This Sweet Life: Traditions with Theo

I truly loved living in New York City. It was, of all the places that I’ve lived, the one that made me feel the most alive. No matter what kind of day I was having, how I was feeling or the troubles I was facing, walking out of my apartment and into the streets of Manhattan always made me feel better. The perspectives to consider when even walking past another human being in a completely different place than yourself is incredibly humbling. Facing the weather on any given day was always a little surprising for this California girl, be it blazing heat, pouring rain, sloppy slush or biting winds, but almost always I would be physically shocked out of complacency and eventually inspired with every fiber of my being.

Everyone hopefully has something that will inspire them in a similar way, for me it was the movement and diversity of Manhattan. I miss it, but I’ve tried to transfer that inspiration to my new home and new surroundings. That’s kind of the point of life, right? To adapt and find the good but remember and apply the lessons from challenges into new experiences? Anyway, my family and I are ridiculously happy back in California with our families and friends. It is better than any feeling I hoped for during our roughest moments in NYC.

The holidays in Manhattan were my favorite time of year. The first snow each winter felt the first one ever in eternity; I will always remember all five of our faces plastered against the windows, smearing condensation in perfect symmetry while watching flakes fall onto the window sills and busy streets. This year we’ve begun new traditions for the holidays, ones that I feel like I’ve waited on since our children were born.

I prepared Thanksgiving dinner in our new (spacious, to us!) kitchen and enjoyed it with our families, making every single dish from scratch and loving every minute of it. We took the kids up to a farm that my husband has been going to since he was a child to cut down our Christmas Tree. We picked the biggest one that would even sort of fit in our living room, simply because we could. The last four years, our tree lived under our bed until it’s annual December emergence.

Beau’s second birthday fell on the same day as our hometown parade. We literally celebrated for days, with all of our people with us.

jackets by appaman

It’s so fun to be able to include our newest family member in many of our new traditions, and I just feel so incredibly lucky to be the mama in this pack of sweet spirits.

Theo and Beau are developing the most amazing relationship. Their bond is getting stronger and more hilarious and amazing every day. Jack and Zoe are also having a blast with our newest addition, special and lovely in their own individual ways.

tee by appaman, pants by mini & maximus

The two babies of the family are still napping together, a routine that I don’t see halting any time soon (though I’ll surely weep when it does!).

hoodies: american apparel

tee by mini & maximus

tee by mini rodini, pants by goat-milk. both from Poppy’s Closet.

tee by appaman

mini rodini jumpsuit from Poppy’s Closet

Every day I am continuously astounded by the following that Theo and Beau are accumulating. I’m receiving the most thoughtful and heart felt messages, and the comments on the Instagram photos and Facebook posts are truly so lovely. Thank you all so much for sharing a bit of our heart with us.

We are continuously looking into ways to support the Santa Cruz SPCA, and I appreciate all of your ideas and suggestions! Believe me when I say this is definitely a priority for me and I am exploring our options.

This past year has been the most incredible journey, and I couldn’t possibly feel more blessed or grateful.