babies

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    Babies Don’t Keep

    ByHeather Bailey

    My giveaway plans were derailed today by a very important little person and his very own 2nd birthday. Little Evan
    is two years old today! When I giddily plucked him from his crib this
    morning, we snuggled up on Charlotte's bed while I sang him a Happy
    Birthday song. At the end of every phrase, Evan chimed in with "cake!" 

    Happy Birthday to you…cake!…Happy Birthday to you…cake!… Happy Birthday dear Evan…cake!…Happy Birthday to you…cake!

    He knows what's important.

    EvanCake_2yearsold_470bT

    It took us till eveningtime to finally make good on the promise of
    cake with a small family birthday party. Boisterous cousins followed
    Evan about, patting his head and picking him up in turn. By the time
    cake was served, Evan couldn't care less about the stir of children
    throughout our home. Cake, at last—what a birthday is all about.

    I wanted to write Evan a little love note today to enumerate his
    sweet particularities at this age, count the many ways in which I love
    him. But, Sundays are my busiest days—even without a birthday to
    celebrate. As such, the love note didn't happen. And today's giveaway
    post didn't happen either. When it came down to it, I had to choose
    between photographing and writing a giveaway post and giving my little
    son his birthday dues—time, attention and cake. I chose the baby.

    I could prep and post today's giveaway
    now, but it's getting too late in the night to do our awesome Day 25
    prize justice. Instead, I'm going to go for a double header tomorrow and
    put up two separate giveaways in two separate posts. Hang tight and
    watch for those tomorrow. I'll make sure the deadlines are generous so
    you won't miss your chance.

    Happy, Happy Birthday to my darling boy. From our early morning
    cake-song to my late-night blog update, today, I'm reminded of this
    lovely poem by Ruth Hulbert Hamilton—though it could use a new stanza about the internet, the computer and the smart phone:

    Song for a Fifth Child

    Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
    Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
    Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
    Sew on a button and make up a bed.
    Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
    She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

    Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
    (Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
    Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
    (Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
    The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
    And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
    But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
    Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
    (Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

    The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
    For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
    So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
    I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

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    The Champions, My Friends

    ByHeather Bailey

    OpenDelight_HeatherBailey_Paper

    How about I announce some winners? Has it been long enough? Har, har.

    As always, you’ve made picking giveaway winners extremely difficult for me. That’s a good thing. Thanks for the great comments! It took a bit of effort not to fret over this decision disproportionately. I love you all. (I might need a Decision Therapist.)

    Jen from Backwoods Wife, give me a holler, along with Naomi from Nome’s Brag-a-Long. Come on down! You can each have your pick of travel mugs and Pocket Posh books. Thanks for making my birthday bright.

    Jen: “Our 4-year-old daughter asked her Grandma to go to the park with her, to which Grandma replied, "Not right now, Grandma's pooped." Wide-eyed, Riley replied incredulously, "In your underwear?!"”

    Naomi: You’ll have to navigate to Naomi’s hilarious story. I’ve chickened out of posting it on the main page. It involves a diaper change. (comments, p.6—at the bottom)

    And because I’m a total softee—and I’m moved that hundreds of you took the time to add your thoughts to the birthday soup—I’m also handing out a gaggle of gift certificates to the following (I wish I could send every one of you a gift):

    Becky W. – for expanding my vocabulary with the term, “The Skoots.” (p.1)
    Megan – for her awesome banana slug / turtle joke (p.3)
    Mary Beth – for having TWO 14-year-old boys at home & enduring it (p.3)
    Liz Mouse – for weathering a baby’s birth the same week as selling one home and buying another (p.3)
    Brittanie – for this fantastic quote: “Cleaning and sorting while you and kids are growing is like shoveling snow while it’s still snowing.” (p.5)
    Julie – for a kind, gushing compliment that made me smile (p.6)
    Carrie McW. – for not knowing she was pregnant till 24 weeks into it (p.4)
    Marcy Mahle – for her ‘winning store display’—go read this one! (p.5)
    Seanna Lee – for helping her mom deliver a baby on the couch when she was only three (p.4)
    GG – by mistaking my remark about shaving my legs to read,“It is far easier to HAVE swollen ankles”—and her disappointment at not learning more (p.5)
    Julie B. – for needing cheering up after being called an “Old Fogie Mama” for having a baby at 38. (p.5)
    Chanel – for needing cheering up after shoulder surgery and enduring the hairiness that accompanies having your shaving arm in a sling for many weeks (p.5)

    And to the following new mamas, all with babies that were due about the same time as my little guy. I am your Mid-Night Commiserator; we are sisters is sleep deprivation.

    Kim (ChefMessy)
    Ashley (love that green bunk bed, btw!)
    Celeste
    Bianca G.
    Elizabeth Jeanne
    Shannon
    Sarah Cap

    Thanks, everyone, for the birthday wishes, stories, laughs, etc. (Have a look—great stories!) As I have said before, I wish we all lived in one, weird, modern town where we could get together for sewing bees on Sundays and dance parties every Friday night. Thank you for your friendship.

    Winners, I will email each of you with instructions. If you don’t hear from me in the next two days or so, assume my email got lost in the VooDoo Net and send me an email (link in sidebar).

    * The collage shown above was made by the lovely Lynette Carroll using HB papers & such.