goodbye january | glist

There's really no good way to say it so I'm just going to lay it out there...

January sucks!

I tell my girls, "nice girls don't say suck", but this just seems one of those times where it's absolutely necessary. This was a hard January, but then again, I can't remember a January that didn't feel like this.

For starter I'm just coming off a wonderful holiday and being swept into the new year, with let's face it, a whole lot of questions about whats next, where to, clouding my judgement. It's not that I'm sad, more there's a heaviness in the air I just can get rid of -- of course the ominous grey skies and smoggy atmosphere are not help at all.

Sigh!

It's interesting how I've been feeling and then recognize that 3 times I have been, in one way or another, reminded to be grateful -- too look for the good. It came on the radio, in the form of a traditional letter, and in my inbox. I think maybe someone is trying to help ease my January blah -- and just in time for February.



G | list
I'm grateful project life is helping me, even more, to live in the present.
I'm grateful for a good night rest. I actually woke up rested this morning.
I'm grateful for the weekend.
I'm grateful for possibilities.
I'm grateful for second chances.
I'm grateful for time with friends -- and needed phone conversations.
I'm grateful for workshopping ideas.
I'm grateful for the ability to go outside without a heavy coat on.
I'm grateful for the sun.
I'm grateful it's February 1.

As frightening as it seems sometimes, I am grateful to be open and vulnerable -- anything is possible in twenty thirteen.

12of12 | January

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01. On our way

02. Ice formations on the window -- it's cold out this morning.

03. Bagel day -- not even the snow will stop us.

04. Getting a workout with the girls dancing to Just Dance 4.

05. We decided to go sledding up in the canyon. The hill/slope was really small so it was hard to get any really speed, but when you did, you had a long trek back.

06. Five sets of boots

07. Bella didn't last long sledding. She spend the last bit in the car trying to warm up.

08. Megan and Tess had the best time. They didn't even know they were frozen till we left.

09. How could Adam and I resist going down together.

10. A new toy. I got the Bamboo tablet with some of my amazon gift cards for Christmas. Thanks all! I'm really looking forward to playing with it and learning illustrator this year.

11. View sledding (iphone)

12. Saying good night from my studio.


The majority of my collage is from the beginning our our day because, sadly, I accidentally erased 1/2 my photo card. Deep breath. I don't have the words at how bummed I am that it happened. I really don't get it. My camera changed the date back to 1/1/2000, so somehow the photos got missed when I went to import them. My heart hurts every time I remember a photo that I can't get back. Deep breath.
I am choosing to let it go -- there' s nothing I can do about it now. Sigh! I hope you all had better luck than me.

Actually I really hope you all had a great day. I know we did. Always fun when the 12th lands on a Saturday.

So I'm mixing it up this year and trying a new link system. You should easily be able to share your link and choose the photo you want to put in the thumbnail. If you run into any troubles let me know, I will make a tutorial (have been unable to find one).

still no snow day

This was yesterday morning.



We woke up to at least two feet of snow and still the kids were not given a snow day. Bummer for them. Apparently as a state, we're just too prepared for the snow. I guess it's a good thing. :)

I loved it, especially because I had no reason to go out in it and it kept the inversion away. What a beautiful day!


p.s. I got a message from the district last night apologizing for not cancelling school. Oops!

the forecast says snow

It snowed! After weeks of waiting it finally happened. We woke up Saturday morning surprised to find a blanket of white covering the earth. It was beautiful and well worth the wait (although i am still shocked we went through the holidays with 50 degree weather). I knew immediately what we'd be doing with our weekend.

It actually wasn't too deep when we woke up, which was when I took these pictures, but as the day progressed and snow continued to fall I believe we ended up with close to 3-4 inches.







and it's still here -- well most of it anyway.



While the other girls were sledding Tess and a friend (who couldn't sled) made a fort in the backyard. They struggled to get all the snow they needed and weren't actually able to finish do to time, but they certainly had a great start. Guess we need another storm.

Do you have snow?

peeling away the layers

My dear friend Eryn came to visit me yesterday to talk photography. I was looking forward to seeing her, I only have a few more months before she leaves me again, but was hesitant about the rest. I guess you could say I haven't been motivated at all to do anything creative, let alone taking photos. It's a good thing she came and gave me a big kick in the pants--I needed it. She has always been good at pulling me out and making me do things I don't want to do, like blind dates. Oh the story I could tell about the two of us, but that is for a different day. Suffice it to say, this woman is good for me.

Turns out she wanted to discuss my process. Why I take what I take? Funny, I'm not even sure I know myself. I think that's a hard thing to try to explain. Back in the day I bet I could have explained it easier, but now it's something I don't even think about it. It's very intuitive, second nature, and I think that's why, besides the fact that I'm roaming around in nature, shooting has the ability to calm my troubled heart. It feels very peaceful.

It was hard at first, to talk through what I was seeing and why I was drawn to certain things--the shape, the color, the lines. She had to keep pulling it out, encourage me to talk while I shot. It's not that I didn't want to share it's just that it didn't feel natural. I think I must have kept falling back into my groove because she kept laughing at me when I would move on without a trace. Eventually we were both doing our thing in my front yard, peeling away the layers as the morning heat up, and I felt like me again.





















Afterward when I saw what she captured I wondered why on earth she came looking for advice from me--the girls got skills. I hope you know that Eryn. Now it's my turn to kick you in the pants. Thank you for getting me out there.

xoxo

frost

it was so beautiful to wake up yesterday morning to a delicate layer of frost covering everything in site. There are only a few things that would get me out of my cozy bed on a winter morning to brave the freezing cold...that was one of them.

kid craft: sockman

In October the girls and I put together these snowman (aka sockman) thanks to a friend of mine who gave me the instructions. It's actually really easy. All you need is a sock, something to fill the sock with like rice or wheat (i used wheat because I had it on hand), yarn or string, black beads, buttons, orange palmer clay or playdoh, small piece of fabric, and a glue gun or some other adhesive.

here's how you do it.

1) fill up bottom of sock using about 1 1/4 cup of wheat. Take a 3 in piece of yarn and tie a really tight knot around the sock close to where you filled it.

2) repeat step 1 twice for the middle and head. Instead change the cup amount to 3/4 (middle) and then 1/2 (head). note: these measurements may be different depending on the size of the sock you use. Best thing is just to try it out and see what works best.

3) clip the yarn close to the tie so it will get lost in the snowman fold.

4) decorate snowman with whatever you want. We used black beads for eyes to look like coal and buttons on the middle section. We made the carrot nose from rolling palmer clay into a cone and added a few small lines. If you don't have any be create, you could use playdoh or even make home made playdoh with water, salt, and flour.

5) Lastly we cut a strip of a fabric an tied it around head to give the snowman a scarf.

I'm sure there are lots of other things you could do to decorate, but we just made it quick and easy with stuff we had on hand.

.

My girls had a really great time with this project mainly because they could do so much of it and they were making a "new friend" (their words). The hardest thing for them was to tie the yarn tight. The other thing I helped them with was the glue gun...they were a little intimidated by the heat. My kids were very proud of their creations and spend a good amount of time playing with them the following weeks. Now they are part of the decorations.

Enjoy!

PS after doing this project I realized I need to be much better about finding projects we can do together like this. We had such a great time. If you have any ideas or know of a good website please share. Thanks. Have a great Monday.

snow fight

Over the weekend there was a huge snow storm and well, we couldn't quite resist getting out in it.

























and you can't have a lot of fun without making a big mess. We spent the rest of the day thawing out. Good times.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

I'm not the biggest fan of snow, but I have to tell you, I do love a good snow storm when you don't have to leave your home. Since I'm still feeling less than myself I'm here to stay drinking a hot cup of cocoa and a good book (I just started A Town Like Alice). I'm also happy about the snow because it's December after all and it hasn't snowed since October. Unheard of. My kids were outside Saturday playing without jackets on. Crazy. I'm definitely ready for it to start looking/feeling more like Christmas when I walk out my door.

at it again

1. I'm beginning to see a trend.
This week has been hard for me. I guess the easiest way to explain would be to say the crazy lady came to visit. I haven't wanted to whine about it so I've stayed silent, but this morning after waking up and feeling "amy" back again (hooray) I decided to track my progress so I can make sense of when the crazy lady comes and when I feel myself. As it turns out the post I wrote about the crazy lady visit last month was on the 15th. I was sure it would be close, but had no idea it would be exactly 4 weeks. Strangely enough it's too soon to be blamed on PMS (or so I think) so I'm going to be tracking my progress this year to see if I can make sense of it. Perhaps all I will find is that the crazy lady comes as quickly as she goes the same time each month. And since I know it's too powerful a feeling to just plan for, perhaps I can find ways to not let it take over and leave me feeling lost and unfulfilled. Tell me do you have visits from the crazy lady and if so have you ever tracked your progress? Have you been able to fight her off? I'm curious if it's possible.

2. A good run

It has certainly been a good run while it's lasted...the spring like weather that is. I knew it wouldn't last forever and that soon the white fluffy stuff would start falling again, but I wasn't quite prepared for it this morning. I was promised rain and see snow forming on my grass once more. It's such a bummer to think I'll be celebrating Easter in the snow. Why in the world does it have to be in March? I know it has something to do with the moon and what not, but why can't it be like Mother's Day and be on one Sunday in April (the 3rd sunday would be good).

3. Speaking of changes
I have so enjoyed day light savings. I was hesitant to have my mornings dark again, love waking up to light it makes me feel liked I've slept in, but having more light in the evening is a promise that we are headed out of winter and it's done wonders for my spirit.

4. the thrill has worn off

I've been listening to a lot of talk radio lately. It use to be just a car thing, since I'm in it so much, but realized I was bummed when my journey was over so I resorted to rummaging through my emergency kit and pulling out one of the 3 radios I have stashed in there. Turns out it works great and is so small I can carry it around with me from room to room (it's a shame ipods don't have the radio option). I have been so fascinated by the upcoming election and of course that's pretty much all they've been talking about that you'd think I would be enjoying the commentary, but now with so much air time given to the Spitzer scandal and who is or who isn't a racist it's all become a little too much for me. I would think our country would be above all this talk, but this election has proven otherwise. Such a bummer. So for now I'm done with talk radio for a while.

5. all pink all the time

I think the picture speaks for itself, but in case it doesn't this little girl has a contest with herself to see just how much pink she can put on each day. Today her pink polka-dot jammie shirt, pink sparkly ballerina, pink tights, and pink head band beat yesterdays outfit.

I reminded of two things today:

1. I can't do it alone
2. There are good people in this world willing to help strangers

I had just dropped Megan off at a friends house, picked Tess up from school, and was heading home when I came around the corner onto my street and slide into the embankment and got totally stuck.



Since we were about 300 yards from home Tess and I got out of the car and walked home with the intention of getting a shovel and digging the car out. Well that was a joke. After about 15 minutes of shoveling I quickly realized just how stuck my car was and with Adam out of town and 2 kids that still needed picking up today I could be in big trouble.

Lucky for me my car got stuck across the street for a seminary and soon enough a teacher came out with a shovel in his hands to help me. He was a lifesaver. He helped me dig my car out which took about 30 minutes, told me to put my car in low gear, and guided me out of the hole I was in (I could never have figured all that out on my own).

I got in the car after thanking him profusely and tears rolled down my face. I wasn't near crying before, but I was so grateful to this man for getting me out of such a mess that the tears came. Earlier while we were both shoveling I asked him if he was missing a class and he really didn't answer, then I realized after he was gone that he was probably on his lunch break. It's nice to know there are people willing to use their precious time to help a stranger...little old me.

Now I've got to ask some of the kids in my neighborhood who the teacher is so I can send him a thank you or do something to thank him for helping me. Any ideas?

Have you ever been stuck like that before? I am so tired of the snow right now and I heard it's going to snow again tomorrow.

almost a perfect wintry day

This morning I woke up to a crazy snow storm which still hasn't let up. When I took this shot, and I did so you could see just how deep it's gotten, it was about 9:30am and there was at least 12 inches of fresh snow if not more (look how far the snow comes up my pants).

I actually delight in staying home and enjoy watching the snow come down while the bright whites come through my window, but unfortunately I have a sick one at home today and I'm now thinking it could be strep like what Megan had 2 weeks ago so I must take her in. I have been waiting for the roads to clear, but am not happy about venturing out into this mess.


So while stuck at home Bella and I cracked open The Invention of Hugo Cabret and read the first 7 chapters together,


Megan obsessed over a small read spot on her knuckle and put at least 6 band aids all over her hand, (it's still like that)

and Tess, well she has been my little helper today. Helping me fold laundry, clean tables, and vacuum. We also played puzzles and xbox together, and then I found her quietly playing with her Cinderella felt book.

It has been a perfect winter day if only someone could shovel my driveways, oh and if I had one less sick child at home, then it would be perfect.

fresh snow - a photo essay

a day of fresh snow and






a snowman




that ended with megan screaming about her frozen hands. Ah, I guess it wouldn't be a day without Megan crying about something.