Five Things I Learned in January

It's been months since I've done one of these posts! Here are five things I learned in January.

1. I LOVE Audrey Assad's new(ish) album, Fortunate Fall. Up to this point, I have been uninterested in most Audrey Assad's music. Then, she went indie giving her artistry a chance to come out. This is the kind of music I could listen to forever. Just look at these lyrics to her song "Humble."

"Humble and human, willing to bend, you are.
Fashioned of flesh and the fire of life, you are.
Not too proud to wear our skin, to know this weary world we're in.
Humble, humble Jesus."

And with these lyrics set to mesmerizing vocals and stripped down piano, I can't help but be a fan. You can stream the album here. Hurry before they take it down! http://www.relevantmagazine.com/the-drop/fortunate-fall

2. There is a limit to how much cuddling I can take. There were a couple of weeks in January where Grace always wanted to be held. When I tell people this they often say, "Awww, so sweet." But, the cuddling had progressed from sweet to wearying. I could get nothing done because the moment I set her down she would cry and reach her little hands for me saying, "up up up." I learned to do quite a few things one handed. Fortunately, the last week has been so much better! Before I put her down for her nap just now, she played by herself for a full twenty minutes! It feels like nothing short of a miracle.

3. My baby is still awesome. Since I just complained about Grace, I have to mention a couple of the awesome things about my baby, though the most awesome thing is that she's mine. :)

She has excellent communication skills for her age. She points, nods her head, grunts, says "ya," and uses some words to get her needs met. What a change from those days where crying was her only form of communication!

She's also an excellent eater, willing to try anything she sees mommy and daddy eating. The other day she was grunting and pointing to try some spicy salsa. We gave her a little and she screamed. A few days later, she was grunting and pointing to get a taste of a stick of butter. We didn't give in because something told me should would love it.

4. My expectations for work and motherhood haven't worked out as planned. When we started up, I expected that most of our business would come from areas of immigration law that are compatible with working almost entirely from home. I was wrong. All our legal work involves lengthy commutes to LA, so my partner has taken it all, and I've been doing admin work, marketing, and supervising our interns. This has been a bit of a disappointment, but I am glad to have some interesting work to do and I am still hopeful that we will eventually get work that's compatible with my schedule.

5. Finally, and most importantly, picture frames from the dollar store are awesome! When you touch them, it's clear that they are made of cheap plastic, but once they are hung on the wall with a beautiful picture inside, they look about as good as any other frame -- and they only cost $1.