Well, I looked back on my “renewal” post from January and realize how truly accurate (& prophetic) it was! It seems like a ridiculous understatement when I say there has been a LOT going on since that time.

Here’s a very brief overview.
1.) Started and finished yet another semester of school (knocked out 14 credits of G.E.s + 4 “for my art edification” auditing life sculpture again)
2.) AuTeen started driving. (wait, that was last year) O_o
3.) Had a “couch surfer” (aka extended houseguest) for a couple of months. That was a nightmare and a crash-course in TOLERANCE and coping skills.
4.) Went to Biltmore with my beloved for our anniversary and came home with a very special piece of jewelry for a certain finger, on a certain hand!!! ;-D
5.) Discovered that we are expecting a baby!!! Big, happy SURPRISE. (btw, the “cheese puff is due mid-October)

***everything else is a bit of a blur***

6.) oh yeah. finally got rid of couch surfer.
7.) started search/process of buying our first home. (it has been quite a roller coaster in this economy, and to find something big enough in our budget)
8.) started taking 2 summer classes online
9.) traveled to oklahoma & texas w/parents & twill (Grandmom is turning 91 this year, so I wanted to visit before I get caught up in new baby lost-time-mode) – also had family reunion.
10.) getting back involved with the AP community.
11.) Twill is turning 4 next month! Time FLIES!
hew:

I realize it’s definitely valuable to catalog all this life change, so I’ll probably start posting more regularly. I just hope it’s not too much info, or boring. If so, I guess no one has to read it. lol

hope this finds you well!

… into the FUTURE!

Here I am, with a very chatty toddler and a teen son who is eligible for a Learner’s Permit (driving) in less than a month!

So here’s the scoop. Twilli’s vocabulary is ever increasing. And lemme tell you, she’s PROUD of it! She’s way too good at climbing and has gotten hooked on standing at the dining table on a step stool… for the WHOLE MEAL! I don’t even know if she’d sit in the high chair if we had it here. :-/

Au-teen has gotten MUCH MORE helpful with her. So, of course, she is even more crazy about him now! (She was patting him on the back yesterday. It was so cute!)

It’s so shocking that Au-teen is actually DISAPPOINTED that the enrollment process for his new high school is taking WAY longer than we expected. LOL – Who’d a’ thought?! (He wont be able to start until next Wednesday, at the earliest.) When we went to register last week, he was thrilled to see a nice cross-section of students. Looks like he’ll FINALLY fit right in. These kids are much cooler than I had expected! (While he was trying to inconspicuosly scope the scene, I was drooling over the architecture! LOL They just built a new building, and it’s STUNNING! – I’ll try to post pics soon.) And the office staff is AMAZING! It’s ABOUT TIME we found a public school worth something!

I’m still trying to dig things out of boxes and find reasonable homes for everything. The storage in the new apartment is far from optimal. But it’ll do.

We are REALLY thankful for babywearing! Especially now that it’s “single mom” mode again! I don know WHAT I’d do if I couldn’t perch Twilli on my back while we are out and about! We LOVE the special, pimped-out pod that I FINALLY made for my birthday/moving gift to myself! It has taken a lot of abuse and still looks BEAUTIFUL!

Speaking of pods: The TWILLI PIE PODEGI baby carriers are really starting to take off. I’m working with my first local client to create a (maybe 2) semi-custom pod. She fell in LOVE with the corduroy straps and ease of throwing a back-carry with a pod!

And I just created a KNOXVILLE BABYWEARING MEETUP. So hopefully we will get to meet even more cool, like-minded parents who wear their babies and/or toddlers!

We are still having a tough time adjusting to the winter climate. :-/ I used to ask my mom to read THE PENGUIN WHO HATED THE COLD all the time, when I was little! It’s such a cruel thing that I had to leave SUNNY FORT LAUDERDALE in the dead I winter!

But I have to say that I KNEW getting the iPhone was the right decision. It has kept me from falling into total social hibernation! It has also been EXTREMELY handy as a GPS! (I forgot how EASILY I get lost when I’m out of the city.) I plan to do a whole write-up on my experience with the iPhone 3G –good, bad, & ugly– soon.

I’m saddened that most of my old friends here in the VOLUNTEER STATE have been too caught up in their own routines to VOLUNTEER ANYTHING! (There are a couple I exceptions. But I’m no longer candy-coating things. So if you can’t take the heat, don’t play with a firefly!)

But anyway, we’re adjusting… slowly, but surely.

And if anyone here in Knoxville/Oak Ridge has any extra furniture they’d be kind enough to donate, LET ME KNOW! I will gladly VOLUNTEER to take it off your hands – think CLEAN SWEEP for the NEW YEAR! :good vibes:

**NOTE: Pictures & links are forthcoming. I need to find a better blogging iPhone app!**

Today our sweet Twilli Pie turns 1 year old!! It has been an amazing ride so far. She has grown and changed so much. Yet she is still the same unique person that she has been since she was born, this day, one year ago. A birthday wouldn’t be complete without remembering the BIRTH. Twilli’s birth was an amazing story! Read about the “3 Minute Baby” made her grand entry.

You can see more photos of Twilli on 21st Century Dad’s Flickr photostream.

I have a few things I’d like to share with Twilli.

Twilli, today we celebrate your birthday. You were already very present to us BEFORE you were born. But it was such a blessed day when we finally got to see you! Touch you. Hold you.

You have grown so much. We have grown so much! You have already taught us so much about life… about how to LIVE in the present. You are a divine teacher. You have gently taught us how to transcend fear. You have shown us that the birth process is a beautiful thing! You have helped us come back to things that we had somehow forgotten or brushed off… as humans. You have taught us the joy and warmth of attachment! You introduced us to babywearing! You have given us superpowers! (Yes, even when all you wanted to do was nurse, I was thrilled to be able to bond with you and care for your most basic need in such a natural, loving way!) You have helped us find new careers… new callings! You helped us extend our old skills, too! You have even helped your daddy embrace his Korean roots!

We know you will do amazing things. Heck, you already have done amazing things! Thank you for being awesome! Thank you for choosing us. Thank you for being YOU! We love you more than anything!

Happy Birthday Twilli!!!

Today Twilli is 9 MONTHS OLD! It has been lightning fast. But yet it feels like she was a newborn last week!

There used to be a national babywearing organization called NINO: Nine In Nine Out. It supported the theory that the first 9 months of a baby’s life is an extension of the womb.

I DEFINITELY agree with the theory. Wearing your baby helps them feel safe and secure.

If I had not been able to WEAR THE BABY, there is no way I would have been able to work from home, or get ANYTHING done, for that matter! And breastfeeding has been a Godsend!! Literally. Not only is is the perfect food, mama milk is SAFE anxiety and pain meds for Twilli.

Babies crave SOOOOO much attention, guidance, and closeness. I am so thankful for the bond between us that has been facilitated by babywearing!

I also am so grateful that I can channel my creative talent, by making slings, to help others bond with their baby in STYLE!

Today we rejoice the second birth of Twilli! She IS a new person. She is mobile now (army crawl). She feeds herself. She drinks from the sippy cup. She has 4 teeth. Her fine motor skills are increasing daily. She poops in the toilet. (Can you tell I’m proud?)

A friend of mine is taking us to the beach today to celebrate. I have my fabulous water sling, so I can safely take her in the ocean! And its UV protective! I will try to take some photos, and maybe some video to post later. [Note: We didn't end up getting to go to the beach. But we will go soon. I promise!]

Please leave a comment and tell us how babywearing has saved YOUR sanity/marriage/business .

Twilli’s second tooth (on the bottom) emerged today! The first one is even more visible! She is just too cute. She seems proud. My baby is growing up TOO FAST!

We will post a photo soon. (DH took some. But I haven’t rescued them from the camera yet.)

Again, I have to say that the Hyland’s Teething Tablets, nursing, and babywearing have saved our hides! I’ve been using the Ergo Baby Carrier like mad! And now Elliott uses it too, since Twilli essentially grew out of the Baby Bjorn that he used to like so much.

I am also in the process of trying to figure out how to make my own Scandi-inspired Mei Tai carrier. I will give updates on that project.

I am so thankful that I have my MacBook Pro, or I would have gotten NOTHING done, through these cluster-feeding sessions!

———–

Speaking of milestones, we took Twilli to the pediatrician for her belated 6 month well baby exam (and the icky shots :sniffle:). She is doing great! The weighs 17 pounds and is 27.5″ tall.

Dr. Reyes was very impressed that she is using the potty. We explained that we have reduced our diaper consumption by half. He said she is their first patient that has done infant potty training. We have gotten really good reactions from people about this whole thing. I guess