Life Update(s)
A lot going on at the moment
Takeaways from Our Literary-Themed Vacation
Raleigh, Outer Banks, New Bern, Wilmington, and Southport
Summer of Nostalgia
On Taylor Swift, Fall Out Boy, and Nicholas Sparks
13 Thoughts I Have After the Release of Taylor Swift’s Midnights Album
I’m proud to admit I’m a Swiftie. Taylor’s first album was released when I was a senior in high school, and her songs have been like a soundtrack for my coming-of-age and now adult years. Many of her songs have inspired my own writing, and I’m in awe of her creative mind. So when she…
Some Thoughts on Careers, and My Next Move
I met a 23-year-old college graduate this week who is anxious about how to get started in her career. My 19-year-old sister-in-law feels similar anxiety in what field to go into, what job to go for now. I want to be able to help these girls, but at 32, I feel the same anxiety about…
When Your Baby Spoils Your Planned Vacation Day…
When I first went back to work, my wise friend Ari gave me some advice: Once a month, take a vacation day for yourself. Take Leo to daycare, and give yourself a day off. Thankfully, I’ve had the luxury of vacation days to take, and for three months in a row, I planned to do just…
5-Year Plans
Five years ago, Kyle and I stood in the kitchen of our beloved Des Moines house chatting after dinner, still coming off the high of our incredible wedding weekend, and doing what we like to call “schemin’ and dreamin’.” His brother Nick had told us on our wedding night that he and his wife were…
Stuck on Leo
Eat, sleep, play goes the life of the baby. No matter the day or week, baby life goes in this blissful cycle. Their goals come naturally – keep practicing tummy time until I can lift my head, keep practicing my twisting until I can roll over, keep practicing my balance until I can sit up unassisted….
Connecting with Karma: Therapy as a New Mom
I had my third meeting with Karma Blackburn this week, the therapist that Kyle says has to be a stripper’s name. The truth is, she’s a sweet 60-some-year-old woman who gets me way more than the sassy, 40-some-year-old therapist I was referred to through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) the last go around. Karma verified for…
Sweet Leo is 6 Months Old!
Sweet Leo is already 6 months old! I remember when he was a little sweet potato bundled in my arms for long naps while I juggled a cup of coffee and a book on my kindle during maternity leave, thinking my boy will one day be 6 months?! That sounds so old! He’ll be so…