Oh, you make me so happy

The peony is named after Paeon (also spelled Paean), a student of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine and healing. Asclepius became jealous of his pupil; Zeus saved Paeon from the wrath of Asclepius by turning him into the peony flower.
(from Wikipedia)

I wait for this all winter long- the first blooms from my sweet little peony bush. I take daily walks (sometimes multiple times a day, much to the annoyance of my husband:)) by my little plant starting in the early spring, eagerly monitoring it's growth. My heart fills with joy at the first sign of the light pink, almost white, buds that slowly emerge. It takes all of the determination and sanity that I can muster to not jump up and down, while clicking my feet together in the air and singing a song of happiness when I see that first floppy mophead (my willpower is not quite strong enough to prevent a little twirling dance, but these things happen). And yes, selfish as it may be, I just cannot leave them outside. So, I clip the delicate little mopheads and place them in a sweet little vase so that I can enjoy them inside. And when I'm inside, I carry them around, room to room, so that I can smell their loveliness whenever I please.

 

And speaking of mopheads, here is our other little mophead, loving herself up some sun. My dad would say that she's 'posing for animal crackers' and I would have to agree :).

 

Thank you all for your sweet and thoughtful notes on my last post. I feel so lucky to have found you in this little blogworld and look forward to sharing our stories of summer.....

xoxo 

A Sweet Surprise

"Seriously? Your blog is pathetic. Work on that!" - Amber, my oldest, sweetest, dearest friend, who is also quite candid and there to provide a swift kick in my ass whenever needed:).

She's right. I have been SO bad about updating my blog. It's not for lack of things to say, in fact, quite the contrary. There has been a lot going on around here lately. The biggest news is that I am pregnant- 15 weeks and counting :). I've been meaning to write about it for so long, but couldn't find a way to express how truly happy and blessed I feel. Some of you know that I've wanted this for a long time. Yet when I finally got those expectant 'two lines', I was actually..... shocked. And I've been shocked ever since. A sweet surprise. It wasn't until we went to see the ultrasound at 11.5 weeks, at which point we also heard the little heartbeat for the first time, that I felt a calming confirmation- 'there really is a little one in there'. Not that the morning sickness and exhaustion weren't clues enough, but having the raw data just sealed the deal. So, here we are today, feeling extremely, extremely grateful for this precious little thing, currently the size of an apple, that's growing inside of me. We cannot wait to welcome this little one to a home that’s brimming with love.

We love you and we haven’t even met you yet.

We’ve also been putting a lot of efforts into our yard lately. We’ve planted our apple trees, hydrangeas, butterfly bushes and our vegetable garden. There is nothing quite like walking up to the garden on a hot summer’s day, pulling a beautiful ripe tomato from a vine, taking a huge bite and knowing that all of this work that went into this delicious tomato was so totally worth it.

I will post some pictures of my garden this week, for those of you who would like to see;). But for now, I’m signing off to watch the end of the Yankees/ Mets game with hubby.

Good night, dear ones!

xoxo

Springing Back

We're now well into spring and new signs of life are popping up every day. I've missed writing here and reading my favorite blogs this past month. One month away and it feels like I've got a lot of catching up to do:). So that's what I'll be doing now; catching up to see how this spring has been treating you and to see what signs of life are popping up in your areas.

As for us, we've been spending as much time as possible outside, rain and shine. Luna spends every waking moment chasing chipmunks, birds, deer. She never seems to have any luck, but that doesn't stop her from trying. This time of year calls for many a bath for the poor pup, as she comes back from an adventure in the woods with nasty scents and sap all over her. If only she could realize cause (rolling in poo) and effect (bath time:)). Siiiigh...

Hubby came home one day this month and surprised me with some sweet pink roses. I kept them out until the last possible second. The peony and bleeding heart bushes have sprouted their little heads from the side of our house. I check their progress every day:).

The end of March also found me potting my indoor seeds (trying to get an early start this year:)). I've potted heirloom & cherry tomatoes, cosmos, many a variety of zinnia, basil. Soon to be outdoors are the peas, lettuce, cukes, cilantro. Oh, and last week our apple trees and hydrangea came in. It's been quite a good planting month:).

I look forward to reconnecting with each of you:). I hope April is treating you well.

xoxo

B

Happy Spring!

Spring is gradually making her presence known here in New England...... :)

wordless

hello lovelies,

I hope this post finds you all well:). I haven't had much to say on my sweet little blog this past week. I've had a busy week at work and by the time I get home, all I want to do is have a nice dinner and take a dreamful nap.

I'm very much looking forward to this weekend, which is slated to be filled with sunshine, open windows, the painting of a birdhouse, family walks and hopefully the re-emergence of bare feet. Wouldn't that be nice? :) I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. I leave you with a photo of Matt and me dancing the night away at our wedding.... just because (also, it ties in with the whole bare feet theme :)).

xoxo,
Blair

a day at the beach

Luna and I spent Sunday at a beach in Old Saybrook, Connecticut, with my older brother, Bryce, and my sweet, delicious nephews. Though it was too cold to put our feet in, we walked the beach looking for shells and weathered glass, watched kite surfers, basked in the sun and the fact that summer is near.

I hope you’ve all had a lovely week. I’ve missed writing here and reading about your lives, but I’m back from a rested few days away and looking forward to what the weekend brings.

xoxo

we're taking a trip.....

Happy Friday :).

We're not taking a trip to the beach, but this was the only photo I could find that seemed relevant :). Matt has to go to England and Norway for a few days. While we will miss him very, very much, Luna and I have decided to take this opportunity to spend some time in Connecticut with my family. Not to mention that we don't like staying home alone at night yet (don't get me wrong, Miss Luna is a fine watch dog.... she's just a bit friendlier than she should be:)).

It looks like the next few days in Connecticut will be sunny and in the 50's so we may stop by to visit the llamas across the street from my parents' home, have a few yummy homemade dinners with mom and dad, see the nephews, my brothers and sister-in-law and visit some close friends. All in all it should be a nice weekend, then soon enough, hubby will return and Luna and I can feel complete again ;).

What are your plans for the weekend? Whatever they may be, wherever you are, I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Oh, and don't forget to watch the Oscars :).

xoxo