Posts Tagged With: YBW

grateful for a brain reset

Posted on August 5, 2022 by robynbird

This summer felt weird.
Almost like it didn’t really start until we came home from Thing 2’s at the end of June.
Then I blinked and July ended.
Now it’s all gearing up to get ready to go back to school.

I find myself searching for something just out of reach…
Perhaps I’ll focus on what was worth celebrating.
Perhaps a little brain reset?

I’m looking at all things for which I am grateful.
What better brain reset could there possibly be?

This is what I’m grateful for in May:
four negative COVID tests
YBW being only a little bit sick
Amber (she does my hair)
Jessica being here
Nicole and Jon being here
Baby K finally meeting (and loving) Nicole
two of my three alternative health care providers
Essie Willow in the Wind

What I’m grateful for in June:
LAST DAY OF SCHOOL (Dobby is a free elf)
celebrating at two graduation parties
Essie Aruba Blue
Baby K weekend
a day at Nats park with my darling nephew
an unexpected Holly day
finally being at home with Thing 2 and Boyfriend M
new ink
celebrating Josie at her surprise birthday party
one of my three alternative health care providers

What I’m grateful for in July:
celebrating twenty-five years of Thing 2
an extra long Baby K weekend
Democracy jeans
Six at the National and cocktails at Round Robin with Thing 1

dinner with Nora and Dale
Essie Spice it Up
a Bards Alley trip with Baby K in which she discovered kaleidoscopes
Thing 1 creating the perfect labels for my pantry containers with her Cricut
two of my three alternative health care providers

I’m chock full of gratitude this summer for:
being able to read so many books
fresh peaches
time on the roof terrace

a new grill
tequila
brewing some damn fine iced tea

Even though things are weighing heavily on my brain and heart, I’ve got so much to be grateful for!
I hope y’all’s summer has you chock full of gratitude too.

Categories: me | Tags: #porchlife, books, bookshops, bookstore, cricut, daughters, essie polish, granddaughter, grateful, grateful life, gratitude, labels, love, pantry organization, reading, writing, YBW | 4 Comments

April gratitude

Posted on May 2, 2022 by robynbird

As we move into May (my most favorite of all the months) I want to take a moment to look back on April and celebrate.

April was busy. Especially the week it shouldn’t have been.
But the good kind of busy.

I’m grateful for:

two of my three alternative healthcare providers
brunch and bellinis with Mike and Josie
Oscar Isaac (we’re watching Moon Knight or as I call it ‘the moon guy’)
Essie Geranium polish
Smithsonian museums
dinosaur bones
the Smartless podcast
my dad’s windchimes

my friendship with Thing 1
a clean home
Bards Alley Bookshop
YBW’s sense of humor
kick ass charcuterie boards
free oil changes
working just the right amount
talking to my brother on his birthday
skeeball and air hockey (I’m excellent at one mediocre at the other)
time with YBW’s brother and sister-in-law
sunny afternoons
roof terrace time (#porchlife much?)
books
Harp Lager
monogrammed rainboots
afternoons with friends
weekday bubbly with Holly
reading
a really great dermatologist
Natasha Lyonne (we watched the second season of Russian Doll)
snow in April (three times)
celebrating Baby K’s third birthday
being the hostess with the mostest (for YBW’s work fam)
calling it like I see it
Old Navy Super Cash (Baby K outgrew all her warm weather clothes)

Dear April,
Thanks!
(heart) Roby

Categories: me | Tags: #porchlife, books, daughters, essie polish, granddaughter, grateful, grateful life, gratitude, love, monogram, reading, Smithsonian, writing, YBW | 2 Comments

Baby K is three!

Posted on April 30, 2022 by robynbird

Tuesday last Baby K completed her third go around the sun!
The Saturday before was a gloriously warm and sunny day and we celebrated by playing in the yard.
Baby K’s friend Liam came to play.
(in reality Thing 1 and Liam’s mom are friends and the kids are still figuring it out but they’re adorable together)

Chalk and a small bubble blowing machine in the driveway.

A dinosaur dig site set up in the sensory table.

Climbing structures and a bounce house in the side yard.
(a hand-me-down from our friends Nora and Dale who’s kids have outgrown it)

Birthday hats and mini dino piñatas.
Two (almost) three year olds.
Three grandparents (Nana was here from Georgia) and four parents.
Pizza and pressies and cupcakes.
A whole lotta love.
It was a mighty fine shindig!

On her actual birthday we got together for pressies, cheeseburgers and ice cream.
It was chilly and rainy but that didn’t stop us from being outside.
Especially because Baby K discovered something extraordinary in the ornamental grass planted around the front porch.

YBW remarked no matter how excited she was about gifts, the time we spent on the porch was her favorite part of her birthday.

There were dozens and dozens of snails.
She was so excited she could hardly stand herself!
She was quite clear about how they we going to be her pets.

I love that this little girl loves dinosaurs and dollies and books.
I love that this little girl loves nature.
I love that this little girl provides us the opportunity to see the world through her eyes.

Our grandgirl is precious and beloved.
I’m grateful she was born into our family.
I’m grateful to celebrate her birthday with her.
I’m grateful to be her Birdie.

Categories: me | Tags: Baby K, Birdie and Baby K, birthday, celebrate, celebration, family, friends, gift of love, granddaughter, grandfathers and granddaughters, grandmothers and granddaughters, grandparent, gratitude, happy, happy birthday, joy, love, Papa and Baby K, toddler life, unconditional love, YBW | 2 Comments

bubbly and blocks and old photos – a visit from Thing 2

Posted on March 30, 2022 by robynbird

Thing 2 arrived on a morning flight Thursday last.
She let me know she landed safely and was waiting for her gate checked bag.
Then I got this message:

This is a perfect example of how I communicate with my daughters. I knew what and why she was actually asking. I answered the underlying question. It’s a silly thing, but I love that about my relationship with my grown girls.

After we brunched at First Watch we hung out at here at home drinking bubbly.

Friday Thing 1 and Baby K came over to play.
YBW came home from work just after they arrived.
Of course he and Baby K brought out the blocks.
Aunt Gaga built too!

Saturday we went out to Naked Mountain to pick up YBW’s wine and hang out in the barrel room.
Thing 1, Husband N, and Baby K met us there.
Baby K shared her snack with Aunt Gaga before falling asleep in my lap.

Thing 2 and I went through two boxes of photos from the great and arduous process. She asked questions, I told stories. We saw her grandparents and mine when they were children. We saw our own faces reflected in these photos. We sent quick snaps to Thing 1 asking if she saw Baby K’s face in certain photos of their Grandmommy.
Thing 2 told her own stories, shared her memories, and expressed her genuine joy and gratitude hold these photos in her hands. She created a pile of photos we wrapped up carefully, tucked into her journal, and packed in her suitcase.

We binge watched Our Flag Means Death holding hands and snuggling up on the sofa. Thing 2 was all about that “boy love”. I was all about the beautiful humanity of it.

We also went to see The Haunting of Night Vale. This was the reason for her visit. Tickets she received as a gift Christmas of 2019 for a show April 2020. (we all know how that turned out)
But, two years later there we were in the theater holding hands and being as SQUEE as only we can.

She flew home Monday afternoon.
I miss her.
But I’m not sad. There’s no room in my heart for sadness right now.
My heart is overflowing with love.
Overflowing with gratitude.
I’m grateful to have this time with my girls together. Grateful for this time with YBW and Thing 2. Grateful for time with my second daughter.
I’m grateful we went to see Night Vale together, something she’s absolutely adored for ten solid years. Something she introduced to me and I also now love. Aren’t we lucky we got to experience this together?
I’m grateful we went through two boxes of photos. I got to see my parents through my daughter’s eyes. She never her her great grandfather, but she knows she’s named for him. She knows he was my first true love. She sees his image and feels the strength of that connection.
I’m grateful for our silliness. Our seriousness.
I’m grateful to have a strong and healthy relationship with my adult daughters.
I love that girl more than the moon and the stars and I know how fortunate I am.

Categories: love, me, on being a mom | Tags: Baby K, being together, bubbly, family, family dynamics, family history, girls, grateful, grateful life, gratitude, joy, love, mothers and daughters, Naked Mountain Winery, photographic evidence, photos, Thing 1, Thing 2, YBW | 2 Comments

grateful for the sprinkled in good

Posted on March 23, 2022 by robynbird

This month got me like:

However…
I took some time to explore the good sprinkled within the madness and found myself feeling grateful.
So, I made a list.
I mean, of course I made a list…
Imma call it ‘Gratitude: get you some’ (or something like that)

With all sincerity I’m grateful for:

celebrating Thing 1’s birthday
freak snow storm
Baby K weekends (even when she doesn’t sleep and we switch to EDT)
being a helper (and earning money doing it)
the honor of knowing some seriously wonderful humans
peanut butter toast
black elderberry – echinacea – C vitamins – acetaminophen – ibuprofen – sudafed
vodka lemonade
warmer days
working well with YBW
Essie Bustling Bazaar polish
discovering The Bitter Southerner
being handy enough to patch and paint closet in preparation of new system installation (also grateful for upcoming closet porn but that’ll be it’s own post)
the group chat with Thing 1 and Thing 2
kick ass laundry machines
cleaning roof terrace and setting up rugs and furniture in anticipation of all the #porchlife
work schedule flexibility
air travel (Thing 2 arrives Thursday)
YBW’s nurturing and caregiving
driveway chalk playtime with Baby K
the ability to read
H2BAR box
orange juice (with calcium & vitamin D – no pulp)
AT&T offering FREE Samsung S22 devices (new phone who dis?)
Ryan Reynolds (we watched both Free Guy and The Adam Project this month)
Shuttle Art G-Line pens
my monogram hoodie

Categories: me | Tags: #porchlife, books, daughters, essie polish, granddaughter, grateful, grateful life, gratitude, love, monogram, writing, YBW | 7 Comments

continuing to make this house our home

Posted on December 29, 2021 by robynbird

The day after Christmas, YBW and I went out in search of a coffee table.
I ordered one in August and it’s been delayed four times now, the latest delay puts delivery the end of January. And while I’m realistic about the current state of the world, especially when it comes to the supply chain, I was tired of waiting.
And we were kind of questioning our choice anyway…

We planned an entire day for exploration, but we found success at our fourth store.
We chose a two piece set of nesting tables. YBW came up with the idea of adding a second of the lower tables to the original pair.

We initially ordered an enormous square coffee table. It was YBW’s vision from the moment we knew we’d live here.
But with these three smaller tables, we have more freedom of use, which to be perfectly honest, makes more sense for the way we live. We can move them about our living room as needed.
And I’m all about the fact they’re so mid-century!

Of course, we have to wait six more weeks, but it’s a guaranteed six weeks, not this maybe in five months situation in which we’ve found ourselves.

We finally found the perfect rugs for our living and bedroom, they shipped early and arrived the week before Christmas.
Thing 1, Husband N, and even Baby K helped us lay the big one in the living room. The one for our bedroom is rolled up waiting to be laid. Our bed is so damn heavy, it’s going to take proper planning to make getting it set work.

We’re prioritizing our home needs as we move into the new year.
A closet system is at the top of our list.
After that comes the fridge I wanted instead of the one I had to settle for, two new sofas, wallpaper, and having the TV mounted on the wall.
There are other things too, smaller things, I just can’t remember what they are at the moment.

We haven’t planned an order for any of these things other than the closet system.
We’re not in a hurry.
We’ve lived in this house a few days less than five months and continue to make it our home each day we’re here.
We have time.

Categories: around the house | Tags: around the house, creating a home, curating your environment, for the home, furniture, home, home decor, house, making a home, mid century modern, YBW | 2 Comments

Sunday morning at the home site 7.25.21

Posted on July 26, 2021 by robynbird

This is it, y’all.
The last Sunday morning at the home site.
Next Sunday morning we’ll already be living here!

Oh my goodness, look at that handsome devil walking up the driveway!

Here’s some panoramic shots of the main level.

From the corner of the living room.

From the corner of the dining room.

I spy a girl dancing in the garage.

Thing 1, Husband N, Baby K, and Nana (Husband N’s mom here for a visit), YBW’s brother and his wife met us at the house this morning, then our nephew met us and we all went to brunch!
We had a wonderful day!

I don’t know what we’re going to do with our Sunday mornings from now on…but it most likely won’t be as cool as how we’ve spent our Sunday mornings over the past year.
Having this house built was a momentous journey and I’m overflowing with love, joy, and gratitude we took it.
Wednesday we begin the journey of officially creating our home in this house, and I’m overflowing with enthusiasm, anticipation, and excitement!

Categories: around the house | Tags: construction site, creating a home, it's all happening, love my life, new build, new construction, new home, YBW | 2 Comments

Sunday morning at the home site 7.18.21

Posted on July 19, 2021 by robynbird

This was the first week we were in the house and it looked like it could actually become a home.

Majority of the construction dust and dirt cleaned up or out.
Kitchen looks like a place for us to cook and eat and live and work and entertain.

Surfaces dotted with blue and green painters tape. The green is from the inspector Wednesday last week. Loads of finishing things still to do, but we finally feel like this is the place we’re going to live in eleven short days!

My car already feels at home.

Categories: around the house | Tags: construction site, creating a home, it's all happening, love my life, new build, new construction, new home, YBW | 4 Comments

Sunday morning at the home site 7.11.21

Posted on July 12, 2021 by robynbird

Can y’all see that!?!
That window way up high?
The one that actually belongs in that space?
That’s right! The bronze window finally arrived and was installed one day last week. (the white window they painted is leaning against the wall in our garage)

Banisters are stained and they are absolutely gorgeous!

My list of what needs to be finished/corrected is small at this point. One recessed light is missing and the cabinet hardware is wrong in two bathrooms.
But I’m about to write an email to Tommy the building manager before I close my computer to tackle my moving list.

We got an email last week with a finish date of Wednesday July 14.
Then our walk through is Wednesday July 21.
And our final walk through and settlement July 28.

Categories: around the house | Tags: construction site, creating a home, it's all happening, love my life, new build, new construction, new home, YBW | 2 Comments

fridge thoughts

Posted on July 9, 2021 by robynbird

When we were at Thing 1’s on Sunday we discovered something new on her refrigerator.

That’s right, y’all. Magnetic poetry tiles. And we spent an unusually long amount of time creating (what we considered) perfect phrases.
(author’s note: “death fart!” began as “cruel death fart!” but I stole cruel to use elsewhere
also: I did not write the phrase “death fart”)

I’m not sure why this phrase has a question mark at the end. I think YBW wrote this one, I’ll ask him.
Though I must say, “obscure wonder culture” is an excellent phrase.

I began pairing words I thought sounded interesting together.

Thing 1 got in on this and we began to seek each other’s approval before we committed to the phrase. YBW came into the kitchen to join in the creativity.

I created “anxious fluff” and Thing 1 said, “Hashtag Thing 2”.
I shared this pic in our group chat and Thing 2 wrote: I now identify as “anxious fluff”.
We laughed and told her that’s what her sister said.
And while I freaking LOVE “vibrant deception” I think my absolute favorite is “luscious indifference”.

I need all possible magnet word collections to have in the new house.
Maybe if I am or have a “righteous spirit” Santa will put a fuck-ton of them in my stocking this Christmas…?