We had a simple, colorful birthday party for Jane (who looked very much like a gnome) at my parent's house. We made the balloon garland from DesignMom. Very easy, especially since Telfer did the entire thing. I did help blow up balloons but then he did the rest. We got spudnuts  - it's not really a trip to Richland unless you consume at least one spudnut. We had a breakfast party with eggs and bacon and donuts because Cate actually eats all of those things! Jane of course would love any meal but it was a beautiful day to have brunch outside on my parent's patio. Alyssa made the little "JJ" tags. Mom got Jane a cupcake from a local place. It was such a wonderful celebration and we loved having cousins apart of it.

Elizabeth took that picture of me & Jane. I am so glad there isn't a picture of us on her actual birth day. I don't think I even held her on the day she was born – sad! We thank God for our healthy girl every day.

Here are three pictures of Jane's birthday celebrations on Saturday. We had a WONDERFUL weekend at home with my parents and sisters and nieces (and Nate). Jane had a great birthday and was such a sweet girl even with a fever, a tooth coming in (#9 & #10) and a little cold.

Elizabeth took the first two pictures – notice the frosting up the nose in the second picture? How awesome is that?

It's been an interesting few weeks around our house. "Interesting" is a word I overuse that really says nothing well, interesting. So it's been a little rough but with many, many moments of grace. Almost three-olds are just really hard! Both Telfer and I feel like God has provided us with wisdom in parenting and disciplining our wonderful Cate. Every child is unique and we are slowly learning (with many mistakes along the way) how to best love and parent her – it's both humbling and exciting. Anyway, we are now in the thick of the Griffith birthday season with my birthday past and Jane's first birthday on Saturday and Cate's third birthday and Telfer's birthday coming up in October.

So my baby is almost one if you can believe that. Jane is on the small side still but she's already standing and getting into everything. Jane's two favorite things: food & Cate (in that order). Cate, bless her heart (NNU girls, you know what I am saying), is very picky, but Jane has yet to meet food that she does NOT like. The kid even ate the mushrooms that her Papa gave her the other day. I don't even like mushrooms! She is a joy to feed except when I don't get the food to her quickly enough. I love watching her discover new things to eat. She recently discovered raspberries and I worried about her digestive system after she ate about 15 of them in one sitting…

 

Cate acts and looks like a three-year-old these days. There is nothing of the two-year-old left. We moved her into a big girl bed a few months ago but late-night escapades in redecorating her bedroom left her very, very tired there for a bit. We intervened by putting her back into the crib for the time being. She is well-rested again and is subsequently back to her delightful self. She is almost completely potty-trained and delights in picking her clothes out every morning, getting dressed by herself and then picking Jane's clothes out. She is happiest eating popsicles and yogurt and gummy bears with a high quality pastry thrown in every once in awhile. She doesn't really see the need for anything else. Cate loves her binkies (I know, I know. The binky fairy is coming and Cate knows all about it – we just have to set a date) and her books and her sister (in that order).  

 

1. Enjoying summer. My parents brought over these tomatoes from the East side. SO good. Caprese Salad = Summer. I am, however, really, really ready for Fall. I am not a fan of 85 degrees (next week supposedly) in September. I am ready to wear cardigans and cute flats and my glasses again (without squinting).

2. Taking my sweet girls to the beach. Is there anything better than seeing your kids run on the beach and play in the sand for the first time? We had such a lovely, lovely time in Cannon Beach. 

3. I kind of had an amazing birthday this year. Seriously, 33 is kind of a ho-hum birthday but the way we celebrated I felt like I was 40 (?) or something. Maybe Telfer thinks I am 40? We went to Cannon Beach. We went to dinner with lovely family. I talked or got emails from all my favorite people. Telfer finished my office. I got stacks and stacks of books. This isn't even all of them! 

4. Elizabeth took me to see Brandi Carlile at the Seattle Zoo. Swoon. Lovely evening with my sister.

5. Settling into my office. More pictures later, I promise. It's such a small room that I can't photograph it very well but I will try harder. Everyone knows where to find me now! I could live in here.

6. Reorganizing my closet. I took a bunch of stuff to a consignment store & to Goodwill and put away all of my summer stuff (prematurely). You'll be happy to know everything is now organized by color. Also, if I purchase one more striped top or gray cardigan please put me out of my misery. I realized I am out of control in these two areas. 

That's about it really. Eleanor went back to New York which was sad but you know, she lives there so I should be okay. More later, maybe even today…

My August Bookshelf is made up of my favorite books I read in the hospital last summer. This is dramatic, but the sensory pleasure of reading is one of my best things in life; granted, I have a very good sensory memory. With almost every memorable book I can remember where I was when reading, what kind of chair I was sitting in, if I was drinking something, the company, the light, my mood. So these books have especially emotional memories. I was a bit of a mess a good chunk of the summer! And frankly, I am just relieved that I don't have to read on a bed with a plastic-covered mattress. Anything is better than that. Brings back summer camp memories combined with what I imagine prison to be like. With every move, crinkle, crinkle, crinkle. 

Moving on:
February | Lisa Moore | Beautiful, haunting novel of a woman who loses her husband in a shipwreck off the coast of Newfoundland. Short-listed for Booker Prize last year. Truthfully, I spent a lot of time contemplating the back of this woman's neck on the cover picture – I think I am supposed to find the back of her neck attractive but something is a little off. Is it her hair?

One Day | David Nicholls | I loved this. Perfect summer book. Smart, romantic, took me away. Coming soon as a movie!

Freedom | Jonathan Franzen | The last book I read before I had Jane. Big, messy American family story. The characters might as well be your neighbors. Read it. It will make you feel uncomfortable. 

The Imperfectionists | Tom Rachman | Read this in a day. An American newspaper in Rome is on its last legs. Each chapter is narrated by a different character. 

Paris to the Moon | Adam Gopnik | Essays from Gopnik's years as a family man living in Paris while working for The New Yorker. Pleasurable.

Zeitoun | Dave Eggers | If you haven't read this, seriously consider getting it from the library or even buying it. One man in the middle of Hurricane Katrina exposes deeply corrupt post-9/11 prejudices and politics. A fictional narrative, but a true story, told with simplicity and great power.

Dakota | Kathleen Norris | One of my touchstone spiritual writers. Words of deep comfort and wisdom. And I would add to this quote "hospital life": The deprivations of Plains life and monastic life tend to turn small gifts into treasures, and gratitude is one of the first flowers to spring forth when is rewarded and the desert blooms. 

Carried Away: Stories | Alice Munro | And with this book, I finished the great "Read Alice Munro Project of 2010." 

The Cookbook Collector | Allegra Goodman | Missy let me borrow her copy and then I had to buy my own because I loved this book so much. Loosely based on Sense & Sensibility, this novel follows two sisters in the Bay Area during 1990s techie boom. Lovely. Rare books are involved. 

Lonesome Dove | Larry McMurtry | Molly let me borrow her copy as Telfer didn't want to send me my huge hardcover copy that weighs like eight pounds. And I don't think he could find it among the boxes. THE MOST PERFECT BOOK TO READ IN THE HOSPITAL. Seriously. It's huge and suddenly you realize "I am reading an 800-page book about cowboys and I actually CARE." 

As for my 52 in 52, I am a little behind. Suddenly, all of this feels like homework which is a swift path to major procrastination. Except this doesn't MATTER. What am I going to do? Give myself an Incomplete? These are going to be short.

Week 26/52: Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea. Totally not my thing. A group of Mexican girls take a road trip to the US to find one girl's father and to bring back a few good men to their man-less village. I just don't respond to this type of writing – a jokey, satire-heavy type of narrative style. A Powell's Indiespensable selection.

Week 27/52: Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race & Inheritance by Barack Obama. A little too long but thoughtful and moving. And I must say: I enjoy having a President that is capable of deep reflection.

Week 28/52: The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. Also not my thing. A lot of the reviews liken the language to the rhythm of jazz.  The story is fine, evocative of a certain time and place, but the language is not for me. 

Week 29/52: The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai. Also evocative of a certain time and place, 1980s India moving towards an independent Nepal. A young Indian girl and her Nepalese tutor fall into romance with unfortunate consequences. Thought-provoking.

Week 30/52: The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright. Wonderful children's book. The Melendy Children & their ISAAC (Independent Saturday Afternoon Adventure Club). 

Still reading Week 31 & 32!

Week 33/52:  The Country of Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. Slim & lovely collection of loosely related happenings on the coast of Maine.