snow day

 

 

 

It snowed a few weeks after we moved into our temporary rental last year, but Jack was just a wee little blob who just hung in the Ergo with rosy cheeks while we walked around the neighborhood. He was unamused.

This time, I think he had more fun watching Rudy act a fool than he did playing in it himself. Although he did seem to enjoy flopping around in it and we enjoyed watching his face when he realized that it was cold and wet.

And just as we suspected when we bought this house, it's beautiful here when it snows. New England has its perks after all.

surviving the winter

Maybe first I should talk about surviving Hurricane Sandy? So far it's a lot of wind and a little rain, but it's expected to get worse throughout the day and tonight. Say some prayers for us up here, will you?

Last winter was...difficult. I've never been one to be affected by the changing seasons and I actually kind of like winter and the coziness of it all. But last winter almost did me in. Really.

To my defense, there was a lot going on. A new baby. A recent move. A new stay-at-home mom status. No friends. A husband who was working a lot. A rental house that was not built for cold weather. I guess you could say that the odds were stacked against me. All of that to say, my experience with last winter - which was apparently mild by Connecticut's standards, God help us all - has me feeling a little bit nervous about the time change. All jokes aside, I really don't want to feel the way I felt last year because I was not healthy.

Yes, things are different this time. I have friends now. I'm more confident in my role as a mother. I've gotten used to being without Andrew (it still sucks, but I've gotten used to it). I have a house with working heat! It's amazing what those sorts of things can do for your mood. And when Mir, who lives in Seattle, and I were commiserating about the winter ahead she shared with me her list of things to get us through the cold and sunless months. The essentials, if you will: full spectrum lighting, Vitamin D supplements and cute boots.

Obviously.

She also talked about embracing the indoors and making the most of the time inside. And a little tip she learned in England? There is no bad weather, only inadequate clothing.

So I took all of those pearls of wisdom and came up with a plan of attack. Let's do this, winter.

First of all, accessories. A nice scarf, some cute gloves. Embrace the cold, I say!

 

+ Neutral striped scarf from Old Navy.

+ Yummy cowl from MelodyJoy1983 on Etsy. In oatmeal, in case you were wondering.

+ Aztec flip top gloves from Target. Which I may have already acquired for my winter wardrobe.

Also, the cute boots. Completely necessary. If you don't have adequate footwear, you won't go outside in the rain or snow. And it rains and snows a lot, so you'll be inside a lot. Which will make you sad. See? Necessary.

 

+ Loving these all-weather boots. I can't decide between the ones with the buttons or the buckle because they're equally adorable.

+ These Sperrys. Maybe not as versatile as the brown, but still. How fun are they? 

 

And as I think of embracing the indoors, I think of warm drinks and heavy blankets and good books. I also think of toddlers who must touch anything that's in my hands regardless of whether it's a cup of coffee, magazine or writing utensil, but let me dream! There's always nap time.

 + I figure it might be time to join the rest of my generation and finally read Harry Potter. I KNOW.

+ Speaking of jumping on bandwagons, I just added The Hunger Games to my Kindle. I don't usually get into young adult literature but enough (reputable) people have recommended this series that I think it's worth a shot.

+ I would also like to re-read Little Women because it's been a while and what a good book to get into around the holidays, yes?

Some of these things apply to hurricane survival as well. For example, I'm still in my pajamas and I plan on staying under this warm blanket with my Kindle until Jack wakes up from his nap.

I've totally got this.

What about you? How do you survive the winter?

two sundays, three food festivals

Tis the season for good food, apparently. I'm used to all the yummies coming out over the summer months down South and I was a little disappointed not to have anything on my calendar as June, July and August ticked by. But then SEPTEMBER came. And September is where it's at.

Two weeks ago we went to a Greek Food Festival and The Taste of Mystic. Last weekend, we went to the Garlic Festival and it was just as awesome as you could imagine.

Jack was the perfect tag-a-long. He sampled a lot of what we had and was especially fond of the tortilla from our fish taco and the Thai chicken on a stick. That's my boy.

When he wasn't sneaking bites from my plate, he was just being all cute and stopping people in their tracks when they walked by his stroller. Typical. Unfortunately, it's rare to have Andrew around on the weekends for something like that, so it was nice to take advantage. I do love those boys, especially when they're together.

 

 

 

 

scenes from connecticut: sawyer's lobsters

I'm learning to always keep my camera with me up here. Sometimes the New England-ness of this place catches me by surprise and I can't believe how quaint it all is. The South has an unmistakable charm that I've certainly missed, but this place has a special charm of its own. And I have to admit, it's kind of growing on me.

A few weeks ago, we were wandering around and came upon this little lobster shack. It was quietly tucked away on the river and there wasn't much to it - just a shack and all the things one needs when catching lobster. I enjoyed running around the dock snapping these pictures while Andrew played with Rudy and Jack took a late-afternoon snooze. Those are the moments I just eat up, you know?

If I ever get up the nerve to cook a lobster myself, now I know where to get the little critters.

the house of rest

The few weeks leading up to our move were crazy. Some good crazy and some bad crazy, but mostly the kind of crazy that leaves you exhausted and a little bit emotional.

When we found out that our realtor had found a furnished beach cottage for us to stay in while we looked for a house, I couldn't wait to put my bags down inside those walls. The only pictures we saw were those that she snapped on her phone, but we knew it was going to be just what we needed.

A place to unpack while we got our bearings. A place to keep us warm. A place for us to rest.

I still want to take some pictures of this place, but we haven't been able to experience that rest just yet and so I'm waiting for an opportunity when I have nothing to do but get out my camera. It's been a lot of unpacking and house hunting and car shopping and Navy stuff and Jack stuff up in here.

In the meantime, picture the sweetest little cottage with a sunroom on the front. Hardwood floors throughout, a small but cozy kitchen, creaky stairs with three bedrooms at the top. It's not glamorous by any means, but it's home for now. And the surroundings are nice:

Soon. Soon, my friends, I will do nothing but sit on this squishy couch within these drafty walls, snuggled up by the fire with my favorite boys.

And we will rest.

connecticut or bust

We got orders, folks. We're moving to Connecticut!

(For those of your trying to remember where that fell on the pros/cons list, click here.)

Groton was our second choice, but after having Jack, I think it was starting to feel more like our first choice. It will be so much easier to get back to NC to see family than it would if we were living on the west coast. And that's a big deal, especially since Andrew will be gone a lot. This way, I can pass some of that time by hanging out with the people we love so much.

I think we're both feeling more and more excited as we've had time to process it. It will be offensively cold when we move there in January, but we'll just brave it for a few more months and then enjoy the awesome spring and summer. I can't wait. Who wants to come visit?

Some more random thoughts/answers to questions you might have:

• Assuming nothing changes with the specifics in Andrew's orders, we'll start the trek up north around the first of the year.
• We're thinking about maybe trying to buy a house (eeks!) so that's fun. The logistics feel a little nightmarish, but if it's meant to be, we'll figure it out. More on that later...
• The closest Trader Joe's is approximately 45 minutes away. Not terrible, if I plan it right.
• And whaddya know, there's an IKEA near that Trader Joe's! I don't know whether to be excited or concerned. I bet I know Andrew's answer...
• I'm already daydreaming about taking Jack to NYC in the spring. Andrew and I have only ever been in the winter, so that will be a first for all of us!
• I just bought this in preparation for the cold weather. Adorable, right?
• After learning a little about the boat's schedule, it looks like Andrew maybe won't be deployed for a while. Hooray!
• If you are reading this and you live in a place that has warm autumns and tolerable winters, you are allowed ONE remark per season about how you're still wearing flipflops in December. If you choose not to comply, consider this fair warning that our friendship will be terminated.
• Related: The hottest month in Groton is July, when the average high is 81 degrees.
• My dad has agreed to ship the following items to me on a semi-regular basis: bbq, honey from his hives and collard greens. Pending investigation, I may be adding Duke's mayo to that list.
• There are no Chick-Fil-As, Bojangles or Cracker Barrels in Groton. I feel very sad about that.
• I need to find the perfect clam chowder recipe. Stat.

New England, here we come!