What I’m Into: September 2021

Main Events

I went back to work last week! Or “back to work” since we’re all still working from home. I am now a Working Mom, a role I’ve been intimidated by my entire life. So far it’s actually going great. I noticed an improvement in my mental health right away – I guess using my brain, doing something I’m already good at, and talking to other adults is helpful! We did not make it off the waiting list at any daycares we’ve applied to, but it’s okay. For the rest of 2021, C3’s grandmas are alternating days taking care of him here at home. After the new year, a friend who just had a baby boy herself will be watching him. I’m very thankful for this gentle transition, for all of us being under one roof, and for C3 not being exposed to a bunch of germs so early (covid or otherwise). It’s a real blessing in the midst of this endless panini.

Reading

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey (4 stars) – a popcorn horror story about clones, the science seems dubious but just go with it

Glorious Weakness: Discovering God in All We Lack by Alia Joy (3 stars) – a brave and well-written book, but not a great fit for me at this moment

George Washington Is Cash Money: A No-Bullshit Guide to the United Myths of America by Cory O’Brien (3 stars) – creative idea but just okay

And Now We Have Everything: On Motherhood Before I Was Ready by Meaghan O’Connell (4.5 stars) – so much to relate to here, including her birth experience which paralleled mine in many ways

Competitive Grieving by Nora Zelevansky (4 stars) – an intense but unique novel

I’m also working on two heavy books, one for book club and one that I got as a physical copy (which means slow going, since my main reading time is on my backlit Kindle during 3 am feedings).

Watching

LuLaRich – I watched this MLM documentary twice, alone and then again a few days later with my mom. It’s a train wreck that won’t surprise any fans of season 1 of The Dream.

The Morning Show – Taylor and I just finished season 1 (a rewatch for me) and are about to start on the new one. I definitely noticed things I missed the first time.

Succession – I tried to join Taylor in his rewatch before the new season drops. I can appreciate the show’s prestige qualities, but had to walk away after a few episodes. My tolerance for terrible people behaving terribly remains low.

A Black Lady Sketch Show – I binged the first season sometime during the summer and loved it (this skit is my fave). Now I’m about halfway through season 2.

And of course, Ted Lasso.

Listening

I’ve followed Dr. Thema on Twitter for a while and recently found out she has a podcast. This episode about body shame was uplifting and comforting.

This episode of Oh I Like That has changed my life! I’ve been on Gmail for a decade-plus and never really knew how to use the labels feature. Now my inbox is a well-organized rainbow!

Maintenance Phase had an interesting episode about Rachel Hollis that made me LOL more than once.

Travel

We spent the beginning of September in Greers Ferry, Arkansas with my parents. The view from our airbnb was amazing. It was a peaceful short getaway and I’m glad we were able to go. We spent an afternoon on the boat, and C3 did so well! He seemed to enjoy swimming in the lake with me (in his infant life jacket), and when we went fast in the boat, he kicked and laughed in his seat. He might be less chill in these situations as he gets older, but I soaked up this happy time and am hopeful that he’ll love the water.

At Home

Lots and lots of pacing C3 around the downstairs and up and down our street!! The (usually) nice thing about street pacing is that neighbors come out to chat and look at the baby. Everyone loves a baby. Since he’s a fairly isolated child of the pandemic, I’m always glad for him to see new faces.

Our spider lilies came back, a little later than last year!

We watched the Tigers game outside for the first time this fall. It was a pleasant time for the whole family, including Rufus! I put out a cat tent that my friend Kelsey gave us.

Beauty

I finally splurged on Farmacy Honeymoon Glow. I’m loving it – my skin looked brighter within days. Meanwhile, my Ipsy bag-driven obsession with Tatcha products continues. I selected the Rice Wash this month and it is a luxurious experience! I’ll probably own full sizes of that and the Water Cream before the year is out. Another Ipsy skincare win is Lapalette Calming Green Turnover Toner, which smells great and has a pleasant tingle.

Love Beauty Planet has a new sub-brand of bath products, Beloved, at Target. Unable to decide between two refreshing scents, I got both in what I thought was a travel size body wash so I could test drive them. My first thought was “wow, this isn’t lathering at all.” Turns out I had actually purchased hand sanitizer!! I then went way outside my comfort zone and got the regular body wash in Patchouli and Orange Flower instead. Not sure if I’d choose this scent again, but it’s fallish in a non-pumpkin way.

I love Tree Hut bath products, which used to be readily available at Kroger. Sadly they appear to be victims of our endless supply chain issues. I couldn’t find their sugar scrub anywhere, so on a Trader Joe’s run, I picked up the TJ’s lavender salt scrub. It’s nice and you get a lot for the price.

Starting to follow Manes by Mell was my push to finally get a Denman brush. I thought I understood how to use it, but unfortunately my hair still looked pretty bad after a few attempts. I’ve gone back to my trusty wide-toothed comb. I guess I’m probably not following the system right, but I don’t really have capacity for a high-maintenance styling change right now.

Wearing

While I am still seeing a little stomach shrinkage, and can squeeze into some of my old clothes, I decided to go ahead and get more clothes in my current size. Mostly secondhand to keep it as cheap as possible. I’ve worn exclusively dark wash jeans for about 15 years and exclusively skinnies for about five, because it was so drilled into my head that those options are most “flattering.” But after reading a Wardrobe Oxygen post about not looking dated over 40, I am reluctantly considering other washes and cuts. I found some light wash, straight leg NYDJ jeans at thrift and feel pretty good in them! I also tried on and liked the Power Wash Slim Straight jeans at Old Navy, but haven’t purchased any yet. Not sure if I’ll ever revisit flares or wide legs – I’m haunted by college rainy days when my jeans got soaked up to the knees. IYKYK.

Wellness

Now that I’m back to work, I can’t go to morning Fit4Mom classes anymore. I’m bummed about that and will miss the accessible workouts and community. I’ve realized I NEED to start exercising more often for my mental health, as well as just to feel better in my body. I’m still not ready to put myself through the misery of actively losing this weight. Right now I’m shooting for a few minutes (I’m talking 10 or 15) of elliptical or yoga every evening. It’s a start. My muscle groups are too trashed to go right back to my old pace anyway. I’d like to resume weight training later this fall, so now my mindset is that I’m doing the prep to attempt that safely. This is going to be a long road.

Anyway, my devotion to Yoga with Adriene is well documented, but I really want postpartum-specific help during this time. I found Yogini Melbourne on YouTube and she is fantastic. Slowly working my way through her PP content.

Random Happiness

C3 and I were visiting my parents one afternoon and saw TWELVE hummingbirds at one time. I sat quietly on the back porch and just watched them buzz around. It was incredible. We have two in our backyard, but I’m pretty sure they’ll be starting their migration soon.

Your Monthly Rufus

Rufus frequently reminds us that he is still the baby. Also, this month he snatched a bag of his treats out of the treat drawer and ran off with it to chew it open in peace.

Here’s a closeup of him in his cat tent. He seemed nervous in it and then relieved to go back in the house. Maybe next time he’ll be more acclimated to it!