Before the After

I've taken the measurements

snapped the pictures

taken stock of what is right now

in all of its glory:

a body miraculous, recovering from its greatest triumph,

sagging where it fostered life

pulling itself together from a massive stretch.

I've developed a fabulous game plan,

picked the strategy

dedicated my waking hours

to my boy

to my love

to my work

to working out.

people lately have been asking where I am getting all of this time,

how I am making and doing so much with a little one

and here is my answer:

I have a wonderful husband, wonderful family and a calm little boy (on most days).

I have cut out anything extraneous from my life

spending my time like it's gold -

-no-

more precious, even:

platinum.

Hours that go too fast, watching my boy discover his hands, holding my gaze with a smile,

my heart wrapped in damp chubby digits

tooling while he sleeps, fantastic ideas I run for and catch like fireflies...

talking on the phone with people I love

kissing my husband, healing the thousand tiny cracks that parenthood makes in our daily lives...

.

.

Anthony told me about Navy Seals one night when I worried out loud that my work ethic is too balls-to-the-wall (in spite of the fact that I love my pace), how they are trained harder than a body ever should be in order to discover that their capabilities are greater than they knew: it's ok, he assured me, as long as I know when to take it easy.

It's been intense lately: inspiration running hot and heavy

like birthday sex and I am dancing fast just to keep up with it.

There are bags in the works, clutches

necklaces

earrings...

a giveaway to end all giveaways....oh, yes...

so.

On my tombstone it very well may read "Rested poorly"

a fitting epitaph, really

but I have my own Mama to remind me when I get too stringy-

"Stay in bed today" she says, hearing that dull edge from 2,000 miles away

and then I do.

I promise, Mom!

All this to express...something defiant to spite a fear, it would seem:

asserting my right to a natural rhythm, saying that it's okay to strive

bubbling and excited about this upcoming month ( 2 days in!) of a concentrated fitness re-set

Maintaining that I am allowed (in spite of feeling a lack of cultural permission as a new mom, but that's a whhhhooolllle 'nother post...) to claim the power coursing through my creative vein

until it dries up as it invariably does

making room for the fallow weeks ahead.

On that never-too-distant day I'll call the woman who gave me life

sounding like I ran across the Serengeti barefoot

and she'll send me under the covers with a good book

and I will obey...

but for now there is much ass to kick
and precious hours to do so!

xoxo,

A

My Sun

You are the light of our lives: this morning I was reminded of that fact

in such a beautiful way.

Everyone in Minneapolis was charmed by you, Orion:

your smiles are infectious, your laughter and coos just as much so

and your evening fuss has become adorable and nuanced:

you have a language for your complaints just as you do for your joys.

When you are hungry and no boob is forthcoming you say, "Iiing Iiing Iiing" in a very conversational way, trilling up and down the range of your new voice

showing your gums

until you're fed.

I liken you to a grumpy old man at a town hall meeting, complaining about the stop sign on Grant;

"And another thing!!...." 

until you fall asleep in your soup at Denny's.

I kiss your forehead right where your temple makes an indent. 

It gives as only young skin can,

 like spongecake under my lips.

Two flights under your belt now and you are a champion

mostly sleepy from the white noise of the plane's engine, ears unbothered by the rise and descent

eating and napping in my arms

getting diaper changes 31,000 feet above the earth, all smiles while we sweat

with the fearful trembling of the New Parent...

Tiny Tatey, we love you beyond love:

thank you for choosing us

.

xoxo,

Mama the happy Nomulan Milk Slave

Last Shopping Day for a Bit

My little Level 1 Human and I are getting on a plane tomorrow

for a week + of R&R, Minneapolis style!

I knew I needed to get accustomed to traveling with him sooner than later,

so I bought a direct flight ticket

and plan on lounging with little more to do than adore my family

and watch them fall even deeper in love with Orion.

Today is the last day to pick up any reserved items from the shops

or indulge in that piece you've been thinking about.

Pieces purchased will be mailed out on Wednesday by my handsome spouse.

Have a wonderful week!!!

xoxox,

Allison

On the Wheels

Chapinite

Horse Canyon Agate

Horse Canyon Agate

detail

Kazakhstan Thunderegg

Moss Agate Thunderegg

Rhodochrosite

Some of these are final polishing sessions,

some (like the Horse Canyon) were recent slab purchases I could not WAIT to dig in to.

All in all,

a really productive time at the King!!

xoxo,

A

One Last Ring...

The latest in the abundance series

Featuring a dreamy garden quartz

set in a hammered sterling bowl

Representing the overflow of all good things:

may they be yours.

Find it 

HERE

xoxo,

A

Uncles and Love

My bestie Jeremy and his amazing Sabin were here

today

Charming the heck out of Baby O

AND his Mama.

Then there was napping

and I awoke to the last listed item being Reserved;

THANK you.

For my livelihood and your care of it:

I could never begin to express my gratitude fully.

My family is fed by your support

and my heart is made full by your warmth.

With Big Love,

Sunny & O

Tomorrow

meet me

HERE:

I have a few things to show you!

xoxox

A

Four Generations in One Room

What a beautiful thing: what in indelible memory we made yesterday:

Great Grandma meeting her Great Grandson.

There is so much I could say here about this first Mother's Day

but

words kind of fail their ultimate purpose when something feels so big

you can't even sketch it.

If I wasn't so tired I'd at least try,

but there are things to be done, always

not the least of which is

savoring

the moments.

Amazing.

xoxo,

A

Safety Burrito

I had to take a picture of this sweet little boy

in his baby ear protection to share here: 

Anthony says he looks like a space monkey in them

but all I know

is that his little ears are picking up on quiet under there

and that's the most important thing!

.

.

.

xo

Beauty From the Beyond...

Peridot Dragonfly Wing in Sterling Silver 

These ghostly impressions are a reminder:

leave Beauty in your wake.

Let others bask in something warm and kind long after your presence 

is gone

Mexican Fire Opal Dragonfly Wing in Sterling Silver 

from a room

from a house

from this mortal coil.

Cultivate your goodness

Nourish the seeds of compassion

God planted in you long ago:

Hammer Formed Citrine Cicada Wing Earrings

Use your power for lofty things

.

Match the joy you wish to hold

and it will settle in your palm

Bee in Sterling

like a winged thing

coming home to rest.

xoxo,

S

The Way Back

From the moment I met my son earthside

a great shift occurred in me,

one of beauty and newness.

I have struggled much over the last few months to both redefine the shape of my life

and leave myself the fuck alone because for God's sake, look at what I just DID(!).

There have been moments of such powerful sadness, loneliness and fear

dancing in overlap with awe, wonder and spectacular blisses

so much so that the idea of center, the earthy notion of grounding has

been all but lost in the emotions and thoughts.

In the last few days I have sensed a peace come over my life;

peace that came from purpose -

from a series of actions and decisions spaced

like breadcrumbs for my airy energies

to re-tether around my soul.

Here is a list of what works for me - in sharing it my greatest hope is that you find something that also creates balance for yourself, dear reader.

The Way Back

1. Scale back belongings

.

If one's life is a pie-chart full of relationships, tasks and things it's so easy to feel that bloated sense of 'too much' far too often, especially in this day of constant communication.

One way that I reduce the amount of fullness (being that relationships are of the utmost importance to me)

is to reach into cupboards, closets, drawers, chests and shelves with the sole purpose of

reducing their contents by at least half.

Maybe for your own unique life balance the 'too much' that needs culling are tasks or socializing online or in town.

Everything can be explored.

2. Get Moving!!!

.

During the last half of my pregnancy, I had the instinctual sense to stop exercising as I once had, even beyond the cautionary recommendation of "no heart rate above 140" - my body told me nightly walks were the height of exertion: I listened, and when I look at my boy I am glad for that.

After the doctor gave me the green light to exercise again, I dove in with abandon (except for abs)

and honestly I relish every drop of salty sweat that miniature Jillian Michaels bosses out of me from her tiny home in the DVD.

Sometimes our physical lethargy is a necessity, sometimes it is a choice: if it's a choice then take an evening and get on a machine, run into the hills, afro-belly-boogie until you drop and see if you don't feel a tad more like your feet are connected to the earth.

3. Give What you Want to Receive

.

Want more love? Love more! Want monetary abundance? Volunteer your services for those in need!

Want peace? Bring calm into your actions and interactions.

It sounds so simple but it can be utterly challenging to be present.

The benefits, though, are astounding and well worth the attention and intention.

4. Gratitude

.

When I feel blue and morose, a few gratitude lists throughout the day can make the biggest difference:

it sounds silly, but it keeps you accountable for your blessings

and we all have something for which we can be grateful.

What are your blessings?

*

5. Fumble Around

.

I allow myself bad days, lost days that are simply mine in which to grump, fuss

and gnash my teeth - the permission seems to lessen the need to fall deeper into despair.

Go ahead: call in sick, get in your sweats and throw yourself a pity party for one: a good cry can be just what the doctor ordered. "Tears are a river that carry you somewhere" are the wise words I read in a book after a particularly hard year and I loved that image: we are never stuck in an emotion unless we fear it or fend it off with the dull stick of procrastination.

Meet your sadness, your fear or your unrequited love where it lives: you might find that once you do it will take your hand and let you guide it up and out.

6. Change your Focus

.

If something is frustrating or limiting you in some way, do something else for a while:

answers tend to come when the mental gaze is allowed to wander

from its dog house:

"the watched pot never boils" can also apply to career success, the acquisition of wealth and the magnetism of love.

Go out, get lost in a field somewhere

throw a ball

see a good movie

call your mom

remember that there are lots of good things in life once you remove your blinders.

(This one is particularly hard for me to do, but when I unplug from my obsession, man oh man does the tide turn!)

.

.

So there you have it: my puzzle pieces for righting the capsizing ship.

What works for you when things look bleak?

Love,

Sunny

Cheeks

Swoon!

xoxo,

A

Leap Day

This ring is a testament to the power of

  great tools

And a great mother-in-law who came to love on the baby this weekend,

thereby allowing his mama time in the studio-

hours and hours and hours

and in those hours I hammered this spiculum flower out of a flat sheet of sterling.

In keeping with the abundance theme of sterling spheres and round gorgeousness,

this ring is called the Horn of Plenty

and it IS.

Sumptuously tall

Decadently deep

HEAVY with silver

and

paired with the prettiest cut of Utah Variscite you ever did see...

It practically shouts 

"YES!!!"

.

.

.

size 8

in the Metal Shop 

later this evening.

xoxox,

A

A Trio for Your Delicious Waist

I don't know about you, but this summer my go-to outfit is gonna be

cowboy boots, jean skirts and tank tops!

This fun fact got me thinking: what is the perfect accessory for that look?

eh bien, voila:

belt buckles!

But

not just any buckle:

RESERVED

These are the fancy kind

Hand stitched in sturdy thread

and lined with a colorful pop of scalloped-edge suede

RESERVED

in vibrant colors

RESERVED

for vibrant women.

In the

Leather Shop

later today, but accepting reserves now!

xoxox,

Allison