Reflections

And the Winner is...

We barely finished our quest to watch all five of the Best Picture nominees. This morning at 10 Mr. and I caught the morning showing of No Country for Old Men- a little intense for 10 AM. (I know, who knew they had morning movie screenings?) We both would love for Juno to win but our actual prediction is that There Will be Blood will win. Just a few hours of beautiful dresses, lame acceptance speeches, and boring awards (in the midst of the cool ones) before we will know the winner.

5 Minutes till the show begins!

Friday at 10 am

Yup, I am still in my pajamas. I am working on my post adrenaline shut down from my week of prepping for and taking yet another ARE exam. This is just the beginning of a very intense schedule that, out of necessity, I have set up for myself. The next test is March 4, and the rest follow about every other week till the end of April. The hope is to be a Registered Architect before P arrives. Judging from the test yesterday...I am not sure that this is likely, but I can at least say that my best effort will be put forth. Even if I can knock off a few of the remaining 5 with a pass, that would be a step in the right direction. Then I might look into becoming an Exam writer because apparently the questions don't really have to do anything with the subject matter. I think I can do that! The test was frustrating. The bright side is that I have the day off- well, I have every day off for a while. Meaning I don't have to drive to Reston and sit at a computer and think about other people's projects, now I just get to stay home and chill in my pjs and study. Not sure which is better, but I am working on believing the latter is how I want to spend my time.

Have a great Friday!

Time Ahead

Sometimes we seem to be creatures of the future. Yesterday was both "F-5" for the Mrs. and "P-15" for both of us (5 days until freedom from work and 15 weeks until P is born). But I am reminded from time to time that the future is now. That is, when then things we look forward to actually happen, we'll be looking forward to the next thing...like P sleeping through the night! So somehow our "presents" are always about the future.

It is tempting to draw from this a lesson about living in the moment. But Paul tells us about three things that "remain" or endure: faith, hope, and love. Hope is all about the future and faith is substantially about the future. Only love is now.

In The Middle
by Barbara Crooker

of a life that's as complicated as everyone else's,
struggling for balance, juggling time.
The mantle clock that was my grandfather's
has stopped at 9:20; we haven't had time
to get it repaired. The brass pendulum is still,
the chimes don't ring. One day I look out the window,
green summer, the next, the leaves have already fallen,
and a grey sky lowers the horizon. Our children almost grown,
again how to love, between morning's quick coffee
and evening's slow return. Steam from a pot of soup rises,
mixing with the yeasty smell of baking bread. Our bodies
twine, and the big black dog pushes his great head between;
his tail, a metronome, 3/4 time. We'll never get there,
Time is always ahead of us, running down the beach, urging
us on faster, faster, but sometimes we take off our watches,
sometimes we lie in the hammock, caught between the mesh
of rope and the net of stars, suspended, tangled up
in love, running out of time.

Fat Tuesday

MMMMMMM...just the name seems like it should be a tasty day. Tonight Mr. D, Mr. and I made banana pancakes and bacon. Mr. D and I filled ours with chocolate chips as well! And we topped them off with peanut butter, honey, syrup, and raspberry preserves. I am certainly feeling it! But some of that may just be P...I can never tell these days.

Here's to forty days without chocolate chip cookies (for me and P) and alcohol for the Mister. What will Mr. D give up?? Maybe girls...he's thinking about going to the school dance, but girls don't seem like much of a draw at this point...or maybe he's just not giving us the 411.

place for space

We have a lot to do before P arrives, but one thing I spend lots of my time dreaming about is making a space for P. A space for P to play, grow, read, sleep, and a space for the Mister and I to be with P; to nurture, encourage, love, feed, change diapers...and all that fun stuff.

P is getting one of the best rooms in the house- already a great shade of yellow for the unknown gender...and for warmth. It is a room that is nestled in the center of the house with a window that lets in the best of the southern sun. But it does need some work- some babifying. I have been looking at some of my favorite blogs for inspiration and I came accross this beautiful nursery.

Of course this space is clearly for a little lady, I like the simplicity and calm feeling it exudes in the pictures. I like that it isn't over the top 'baby', but seems like a space for mom and dad to be with the babe. I love all the natural light. And I like that it isn't full of all those things one 'has' to have for this little being that somehow takes over our world.

We have some work to do. But I suppose P won't mind too much how the room turns out...as long as there is a place to sleep and some clean diapers.