Big Changes

Summer is in full-swing here. Ruby is out of school (a first-grader now!). We’ve had lots of sunny warm days and we’re all gearing up for big things to come this fall.

First day of kindergarten

Last day of K – I think she’s grown up a bit, yes?

This kid will be going to preschool.

(hopefully she won’t break too many hearts)

AND, I will be going back to teaching! A half-time kindergarten teaching position opened up in our school district, so I applied, went through an intense interview process including teaching a lesson to kindergarteners I’d never met before while the hiring committee of seven people observed (yikes!), and got the job! I’m so excited and proud.

It’s going to be a biiiig adjustment for all of us this fall and I’m a little nervous about that (moms, any advice on balancing working outside the home, taking care of your own little ones, the house, and yourself???) but in the meantime, I’m going to soak up as much of this as possible:

Happy Summer!

Ruby is six!

I can hardly believe that I have been Mama for six years. I am insanely proud of this girl.

Ruby’s birthday fell on a school day, but John took the afternoon off to help us celebrate after she got home. We baked cupcakes and opened gifts – including the card that Gigi wrote by herself and the gift she gave Ruby – noodles. “Because I know that Ruby really loves noodles.” Ruby was gracious as she opened each gift, oohing and aahing over everything; appreciating the thought, time, and effort that went into choosing and making each special present for her.

The next day, we hosted a small birthday party for her – a pink and purple ice cream cone party at her request.

She painted ice cream cones for the invitations.

We hung giant ice cream cones on our front porch to greet Ruby’s friends.

The kids dressed up their ice cream cones with seriously delicious toppings that Ruby picked out at Trader Joe’s (easiest party idea ever).

Then outside to burn off some sugar and enjoy the perfect weather! The girls took turns racing each other with “waffle balls” balanced on top of ice cream cones. Ruby is concentrating very hard.

This kid is growing up way too fast for me. Ruby still loves to snuggle up and read with me, but she is somehow old enough to have two wiggly teeth too. She has taught me so much, these past six years. I’ve learned more about love and letting go than I imagined possible. She has always had a fiercely independent spirit and challenged me to honor that. Ruby observes and memorizes details, loves to play with Ginger, and speed read her chapter books. She is thoughtful and wise and my hope is that she holds on to her strong sense of self while remaining compassionate towards others.

This is one special six-year-old.

 

La Petite Vie’s new website

John has been hard at work creating a lovely little website for me.

It’s a hub for everything La Petite Vie. You can find links to my shop, blog, twitter, facebook, and read detailed information about the shop. I’d love to hear what you think of it!

I am also excited to announce that I have added soy candles to the shop as well! The popular and beautiful Fresh scent is available now. I will be adding more scents in the near future. (Any requests?) My friend, Lynn, made these adorable letterpress tags for the candles. Aren’t they sweet?

I made this addictive little bee balm in the Fresh scent for Satsuma Press’ shop. You’ll just love it, I promise!

photo of little bee balm by Satsuma Press

Three!

My sweet little Ginger turned three!

We had a quiet celebration with the four of us at home. (We had big plans, but alas, Ruby was very sick and on breathing treatments every four hours. So sad! Plans are postponed.)

Ginger’s only requests were for treats. She named everything she could think of in the weeks leading up to her big day. In the end, I decided for her and made a chocolate cake with chocolate filling and cream cheese frosting.

She was thrilled.

Gigi is a silly little girl, always making funny faces and jokes. She is super smart and already starting to read! She is the absolute sweetest kid. She’s the first one to cheer someone up, crawl into your lap for a snuggle, and give sloppy kisses. I couldn’t love her more.

Etsy Shop Love: Sara Carr

Sara Carr knits adorable plush friends and accessories for kids. I mean, how cute would my girls be in this scarf on the first day of school?

Lambswool Red Pencil Scarf

These charming little bunnies are just the sweetest! They’re stuffed with lavender, so they are a calming addition to a bedtime routine. The details on these made-to-order friends like the signature tag are so thoughtful.

Boris and Betty

The fox and squirrel are just ridiculously cute as well.

Large Monty the Fox

Stanley the Squirrel

I love all these little guys! Go support Sara Carr and her cute plush world across the pond.

All photos by Sara Carr. Click on photos to visit shop.

Mini-retreat

This past weekend, two of my closest friends that I’ve known since high school came to visit. We all turn 35 this year, so we wanted to get together. We live all over the country. The last time we were together was over 3 years ago. It’s been way too long.

Taken by Lourdes Irizarry slacklinedesign.com

I picked them up in Portland where we ate, shopped, recharged, and shopped some more. That pretty much sums up our weekend, actually. We ate our way through town, taking breaks to play legos and read books with the girls, and then back out for more food.

But there was so much more than that. These girls have been in my life longer than my husband. They know me deep down. There is no drama, no expectations, we just are. Together. These girls can give me one quick little look and it changes the way I think about things for days. This is so rare for me right now. I took a break from being a mother for the weekend. I was as off-duty as you can be when you’re still at home.

After driving back up to Portland to drop off the girls at the airport (and eat, and shop), I realized that I felt like a person again. Not just a mother. I needed this retreat time so desperately.

Of course, I love being a mother and would be miserable if I wasn’t, but it is crazy intense and never-ending. To have a break from it was so much fun! I left the weekend with memories, a stronger sense of myself, energy for my family, and some really cute clothes.

I’m hoping to plan some more get-away time soon. You should too!

Etsy Shop Love: Julia Paul Pottery

Lately I’ve been attracted to the thick warm texture of pottery. Each piece is unique and not quite perfect and the process to make it is fascinating. I love the modern take on this old art form. Julia Paul has perfected this. Living in a small house requires that everything have a purpose, but that can also means most of our things are on display as well. I want our world to be functional and beautiful. I would love to use and look at Julia Paul’s pottery in my little world.

I’m in love with the colors and form of this creamer.

And wouldn’t my morning coffee and afternoon tea be perfect in these cups?

I love the raw clay grounding these bowls.

These vases would be beautiful holding potted plants.

There is color in the shop too, but I am drawn to all white these days. I like the calmness, purity, brightness of it.

All photos by Julia Paul. Click for links.

content

This weekend I was lucky enough to get phone calls from three dear friends. We caught up with each other and one friend said, “You’re really living the life right now, Megan.” It’s true and I know it. I am trying to be as present as I can, because this is really it. My family is healthy. John’s dental surgeries (yes, plural) over the last year are done! We’ve begun birthday celebrating season.

The girls are almost 3 and 6. (When Ginger was born and things were hard, I was told, “just wait ’till they’re 3 and 6. It’s magical then.” It’s true. They’re fairly independent, play together, are innocent, and are so deliciously adorable.)

Spring is on it’s way. I’m working on big plans for my shop. I get to run past mountains, llamas, sheep, and a covered bridge. I miss my far-away family and friends (and the Florida sunshine), but I am trying hard to look around me, take a breath, and appreciate.

New soap scents

I was wonderfully overwhelmed with holiday shoppers this season. I sold out of almost all my soap and have been busily restocking and impatiently waiting for soap to cure.

Clove+nutmeg is a complex spicy soap. I love it. It’s warming and cozy with a hint of sexy thrown in. Its contains ground oatmeal to exfoliate and soften your skin as you suds up.

After making a log of lavender soap for a local lavender farm this summer, I had multiple requests to make a lavender bar for my shop. It’s extra beautiful with the home grown lavender buds on top of this soap. I think it would make a lovely gift.

I have several other scents in stock and am always available for a custom log of soap. (I’ve sold a bunch of these lately!) As always, these soaps are organic and vegan and when you buy a bar, I give a bar to my local shelter. Due to supply costs, I will be raising the price of a bar of soap on Mar. 1 to $6. Order in the next few days to save with the current price and stock up on soap for your family and gifts for upcoming occasions.

A Valentine’s Day full of love

I love celebrations with little kids around. Every thing is such a big! deal! We hosted a little Valentine making party for some of Ruby’s friends the weekend before the big day. There was paint and glitter all over our table, surrounded by very focused little girls.

Ruby made lovebugs.

We made salt dough hearts that some of the kids painted and glittered for their Valentines. We made a bunch of these years ago that we hang as a garland each February.

We had a little heart tic-tac-toe game out for girls to play when they needed a break.

And some strawberry ice cream sandwiches to munch on.

I made Gigi stuffed kitty.

John got a sleeve to the sweater I’m knitting him and special pencils. He gave me two boxes of cookies from a favorite far-away bakery – so thoughtful and delicious! I knit Ruby a scarf to keep her warm and “snuggled with my love” as she said (heart melts).

But the best part, by far, were the sweet little notes we all got from each other.