It is Valentine's week. I like this week because deep down when I admit it to myself, I'm quite a romantic, in the classical sense. And I really enjoy mail and handmade correspondence - two cornerstones of this holiday.
Quote from @AtticusPoetry
Names
Naming a child is an incredibly delicate and difficult decision - often an exercise in compromise between the parents, as well as a lesson in family or cultural differences. When we went to name our two sons, we considered name popularity (or lack there-of), potential diminutives or nicknames (hopefully very few), people with the same name (famous or familiar), heritage, and the meaning of the name itself.
For our first son we decided on Søren Andrew. While we didn't know any Sørens, it is a popular name in several different cultures, mainly Danish and German, with slightly different spellings and pronunciations. Søren is related to the English Severus, and means serious or stern. We liked the gravity of it, as well as its international recognition, and it sounds familiar though uncommon. His middle name, Andrew, is after his Aunt Andrea, meaning "man". It also allows him different name options later in life, if Søren does not suit him.
For our second son, we had him named before we knew he existed. Isaac means laughter or joy (from the Biblical story where Sarah laughed at God when he said she was pregnant at age 90. She gave birth to Isaac, who became a patriarch and prophet in Christianity, Judaism and Islam.) We liked that the meaning of Isaac was a foil to Søren. And there are many famous, talented and dedicated Isaacs, any of whom would be great role models for our son. His middle name, Alfred, was the name of my paternal great-grandfather who immigrated here from Germany as a teenager. (He would have been 120 years old this week.) He was a driving force in my father's life, and is a truly worthy namesake.
A name is the first gift you bestow upon a child, something that will be with them the rest of their lives - we hope we have chosen wisely.
Vonnegut on parenting.
Okay, so I don't think Vonnegut was talking about parenting specifically (though he raised seven children) but to me it wholly encompasses the attitude one should take. With a three year old and a new infant under my roof, if one doesn't stop to appreciate the good times, there is very little break in the energy-drain that is rearing children. But those happy moments, however fleeting, are the ones to acknowledge - if not to others, at least to yourself.
Reverend Doctor
Apologies for being a few days late with this post. Monday was the national holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Many people revere this civil rights activist for all of his laudable achievements. But what they may not realize is how progressive and radical Dr. King really was. At the time of his death, he was classified as an enemy of the state - part of one of the "greatest threats to the stability of the American government since the Civil War", according to President Hoover.
King was a radical - pushing a strong agenda on a country that needed but was resistant to change. He was not overwhelming liked or respected in his lifetime; that was to come with his death and success of the Civil Rights Movement. In the words of Dylan Thomas, King did not feel we should go gentle into that good night, but instead rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Small pleasures
Finishing a cup of warm tea ~ when your toddler gives you a cookie from the package before selecting his own ~ a surprise spare minute to read a magazine ~ unexpected messages from friends ~ letters in the mail ~ a back rub from a loved one before bed ~ ~ ~
Life is made of small pleasures.
May you find them plentiful.
Welcome, little one.
My biggest DIY project of 2014 unveiled on 01.02.15 at 7:56pm.
Isaac Alfred weighed in at 8 lbs 11 oz and is 20" long. Super fast and furious entrance, he's doing well.
And we are all already completely smitten with him.
Happy New Year!
Great and inspiring words from Neil Gaiman. I hope my year could only be as good.
NYE in a box!
The gift I had the most fun creating and giving this year was to my sister-in-law and her boyfriend. I made them a New Year's Eve Party in a Box to ring in the new year from the comfort of their living room.
Each package was labeled with "what to do", as well as a page for them to reminisce on 2014 and set a goal or two for 2015.
I included snacks (chocolate covered fortune cookies!), two small bottles of champagne to taste-test, champagne flutes, decorations (also to become cat toys), and a Blu-ray disc for her new player.
Hope they have as much fun unwrapping as I did putting it together!
Wrapping.
I love wrapping presents almost as much as I like making them. This year I tried to keep it simple, but also incorporated a lot of pictures as gift tags (printed from Social Print Studio).
The other main focus this year was on deliberately lettered holiday card envelopes. I had a great time embellishing these tiny packages for people to open from their mailbox.
Happy Holidays!
Hope everyone has a memorable holiday season. It does have the possibility to be one of the most wonderful times of the year!
This Side of Paradise
Hard to believe he wrote it when he was just 23, one of my favorite quotes from the book, and from literature in general.
Black Lives Matter.
The Grand Jury decision in the Eric Garner case coming on the heels of the Grand Jury decision in the Mike Brown case should make everyone look twice at Grand Juries. This New York Times article describes a bit of the process: "Grand juries determine whether enough evidence exists for a case to go forward to a criminal trial, either before a jury or a judge. By law, they operate in secret and hear only evidence presented by prosecutors, who also instruct the grand jurors on the law. Defense lawyers are barred from speaking. For a decision, 12 jurors who have heard all the evidence must agree."
But really, it is about lives mattering. And all lives mattering. Mostly, in this context of normalized racism, it is about black lives mattering.
A self evident statement that apparently bears repeating, especially to those in the police force and criminal justice fields.
Black Lives Matter.
