If we were grabbing tea together, I’d have so much to share with you about motherhood and life these days.  Grab a seat, let’s chat! Also, did I mention that your hair looks really nice today?

So let’s see.  First up, happy fall, it’s the season of never-ending preschool sickness!  Sharing is caring! But also, aughhhhhhhh.

Second on the teatime chat agenda: holiday gifts.  Every year I feel like the pressure dial is turned all the way up on making the holidays as magical and wonderful as possible through buying the very best toys and the warmest, coziest pajamas and making all the most perfect sugar cookies, and attending all the light nights at the botanical garden and the bell ensembles and the lighting of the trees and all the candles and all the fresh pine and all the wonder and and and and and….  It just ends up feeling like a Magic To-Do List sometimes, and I wonder if maybe there’s something to the feeling that maybe the magic of the holidays comes from the love we have for each other, rather than all the experiences. I know someone says this every year, but I’m here, nudging you that if a tradition is breaking the bank or causing you way more stress than a cookie swap should involve, let it go. Let it go! Let it gooooo! The magic is you.  The magic is here the whole time. Just turning on a cozy lamp and sitting in a house snug as a bug while it’s cold outside is magic. That’s it. The other stuff? Do it or don’t, but please don’t flog and flay yourself over creating magic for every day on the advent calendar.

You’re enough, if what I’m saying, no matter if you go all out, or stay cozily all in.

What else is going on though?

Oh.  Right.

School picture season.

Allow me this one request, children: please, please, please…be yourself and do a goofy face if you wanna, or scowl, or sneeze.  I am here for all of them. Be your wild crazy beautiful goofy selves.

Finally, as we really do — ALREADY OMG — head into the holidays: if you have a brand new baby, you are 1000000% allowed to skip all the annoying things about the holidays that you always wish you had an excuse for.  Now you do! Do not force yourself to suffer when that little bundle of joyful excuses is right there in your arms! The baby is a gift. Use the gift, mama. Opt out whatever causes you annoyance or stress this year. I promise, other years will give you more stress as the pressure mounts on the ol’ perfect magical holiday barometer.  So enjoy the cushy non judgmental baby! Please! Use that adorable little excuse.