jennifer patel

  I promise to never have bangs cut on the girls' skulls unless they choose them Do you remember when men used to carry a [separate] wallet full of pictures of their families? They could stand around the water cooler on breaks at work and show them to their coworkers. They could meet random strangers with their kids at stores and say, "Oh wow! I have a daughter who looks about the same age as yours." And then he could put a finger up (please, hold) as he dug his picture wallet out of his pocket and flipped to the picture for proof.  Remember?! Me neither. But after continuing to tackle random storage box clean outs, I found my dad's picture wallet. If he doesn't get a gold star for even distribution of pictures for all three kids, he should for having a picture of his in-laws!  I still have a lot of my dad's hobbies stored away in random places: maps, stamps, rocks. I keep trying to get rid of stuff, telling myself that these seemingly boring collections were ...

I've been having a lot of "these are my last babies" moments. Sprinkle those on top of exhaustion and it can feel really sad sometimes. baby clothes for a 12 month old. V's batman socks for scale.  Sometimes when the boys are at school, the girls and I will run errands. We always, inevitably, end up in girls clothing. It's impossible not to... Baby clothes are ridiculous. You hold them up and think, "how can this tiny pair of shorts fit anyone?!" Turns out, they fit a baby.  And they're just the cutest. I wish all of the girls' clothes came in my size and that it was appropriate and adorable for me to have fat rolls spill out from them...

I don't know my enneagram number.  Do you call it your number? Or would I say I don't know my enneagram? If I get into something, I want to do it right. I can't rely on random internet quizzes...what's the best source? Who invented enneagrams? I'm definitely not paying for anything. I want to know everything!  I checked out a book from the library about enneagrams. I did. True story. I wanted it all explained and for my number to be the most accurate number it could be.  I wanted to believe. But, I never read the book. Just like everything I think "I'm going to start..." it was returned and forgotten. This is not about enneagrams, but I feel like if I knew mine, it would help in this post...to set the stage...to illustrate my persona.  <insert shoulder shrug emoji>  Like most things though, this is about me.  How I am naturally introverted and deeply shy when meeting people for the first times. I don't always come off this way at first becaus...

photo credit: V. Patel Dear 2023, I did not eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day. They're mushy and gross. I've always thought that, the many years I previously choked them down in the name of tradition and luck. The truth is, I've reached a point in my life where I'd rather be granted time over luck. I need more time. I need more time to snuggle my baby girls who are growing up at breakneck speed. I want to soak up all the moments, joyous and/or not, because they are my last babies. I'm holding on tight to those little hands and feet, burying my face in their baby soft hair, constantly kissing their big, fat cheeks and hugging them as hard as one can safely hug an infant, hoping all of it will magically make them stay small and innocent just a little longer. I want so many things for them in their life. I want strangers to stop asking if they're twins when we're out and they're dressed exactly the same...and look exactly the same.  I need more time...