New Life

I have been sitting on an announcement for several weeks now.  Ish and I are expecting to welcome a new baby into our family in January.  Today, 6 months to the date from when  we found out that Oliver had died, we were able to hear this sweet new baby's heartbeat for the first time.  What a beautiful sound to this anxious momma's ears!  

Down on the farm...

A couple of weekends ago, we took a family trip to the Inn at East Hill Farm in Troy, NH.  I have been visiting East Hill Farm since I was a toddler, and the joy I get from taking a trip there has never faded.  There is something refreshing about vacationing on a working farm that I don't find  in other places I have visited.  As a parent, I definitely take a different sort of pleasure in the all-inclusive part of East Hill Farm.  Who can say no to 3 delicious meals per day?


The kids had a blast at the farm.  Lily had a lot of affection for the chickens.  She would run up to them, stick her hands through the chicken wire, and shout "Peck!" as she waited for them to peck at her fingers.  She also took a lot of delight in the roosters crowing.  Everytime a rooster would crow she would respond with, "He's 'reaming!  Happened?" (translation: He's screaming! What happened?) Little Ish is more timid with the animals than his sister, but he loved going to see the pigs.  By our final day, he was much more comfortable with the animals and spent a lot of time patting a goat who had escaped from its enclosure.

Happy Birthday Little Ish!

Little Ish turned 3 today.  It is hard for me to believe that he has gone from being this tiny and dependent...

...to the sweet and spirited young boy he is today.

Happy birthday Little Ish!

Poetry from an Almost Three Yearold

 The following is a short conversation I had with Little Ish after his nap today.

Little Ish: The rain is tears.
Me:  The rain is tears?
Little Ish: Yes, cold tears.

He didn't offer any further explanation.