A Change Gonna Come

I saw a dear friend today, and she said something that really struck me. We were talking about life and its stages, and she said (to paraphrase), "Not every friendship is meant for a lifetime." It doesn't mean that the friendship didn't serve its purpose, but sometimes people and places aren't meant for forever.

This just isn't something I've been able to incorporate without serious angst...yet.

Whenever I start to feel a transition creeping in, it paralyzes me. I tumble into this over-thinking mess, running through every possible scenario and its resulting negative effects. The troubleshooter in me tries to figure out a way to fix the problem -- when there might not be a problem at all. Maybe it's just time to move on to the next thing.

I worry about the loneliness that I will feel. I worry about what people might think or say. I worry it will be the wrong decision. But honestly, it rarely is.

I have to learn to trust. I must trust that when my heart feels the transition on the horizon, maybe it's the Lord's way of preparing me for what new adventures He has for me and my family.

A blog...

A blog can many things to many people. At times, an online stream of consciousness, others a photographic journey through the life and times. This little blog has been more the latter than the former, but I'm thinking times are a changin'.

I've not kept up with the blog because I haven't really had the time to put together a beautiful sequence of photos complete with cute descriptions. Maybe it's because our life hasn't felt like beautiful photos and cute descriptions, although I dare say that, since Eleanor is pretty cute.

So, for now, I've decided to use this blog as defined by many is a stream of thoughts...and maybe throw in a cute picture or two.

Park Playday

Big Little, Little Big

Let's just say that Emma and Eleanor are a bit different...at least in size.

We went to Emma's three year check up and Eleanor's two month.

Here are the stats:

Emma (Little Big)
Age: 3
Weight: 26 pounds, 14 ounces (15 percentile)
Height: 33 inches (not quite on the chart)

Eleanor (Big Little)
Age: 2 months
Weight: 13 pounds, 4 ounces (95 percentile)
Height: 23 inches (95 percentile)

They are both in great health, and all is well!

In the Kitchen

We (the girls) have been at my parent's house for the week. It gives us a chance to visit with everyone and gives dear ol' Daddy Dugald a brief respite, too.

One of the benefits of having extra hands to help with the kiddos is time for me to cook in the kitchen. Their have been a few recipes (well, maybe a hundred) that I have wanted to try, but life at home isn't really set up for that right now.

So...

I got to try out this incredible coffecake and these great potatoes. They both turned out really well -- I highly recommend them. They are courtesy of The Pioneer Woman, as are the images.

Not approved by the American Heart Association :)

A Labor of Love: Basement Renovation Part One

Our basement remodel has been quite a labor of love. We are very happy with the way things are turning out.

Here is the first of a few posts on our project. A before and after of the basement bathroom:

Last Day of School

Still catching up.

Here are some pictures from Emma's last day of school for her 2-year class.

My baby has been replaced with a little girl!

nice to see you again

it's hard to get it all done.

marriage, kids (yes, plural), work, laundry, meals, friends, blog, sleep (what's that?) and the fifteen million other tasks we have.

that said, i want to revive our little blog.

so, here goes.

welcome to the world, eleanor mclean hall.

born may 5, 2010 at 4:36pm, weighing 8 pounds and 1 ounce, and measuring 20 1/2 inches.

love,
dugald . kristen . and big sister emma.

p.s. thanks to angie davis for the great photos.