on januaries

every single blog i follow reads like a broken record this month. it's january... we know, people. i know. you know.

our overindulged post holiday bodies and faces know. our new year, new you (?) anxieties know. our 'oh, shit, it's almost february and i still haven't straightened out X, Y, and Z's'  know.

here's what. it is january 25th, and i am a big believer in the chinese new year, because by the time everyone gets around to loathing their ill behaviors enough, or really needing to shake their funks, it is in fact always february.

january rolls around with it's false promises of brighter tomorrows and fresh starts, only to sting your cheeks with it's icy winds and take your feet right out from under you on the slippery sidewalks. january is a humbling month. when you're stuck inside for weeks on end with no one around to distract you from yourself- your truest, this is what it's come to self- you have to square off with the truth.

so february 10th, i'll be ready for you. and so help me God, i will learn to listen better this year.

youest of yous

and so it is that i am the luckiest girl in the world.
this is what my days look like.

'puffs!' and short-lived christmas trees

new trucks and baby massage

'ma, can you read this please?' brunches

inner peas at trader joes

sunnies with oma and pa

and a happy-to-be-home face.

also, this is too perfect to not share, written by lindsey, mother of will, and one of my very best friends.

'since you've been here, will, life is just more. colors are brighter and sounds are louder. the stakes are higher and fears are scarier, but our laughter is lighter and our smiles are wider. quiet is quieter, mornings are earlier, and days are busier. my heart is deeper, and softer, and more real. with you, life is bigger, and better, and somehow closer to what is true and right.

like i used to tell you when you were a little, tiny baby, you're the youest of yous, and that's a wonderful thing. thank you for being you. you are, really and truly, the best. '

and, so.