny.

alright. the end of my writing/thinking for the day.

unfolded laundry and partial side bangs

the post-holiday routine seems to have officially settled in. it's nice. it's snowy. i like it. our home feels like a home. and home.

we have new couches. two trips to the cincinatti ikea. one as a family and one just my studfest husband. i just realized i've already mentioned the couches. i suppose they're that big of a deal.

joseph has been pretending he's a baby. if i've talked to you on the phone recently, i've probably mentioned it because it just seems so crazy to me that this little guy can not only pretend, but keep up the act for most of an afternoon. he crawls around our apartment, grabs onto my leg as if he can't actually stand, and says "night-night" and lies down on a blanket. it's amazing.

he also likes to pretend he's a cat. and a kitten. two separate animals, mind you. the kitten says "meow-meow" and touches your face, and the cat (who joined me at the grocery store this afternoon) says "hhhhheeeh!" and puts both hands up in a ree-errr motion.

annnnyway, i feel like there was more to tell, but really, some of my stories start to feel kind of silly once i type them out, so delete-delete-delete..

some pictures from the past week:

snow day

(rejoice and) be glad at blue dog bakery

our delicious muffin and coffee date all on a tray at blue dog

life is (hmm...) good. nice? sweet? contenting? it's good. i like it.

tgif

i'd write more, but it's not tuesday (first of all), annnnnd my husband just assembled our new loveseat and coffee table and we're going to eat ice cream and watch lost.

we drove to ikea yesterday afternoon and made some purchases we've been planning for years.

and the best part is that there is a gigantic box in our living room that's going to become a fort as soon as sweet boy wakes up in the morn. i'm excited.

i would post some pictures, but they're all of joseph. i can take other pictures of other subjects, but they're just not as cute. it's a new years resolution. along with being super-organized, which, surprisingly works pretty well if my mentality is "put this item where it goes." anyway.

alright fine, one picture of joseph. :)

friiiiiiiday night. lost and ice cream. this is livin.

a touch of spring in january

oops

wonderful Christmas time:

joseph dancing to billy gilman & charlotte church sleigh ride (while mama wonders why in the world this song always starts my Christmas mixes..)

chocolate chip cookie dough that may or may not become cookies

we-are-fam-il-eeeee going to see lots of family and friends in three daaaaayyyyys

Christmas present planning and creativity galore

paper chains

advent at sojourn

snow, lots of snow

the $10 peacoat on professor joseph

soon-to-be mr. & mrs. drew thompson

oh, the mcdonnell video exchange

crocheting, much crocheting

annnnnd my new coat

and jeremy

and joseph

and all the while:

our God in a manger, our God as a child.

immanuel, immanuel, God is with us.

merry Christmas!

boysen jammies

list of happies

things that are contributing to a general feeling of happiness right now (in no particular order.. or maybe they are in some particular order if this is how they come to me):

beer bread

joseph saying "mey-ma" for aunt meg

frames on the wall with a big L for linneman in the grouping

my husband

my husband who does the dishes when i cook (even though tonight's "cooking" was beer bread plus canned soup warmed up on the stove for presentation's sake)

the sojourn women's study and the j-town table (new faces looking less new)

fall feelings

yoga poses in the sunny spot on the wooden floor of joseph's room

yoga pose repurposed as train and joseph tunnel

yoga pose tunnel collapse and joseph laughing

halloween on hillcrest

the walk to the library

my name finally being number 1 on the waiting list for the help

the huge open field full of trees and acorns in crescent avenue park

mama time away

mama time away becoming joseph and ian wrestle time while mamas discuss educational philosophies

the constancy of washing diapers every other day

1canoe2 products in anthropologie stores

the word

the word plus coffee

plus cream and sugar

driving at night

the wicked soundtrack

the boy's flannel shirt

ice cream

yogurt and granola

still-holding-on keane shoes

keane shoes with striped socks

hairspray (seriously)

cardigan and scarf with pajama pants

joseph responding to any question containing the adjective "favorite" with "DAH-DA"

and dancing at the window when jeremy's car arrives home at the end of the day

and bringing the yellow blanket to hide under to surprise jeremy and saying "dah-da" even though there are still a few more hours until dada's home

etc. :

thanks, Lord.