February will be here on Tuesday. January is over and it feels like my new year is just starting. There was just so much post-holiday stuff going on that this is the first week I have felt settled in. So with that ….to new beginnings.
Kiki left for Florida this morning and Chloe and I have shared a lazy Sunday.
Still looking at my Christmas pictures and smiling about us all being together. I wonder what this year will bring as far as change for all of our family. I asked the the husband what he hoped for in 2011 just last night and he told me that he wanted to emerge healthier. Me, well I am sticking with transformed. More than health, though that is a part. I want to think of things in a different way, and move towards all the progress I have made over the last few months. Carried by momentum is not my jam but change is good and I am ready.
January 30, 2011
June 19, 2009
This week has been a whirlwind, but in a good way…
1. The husband and I flew back from NYC and a wonderful visit with Jory:)
2. Chloe came home from her beach adventure about 5 shades darker. It is so not fair how easily she tans right up.
3. Caity made a decision about college that makes all of us feel like….finally ….a right fit.
4. We picked out paint colors for both Chloe’s bedroom and my new creative room (so exciting).
and
5. Yesterday, I had a birthday. Apparently I am 25 again Ha. Reflecting, this is a place on my life’s journey that I feel good about.
Hope your summer is clicking right along.
June 7, 2009
The first week of SUMMER usually seems the sweetest. I love the idea of having the entire vacation time ahead of me just to ponder and plan out what I want to do. This last week was much needed. When I woke each morning I took a walk and listened… tried to clear my mind of all the junk that had crept in since I last de-cluttered the closet in my head. I am sure this seems strange to some people but I feel like all of the to-do lists, errands, don’t forgets, schedules and just life junk sometimes clutters my brain until the amount of space I have to bounce ideas off is a shoe box instead of the walk-in space I need to create, sort, and organize my thoughts.So, this past week I tried to purge the closet in my head.
This thought purging is not a simple thing for me to do. At first it is hard to just BE, to pause and examine what is hanging on the rack of mind. It is easier to edit my mental wardrobe by shoving all the items that take more care or seem too showy to the back of the closet. I’ll just leave them there until next semester when there is more time and life is a calmer. During the school year when I am busy with students, my own children at home, and the hectic pace of the life, I tune out the voice in my head that says, “Stop, what do you really want to wear today, wouldn’t you like to try something different?” I don’t have time to think or analyze or add new pieces. Life projects are ignored unless mandatory, blog posts are discarded, or put off, or deleted from the list. I realize must change this! Crazy takes over when I have no space.
Today, as I pack for a trip that I am so looking forward to I feel open to possibility, nervous about the adventure, glad to have the chance to go, but grateful for the space in the closet in my head. I do so love a purged closet. 🙂
June 2, 2009
I must confess, I have totally neglected my little blogging project. When Chloe and I set up our accounts for a slice of lofe challenge we hoped to post at least once a week even when the challenge month was over…ooops. It seems May has come and gone without a single post, and now that June is here I feel so at ease and it has everything to do with the pae of life. Caity’s graduation has come and gone and all went well. The husband and I celebrated with other family members and friends who know and love her. I think she knows we love her and eagerly await the next chapter in her life because it truly is a mystery what she will do or become. Chloe is enjoying some time at the beach with a friend and I actually have some time to do things that need to be done or not. I read an email sent from a friend this morning that really touched me and I have new resolve to listen to that inner voice that says all too often, BREATHE… take a moment… think about this… plan. Do you really want to do this? Is there time in life to take this on and still be sane? So, this is my promise to myself, my family, my friends, the world…I will move towards progress in all things good in life and breathe and take a moment or two along the way. 🙂
Graduate Cait
April 26, 2009
1. The hardest part is the decision.
2. After the decision, all of the other decisions are focused towards supporting #1.
3. No matter what, it will be okay because LIFE is GOOD.
4. In retrospect, this will all seem over-thought.
5. There are positives and negatives in any decision made.
April 14, 2009
My family went to see Malcolm Gladwell speak tonight. He is a remarkable author and just fascinating to listen to in general. He had a lot to say about what makes Americans the people they are and some pretty intriguing ideas on capitalization. He gave the word a kind of new definition to my way of thinking. I am going to buy the latest book of his, Outliers, because I want to know more about his ideas and observations. Cait has read Blink already and she enjoyed it quite a bit. If she still has it, I will read it as well.
I felt so lucky to be there tonight, listening, observing, and thinking about the way humans interact with others in general. On the way home we had a great conversation about the ideas presented and there were times when we were all silent. In those moments I wish I could know what everyone else in the car is thinking. I am just curious about stuff like that. But mostly, I feel lucky to have people in my life that listen to and share their persoonal ideas openly. I am always surprised to find out how people I know and love think. We all heard the same lecture but our ideas were all running in different directions. If you ever have a chance to go see Malcolm Gladwell speak…. do it! It was a great experience and slice of my life this day in April.
April 7, 2009
I am sooooo excited! We just finished booking our flights for NYC to see my boy. We will not go until this summer but I like to know enough in advance that I can look forward to going for a while and I love to see what there will be to do when we get there. I enjoy looking at all the places to explore and things to see and do. Looking at all of the museum exhibits and the schedules of display just makes me sooooo happy. The last time we went was when my son was in high school. I never dreamed at that time that we would return to the city to visit him as an adult. When I called and told him we had booked our trip he said he would start thinking of the places we could go and things we could see. This time will be a total different experience from the one we had quite a few years ago. Life is Good!
March 31, 2009
All day today I have thought about what to write for the last day of this challenge. Small moments have come and gone throughout the day, moments that could possibly be used in this post but I had rather reflect on this past month as a small moment in my entire life. I will continue to post to this online journal, but I am sure that it will not be every day. Now that I will not post a slice every day, I hope to add a few pictures when appropriate and learn a little more about how to navigate etc. I want to share a little bit about why this was such a good thing for us to be a part of. Chloe and I have both grown a little this month and I feel so excited that she asked to try the challenge with me and… has so surpassed my expectations. When I read her slices, I was often surprised, touched or even amused by her thoughts as they appeared on the screen. Her brain thinks in both the same and different ways from what I thought. Does that make sense? Together we have discussed favorite daily events and talked about what we were going to post at the end of the day. Together we learned about new ways to think about words and understand computers. Together we have enjoyed our March of slices. A slice for every day of March in 2009. Mostly, I am proud,WOW and that’s just about all I can say. (reference from Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse…one of my favs)
March 30, 2009
So today, we are trying to decide what exactly to plant in our freshly composted and mulched flower bed while looking through the garden section of the hardware store. Definitely in over our heads… so many plants, too many to choose from. Chloe wants to pick pretty ones but we have gone done that path before. The pretty ones look great for about a week and then they start to droop and then…sudden death, like the fireflies in a jar I tried to keep all night so I could name them and make them my pets (mistake). I’ve never been quite sure what happened, but something mysterious overcame both the flowers and the fireflies. Now…I don’t want to plant just desert plants that make my house look like I live at the rest area either, otherwise why go to all the trouble of composting etc. In all things balance, I think to myself. Then we see it…ranunculus. What? I can hear you saying it to yourself. Chloe is smitten with the showy, bright, multicolored BIG blooms. Too pretty, I think to myself …won’t last…doesn’t look nearly hardy enough for our green thumb, but we’ll look at the label. Chloe whips out her iphone and finds that it is a desert plant that likes full sun. What? Okay, so we bought two and we will keep our fingers crossed. They have been planted and are being watered as I write. We also bought some natives that are colorful without being rest area-ish and some Celosia. We all like Celosia. The best part…when my students say something goofy tomorrow I am going to say, and you can quote me Cait, “Don’t be ranunculus!”
March 29, 2009
Top Ten Things that made my Sunday Spectacular
10. Migas for breakfast with my fam
9. Purging my utility/storage/buffet of crap room…i feel so accomplished
8. Trying to decide what flowers to plant in my front flower bed
7. Watching the Jr. high and High school DI teams practice before state comp (WOW)
6. Seeing Cait’s smiling face in the paper
5. Painting flower pots with Chloe
4. Taking junk to Goodwill that will not be returning to my house
3. Perfect weather for working outdoors
2. Grilling turkey burgers
drumroll…….
1. Imagining what my raised backyard planter will look like when all of the vegetables grow…yippeeeeee
A great way to spend the last weekend of March.
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