Katharine Elizabeth Photography {the blog}

Riddle me this:

How does a 2 week old baby hold his head up as well as a 4 month old baby?

I mean, look at that.

My kids were still tiny lumps when they were 2 weeks old, and this little guy looks like he’s ready to try out for the Olympics!

That is one strong baby, I’m telling you.  And cute, too.  Holy moly.

In the picture below, he was fighting his sleepiness and just wouldn’t quite give in to completely closing his eyes and falling asleep.

And I absolutely love it.  It’s JUST what babies do.  They just won’t give in to The Nap.

Honestly, I couldn’t have asked for a more photogenic and cooperative baby to hang out with.  And his parents were so nice and laid back.  The whole session just went really well.

He was so cooperative, he even put up with this shot:

I love it.  It’s hard to believe that he was right there inside his Mom’s tummy just 2 weeks earlier.  That’s pretty amazing.

Lastly, here is a little inspiration board from our great session together:

What a beautiful family.

We’re taking our kids to their very first wedding next month.

I’m not so much worried about the 5-year-old.

But I am slightly worried about the 2-year-old.

She’s cute.  But she’s impish.

“Who, me?”

I was feeling good that we already had a dress for her to wear to the wedding and wouldn’t need to go out and buy anything new.

But then I thought about the dress — which was a lovely gift from one of her grandmas — and how it’s pink and white with lace and a big bow … and I thought, “Hmmm… that dress looks an awful lot like a flower girl’s dress.”

And that has to be a faux pas, right?  Bringing your child to a wedding and dressing her like she’s part of the wedding party?

It just seems like a bad idea.

Anyway.  That was my excuse for picking up this little green number:

The faux pas thing.

And also, because my girl looks KEE-YOOT in green.

My husband was recently gone for a week-long business trip.

He doesn’t travel much, but every time he does, I spend the whole time he is away giving mental props to the following people:

• those whose spouses travel often
• those who are single parents

You people are strong in mind and body. I bow to you.

When my husband is gone, things always go the same way:

My week at home with the kids starts off okay. I do all the baths and bedtimes and wake-ups and teeth-brushing and meals preps and meal clean-ups and kid drop-offs and pick-ups and errands, etc. And it usually seems fine. Sometimes I even think, “Hey, this isn’t so hard.”

So Monday and Tuesday: not bad.

On Wednesday, things start to unravel. I get worn out. I get stressed. I get lonely, not having anyone over 3 feet tall to talk to.

And by Thursday, the wheels have completely come off. We’re eating McDonald’s and alternating between playing Xbox Tour of Duty and watching South Park.

Okay, the last 2 aren’t true. But McDonald’s, yes.

Anyway. I was glad when the week was over and our little family routine was back to normal.

***

The business trip was to San Francisco, and my husband brought back for me the perfect San Franciscan gift:

It almost made the whole week worth it, I swear.

And I kid you not, I took the above picture and as soon as the shutter had clicked, I inhaled 6 of the chocolates on the spot.

***

While my husband was away, one of my very nice friends sent me a little “pick me up” (she’s so awesome):

The book — called “Dirty Little Secrets from Otherwise Perfect Moms” — was very sweet, funny, and honest and I read the whole thing in one sitting (actually, one “standing” … I was in the kitchen).

It was so nice of her to think of me during my Solo Week and so nice to read a book where other moms admit some of their guilty little “faults.”

It’s good to feel like you’re not alone. That everyone is just trying to parent their kids the best they can. And that we all cut corners here and there.

I read the book again a few nights ago and then asked my friend if she’d be willing to send the book on a little journey.

She agreed (and why wouldn’t she?, she’s awesome, as I said).

So I jotted her name and my name in the front cover and I’m going to pass it along to another mom for a little pick-me-up.

And then she can pass it on. And so on.

Is that a little cheesy? Sure. But it makes me happy to think of the little book, traveling around, making parents smile and know they’re not alone.

So I guess, overall, the “week of the business trip” wasn’t so bad.

I lived.

The kids lived.

I got chocolates from California.

And a sweet little book is going to get passed around the metro. Who knows, it might end up in your hands one day.

My kids have an old-fashioned Jacob’s Ladder toy that they sometimes fight over play with:

However, the two-year-old calls the toy a “Jingleheimer’s Ladder.”

Cute, right?

I know.  Pretty darn cute.

So cute that, to be honest, I’ve made absolutely zero attempt to correct her when she says it.

I’ve started my holiday shopping.

I figure if I get going now, maybe I have a prayer of getting it done on time.  And more importantly, maybe I can actually enjoy the holiday season when it gets here, rather than running around like a chicken with no head.

So I made up a little “gift list spreadsheet” in Excel (because I am a geek), and have been steadily plugging away at it.

This week, I purchased these necklaces for my sister’s 2 school-aged daughters:

Each necklace has their first initial (lower case on the front, upper case on the back).  And they are from etsy, OF COURSE.

They came packaged in the cutest little boxes:

These necklaces bring my completed gift total to “4.”

So only, like, 35 gifts to go.