Today started early— very early. Our alarms went off at 4am for Jarmon’s 7am flight back to Chicago. DD and I drove him to the airport, then stopped at Eat n Park in Monroeville for breakfast. DD had blueberry pancakes, I had a delicious sausage and pepper omelet.
When we got home, I took a quick nap before Pammy and Debbie stopped by to see Arabella. We drank some wine, had some snacks and had a really nice day.
It got me thinking about all of the kindness we’ve been shown since Arabella was born. We were pretty resistant to hand me downs at first because we wanted to figure it all out on our own. But lately we’ve been accepting the previously loved goods with open arms — and are so grateful to our friends and family who have shared their treasured baby gear with us.
For example, Jarmon’s cousin gave us his daughter’s old (and much-loved) easel, which we know Arabella is going to love too someday.
My cousin gave us her old (really awesome, jogging) stroller to use in PA. Traveling without a stroller makes travel SO much easier.
My friend from high school gave us his kids’ swing and jumper. Arabella had a blast trying them out today. (Baxter is a bit jealous).
And last but not least, my parents reassembled my crib for Arabella’s use. It’s been in storage in the garage for about three decades and is probably a legitimate antique at this point. It also looks great and I’m so happy to have it.
Trina Orlando 