jennifer is…going to a birthday party.

Jennifer is…trying out this “Jennifer is” thing.

Jennifer is…the parent of a preschooler.

Some things that this blog will NOT be:

1. available in high def.

2. an attempt to make my various foibles look like the perfect life, complete with the requisite catalogue-esque photos.

3.  bowdlerized.  probably, at some point i’m going to commit a faux pas, or say something inflammatory.  i just don’t think i should edit everything down to make it more palatable for mass consumption.  (side note: all lives are cliche, but that doesn’t mean that they are necessarily less interesting to the people who live them–true?)

4. purposefully political in any organized way.

5. purposefully anything, in any kind of way.

6. winsome.  well, maybe a bit winsome, since i love that word so much.

7. digestible in large quantities.

8. an excuse to escape caring for my children.  if it starts to take over, there’ll be fewer posts.

9. heavy on capitalization.

10. recommended after swimming.

Yeah, yeah…but what ELSE do you do?

Someone recently asked me this when I told them that I was a mom. In fact, more than one woman has said this to me over the past few months. Frightening as I find the attitude, this question has gotten me thinking about the things that I do. It certainly is a challenge to make peace with the space that I find myself in. In some ways, I have more ‘flex’ time than I did when I worked at a conventional job. This allows me to channel some of my creative energy into material output, for a change. On the other hand, however, I am constrained by a 24/7 on call position that requires a mind-boggling tolerance for the repetition of certain menial/manual tasks, and of phrases like, “Please chew with your lips together.” All things that have been said a zillion times before, by much better writers. It bears repeating, perhaps, because it gives me a starting point from which to chart this journey. Despite what people perceive of this “work”, I feel more capable of tackling any challenge than I ever have. So far, I have not succumbed to the notion that I am somehow less intellectually, spiritually, or creatively competent. Sure, my writing is rusty. I don’t have the opportunity to use the words “problematize” or “reify” on a daily basis anymore. But, that’s what this blog is for. If I feel like hiding out here, diarizing my daily struggles, and editing them as I see fit, then that’s exactly what I’ve needed.

So, without further adieu, here are some things that I enjoy:

Cashew butter cupcakes…..so easy to make. so delicious.

“Blue Steel”–even covered in chocolate

Pumpkin Patch Kid

fantastic new wellies

A cool pumpkin shot

my second sewing project

painting with acrylics

jaegen’s scolding face

sunset on keats–a distant summer memory, now.

So there you have it. Some of the many things I appreciate. As for those things I don’t enjoy…tune in, I’m sure the subject of unwashed dishes is bound to be a recurring theme. If we’re lucky, I may even take photos of them, using the same fabulous lens.