July | Life Lately
Happy July Full Moon! Our baby girl is here! She came right when she wanted to, not a minute sooner or later. I’m so proud of her. Every year when the July Thunder Moon rolls around I think back to the first full moon party we hosted when we first moved to our little lake town. I made a ton of cheesy moon-themed decorations and snacks with a moon-inspired playlist. The bistro lights hung off the back deck, chairs around the bonfire. But as its name suggests, a thunderstorm rolled in so we all ended up drinking beer in our messy, humid garage watching the rain pour on the pavement. It was magical. This is my favorite time of year.
The fourth trimester | We’re in the heart of the fourth trimester with our little one, and all that entails. A lot of healing, recovery, rest, learning all about being first-time parents, asking for help, really really needing help! Every day we learn our daughter more & more, and the transition gets easier in little ways. It’s this wild ride of time moving at a snail’s pace, and moving lighting fast, all at the same time. Some days I can’t catch my breath & other days I have the most clarity about my life, purpose, our marriage, family, & all the layers in-between.
Fourth of July | Our 4th of July looked a lot different than in year’s past. For a decade we’ve gone North for Bode family time at the lake, the annual Greatest Fourth in the North 5K, & parades on the golf cart. This year we were home as sleep-deprived new parents trying to figure out what our little girls cry meant, just grateful to step foot outside for a few minutes at a time. We started the Taking Cara Babies Newborn class which has been super helpful learning what a newborn wants based on their cues & ways to create an environment for them to sleep comfortably. It was the first day in 2 weeks we had over 2 hours of sleep at a time! We celebrated with margarita popsicles while watching her sleep on the video monitor. Oh, how our life has changed!
Slow summer at the Moon Lodge | We anticipated this being a very slow summer, even without a pandemic on our hands. The first couple of weeks with a newborn was probably the hardest to transition into an even slower pace than we were already in the Spring. Summer is truly our jam, we wait all year for it. It’s the best time to live near the lake. So we had a little selfish FOMO we’ve been working through and keep reminding ourselves that this is one summer that we’re not doing what we would usually do. Plus, these quiet moments with her are so precious, I’m already missing them even while I’m right in the middle of them! I started writing again near the end of the month while she naps. It’s a dream come true, a vision unfolding.
Currently
Reading | Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Listening | Trevor Hall playlist on Spotify
Watching | Agent Carter on Disney+
Honestly, it’s weird writing this full moon post. To you reading it may appear as everything is smooth sailing. One month we’re waiting for Baby, the next we have Baby. This past month has been anything but smooth sailing. As I write in this consistent pattern from one moon to the next as I have for 3 years, I’m not the same person I was 4 weeks ago. I’m not the same woman since they laid my little one on my chest & she looked immediately into my eyes. I’ll never be the same, thank Goddess and my goodness. You can see all full moon posts here.
Happy Full Moon, friends! xo, Em
