strength

Can we take a moment to think back to April 1, 2011?

Yes, that was the day Lucy was born, but for the sake of this story
Consider it the day I BIRTHED a child.

Eating a cinnabon a couple of days before Lucy was born.  I'm sure that helped ease any labor pains.

I don't get to talk about it much, but that day was awesome.
I felt so capable...and strong.
It was one of the best days I've ever had.
All I had to do was breathe and let my body work.
And it worked.
No drugs, no nothing...just my body being awesome.

Sometimes I forget how strong my body is...
How strong it could be.

And when I forget, I tend to waste it...
Sitting on the couch...
Sitting at this computer...
Letting the strength wither away.

But not anymore! (Not as much, anyway)
because I am finally getting my strength back...little by little.
The first step is to strengthen these lungs and that heart.
I started the Couch to 5k program last week.
60 seconds of running followed by 90 seconds of walking.
Repeat for 20 minutes.
Each week, do more running and less walking.
So far, so good.
I feel good.  I feel stronger.

mother's day

Happy Saturday to the world!
Our little family spent the morning at the farmer's market...
Eating fresh strawberries and ogling the baked goods.
Now the Man and his daughter are at the library.
And I am home alone! (woohoo!)

I just realized that I never posted pictures from Mother's Day.
It was a low-key day, which was perfect...
we had just seen the last of our extended family go home, so we were all up for "relaxing."
We went to one of our favorite burger joints...

It's the kind of restaurant where a little girl can scream and laugh as loud as she wants and no one seems to mind.

 Then, we walked down the street to the park to play some more.

There were milkshakes involved at some point too.
Ben & Jerry's Caramel Macchiato milkshake - yuuuuum.

Happy Mother's Day 2012!
(P.S. Thanks Grandma and Papa for the ball.  Lucy loves it!)

morton arboretum

For the longest time, I didn't know how to pronounce "arboretum"
There aren't any tricks about the spelling, but I still couldn't get it.
But then, a few days ago, I heard a radio commercial for the Morton Arboretum and was so happy to hear the word pronounced...
Arboretum! Arboretum! Arboretum!

I can finally say it.
And we finally went!
Also, why did I write so much about mispronouncing a word?

It was super hot on Saturday. 90+ degrees.

And yet we stayed for over two hours...
walking through the gardens, laying in the grass...
Even if we were sweating, it just felt good to be outside.

 

 

Graduation!

Somehow, life seems busy and slow all at once.
In busy news, we had a nice celebration last week for my graduation!
There was family here from California, Kentucky, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
So many people we rarely see - whom Lucy had never even met until last week....
Aunts, uncles, grandparents, and a cousin!
It was the best.

My little family on graduation day. 

Graduation party!

I can't believe school is over.
For so long, a paper, a class, a presentation...something was looming over my head.  Or at least giving me something to think about. Now, it's over! 
I'm enjoying the peace, but it does take some getting used to.

In the mean time, we are counting down the days until Abdel is on summer vacation.
Four more weeks until the whole family can spend our mornings in the backyard and afternoons in the park.  

For posterity

Dear Mrs. Shakur:
I am pleased to inform you that the Graduate School has approved the conferral of the Master of Arts degree upon you as of May 19, 2012.
Please note that your degree may not appear on your transcript until after May 19th. In addition, the Office of Registration and Records will order diplomas after this date. That office sends them to students via U.S. mail about eight weeks after they are ordered. If you have not already done so, please verify and update your mailing address in Locus. If you wish to make arrangements to pick up a diploma, you should contact the Office of Registration and Records.
On behalf of the faculty and administration of Loyola University Chicago, please accept our congratulations on receiving your degree and our best wishes for the future.
Sincerely,
Patricia Mooney-Melvin, Ph.D.
Associate Dean, The Graduate School

A few pictures

Some random pictures from the last few weeks...

Lucy doesn't even try to be subtle with her eavesdropping.  I admire her audacity!

Hanging out in the front room.  We love sitting in our pjs, letting the sun shine in on us.

My birthday present to Abdel...personalized chess board!  And yes, Sally is the pawn.  (Lucy is the knight, Diane is the bishop, Gilga is the rook, I'm the queen!, and Abdel is the king)

This photo is crazy.  Lucy looks like a little girl.  It's as if she's growing up?!!?!?

Walking baby in the shadows!

Lucy's life, lately

Lucy has been living in this sweatshirt lately.

(It was a gift from her GREAT Aunt Nadine!)

The weather in Chicago has been kinda cool...

And we've been kinda lazy.

So sweatshirts and sweatpants for everyone!

Although, we do get dressed on Tuesdays because Lucy has music class.

Hehe...music class for babies.

We sing songs, dance around, practice walking...

I thought there would be time to bang on drums, strum guitars, etc...

But what we're doing is ok...

And I think Lucy likes it.

Some of our friends are in the class too, so it's nice to see them there.

And it's in walking distance, which is awesome.

Maybe some Tuesday, Lucy will ride her trike there...
(A gift from another GREAT aunt and uncle, Eileen and Tim!)
She loves this thing.
It's sitting in our living room and every now and then,
Lucy walks over to it and starts pushing it around the house...
That's how I know she's ready for a walk.

The birthday season is upon us.
Lucy's was a few weeks ago.
My brother's is today.
And Abdel's is on Saturday! 

Lucy and I had a crazy day.
I wanted to work on Abdel's present...
She did not.
So she screamed...
And screamed and screamed and screamed!
Until I stopped working on the present.
And then she was happy.









But I can't even be mad.
Because right after she screams...
She laughs.
And the next thing I know, I'm laughing too. 

pictures of story time

 

12 month photo shoot

 

A few weeks late, but happy birthday to my ONE YEAR OLD!

We took the 12month pictures on the 9th.

My camera was full, so I used Abdel's.

My camera is a little point-and-shoot camera that I always use because I always have it with me.

Abdel's is a huge dslr (dlsr??) that I never use because it's so big.

Now that I see how awesome the 12month pictures are...

I realize I gotta start using this big camera more often!

a rare "behind the scenes" picture