This Present Joy

Even when I was a wee little tike, I enjoyed reading. I loved anything with books, really; I used to haul all my books out of my closet and set them up on a dividing wall we had at home in the hallway. I would play bookstore with my pretend customers and ring up their purchases--talking to them about which titles they had picked out and suggesting others they may enjoy. And, of course, I've always loved a good book--the one that you just can't put down--the one that, when you finish it, you're sad that it's over. So, it's probably no surprise that I like to buy and borrow books. A Barnes and Noble giftcard is almost always on my wish list, and I'm frequently visiting Amazon.com to see how much I can "save" on their books. Of course, I'm always a fan of borrowing books from friends, too. I just finished a book a few days ago, and now I'm in that "what book should I read next" stage? I have to say, I just did a quick inventory of the b...

I'm always amazed when I read articles or hear a tidbit of information about babies and toddlers and how they are learning so much at this point in their lives (i.e. for my child, the age of two). I remember when Carly was first able to follow an instruction of mine, "Please go get your shoes from your room." Not knowing if she understood me or not, I saw her disappear from the kitchen and run down the hallway. Curious to see what she would bring back, if anything, I waited for only a few seconds. Then, I heard the scampering of feet coming back down the hallway, rounding the corner, and lo and behold!--she held her little shoes in her hands. Wow! And, that was MONTHS ago. So, I know I shouldn't be surprised at how much she can comprehend and how much she understands. Fast forward to the present day: we were driving to Target earlier this week (is it just me, or is Target sometimes a "get-away" when you just need to get out of the house?) to buy some...

It's been one of those weeks where Carly and I have been home the ENTIRE week. That's not entirely true--we've left a total of two times together--once to Target and once to Whole Foods. Other than that, the house has been our backdrop. It started out as a week to get a lot of YL work done from home--but then the one day we had things planned, Carly was sick. So, home again, it was. I am certainly a homebody, but this is getting ridiculous. With a two-year-old, there are only so many ways to play dishes, play with building blocks, play with Little People zoo animals. . .I cannot remember how many times I've asked Carly, "Do you want to go get a book?" Usually, I'm asking her this when I'm trying to work at the computer and distract her from getting into my work supplies and "important" papers. I have to say, though--in five years, I'm not going to look back at this week and think "Wow--we stayed home for five days straight--what a bu...