As I sit down to write this, my 22 month old daughter is sitting on my lap. Her curly wisps of honey blonde hair are ticking my lips (just begging for kisses!) and her little body is still in its warm and snuggly post-nap state. She is biting into an apple and the juice is running down her chin. Little moments like these make me pause and smile. We've had a tough couple of days, and it's nice to just sit together for a moment. We returned from a lovely little family holiday in Montreal (where David and I grew up and met) a couple of days ago, and while it was so wonderful to get away for a bit, my girl is now reeling from a disrupted sleep routine and a newly acquired cold. Which means this little ray of sunshine is tired and GRUMPY. And so is her mama. Add to that a pile of post-vacay laundry, incessant rain (read: cabin fever) and a few toddler tantrums for good measure, and you've got a pretty good picture of the last few days. I've always been one to look for the good, but in these less-than-perfect moments I inevitably start to see more good in others' lives than in my own. And my perfect idea of how things should be starts to cloud the beauty of right now, however messy it may be. And since comparison is the thief of joy, as they say, that's just not a mindset I want to have. So here's to simply stopping and being and enjoying real life - because even with its messes and struggles and exasperating moments, there is always beauty to be found in it.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm leaving the laundry behind and headed to the park to enjoy this rain-free window (as per my grumpy bear's request!)

-xo

A note about these photos: taken in a friend's gorgeous Montreal apartment. I loved the pure, honest feel of this bright little corner and snapped a few frames of my girl playing by the window. Simple, no frills, no props. Just real, sweet childhood. I thought they were a good fit for this post! :)