I’m not going to explain what this adorable monster is all about because I want you to click through to the post I featured on KidCrave this past Monday.

Read the post, check out Ryan’s story, then sample and buy the abum!

Happy Weekend! Hope you get to #dofunstuff

“If you’re anything like me, you’ll read a lot of blogs religiously. You’ll pour over the beautiful people and their stunning weddings on Style Me Pretty, their effortlessly cool homes on Design Sponge and their awesomely unique design and style ideas on Etsy. We love to read these sites for ‘inspiration’ but secretly, don’t they make us feel a little bit like a failure? Do you ever read blogs and think “I’m not beautiful enough”? Do you ever wish you had more to spend on your wedding? Do you ever wish you lived in one of those achingly cool, funky and stylish apartments?

Yeah, me too.”

I write for and contribute to six blogs, none of which are on par with Design Sponge, Style Me Pretty, Refinery29, Apartment Therapy, etc. Incredible Things was recently mentioned in the New York Times, which made me do flips in my living room, but it was – just a mention. I know I am good at what I do, but I always, always feel like I could be doing better. I know I should spend more time coming up with great ideas to move these blogs along, rather than just pumping out the posts I’m assigned to create each day. I read hundreds of blogs daily and while some leave me infinitely inspired, I can relate to Kat because some make me feel like a bit of a failure.

I swear I’m not totally whining about this, my purpose here is to show how Kat’s honesty, as posted on her incredibly successful blog, was one of those reads that left me inspired…inspired to feel perfectly pleased with my work.

If you read a lot of blogs, do you feel the same way? Or is there another medium that has the pesky ability to make you feel a little crappy about what you do?

Quote Bag Studio

Quote Bag Studio on Etsy is all about small collections that focus on few-of-a-kind designs made from rich textiles and leather. Created in Bangkok, Thailand their look is refreshing in a sea of heavily adorned designer bags…continue reading

Today is my Mother’s 50th Birthday. We’re throwing her a surprise party! This has long been my favorite photo of her. It’s weird to think that in this picture, she’s a good 6 or 7 years younger than I am today.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Just because my baby died doesn’t mean everything else around me will (including Jim when he drives in the rain. I seriously kept him from going out one day because it was pouring and I had a bad feeling). Lucy is here, she’s adorable and sweet, and she’s mine. Just as JJ is my handsome little boy, she’s my pretty little girl. I love her and I know that she isn’t going to leave us for a very long time.

—–

Yesterday Jim asked me if I realized how different our lives would if I was still pregnant. Well, duh. He went on to explain that if I we hadn’t lost Lemon, he wouldn’t be starting grad school and we wouldn’t have Lucy. I asked him if he’d trade those things to have Lemon back.

“Of course I would, but these are two great things we have and one day soon, when we have our baby, we won’t be singing the same tune.”

I know that he’s right. Just hurry up, one day soon.

Reading all of the stories shared so far, and coming across the blogs of women who have experienced losses of all shapes and sizes has been wonderful.

I am so grateful to Kimberly for putting it all together.

Thanks Kimberly. You rock.

The moment I laid eyes on JJ, I cried. I was immediately attached to him. I fell in love instantly. When I met Lucy, this didn’t happen. My heart didn’t melt, the tears of joy didn’t flow. I told myself it was because of the different circumstances. I met her and her sister at her foster mother’s home. We had to decide which of them we would take home and we were sort of being interviewed. Days passed…well at this point 9 days have passed and I just don’t feel completely in love or totally connected.

She jumped off the couch last week (so brave!) and cried a little bit. Her eyes were closing and I was so, so scared. I thought she could have gotten a concussion. I put her tiny face up to the air vents and I kept her awake by talking to her. It was just before we were headed to bed, so after I put her in her crate, I went and woke her up three times over the course of the next hour. I Googled and Googled information about puppy head injuries. The thought of losing her shook me up. I thought to myself, this is love. I finally fell in love with Lucy.

Though still, nothing,

A few days ago, she jumped out of my lap and hit the floor again (I swear I’m a good puppy mom, she’s just a hell of a lot braver than JJ ever was). Once again, I freaked out. She was fine.

Nothing.

More than a few times, I’ve caught myself thinking about her dying. The groomer told me her ears were dirty and that she’s scratching at them too much. I made a vet appointment. Google “can dogs die from an ear infection.”

It just hit me.

I’m not connecting with her. I frequently have thoughts about her dying. Lemon. Duh, Lemon.

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I don’t have children yet. I have dogs. So for my first Writers Workshop c/o Mama Kat, (via ComaGirl) I am responding to the prompt:

Dear Mommy and/or Daddy…(write a letter to yourself from one of your children)

The following is a letter written to me by new puppy, Lucy.

—-

Dear Mommy,

I understand we are just getting to know one another, but I would like to point out a few things. Please read carefully:

I appreciate all of your housebreaking efforts and peeing outdoors is cool, but I much prefer to poop on your floors. You could stop wasting your time saying “potty outside” because all I hear is “blah, blah, blah. hard wood floors.”

It seems that you and other dog like to go for long walks. That’s nice, but I think you can continue to carry me like the princess that I am. It’s really the least you can do considering how many “Awwws” I am contributing to your days.

Speaking of other dog…biting his tail is a whole lot of fun. Would it kill you to slather it in peanut butter? It would make the whole experience that much more enjoyable.

Regarding the tall bald man: is he deaf? Because you seem to be the only one that hears my cries in the morning. You should really have his hearing checked, at least for the sake of those bags under your eyes.

Whew, I am glad I got all of that out. Now that you’re better informed as to how I prefer things to go down, the rest of this puppy period should go well.

Love,

Lucy (aka Lazy Lu)

P.S. My purple polka dot leash and collar are awesome. You have great style and I want to thank you in advance for never putting me in a tutu or a t-shirt featuring a (not so) clever saying that prompts people to laugh at me.

Turns out, we didn’t have to compete for our newest pup. The other woman had already adopted a dog (translation: she wanted no part of that fiasco). After much debate and going back and forth and calling her several different names, we settled on Lucy. I get the “Lu” I always wanted and Jim doesn’t have to feel lame saying LuLu. Plus, JJ & LuLu is a little cheesy.

Lucy is a little sweetheart, who just so happens to love biting on her big brother’s tail. Each day JJ inches closer and closer to her when they’re lounging around. If you ask him outright, he’ll tell you he’s not really into her. Though when nobody is looking and she’s been in her crate for a while, I’ll see him sniffing around trying to wake her up.

Being a family of four/mother of two isn’t double the work…it definitely feels like more than double. Keeping them both happy, housebreaking her and adding in another personality to our daily routine has been exhausting. But, so far, she’s totally worth it.

More on Lucy later.