2005: Year in Review
Third annual edition! (2003, 2004)
In almost every way, 2005 was the best year yet:
- Son: Owen James was born the morning of January 5, after just five hours in the hospital and two very pleasant rounds of epidural.He came out with 10 fingers and 10 toes and and a wrinkly, pissed-off expression. He was perfect. Life changed forever the moment I held him, and the awe, wonder, and love I felt then just grew deeper and more powerful as the days flew by.
- Spouse: I also got to meet my husband again, in a sense: in his new role as Dad. From Owen’s birth onward, Iain’s been a stellar father, calm and relaxed. He’s also been a strong, unwavering source of support for me, always in my corner, always there to talk sense into me when I ask for it, always ready to hold my hand.As life in general changes after a baby is born, so did our marriage. We don’t spend as much time one-on-one as we did before, but our team efforts are twice as strong. Our relationship has gotten better, more relaxed, more confident, more stable with each passing month. I feel very lucky.
- Family: Similarly, my relationship with my parents and my brothers and sisters [Five, all younger, all born to same parents, all very cool people in their own right] has, I feel, changed definitively this year. While in the past the tug of family ties felt binding and constrictive, this year, with a child, I welcome the threads that keep us connected, and wish they didn’t have to be quite so long — I really enjoy my family. I wish I lived closer. And I wish Owen lived closer.
- Work and Web: I went back to work part-time when my maternity leave was up, joining a legion of parents who [rightfully] complain about the price of daycare and the struggle to find balance between work and home. I had a rough start emotionally, but I’m blessed to have a job I love at a company that is very family-friendly. I’m proud of the work I’ve done so far, enough so that I’m submitting samples of it to several contests “in the field.”The internet, too, has been very good to me. I’ve made a bunch of really good mama friends who live inside the computer. Though they hail from Boston, Texas, Canada, and other parts far, far away, I feel like they’re right here with me sometimes, doing Vodka shooters and discussing Steve Buscemi as our babies flutter around underfoot. I love you guys. [and thank God for closed forums, eh?]I also love that I have been able to turn my love of the Internet into work. All those years of fucking around with my weblog is starting to pay off in freelance, which I enjoy immensely. Probably too much. But looking ahead to the future of both newspapers and the Web, I think a double skillset such as the one I have will come in very, very handy, for me and for my employer.
As Sinatra said, It was a very good year. I’m optimistic for Ought Six, and as such, I have a few goals:
- Quit smoking. Again.
- Save money to be put into improvements on the house
- Escort Owen to his second birthday without calamity
- Try not to get pregnant with No. 2 yet
- Worry less, smile more, tell world to fuck off if I need to
Pretty simple. Let’s see if I met my goals for this year:
- Save another $10,000, or at least enough to make some larger improvements to the house.
- Successfully birth this bambino and get him to his first birthday without major calamity.
- Find a balance between work and home, husband and baby, immediate and extended families, self and others.
- Kick Iain’s ass at Monopoly. Just once.
No, yes, yes, and GODDAMMIT, No I did NOT. Ah, well, there’s always next year.
No F-I? Eff You.
It’s very late. I’m trying to figure out how to get an f-i ligature in Photoshop but it’s so not happening.
Many freelance projects going on, which is fun, but I’ve got, like, designer’s block, or something. And those damned gingerbread/voodoo dolls at the top of this page are driving me batty.
But the fact that I’m blogging from bed is, indeed, some consolation.
In touch with my inner teenager
Despite having fifty billion things to do right now I’m wasting time on Myspace.com. Yes, the Friendster of 2005! You never know what casual acquaintance from high school you might run into! Very important. Must be listed.
Am starting to be pissed at all the people who AREN’T listed. I think it should be mandatory, you know? If you aren’t Googleable you should at least be searchable on Myspace.
I’m nosy that way.
My profile. Don’t laugh.
Safe return
Back in B-more, all unpacked, et cetera, boring, yadda, all that stuff.
We had a wonderful, supertastic, delishtabulous Christmas. I didn’t want it to end.
But that’s what Christmases do, they end, and then you come back and unpack your presents and go back to work and it’s OK, it’s the natural order of Christmases.
I still have a buttload of photos I’ll probably upload, and I have to figure out this whole digital video thing, as well as get the laptop customized, optimized, primatized, and set up to my liking.
God. Am such a geek.
In the meantime, ponder this beautiful little face. He’s asking Santa for a few more teeth, I think. Or maybe some cheese. Or a cell phone.
Look at that face! Don’t you just want to give him whatever his wee heart desires? I blame it on those eyes — crystal blue persuasion, man.
Best. Christmas. Ever.
180 degrees from Worst. Christmas. Ever.
Video [!] to come.
opening
White Christmas
OMFG!
Merry Christmas, every one
This week was just bonkers, man. Double deadlines at work, because of the holiday. Owen’s daycare Holiday Pageant. Last minute shopping. More last minute shopping because apparently you need to have courtesy gifts for people like your daycare staff. Staff parties in Ellicott City [which means crossing the beltway at rush hour! Fun for the whole family! Shoot me now!]. Packing. Doublechecking the packing. Reassuring the baby that Mommy and Daddy may be rushing around like headless chickens but it’s okay. Turnpike. Midnight. Grandparents. Settling the baby. Waking with the baby. More turnpike. Cooking, eating, crazy present-wrapping of the oodles of shit I had shipped to my mom’s house, addressed to the dog for secrecy.
But now, with Owen bathed and put to bed and a cold one with my name on it collecting condensation on the table, I get to really relax, put my feet up, let my hair down, and kick some major familial ass at Scrabble.
I fucking love the holidays, man.
And tomorrow! Bright and early, at the buttcrack of dawn — Owen’s First Christmas. Seriously, the excitement is palpable. In fact, here, look, I’m palpating the excitement.
But seriously, part of me is ready to cry at the solemnity, the gravity, the importance of my firstborn child’s first Christmas. I’m so stoked, so thrilled, so — happy.
I feel like such a grownup, y’know?
But anyway. Enough about me. I’d like to give a shoutout to my man the Baby Jesus, who brought us all together this evening, and to each one of you. I’m lifting this bottle of Miller Lite in celebration. I hope you all have as good a Christmas as I’m about to have.
Homeblogging!
Quick guest post from my darling sister Katie:
***** Ahh it’s Katie! Holy crap! Okay so MB and Iain got here at like, one thirty I think. Owen is crazy cute but was making strange at first. He of course wanted to visit me first, I’m good with babies. There’s a cornicopia of prescription drugs here to stop any jet lag, though nobody flew because we spent all our money on presents. Everyone wants Emily and Kelsey to come here RIGHT NOW becuase then we can do the tradition thing and open family gifts. Our presents this year are limited to one person because we did Secret Santa, which means we can spend up to fifty dollars on one gift, which I did on Emilys because I’m her’s. By the time she reads this it’ll be TOO LATE so it totally doesn’t matter if I write it.
“OH-EM-GEE IT’S MADDONNA!”
“Oh-em-gee Madonna!”
“Wait, what’s OMG Madonna?”
“MADDONNA is a acronym for Modern and Durable Diapers On North Nebraska Areas. Tada! Mark and Dave Often Nestle Near Aligators! My Aunt’s Doctor Doesn’t Own Nebisko NorthFace (C) Aardvarks.”
“MADONNA DOESN’T HAVE TWO Ds!”
“It’s two Ns, DUH”
YES
Hither, thither and yon
God. I think I’m a glutton for punishment. We’re going to try the eight-hours-one-way drive to Nana and Grandpa’s house starting tomorrow night after work.
Ach. Somebody liquor up my ‘nog, stat.
The end result will have been worth it, though.
recent flickr
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my sewing tutorials
See my tutorials featured on SMS' Handmade Holidays!
