How To Be A Father

Wes is an amazing father and an amazing husband. Going through major life milestones with him has been amazing, mainly because we've always done things our way. I didn't know there were so many ways to parent and at times it seems a little silly that everything we do seems to fall into a certain school of thought. One of the most important decisions we made when Seeley was born was to co-parent. Our definition of co-parenting simply means equal involvement, equal dedication and equal responsibility. There is no "head of household" in our house. Wes has learned what her different cries mean and how to put her to bed and he changes diapers like a pro! Our decision to have me stay at home while Wes works may seem old fashioned, but Wes will never be one of those men who provide financially for his kids but barely knows them.
We have a relationship as a family unit, but Wes and Seeley have a relationship that is theirs alone. He does things differently than I do and sometimes I have to bite my tongue. But I know everything we're doing is creating a loving foundation for baby girl. She will always know that both of her parents are crazy about her.

My loves.

Happy family.

Seeley, hamming it up as usual!

Thanksgiving Weekend (So Far) In Pictures

Relaxing at John and Shanti's on Thanksgiving day

The food was so good we didn't stop to take many pictures!

Downtown Portland on Friday night.

Enjoying a downtown walk:)

We, along with all these people, decided to watch the lighting of the Christmas tree in Pioneer Square!

Ohhhhhhh. Ahhhhhhhh.

So pretty:)

And look who learned to take a bottle! Now we can go out for more than 45 minutes!

Thankful: A Little List

I'm thankful that this is where I'm from!

With Thanksgiving just around the corner I thought I'd make a quick list of all I'm thankful for:

carrying and delivering a beautiful, healthy baby

my new little family, my Dickinson family and my Joscelyn family

all the adventures I've had living in Missoula, Seattle and Portland

Christmas lights and Christmas music

Dickinson pickles and molasses cream cookies

books

30 Rock and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Wes-his humor, motivation and everything else

my silly cat Deedle

myself-my strength and ability to love so much

Netflix-especially on rainy days

red wine

I Love My Friends (Even Though We Haven't Talked In A While)

I'm always laughing with Ari; usually about something that doesn't make sense.

Ari: my goofy friend.

Lindsay: my adventure friend.

Wynne and Colleen: my forever friends.

I am lucky to have an amazing group of friends that I've been close with since high school (some since middle school!) They are all amazing, intelligent, independent women who are doing amazing things. I do not exaggerate when I say amazing. I am constantly impressed by my friends' abilities to travel without fear, build their own careers from the ground up and pursue their creative interests.

I love my friends and they love me, but we don't talk very often. I don't think this is too big of an issue since when we do talk we always pick up where we left off. But I miss my friends! Perhaps I'll start to make more of an effort. I'll pick up the phone, schedule visits, that sort of thing. People who know me know that I'm not the type who needs to be around people all the time; but when you have such strong connections with your friends it's important to reach out to maintain that bond.

So, anyone want to join me in calling an old friend?

Co-sleeping and Proud!

This makes me so angry!

snuggly girl. And yes, that is the crib in the background!

Happy co-sleeers.

I saw the above ad yesterday and boy did I get mad! Sleeping with your parents is like sleeping next to a knife? I don't think so. Cosleeping is common in other parts of the world, but here in the United States we seem to think babies will instantly get smothered due to their irresponsible, ignorant parents. I'm not an expert, but I can tell you that co-sleeping provides comfort and stability for babies (for my baby I'm sure of it) and that if you are safe about it (putting baby on her back, making sure their aren't loose covers and pillows around, etc.) it is a great time to bond as a family.

Wes and I have been co-sleeping with Seeley since she was born. It wasn't something we sat down and talked about; we naturally brought her into bed with us. I love waking up in the middle of the night and kissing her cheek, or patting her back to help her fall asleep. I can even nurse her without either of us having to move!

Ads like the one above make me mad because they take what has been done for generations and project it as something wrong and dangerous. I will never judge another person for how he/she chooses to parent (unless she is neglecting or hurting her children, obviously) but I hope people are smarter than to believe this nonsense!

Seeley's Song

I've been singing "Songbird" by Fleetwood Mac to Seeley all morning:) It's such a sweet song for a sweet girl.

Rainy Portland Weekend

Our weekend was pretty uneventful; but it's still nice to just lie low. We wanted to walk downtown, but since it was pouring rain we went to Trader Joe's instead! We were just in time to check our their yummy holiday treats! Have I mentioned that Christmas time is a horrible time to try to lose baby weight?

Welcome to winter in Portland!

Downtown Trader Joe's

Nice and warm inside

I wanted to. But I didn't. They'd be gone before we got home!

But we did get this. Mmmm