lazy summer

a lazy summer means no itinerary, a break from work, enjoying the outdoors, breathing fresh air, evenings by firelight roasting marshmallows... did i say no agenda?

the red, white and blue

Celebrate the birth of our blessed country, it surely is indeed the land of the free.

satisfying

This is a spot that can always satisfy. To lay here brings a sense of calm - I sigh and feel a peace come over me... as long as the mosquitoes aren't biting.

Time flies or lingers

Isn't it funny how some hours, days or weeks seem to just fly by, while others seem to move very slowly? My work week seemed to go by very quickly but the weekend lingered nicely - and that's the way I like it.

my ordinary life

I lead a pretty normal life with most of the mundane chores that women have, but one thing I feel lucky that I can always fit in my day... time for just me, and no agenda. This is the beautiful thing about the empty nest.

wings to fly

photo credit - my brother, David

“The reason birds can fly and we can't is simply that they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings” - James Matthew Barrie

Almost every day I receive a bird photo, or two, in an email from my brother. He has captured a lot of great bird activity this spring. I thought the one he sent me today was especially cute. He said this baby was struggling mightily to hang on to the wire... flopping this way and that, almost falling off several times. In comes mommy bird to give some words of encouragement to her little fledgling. She seems to be saying, "you have wings to fly sweetie, don't be afraid".

shades of gray

Kodi is my Russsian Blue kitty - shades of gray - she is.

journey

I didn't journey far but my mind was miles away. Sometimes I think I have to get in a car, or take a plane – travel far away – to experience something new and exciting... but sometimes it's right there in my own backyard .

out my window

It might not be particularly extraordinary but I was surprised, and excited, when I looked out my window one day and saw this little chickadee at home in this little ceramic house. I've had it hanging there for years and to my knowledge no bird has ever occupied it. It makes me happy to know she's there.

fresh

I woke up this morning refreshed... stepping out into the crisp morning air, alive with birdsong and the sweet scent of wild azaleas... I knew it was a day for a walk in the woods. Evee enjoyed it too... the water was fresh and clean, reflecting new spring green.

old text

I was hoping to find some interesting words on a wall or funny sign this week but I still had not found anything when Taylor came home carrying this book that she found at an abandoned house. The cover was torn and the pages tattered and stained and falling out, but it was beautiful - a book filled with poems about friendship and old fashioned floral paintings and pen and ink drawings - published in 1961. While she was scanning the floral paintings I took the inside cover and first page of the book and photographed it. Can you read it?

Hope

"For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;

the flowers appear on the earth;

the time of the singing of birds is come,

and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land."

- Song of Solomon

The snowdrop is such a sweet and delicate flower. I saw these this weekend at Callaway Gardens and when I thought of posting for the theme "hope" I thought of these little flowers. They are known as the 'flower of hope' - a sign of life returning to the earth after the long winter months. I believe all flowers symbolize hope and rebirth as cold winter breaks to show signs of spring.

Spring

Yesterday the twig was brown and bare;

To-day the glint of green is there;

Tomorrow will be leaflets spare;

I know no thing so wondrous fair,

No miracle so strangely rare.

I wonder what will next be there!

~L.H. Bailey

green is my favorite color

I saw a lot of green today. This first day of Spring I took note of the hydrangeas sprouting forth with new growth and delicate little green sprouts of vinca poking through the soil, a greener grass lawn and bright green houses down in Cabbage Town. But my favorite green of all was the green Jeep in the driveway (she name my old car Kirby). To look out the window and see that green puts a big smile on my face - it means Taylor is home. Green is my favorite color.

flawed = strong

"A bible that is falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t."

These are my parent's Bibles - worn and tattered - many would think the books flawed with their scuffed covers and bent pages - but my parents carry them proudly. To me these flaws are visible evidence of their dedication to God and proof that they read His word daily - their source of strength in a world filled with flaws.

Treasured

When I first read the theme "treasures" I knew I had plenty of things to talk about - quilts, special furniture, carvings, paintings, children's drawings... I have so many beautiful things that members of my family have made for me - handmade, with love, that are more treasured than anything money can buy. I use them or admire them everyday.

But then there are those things we cherish that have somehow gotten tossed in a box somewhere and long forgotten. Just today I was working on cleaning out my basement. So it seemed timely to talk about the things I was finding down there. It's times like this, when choosing what to keep and what to toss, that we really have to put a value on things - what do we truly treasure? What holds special memories, what are the things that might someday be important to your child even if they aren't now? Do we keep those things? (I'm glad my mom kept my special childhood treasures).
I have so many things stored in my basement - things dating back from my college years; my early years of marriage; keepsakes from Taylor's childhood, the clothes she used to wear, the toys she used to play with and stuffed animals she cuddled, drawings from her childhood and artwork from her highschool years. I hold these things dear, but I can not keep it all.
As you can probably guess, I didn't make much progress because I got sidetracked reliving the memories. It's hard to know what to do with all of it. Do I hang on to it because Taylor will one day want them? Do I toss it or use it? One box I found stored some things I had made - one of the first usable blankets I had ever woven and a crib quilt I had made for Taylor before she was born. I was glad to find this box. So thankful that the moths had not eaten it up, I took the weaving out and brought it upstairs. Of course treasures should be cared for and protected but what good are they stored in a box deep in the basement? I think I'll use the blanket for now. I'll take care of it and maybe one day Taylor will treasure it - use it in her home - not store it in a box in her basement with moth balls. But one thing that will be stored away again - and more carefully labeled this time – is the baby quilt, along with Taylor's favorite stuffed animal - Mutsy, a dog she carried with her everywhere she went. Some things you can't use any longer but you just can't part with it either.

self portrait

photobooth

Is it true? we are what we think. I believe there is beauty in each and every one of us. Sometimes I just have a hard time seeing it in myself. There is power in the mind. Believing. I believe? I believe.

Rocky

These were the rocks I was concerned with this past weekend. Up on the chair lift, swaying and rocking in the wind, so high it crossed my mind a couple of times - if I fell off of this chair I don't think it would be such a soft landing. Well, I didn't let that thought stay with me very long, rather I enjoyed the beauty all around me from a vantage point I don't get to see very often. It was amazing being so high in the trees, enjoying the breeze becoming colder and colder the higher we rose and the gently swinging chair was rather relaxing - a good breather before skiing down once again.

Depends on how you look at it

"A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush."
- a well known proverb meaning that we should be happy with what we have and not risk losing it by being greedy and trying to get more.
but.... IS a bird in the hand, in fact, better than two in the bush. One might point out that while something that is known, and possessed, might be certain, the unknown could have a value far exceeding the known. So is it better to say "A bird in the hand is good, but a bird in the bush might sing." ? hmm... that's a different perspective. Guess it's all in how you look at it.

shadow

"Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow.

The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. " - Abraham Lincoln