Stephanie Sheaffer writes about books, babies, travel, food, and philanthropy.
Hello Darling. You have no idea how much we adore you. All four of us. Your smile is like winning first prize or being invited somewhere VIP. Every morning (after you've slept 8-10 hours straight), I lean over next to you on our white sheets. Your blue eyes find mine, but you don't cry. Laid-back, but curious. You want to see the world, preferring to be walked about than to sit still. And just like all of us, you find peace in the outdoors - with the wind surprising you and … [Read more...]
This is the first time I've ever "packed a lunch" for my kids. We stocked up on string cheese, cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, pretzels, goldfish, peanut butter squeeze packs, fruit leathers, turkey, and mandarin oranges for the week. The first morning of preschool camp (with our church), they woke up at 5:45am out of sheer excitement. Normally, they sleep until 7:45, sometimes 8:30. Tim grumbled about it mid-morning, but the truth is we both remember that feeling...being a kid, knowing … [Read more...]
People ask if they are jealous, if they ever ask to "send her back." But it's quite the opposite: our 3-year-old and 5-year-old adore her. Even six weeks later, they fight over who gets to hold their baby sister. Liv was in tears yesterday because she felt that she wasn't getting her fair share of baby-holding. Kayla always washes her hands first (without being asked) because she doesn't want the baby to get sick. They also fight over who gets to throw the diaper in the trash. We have a … [Read more...]
In some ways, having a newborn again is super easy - all I have to do is feed her and hold her. In other ways, having a newborn is the hardest of all - all I do is feed her and hold her. (Or that's what it seems like anyway). Then, there's the 3-year-old. So independent, but still in need of snuggles. She wants so desperately for me to SEE her - how tall she's grown, how pretty her skirt is, how high she can jump. Almost every night, with her wispy blonde hair falling in her eyes, she … [Read more...]
This is the birth story of Audrey Jane - born on Friday, April 13, 2012. All times are approximate. 11:20am Tim, the girls, and I drive to the birth center for an appointment. Midwife Kerry checks and I'm 4cm, 85% effaced, baby's head is low. After discussing options, she strips my membranes and we talk about old wives tales for inducing labor naturally since I am 4 days overdue. Noon-ish We stop at Chipotle for lunch. Tim & I share a burrito (I eat about 1/3 of it and am full). I … [Read more...]
Can it be that you're really 5 1/2? You make yourself toast and clean your room, state your opinions and take showers, spell out words and select your own outfits, leave voicemails and sleep through the night. You dream up imaginative art projects - kites and pop-up cards and animals out of branches. You take your creations and wrap them in wrapping paper, with scissors and tape...always thinking of who needs a gift most. You ask questions. Questions that force me to think and … [Read more...]
"G'morning, mama" you say, running into our room in baggy pajama pants. "I slept all through the night," you spout proudly - though the sun has barely peeked over the mountains. Without a word more, you snuggle the side of my expanding belly. Later, you stretch out your legs to show me how long you've grown in the night. And, baby girl, you have. Wispy blonde hair that falls in your eyes, blue eyes - the color of hydrangeas in the spring, the sweetest round cheeks. You still walk on … [Read more...]
"When I grow up and am a mommy, can I come to your house every, every day for my whole life?" - Kayla, age 5 Yes, my sweet girls, YES. … [Read more...]
