we are here.

I have to keep telling myself "We live here now!" when I look around at the very familiar Florida landscape and start to feel like I'm on one of our many vacations back home. We are here, we are home. It feels good. It's just been a little over a week here, but there has been so much happening already. I was feeling overwhelmed at the task of documenting it all until I saw Christine Castro's new gratitude list "The Good, The Glad & The Lovely." A list! Aha! I am a love love LOVER of lists, lists of all kinds, so I'm just going to make one here. And it is surely one of gratitude. 

This past week and a half in Florida, we've...

...eased down South with a nearly effortless flight. Solo mama with the two kids: surprisingly not a disaster.

...felt the early Spring breeze from an old river dock with dear friends.

...celebrated the 2nd birthday of my nephew with lots of hugs & cupcakes.

...made a temporary furnished condo into a home for now (while we look for a real one).

...worn sandals and shorts. In February. Enough said.

...explored different neighborhoods in our new neck o' the woods to see where we'd like to plant ourselves.

...found the necessary grocery stores & such (such=candy and frozen yogurt stores).

...enjoyed local avocado & strawberries. And local beer too. Yum.

...looked at a few nice houses, trying to not fall too hard in love with any of them just yet despite backyard fruit trees.

...learned we can live with much less. It's amazing how few toys we have in this place (one laundry basketful) and how our days are pretty much the same as when we had a room full.

...had our first visitors and some much needed cousin time for the kiddos.

...met up with our new local home pre-schoolers group for some manatee watching!

...been so grateful to be here. I think this is going to be good. 

Bleary-eyed bliss.

He nursed from 4:30 to 5:30, then wiggled around and settled back into sleep horizontally, my soft deflated belly (his old home) as a pillow. I think it's a tooth coming in, but I can't be sure.

The middle of the night wakings are frustrating, but part of it all, and part that I know will be over before I blink my eyes. The Girl is asleep in her own bed and has been all night...and without a diaper or accident...it all happens eventually. The peace about this second time around is comforting. I'm trying to savor these moments, the up too early ones, the goodness of that hot coffee (saying "when it hits your lips!" makes me feel like Frank the Tank in Old School. So good!) first thing, the slow shuffle down the stairs, and then slowly back up when The Girl decides to wake and that she needs cuddles and a carry down too...

A few friends and online acquaintances have posted or asked about sleep lately, and yes sleep is so important---but the lack of it, from babies, is pure biology. And the lack of it, from parents, is well, just part of it. Part of it that clearly gets better otherwise none of our families would get bigger than one.

8 facts about infant sleep from Dr. Sears:

http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/sleep-problems/8-infant-sleep-facts-every-parent-should-know

I just want to share that I'm with y'all. I'm tired, but oh so happy to cuddle and feed this dear boy all night right now, because he's too busy learning about the world lately to focus on boobs. Imagine. And I may need to remind myself of this glowy early morning feeling in another few months, but for now it is bliss.

This.