two big birthdays!!

...happy 5th birthday to this here blog o' mine. can't believe it's been five years...

...and happy 30th bday to my teddy! woohoo! welcome to the 30s!

a new installation by cadence

from the folks who brought you the blue sharpie installation, we are happy to announce the latest artistic endeavors of our very own cadence joy. this one is called The Instant Espresso Installation.

...this one is on paper...

...and this one is on canvas. more artwork by cadence can be seen here.

best shot(s) monday

...the lovely tracey clarke over at Picture This posts her best/favorite photo of the week every monday, and her readers post links to their best shots of the week as well. grab your cameras and join in on the fun if you'd like.

...i took these photos at julius meinl coffeehouse on saturday after we picked up ted from work. they have really good coffee, but not as good as metropolis if you like a more robust flavor. still, it was a much needed coffeebreak for all of us. well, except for cadence. for her, it was a much needed GUGELHUPF break. their cakes and pastries are pretty much to die for.

ah, remember the good old days?

...and by the good old days, i mean the reason i started this blog, which was to post photos from the shows i went to. actually, it was denison witmer who started it all for me. i went to see him play 5 years ago, took photos, and decided to start a blog. and that's who i went to see last sunday night at the beat kitchen.

i don't think i've seen denison in a few years. in fact, i can't remember the last time i saw him. we've gotten so busy in our lives...i've been part of his fanbase since his first full-length album, and it was so much easier to keep in touch back when he didn't have thousands of fans to keep up with. so sunday night, he came up to me before the show, and the 1st thing out of his mouth after our hug hello was something like, 'thanks for your lovely gift of the gibson,' while he gave me a joking nudge.

...now some of you may be wondering what the heck he's talking about. well, he's referring to a beautiful vintage gibson j-45 acoustic guitar that i once owned. he had the chance to play it about 4 1/2 years ago when he stayed with me and my friend megan after a show. apparently, he really liked the guitar, although he never told me so. a few months later, i happened to see on his friendster profile that he'd changed his answer to the question 'who i want to meet' to 'someone who will sell me a vintage j-45 for cheap.' i laughed when i saw that, but i never said anything to him and never offered to sell it to him. that's because somebody already called dibs on the guitar a couple months before.

...about 5 years ago, my friend caleb saw the photo of my guitar on my blog. i'm not sure, but he may have drooled when he saw the photo, and he told me just how valuable the guitar was. he got to meet the guitar in person that july when he came out to chicago to help me in the merch tent at the infamous cornerstone of 2002. i think caleb fell in love with that guitar on the first strum. since that day, whenever caleb would come to town, he would make a special visit to my guitar.

some of my favorite musical moments have involved caleb and his friends playing that j-45 in my little attic apartment on churchill street. it was pretty obvious to me that the only reason i got possession of that guitar was so that i could pass it on to its rightful owner. i gave it to caleb last february when he was in town for a wedding. hopefully, it's getting good use now. a guitar like that--it would've been a shame for me to hold onto it.

...anyhoo, i digress...so the show sunday night was the first i'd been to in a LONG time. considering it was a snowy, cold sunday night, i was surprised by the turnout. by the time denison got up to play, the room was pretty packed. the college kids just love denison, and a little snow couldn't scare them. it's kinda fun looking back to the first show i saw him play, and how much more reserved he was back then with his stories. now, he's so relaxed on stage and has a great rapport w/ his audience. i had forgotten how much i love denison's songs. they were the soundtrack to one of the toughest periods of my life, and i think i will always have a special place carved out in my heart for him and his music.

out of the EB closet

...it's hard for even a toddler to resist the aroma of gloria jean's coffee. here she is making coffee for her mama!

...we got those beans on monday when we visited ted's parents out in the burbs. we stopped in at the local mall to see the fountains, which cadence had enjoyed in the summer when grandma and grandpa were babysitting.

speaking of grandma and grandpa babysitting, ted's mom asked us when we thought they could keep cadence for, oh, 2 or 3 days or so. i have to admit the question caught me off guard. on the one hand, i would LOVE a couple days with just ted and me. i mean, i'd be happy with just a few HOURS, so 2 or 3 days is something i couldn't imagine at this point. on the other hand, cadence is still nursing a few times a day, and i don't know how she would react to being separated for that long from both of us. some people may think that a getaway trip would be the perfect opportunity to wean a toddler as old as cadence. it's true that i feel totally fortunate to have been able to nurse this long, and if cadence WERE to wean right now, i'd be okay with that but ONLY if cadence would be okay with it as well.

believe it or not, i actually still ENJOY nursing. i really believe that extended breastfeeding (in combination with co-sleeping) has helped cadence and me to maintain a close bond, even though i work full-time outside the home. the first thing cadence asks for when i come home is 'ma-ma-ma' (her word for boobies), and it gives me a chance to slow down for 15 minutes and get reconnected with her after being separated for 11+ hours. i'm not saying that extended BFing or cosleeping is necessary to stay connected w/ a child if the mom works outside the home, but it's what works for our family.

...although it seems that more women are breastfeeding these days than, say, 10 years ago, extended breastfeeding (breastfeeding beyond baby's first year) is still viewed by many as strange, weird or even revolting. in other cultures, however, it is common for children to continue nursing until 4 or 5 years of age. i know some people would say that's probably in countries where clean water and food are in short supply. and while it may be true that in the U.S. and other developed countries where nutritious food and safe water are abundant that toddlers and young children don't have a PHYSICAL need for mama's milk, that doesn't mean that they don't have an EMOTIONAL need to continue the nursing relationship. in fact, some research has shown that

"In societies where children are allowed to nurse 'as long as they want' they usually self-wean, with no arguments or emotional trauma, between 3 and 4 years of age."--Kathryn Dettwyler, PhD

also, i know i've mentioned this before, but the World Health Organization actually recommends extended breastfeeding, up to two years of age or beyond.

i'm not saying that extended breastfeeding or child-led weaning is for everyone. all i'm saying is that i don't want to be ashamed or embarrassed about continuing to nurse my child. i don't want to feel like this is something i have to keep secret from my friends and family, or from strangers for that matter, because they might think i'm some kooky crunchy hippie mama. i'm really not that granola--i don't even use cloth diapers. i just happen to have a toddler who loves to nurse, and i happen to be totally okay with that. i just wish everybody else was okay with it too...