hi.

I'm still here. Beginning the new year at the same frenzied pace that I ended the old one with and still trying to get used to being a working mama. I'm a little tired from the whirlwind of activity that is our new "normal", but very much looking forward to the fresh start of a new year and for exciting adventures with my Twinkies.


This photo has nothing to do with my writing, but I thought it looked pretty, and I wanted to share.

I bought a plant on my lunchbreak today and now I'm posting this. I think it's clear that I'm getting a little tired of winter and all it's white.

(Image via Tiny White Daisies)

big announcement (well, for me at least)

I wanted to share some news...

After a few months of thinking about it and lots of long talks with the Hubby and close friends about it, I've decided to go back to work. And I start... TOMORROW! I'm going back only part-time - Tuesday through Thursday, and well, I'm really excited (and a little nervous!) to get back into it. I've missed being a designer quite a lot. While I'm at the office, the Twinkies will be making new friends and having new adventures at daycare.

I know it's going to take us quite a while to get used to things. And surely there will be times that I ask myself, "what the heck am I doing this for?" (Like when we're scrambling to get out the door in the mornings to get everyone to where they need to be!) But really this part-time gig is pretty awesome. I'll be at work 3 days, and the rest of the days I'll be home with my Little Beans. I think it's going to be pretty great, actually.

So, wish me luck!
I'll be sure to let you know how things go!

xo, Kristin

a new beginning

Earlier this week I had to make a very important decision. I had been on an extended maternity leave with my return to work being kind of open ended. It worked out for all of us because I wasn't sure what this new twin-mommy thing would entail, and my office was pretty quiet so they didn't necessarily need me back on after 12 weeks. And that was all going well for a while until one of my co-workers put in her notice to move back home to Texas (I'll miss her so!) and suddenly the office found themselves short-handed. So they called me and a decision that I had been putting off suddenly needed to be made. In 24 hours.

I thought about what I wanted to do all afternoon. Do I return to work? Do I hang up my interior design hat for a while and focus on being a mom? Wade and I discussed the pros and cons of each at length. We crunched the numbers. Will I feel that something's missing if I'm no longer going to work and participating in a "grown-up" world? What will it feel like to say that my profession is 'stay at home mom' when people ask? How hard will it be to get back into the field if I left now but someday wanted to return? How will I handle leaving my babies each day and potentially missing out on their milestones? Can I cope with only spending only an hour or two of waking hours with them each day? In Wade's kind-hearted, supportive way, he made it clear that he'd stand by any decision I made. And it really was a choice that only I could make.

In the end, I decided that right now in my life being a mom to my two darling babies is the most important thing. I know there are going to be days that I'll miss my job so much and I may even sometimes regret the choice to not go back. I know also, though, that I'm going to cherish these early years with Henry & Amelia more than anything. I don't think I would ever look back and regret that.

Both of these images spoke to me. In the first, I get the sense that this woman needed some quiet time to do some thinking. And the second is a reminder that no matter what path I choose, everything will be OK. (From here and here.)