all new adventures in blogging

So this is my first blog. It is my attempt to chronicle my crazy life as a new mother, and my daughter's growth and changes during her first year. Some quick stats:

1. I grew up in Vermont. I've lived in and around Vermont for most of my life, with a few detours to other New England states.

2. I returned to VT shortly after college. Did some teaching, had some fun, outdoorsy jobs and met my husband Pete.

3. I have a bachelor's degree in anthropology and studio art. In my early twenties I found myself in that post-college liberal arts funk, unsure what I should do with myself. The solution to my existential crisis? Law school, of course!

4. Somehow I managed to survive law school, and actually kind of liked it. After graduation, I spent a few years as a law clerk in New Hampshire. Clerking was great: I learned a lot, met some great people, and the hours were fantastic.

5. In the middle of my clerkship I found out I was pregnant. I gave birth to a healthy baby girl (Aubrey, a/k/a "Boopers") this spring. More about that later.

6. This fall I started working full time for a small law firm in southern VT...my first real lawyer job. I am one of eight attorneys, all of whom are MEN, except moi. So far, they've been very cool about the breast pump permanently planted on my desk. More on that later, too.

7. Pete and I just bought our first house in a teeny little town, not too far from where I grew up. It's an old place that needs some fixing up. Okay, a lot of fixing up. I'm hoping that we haven't bit off more than we can chew.

That's the quick and dirty. In a nutshell, the past six months or so have brought about a whirlwind of amazing changes in my life. I have learned so much, but have had little time to reflect. I'm hoping that this blog will help me memorialize some of my experiences and share them with others.

Here we go...