looking up.

I have said lately that the weekend of general conference feels more important than Christmas when it comes to being with my family. It's a time to reflect on what I consider to be my greatest blessing: sharing in the joy of the gospel with my family.
(I'm being serious even though this picture is hilarious.) And what's more? Jared is finally here!
I've been breaking into a lot of stress-related rashes lately, but I think things are definitely looking up. I don't know what more I could really ask for.

buddhas.

Little Buddha meets his nickname namesake.

2 of my most precious.

I cannot explain the depth of my love for these two. My brother Carl was my very first friend and has managed to stick with me through thick & thin to remain one of my most valued confidants. Now he's 28! I am so grateful that he was born.

jealous.

(in my inbox this morning)
Wish you were here!
Love, mimCarl, Hilary, Miriam, and Jude are all in Mexico. Imagine the Spanish I could be learning...

hey jude.

Today was my newest nephew, Jude's, baby blessing. I got to draw him right after he was carried back to the pews.
I think it's a fantastic beginning for my new sketchbook; I can't imagine what would be better.

I also posted a new etsy item that I feel pretty good about:

hopeful.

I often declare out loud how happy I am to be divorced. I have never regretted it.
But there are those rare occasions when I remember how heartbreaking the demise of my marriage really was.

It is sometimes difficult to remember because it happened steadily and surely, day after day as even the smallest marital exchanges seemed to malfunction; each malfunction triggering steady doses of pain.

Watching my brother parent his one-day-old son somehow brought those painful emotions forward. The love for his wife and son felt so evident and natural as a reverent feeling of peace permeated their small apartment.

It reminded me that there is nothing that I crave more in this world than to enjoy a happy marriage and to be a mother.

I desperately hope that my future attempts will not be so futile as those in my past.