Raleigh, North Carolina

I grew up watching a lot of Andy Griffith, and when they weren’t talking about Mayberry, they were talking about Raleigh. My friend, Abby, whom I lived with pre-marriage days on Guam, lives in the capital city with her husband and baby girl. So we made a long weekend trip to go visit.

While on Guam, one of the things we missed about living in the States was visiting museums, and for my husband, particularly art museums. I did a quick Google search before we left and discovered that the NC Museum of Art was located in Raleigh and boasted an amazing collection from Claude Monet to Guido Reni, as well as three miles of trails peppered with sculptures and (get this) it was FREE!

After we arrived at the home of my friend, we enjoyed time together (our little ones met for the first time!) and a good night’s rest. The next morning we hit up a local thrift store and then the NC Museum of Natural Sciences (also free!). It has a lot of fun displays about the natural science of the region. Then we stopped for a time of browsing at Form & Function, a store that offers unique, artistic interior decor, including everything from yummy candles to charming antiques.

The next morning we packed up to head back home, and our friends were so kind to take us to a coffee shop (they know our love language), Sola Coffee Cafe.

Note: this place was crowded, and for good reason! At the time I was dairy-free due to baby, so I enjoyed an iced Americano and an acai bowl. Such. goodness. On Saturday mornings the coffee shop offered an artisan’s market outside. There was jewelry, pottery, paintings, and more. We bought a coffee mug and a few paintings for Talitha’s room from artist Rachel Loftis. What a great weekend full of friends, art, and food.

Have you ever been to Raleigh? What did you enjoy?

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah. Even its name evokes feelings of warmth, ease, and a southern drawl. One of my dearest friends from college lived near Savannah, and with her being one of the most darling people on earth, I always new I had to see this lovely city. Known for being one of the only Southern cities spared from devastating fire during the Civil War, it oozes with brilliant architecture and manicured parks. It is a carefully laid out city, one of the first of its kind.

How do I know this? Well, we saved $70 by reading the history of the city off of my phone in our car, rather than doing a touristy historical excursion. Lame? Maybe, but when it’s hot and you have a baby, you will do what you can to linger a bit longer in the air conditioning.

During our trip, I had a few coffee joints on our list that we needed to try. Foxy Loxy Cafe was our first stop, and while they do offer fabulous coffee, I opted for an iced coconut milk matcha, and it was divine. Took me back to Guam for a red hot minute. Our second morning we tried out Savannah Coffee Roasters and were not disappointed. The big windows, open seating along with a delicious almond milk dirty chai and my two loves was a sweet way to begin the day. We went to The Coffee Fox that afternoon. It was fun, eclectic, in a good location, but was a bit crowded compared to the other two. Between all the coffee was gorgeous architecture (including St. John’s Cathedral), beautiful parks, and charming boutiques.

It was a serendipity to find Chocolat, a stunning little chocolate shop with an Alice in Wonderland vibe and the best chocolate and customer service.  Oh, and if you ever visit Savannah, you must experience the The Paris Market. It is full of beautiful things and even a little coffee shop (which we did not frequent, believe it or not). Random, but it also houses the most beautiful basement you’ve ever seen. I would live down there.

This being our first trip away from home with the baby, I was both nervous and determined (with echoes of “The earlier you travel with them the better” from military wives in my head). While you do have to bring quite a bit extra with a baby, there are a few items that we have found make the trip more feasible and hopefully comfortable for the little one. Chicco Lullago Travel Bassinet is such a great little bassinet, because it sets up and tears down very easily, while providing a comfy and safe bed. I like the idea that when Talitha sleeps in her bed, it still smells like home.

Our trip to Savannah was a time of traipsing up and down a darling old city with our one-month-old. It was our first “family vacation” with the three of us, and it was grand.

Now go see Savannah for yourself, and tell me what you think!

NOT a Mommy Blog

I pretty much swore—up, down, and back again that I would not be a mommy blogger. Sure, kiddos and the lessons we learn from them are incredible fodder for writing. Teaching dozens of children on Guam taught me that. Kids are the best; they are hilarious, thought-provoking, and they can completely crush you in both beautiful and tragic ways. But still, it was a resounding “no” to mommy blogs. I did not want to add another drop to such a saturated section of the blogosphere.

Now, I think a lot of mommy blogs are great. They offer some clever tips and candid moral support, and I frequented them plenty during my pregnancy. I just did not want to write one of them. And I still don’t, but I’ve been examining my motives why.

One of the reasons I wanted to avoid writing a blog dedicated to the art of motherhood is that I wanted to be cool—to be unchanged from this mama deal, or at least, I didn’t want it to swallow me.

If I must be a social media/blog mommy, then by golly let me be looking totally cute and thin with a baby perched on one hip in a carefree fashion as I glide through life, smiling with my fancy diaper bag (that doesn’t look like a diaper bag) and an iced coffee. None of this here’s-my-birth-story for perfect strangers to read and photos of me nursing my baby while simultaneously showing everyone my rather maimed abdomen, while I offer some coupon links at the bottom of the post. Heck no.

I wanted to remember what it was to be single or without a child, and remember that photos of my child are most likely not the highlight of anyone’s day besides her close relatives. I questioned the wisdom of sharing a lot of personal information on the internet. Children are people and deserve respect and privacy as they grow. My goal was to be well-rounded, to not obsess over everything baby-related in a public forum, and to remain open to and interested in people with all sorts of lifestyles whether or not they were moms like me.

I still feel this way, but a few things have changed. And being a rational person, I knew things would change. I knew my body would change. My skin has stretched and plumped and housed a beautiful, smart, and takes-my-breath-away baby girl. I knew it would be precious to hold my girl, but I didn’t know just how precious and how natural it would feel. My life has, in some ways, been consumed by her existence. A giant, glassy wave of beauty crashed over me, pulled me in, and I am left beautifully marred and tragically whole. In a way I feel like I was made for this and that I have in some odd, twilight zone way always been a mother.

Yet, I have mourned the girl, the girl who traipsed through Malaysia right after a political uprising and hitchhiked down a mountain. The girl who instigated shenanigans with college girlfriends and could fit into those size 4 jeans. The girl who could just hop in the car and chill at the beach. The girl who left everything to live with strangers on a tiny island in the Pacific. Her. I missed her.

What I am learning, is that I still am that person, for that person has always been changing and growing. And just as I learned and grew from other experiences and roles in my life, so I will from this one. The weight of motherhood is surpassed only by its joy. What pure delight to see our Talitha Rose smile, and what satisfaction it brings to know that I am doing my best to care for her.

Will I be able to continue blogging with no mention whatsoever of my little puffin? No, probably not. She is an ever fixed mark (thank you, Shakespeare) upon my heart, so motherhood will be an aspect of my writing, just not the focal point. I am still working on what my niche is in the blogosphere, and I am excited to hone my skills and invite you, dear reader, along for the journey. May we all be encouraged and God be glorified. For now, life goes on, and it’s filled with newness and a lot of talk about poop. But there are also whispers of wonder: “My word, we made her.” Oh wait, this totally isn’t a mommy blog.

Photo Credit: Creationfoto by Barbara Sanders