We're BAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!

Well I'm not sure if y'all kept up with the family blog over on tumblr (www.thematnix.tumblr.com)....we put up all our world travel adventures over there. And now we are situated back in Carpinteria, CA, and I have some thoughts about mothering, so I'm back over to this blog. Ahh, too much to keep up with.

I think being a mother can be really lonely. Don't get me wrong--it's also awesome and amazing and so much fun. The joy of the giggles you can elicit from a little girl who is just darling....the love that wells up so many times throughout the day. Being a mom is incredibly rewarding but (at least I find) also lonely.

Enough about that.

I shall pick a brighter topic now. Being in Malaysia was AWESOME. It was really really good for Nathanael and me to get away from the stresses of regular American grownup life and just be somewhere else, somewhere more laid back....and especially since it's where we spent our childhood! So much fun....

It was also really good for me as a mom...as I already said, the culture is much more laid back over there, and I think that was HUGELY helpful for me. Because I have a tendency to be uptight, wanting to make everything perfect for Layla (naptime, playtime, food, etc)...which is okay except often it comes at the expense of other things (like flexibility, or hanging out with people, or being polite). So it was really good for me to see that I don't have to make everything perfect for Layla, that she can adapt and handle a lot of stuff. And that it's not a bad thing--it's just all about priorities.

Anyways...I'm not sure if that makes sense. BUT, there you have it. :-)

AND, there are a LOT of people having kids this year! I feel like I know SO many people that are pregnant right now...

Life

Well, Layla is full blown walking these days. She walks on the pavement, on the sidewalk, on the street, on the grass, on the sand...it's extraordinary. What happened to my baby?

She is also entering the terrible twos it appears...although she is not even one. This is bad news.

Tomorrow we are celebrating her birth day. It's hard to believe she's turning ONE. But exciting at the same time.

I am so over nursing. But I really want to press through at least until we arrive in Malaysia. I think having that continuity and comfort will be helpful for her during our travels and adjustment to a new country. If, then, she seems ready, I am more than ready to wean her. I am over being bit by sharp little teeth. If I was a lion, I would roar.

On a non-mommy note, I am participating in NaNoWriMo! For those who don't know (I didn't know until 3 days ago), November is National Novel Writing Month! There's a nation wide challenge for amateurs (like myself) or professionals to write a (minimum) 50,000 word novel in the 30 days of November. Since I've always wanted to write, this seemed like a fantastic impetus to do so.

Another note: we are going to Malaysia in less than 2 weeks! If you want to follow our trip there, I think we will be updating a family tumblr blog more regularly than this one: http://thematnix.tumblr.com

I love it: Than totally just sang Layla to sleep --with the star wars theme song.

HAH!

I am so blessed by this little girl's life.

Bath Time

At first I was skeptical of the whole bath routine thing, but I'm glad we stuck with it because now Layla LOVES her baths. When she hears the water start pouring out of the faucet, she races (on all fours) into the bathroom and clambers up the bathtub to watch. It's definitely something she looks forward to. And she knows it means bedtime soon. I think the predictability is good for her. Helps her little brain. :-)

Layla has gotten into resting her head on us when she's tired or just wants a few-second-rest before returning to her crazy explore everything routine. It's so endearing.

We're doing better on going-to-bed routines....she's much less screamy about it. Still not her fave but she is a trooper. What a great little girl.

Morning

Occasionally one of those days dawns that just begs to be put to good use, to go down in your memories, to live an adventure. Perhaps you saw the first glimmers of the sun, or maybe, like me, you awoke to see sunshine streaming through the blinds, twisting, bending, contorting itself around those very shades meant to block it out. But it would not be blocked. I like these mornings. A deep sigh, contented, delighted and refreshed that I actually was not awakenedbefore the sun came up. Amazed that I slept through the night, uninterrupted, and can enjoy the beauty of bright California sun with a yet quiet house. Still, peaceful, calm.

Soon the day begins, with its various needs and demands and responsibilities--but there was that initial calm. That beautiful calm.

And this particular day is just too stunning, too summery, too beautiful to be spent indoors, to fall into oblivion.

"The morning is when you charge into the future."

It did not take much conferring for Nathanael and me to decide that today ought not be spent indoors or at home or working or doing the same old. And so we spontaneously decided to claim our adventure ticket before it left home without us.

We walked the two blocks from our house to the train platform and boarded the train to Santa Barbara, whereabouts we took a stroll along the beach, walked down the pier, ate Clam Chowder and fish & chips (respectively), let Layla crawl along the waterfront, and generally had a most delightful time with each other.

And here I shall stop my rambling and let the photographs speak for themselves.