Hi friends! This week I'm taking a little break from blogging but I wanted to pop in to say hi and wish you a happy 4th of July week if you are celebrating in the U.S. and a happy first week of July regardless. I hope you are having a fabulous summer! It's really hot here but I'm trying very hard to stay positive. Just three more months to go! (Woooooo) We've been able to enjoy being outdoors in the early morning and in the shade of the late afternoon so that is definitely helping. This week I just have... Read more →

f/5.6 1/20 I found this scene on Dashiell's toddler table and loved the modern art look of it. His toys and books around the house are so cheerful and I love their simplicity and beauty. The Photo Challenge Next Door is a collaboration with my next door neighbor Erica from Laddventure. We're both switching our cameras to manual mode and sharing one photo per month. Check out all of my Photo Challenge photos here.You can see Erica's photos here. Pssst There's a brand new episode of The Girl Next Door podcast out today! We're talking fitness, weird quirks we both... Read more →

I love to celebrate the seasons so in this seasonal series I'll share what I'm loving and looking forward to. These are just the little ways that I'm appreciating what the season brings or ways I hope to make it special. So, let's talk about SUMMER. Hopefully these are the things that will keep my spirits up through July, August and on in to September (and let's be honest, October) until the heat breaks. SOUNDTRACK // Tiny Desk Concert podcasts, I haven't heard one I don't like and sometimes Dash even does a little groove. FRAGRANCE // rhubarb hand soap,... Read more →

This spring, I changed groups at work but was still sitting at my same desk. Two weeks ago, I moved desks to sit with the rest of my new team. When my director told me that a desk was opening up for me, I'll admit I felt a little bummed because the desk that was coming available was a basic cubicle where a student worker used to sit. The view is pretty different from my former desk, which had a huge window. I was nervous that I wouldn't like my new environment as much and that it would affect my... Read more →

On Sunday night, just after Chris put Dashiell down to sleep, we dished up bowls of lentil soup that had been simmering on the stove and topped it and handfuls of homemade herbed croutons and parmesan cheese. The soup was my standard lentil soup but it came out exceptional this time (I promise to share the recipe eventually). Bowl in hand, I retreated to the dining room table to read a few chapters of Delancey (which I'm re-reading in preparation for the Girl Next Door Book Club!) and breathed a big sigh of ahhhhhhh. Dashiell is fourteen months old and... Read more →

Hi, friends! For the past few months I've been working to post more often and more consistently in this space and I've been maintaining a M-W-F posting schedule. I love connecting with all of you and hearing your thoughts on what I share! But I've found that with all my other duties - being a mama, working full time, podcasting, writing an e-course, and making time to hang out with Chris or just to be by myself - that posting three times a week is demanding a bit too much of my time. So my plan is to cut back... Read more →

Even before I was pregnant with Dashiell, Chris and I talked about what kind of home environment we would want for our future children, including the type of toys we wanted. We both love having a home that is a clutter-free environment without too much stuff. We also value having comfortable, adult spaces in the living areas of our home. We want Dashiell to have toys and activities to engage with throughout the house but we don't want our house to become solely focused on his needs. I was inspired to follow Montessori philosophy, which suggest having toys made of... Read more →

I have a bad habit I don't think I've mentioned: I pick at my cuticles. It's something I do absentmindedly but mostly when I'm stressed about something, usually work-related. As far as bad habits go, I suppose it's not terrible, but it drives me crazy. It leaves my hands looking unpresentable and it makes me feel unprofessional and unfeminine to have hands I want to hide in my pockets. One funny/interesting thing about this bad habit is that it seems to run in my family! It's something that my mom, sister, uncle (my mom's brother) and cousin all admit doing,... Read more →

For the past two weekends either Chris or I have been out of town and I'm so excited to have a weekend with all of Team Wharton under one roof. On Saturday, we're planning to visit the farmer's market and the nearby splash pad in the morning and in the evening we're celebrating Chris's tenure at Sleepy Dog with with friends over beer, Spinato's pizza and cupcakes! Our Sunday is gloriously plan-free; perhaps I'll make a pie and check a June goal off my list. I hope you have a lovely weekend, too! Read more →

The last time I shared an update on how breastfeeding was going, Dashiell was six months old. That feels so long ago! I'm still breastfeeding Dashiell at (nearly) fourteen months but our nursing relationship looks very different. I'm so happy to have breastfed this long and to be where we are. As I mentioned in my previous post, I am so thankful that I have been able to breastfeed at all and especially for this long; I recognize that I am so fortunate that this has been physically possible for me. At the same time, breastfeeding and pumping at work... Read more →