A New Year, A New Life

My last blog entry was last year, and although it has only been a few weeks, it feels like a lifetime ago.  I spoke of lemons and lemonade, and was leaving the country to spend my holidays in Brazil.  I am home now, and I feel like a new person.  I am rested, relaxed, and invigorated.  I am also unemployed, a stay-at-home mom and we have a new President.  This is a historical time for me, my family and the world at large.  For the first time in a long time, I am not just living, I am happy to be alive.

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Hello! I’m back again after a wild and crazy yearend.

Lori and I got together this week for the first time in well over a month (since December 6, to be exact). Aside from a few emails, we really didn’t have much contact with each other. She was in Brazil for three weeks over the holidays and I was swamped with orders and attending shows for Hope’s Flame. I approached this time away from Lori as if it were permanent; as if this is what our friendship would be like if I chose to distance myself from her because of her “friends with kids” status (as I have with past FWKs). I started to reflect on the past year and what that experience has been like—for both of us. We’re doing a “year-in-review” next week (yes, Dually Noted is a year old!) so I don’t want to get too much into it, but I can tell you this: Lori is not a typical FWK (of course, Lori is a far cry from anything typical so it shouldn’t come as a surprise). And in spite of that, I can’t stop the feelings I have about wishing she were still a childfree friend.

Click here to read more from Barb’s Notes

MAKING LEMONADE

When I am an old lady and look back on my life, December 2nd 2008 will be one of the most pivotal days of my life.  Bigger than when I turned 16, 21, graduated college, and possibly bigger than the day I found out I was pregnant.  I’m not at liberty to reveal why this day was so critical at this point, but promise to give details later.  Let it just be said that I was handed a box full of lemons and since that moment I’ve been paralyzed, staring at this box and trying to decide what to do with it.

Click hear to read more of Lori’s Notes.

The other day, Lori sent me an article she cut out of the LA Times that she thought would be of interest to me. And she was right. I loved it. It made me smile. It made me nod my head in recognition of what it was talking about. It made me want to laminate it and carry it with me at all times so I could pull it out and show it to all the numskulls who make one of the most irritating comments when I tell them I’m childfree. I’m not sure Lori realized as she cut the piece out of the paper how close to home it would hit me, but I love the fact that I have a friend who knows me well enough to know when something is relevant and of interest to me in my life…and then is willing to take the time to send it to me.

Click here to read more from Barb’s Notes.

Happy Birthday to Me!I celebrated my 38th birthday a couple of weeks ago. Or, as my husband likes to point out, I’m now in my 39th year (thanks, Love). Generally speaking, I’m not one to freak out about age. Anyone’s age. I truly see it as relative. But sometimes the body doesn’t lie and you end up feeling exactly as old as you are. That can be good or bad, depending on what you’re feeling, of course. One of the great pleasures I have in my life is being able to say, “I choose to be childfree.” This birthday made me realize that someday it will no longer be a choice. Someday, my body will make that decision for me. And then it becomes just a fact. In a blink of an eye (or a flip of the hormone switch) my statement, my proud declaration of a zero spawn count, goes from being one of empowerment to being one of clarification. And that bums me out.

Click here to read more from Barb’s Notes.

Obamanation

Whether you voted for him or not, last night America chose their next President, the 44th President of the United States.  It’s no surprise that I’m happy about that choice, but what really makes me happy is that an unprecedented number of people actually showed up to vote, many for the first time in their lives.  After years of being lulled to sleep by television and consumerism, this nation is finally waking up from our coma.  With the economy suffering, not to mention health care, education, social security and a number of other issues, Obama brings a renewed energy and is calling on the citizens to take an active role in their government.

It’s about time, y’all…it’s about damn time.

Sooner or later, we all quote our mothers.
- Bern Williams

Well, we won’t be quoting our mothers here today but we are sharing with you some quotes by other people that resonated with us recently.

Click here to read more from Whatever Wednesdays.

The Baby and the Bathwater

Nothing speaks louder about the difference in my life con bebe than my experience in the bathtub last night. And even though I love my little Matteo, I am not so thrilled about the impact he has made on my bathtub, or should I say, what used to be my bathtub.

Click here to read more of Lori’s Notes.