baby, it's been unfathomably cold outside.

Yesterday was not cool. Well, I mean, it was freezing outside but inside? It was all about the meltdown (after meltdown, after meltdown). There was absolutely nothing that could keep a smile on Ethan's face yesterday. Sleep deprivation was the obvious culprit and for good reason. (No, it's not teething.)

My friends, the time has come for Ethan to sleep in his crib. And this does not make him happy.

My plan was to have him sleeping in his crib by five months...and then my goal moved to six months. A couple of weeks ago I said by seven months, I'd like him to be mostly moved over to the crib. Now I've learned that I will never set another goal again in regards to the crib.

Ethan has developed his own technique for fighting the crib transition and that is denying any all sleep until it's almost eleven o'clock at night and he just can't keep those eyelids open anymore. (At which point, he wakes up every couple of hours, notices he's in his crib and presents himself in a mood that sets the tone for the entire day. Like yesterday.)

It took him what felt like an eternity to forgive me for even placing him in his crib while I ran to get a ringing phone. It took what felt like an eternity for yesterday to end. The fact that he no longer fits in his bassinet is an apparent non-issue for Ethan. I get it, I really do. I hate change, too.

Today? Today was better. It was much better. Ethan slept in his crib until four this morning and took a two hour nap this afternoon. We spent the day with friends and family. The weather was warmer, we were able to leave our sweaters inside for the first time in a while, the sun was shining -- but the warmest part of the day was seeing that smile back on Ethan's face.

Yes, today was a good day.

give me spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees

It's a sentiment I keep echoing, but we've so very much been enjoying our beautiful weather. This morning was the first day of our local farmer's market and, despite the fact we had other commitments and really didn't have the time, we just had to attend if not for only a few minutes.

When we were in college, my husband and I would awake before 7 on Saturdays and make our way to the local farmer's market, spending hours drinking hot, handcrafted coffees, stocking up on fresh produce and marveling at all of the unique vendors. When we moved back to our hometown after school, it was that year that our hometown first developed their own farmer's market. Spending the cool, breezy, lazy weekend mornings at the farmer's market has long since been a family tradition I've longed to share with my future children and so I've been extremely excited for the season to begin.

We left with fresh citrus, guacamole, fruit juice, pickles and a handcrafted, natural rootbeer that I just could not say no to (despite the fact it wasn't even ten in the morning). There were farm animals, dogs, entertainment and crowds of people but despite all of the excitement, Ethan spent the entire farmer's market like so:

Maybe the excitement of the farmer's market was lost on him today but I'm not in a rush for him to grow up, run around and take advantage of the free SnoCones and pony rides. I'm just happy to implement this family tradition and finally enjoy those cool, breezy, lazy weekends with my family at the farmer's market.

you're the one i want to be with when the sun goes down

I've been missing in action around here but I promise it's for good reason.

We've had a freak bout of beautiful weather down here in South Florida and Ethan and I have been taking advantage of the cool breeze by spending as much time as possible outdoors. We've added late afternoon walks to our agenda, stopping to feed the ducks and waterbirds along the way. We've spent hours at various local parks, swinging on the swings or enjoying the breeze by way of a carousel.

The cooler weather has been such a welcomed surprise as well as an excuse to bust out the Crawler Covers and long sleeves. As is customary in unpredictable South Florida, we're not sure how long this will last, but we're most definitely going to enjoy it.

and everyday is the start of something beautiful

I find myself exclaiming how much I can't wait for the days when we don't have to wait until five o'clock in the afternoon or later to take a trip to the park. Waiting desperately for the temperature to drop lower than 97 degrees gets a bit old when there are so many great things to explore outdoors. As September slowly fades into October, we're getting closer to the days when the morning is just as suitable outdoors time as the evening.

This late afternoon, Ethan and I met up with Grandma Edie and Aunt Megan at the park. We swung on the swings and Ethan explored the tot lot with his Aunt Megan. My mother told a little girl waiting for her turn in the play boat that it probably felt like just yesterday she was that little, pointing to Ethan. We rolled our eyes then and yet I must admit the speed at which time is passing by is really unbelievable. When I think about the fact that I have a nearly three month old little boy, I'm suddenly more hesitant about wishing away these long, hot, sticky summer days. I expand the length of our snuggle time knowing that all that is outdoors will wait for us for when the cooler days do come about.

But we're not in a rush. We're simply enjoying these moments.

Rainy day.

Today I went to Babies-R-Us and parked in one of those "reserved for expectant mothers" spots. I didn't really need to considering it was 11 a.m. on a Monday and therefore nearly every single spot was available. It was just pretty cool and exciting and made my morning.

I had gone to Babies-R-Us to purchase these, per the recommendation from Rhian:



Today I also scheduled my first prenatal doctor's appointment. I'm so nervous yet so anxious (because I am, quite frankly, the most neurotic person on the planet).

--

Yesterday was a pretty epic day, too, but I was too tired to write about it. I went to bed at 8:30 last night and slept until 7. I'm pretty exhausted now, though, and I've already had one nap today (shut up, it was less than an hour!). I was hoping to get in a walk around the block but it...is...still...raining. I swear, it hasn't stopped for a second all day.

Anyway, getting back to the point, yesterday we told my parents and my sister that we were expecting. They all came over for Halloween because I was taking my sister and her friends trick-or-treating. I had gotten a book called Grandparents Handbook and put it into a gift bag for them to open. Dad opened the bag first and stared at the book in the style of Steve Martin in Father Of The Bride 2. He had no idea. "Oh, cool, thanks." It wasn't until my mom started shrieking, "YOU'RE PREGNANT?!?!" that dad caught on! It was a mixture of yelling from mom and my sister and "ANSWER THE QUESTION!" from dad which was all funny. It was even more happy and exciting than I anticipated that moment being.

So that's that! My family knows, I'm still peeing and napping a lot, I'm nauseous all of the time, and I have my first doctor's appointment. It's starting to feel real -- a little bit. But not too much yet.