Week In the Life | Monday

You guys know how fond I am of documenting my everyday, right? Right. So it shouldn't be a shock I have decided to give Ali Edwards Week In The Life another go.

If you've been with me a while you'll recall I participated in the first WITL organized by Ali back in fall 2008. It was such a great experience and I loved the outcome, however it was a pretty intense week. Constantly being on, with camera in hand -- it was a lot. Due to the intensity I sought out a different way to capture my everyday on a consistent basis -- enter the 12of12 project. I thought it was the perfect combination of documenting the bits and pieces of my life without feeling overwhelmed. I have absolutely loved the result of capturing one day a month.

When Ali first started talking about doing another WITL I went back and forth about whether I wanted to participate or not. Should I? Shouldn't I? Ultimately I decided 6 years was long enough and it would be fun to capture an entire week of our life again, after all out life looks so much different than it was in 2008.

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As per Ali's suggestion (our days are built with stories) I am starting this week and taking pictures based on the stories that make up our day. I am also working with her daily sheets that you can find here.



The story of today includes my Monday morning routine. Getting up at 5:30am and heading off to my friends insanity workout class. It's a hard workout and I mostly hate it, but I love seeing friends and especially love it when I'm done.



The story of today includes Tess' morning breakfast routine. It's usually buttered toast or Rice Crispies, and it's always the first thing she does in the morning. Today she just happened to be telling Bella all about her dream last night, you know the one where all your friends are dressed up in scary costumes? Ya that one.



The story of today includes Megan's morning routine or lack there of. Of all my girls the only thing she does consistently is not follow a routine. We are lucky, today she decided to get clean.



The story of today includes Adam staying home later than usual. He's usually up and gone by 6am so it was nice to be able to say goodbye to him. Also the picture on the left he was saying, "todays on the 12th, is it?" He wasn't the only one that asked that. :)



The story of today includes our one, yes one, outdoor decoration. It's our take on The Bones of Fred McFee, our favorite Halloween book.



The story of today includes Lolapuppy in her usual position. Asleep. She wakes about noon to see what I'm having for lunch.



The story of today includes me taking care of my house hold duties. I always start with the kitchen. If the kitchen is clean the house seems cleaner.



The story of today includes snowfall. Yes people, it was the first snowfall of the season. I teared up. Not sure I'm ready for the season to change just yet.



The story of today includes the beautiful view I get to enjoy as I drive Bella to orchestra rehearsal.



The story of today includes Tess reading The Maze Runner. It was the first thing she did when she got home from school after grabbing a snack. This is very unusual for her and I loved seeing it.



The story of today includes picking this girl up from soccer practice (not sure why she changed back into her street clothes) and her telling me all about how her team is going to dress up like zombies for their final game Saturday.



The story of today includes me making chicken noodle soup and sweet Lolapuppy resuming her usual position by my feet. The smell of the chicken keeps her close.



The story of today includes one of my favorite parts of my day -- eating together as a family. I'm digging the reflection.



The story of today includes how as a family we finished the Book of Mormon after 5 years. It was quite a momentous occasion.



The story of today includes the relationship between these two. Could it be sweeter? Lolapuppy lives to spend time with her Alpha.



The story of today includes finishing homework, and surprise texts from friends. Good times.


If you want to learn more about Week In The Life see Ali's latest getting ready post.

Are you participating? Will you start now?

12of12 | October

01) Megan and Lola puppy deep asleep. Megan had her tonsils out and is doing great and sleeping so much better!
02) Tess' choice of breakfast -- grapefruit.
03) Adam and Lola puppy have the sweetest relationship. Adam's giving her a little love before he heads off to his church meetings.
04) Waiting for Adam to come home so I can go to my church meetings. We're splitting up our time at home to be with Megan. Seems almost silly since she is doing so well -- she's bouncing off the walls.
05) Megan's good friend came to visit this afternoon with a nice gift. She gave her matching jammy pants. Megan could not have been more thrilled.
06) I attended two primary programs and a Baptism this evening. I love being in the primary.
07) I was gifted this old Canon film camera. I am excited to get some film and start to play with it. :)
08) From the other room I could hear bursts of laughter. I followed the sound and found these two girls having the best time together. Love stumbling upon this.
09) The sun finally came out this afternoon and the puppy lost no time in enjoying it.
10) Tess wanted us to play her bean boozled game. Half of the jelly beans in the box are flavors you're familiar with like popcorn, licorice, etc. and the other half are disgusting flavors like barf, boogers, baby wipes, etc. You take your changes and hope you don't get one of the bad ones (they are disguised). I of course got barf and I couldn't get the taste out of my mouth for a long time. I don't advise this game unless you have good luck.
11) Bella got dirty socks, but she kept saying, "Wait I don't know if this is tutti fruit or dirty socks?" Still not sure how she didn't know. Tess and Adam got good flavors -- why am I not surprised. Megan opted out.
12) I am increasingly dismayed by the rapidly changing light. It's the hardest thing about the change of season into fall for me. I wish I could bottle it up.

Sundays are among my favorite days of the week so I love the chance to document, especially because it's usually a low key day. How was your Sunday? I hope it was the perfect end to your weekend. Don't forget to share your day with the rest of us on our Facebook group. Find us here.

xo

brave little Meg

As I watched her turn the corner and walk down the stark white hall with the anesthesiologist I whispered a little prayer for the doctor, you have a huge piece of my life in your hands, please take extra care.



Megan’s getting her tonsils out this afternoon. It’s a routine surgery that only takes about 40 minutes. I’m feeling really good about it, but there is still a level of anticipation. I think it’s more for the post op than anything else. I had my tonsils out when I was five and I remember the experience like it was yesterday. It’s not an easy recovery, but at least there are some perks — nothing but popsicles and ice cream for days.

She was so excited about this fact, telling everyone she could about her “awesome luck”, but the truth is, right when life gives you the green flag to eat all the liquid sugar you can, you don’t want any of it. I know I’m going to be forcing popsicles down her all weekend.



This little girl of my mine adds so much light and color to my life. I'm so proud of her for being brave and pushing away her uncertainty. We joke that there's so much Megan, and there is, but it's precisely her boldness that makes her a force in this world and I know she's going to be A OK.

Never change.
Love you little MG. xx

12of12 | September

01. Bella getting ready for school. Still blows my mind that I have a daughter who's a freshman.
02. Tess making her lunch with the puppy under foot waiting for a kick back.
03. Adam is usually not home in the morning when the girls head off to school, but for some reason he slept in today (6am) and exercised at home so was here and able to say goodbye to the girls.
04. Making their way to school -- thank goodness it's Friday
05. Taking my time with breakfast -- I had a busy day ahead.
06. One of the hardest things anyone has ever asked me to do was make cookies when I wasn't eating sugar. Don't try it -- it's not fun.
07. Lola puppy having her afternoon play date with her bff June.
08. Tess getting a bit of screen time after school.
09. I was surprised this was the only color in our camp ground. I thought for sure there would be more colorful trees. Not complaining though, it was beautiful being there. Can't say the same about how cold it got.
10. Girls gathered around the fire to keep warm talking all teenagery. I believe the last thing they asked me as I headed to bed was, "mom do you remember your first kiss?" Still trying to decide if I should be afraid.
11. Adam and our friend Joe setting up the tent.
12. Watching the last bit of light leave us.

While working on this collage I looked back on the last few months of my 12of12s and I couldn't help but smile. I absolutely love this project. Of course there are times when I wake up and I can't bear the thought of documenting another day, but I am always so glad I did. I love how I am able to take a piece of the present and keep it forever. Do you feel that way?

I hope you have enjoyed this project this year. Hard to believe we only have 3 more left before we say goodbye to 2014. Remember to share on facebook. Looking forward to seeing what you were up to.

xo

12of12 reminder

Hi friends.

Just wanted to remind you that tomorrow (or today depending on when you're reading this) is the 12th for those of you playing along with the 12of12 project. And for those of you've who aren't -- it's never to late to start. :)

It's possible I'll be camping tonight which would keep me from posting my 12of12 post Friday night, but will be sure to get it up Saturday.

Have fun!

12of12 | August

01. I woke up at 6am to find Megan on the computer playing minecraft. I asked her what she was doing and she proclaimed she couldn't sleep. Poor girl may have inherited my insomnia.
02. Lola puppy looking out the door for her friend June Bug. They have been getting together at least one time each day to play. Love that she has a friend across the street.
03. A friend of Bella's came over to "hang out". They hadn't seen each other in a long while so there were all sorts of hollers and giggles from behind the door.
04. Finally found some time to do a bit of photo editing.
05. Took a photo of our circular stairs while I sat outside getting a bit of sun. Needed to get outside -- even in the heat.
06. Today was a working day, didn't feel like summer at all as I paid my bills and sat at the computer indoors, but it does feel good to have it done.
07. Was finally able to get my typewriter fixed. Not sure what the girls did to it, but we are back in business!
08. Talked to a friend for a good long time this afternoon on the phone and finished up the puzzle while we spoke.
09. It was still summer for the girls. Although it was a bit cloudy they still managed to swim.
10. The August break prompt today was on the table. On my table -- months and months of piled up stuff. One of the things I didn't get to today, but wanted to was cleaning off my studio desk. I am a bit ashamed you can't see the bottom.
11. Made potstickers for dinner. Delicious and so worth the time.
12. Adam got busy, as per usual, to get a few projects done after dinner. Finally got the glass for our pantry doors.

It was sad when I realized this was our last 12of12 for the summer. I knew it would fly by, it always does, but I'm not near ready to move into another season. Good thing we still have a few more weeks -- I'm going to need it.

I hope you all had an enjoyable day. Like I said, I was able to check a lot of "need to get done" assignments off my list. Not my favorite way to spend a day, but necessary nevertheless. And really it feels so good to get it done, I don't know why I always procrastinate.

What did you do today?

Join the Facebook group and share.

He learned to love her before she thought it was even possible, so she didn't have a chance to hide & mess it up & while it was a little scary at times, mainly she could not even imagine the world without him there.

get ready for an August break

My lovely friend Susannah is doing her August break again.

I had such a good time participating last year, and even though I didn't really need to take a break from my blog per say, I was already on break (insert smiley face), I enjoyed very much participating in the photo prompts. Not only is it a great chance to take a break from all the words and focus on the photos, but I love the creativity that flows as I think over each photo prompt. I'm definitely looking forward to doing it again this year.

Susannah is not only providing photo prompts again, but she'll be adding a bit of inspiration for you this year via daily emails. You can sign up for those and get more info from her August Break page. Make sure to check out all the ways she is helping us share our photos online.

I would so love for you to play along this year. It's a lot of fun and a great reason to take out your camera and play.

xo

feels like some kind of ride but it's turning out just to be life going absolutely perfectly ~storypeople

a delicate balance

On our drive to Mexico, yes i know -- crazy, I had amble time between intermittent conversation, listening to podcasts/talks, and reading to get some good thinking done. I had 16 hours people and when you consider round trip was 32 hours I had a lot of time on my hands. (actually putting it in those terms I should have got way more done. :/)

One of the things that filled up my head space was navigating through being the mother of a teenage daughter. I knew this day would come, I had feared it in a way, not really knowing what to expect. I have been pleasantly surprised, thus far, with the ease of this transition. I have loved the ability to have serious conversations with her, you know the kind where they can actually participate with their own thoughts and ideas? Ya that. We are communicating and I have been forever grateful of what has come up, the depth to which we have been able to talk. I trust her, she trusts me, and although we don't always sees eye to eye and I know sometimes I drive her crazy when I remind her of her commitments (e.g. violin or school -- trust me I've had the eye roll plenty of times), there has always been an open dialog where we can talk honestly. (Yes I know this is likely to change as she grows and needs different things from me, but for now I am grateful for where we are at.)



She knows I will always been there, at least I hope she knows, but there is always room for improvement. I need to be a better listener. You know when you talk to a man (most men) and all they want to do is fix the problem when all you want them to do is listen? I think too often my first reaction is to answer like a man or maybe I should be fair to men and say answer like a mother and I give my opinion too decidedly. As the words are spewing from my mouth it occurs to me that she never really asked for my advise per say, she's just bouncing off ideas. She just needs to talk and needs me to listen.

Sometimes I worry. I don't want her to make mistakes or fumble. I want her to be able to learn from my experience, you know give her a leg up, save her from pain, but this is her life and her experience and the only way for her to grow is to go through it in her own way and on her own path. I need to trust that she's got it under control. And I do. I need to not be so quick to jump in and allow her come to her own conclusions. Unless of course she needs me and then I'm all in.

I'm all in.

It's quite a delicate balance, I have decided, this mothering gig, to do right by your child and be for them what they need, when they need, and how they need. I'm trying not to get to overwhelmed as I type that. It's a learning experience for me too, isn't it? Even when I think I've got this one figured out I've got two more girls months/years from getting all teenagery (let's be honest, if they haven't already) and I know my experience with them will be vastly different then the one I'm having now. My girls are all so different and they'll need different things from me. In fact, I will be maneuvering through these unclear waters for quite some time. Who am I kidding, I will always be learning how to be their mother as the years progress and my girls life circumstances change.

Life is great that way, isn't it? Always giving us opportunities from growth. :)

12of12 | July

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01. I will never understand how I can have a delightful morning to sleep in and I'm up at 5:30am? I was bummed, but I definitely made good use of my time.
02. The puppy sat at my feet on the way to the bagel store. She is always out of her mind excited to get in the car. Her face in this picture - I can't stop laughing. She is such a funny dog.
03. So many choices and yet they always get the same thing. The usual: Adam - whole wheat toasted with peanut butter. Tess & Megan - cinnamon sugar toasted with butter.
04. Adam and Tess with an early morning face off about his morning coke.
05. All of us missing Bella, who's at a friends cabin, at our traditional Saturday morning bagel breakfast, aka bagel day.
06. Adam drove us in Daisy, his new man toy. I've never laughed so hard as the Puppy took my spot and wouldn't budge. By the end of the ride home I was on the floor.
07. Violin practice. I wish I could say I enjoy this time together, but it always ends up with the two of us battling it out for who knows best. Perhaps we could both do better at listening.
08. We ran several errands today, most of which were in preparation for Megan's birthday. In case you're wondering, no she hasn't stopped talking about it.
09. An afternoon of swimming. Good times!
10. Adam spent his day working on the pool. As you can see it is not going well. I think if I can recall as he climbed up the latter he yelled, "why must everything be broken?"
11. Adam got in the pool with the girls & tossed them around.
12. We ended the night with Rusted Sun Pizza. Can't complain about that!

When I have moments like I did last month where I struggled I think, i don' know, maybe this project has run it's course and then I have a month like today and my spark of documenting is lit. I really do love this challenge. I love that it helps you look at your life in a whole new way. Today was easy, there was lots going on, but I do love having more of challenge to see pieces you can often overlook.

I hope you had a great summer day. Looking forward to seeing what pieces of your day you captured on our Facebook group. If you're not a member follow the link and join us.

Today, for some reason, I see how short our lives actually are & how often I forget to look in your eyes & stop time entirely & say, You have made this life for me. -storypeople

I had a dream the other night about death. You know the kind you wake up with a start, your heart beating at a rapid pace, and tears fall with gratitude -- it was only a dream? It's certainly not the first time I've dreamt of someone I care about dying and certain not the last, but it stuck with me, as those dreams tend to do, and I spent my day processing found my self thinking about it.  I've even had the reverse happen where I dream of someone who is dead, but in my dream they're very much a live and it's so real I forgot reality and wake up ying because it was true, but that a story for a different day.

But this time after some time to process my dream and shake it off it got me thinking about life and how fragile it is and how we never know how much time we have left to experience. I wondered what I could do daily to make life more meaningful and if I knew today was my last day to live what would I do differently than I did yesterday? How much would it change the way I used my time? How would I spend time with my girls? How would I end the day with Adam? How would I speak with friends? How would my priorities SHIFT?

What would you do differently, or how would you live your life if you knew it was your last?

Well first let's put it this into perspective -- obviously if I knew today was my last I wouldn't be on the computer blogging and my girls wouldn't be in school and Adam would be off work and we would spend the day together and who knows what hilarity would ensure. (makes me smile just thinking about it -- the "day" not the "last" part). No I mean looking at life as a whole, a true day to day. if you knew it was your last day but you didn't know it at th time, meaning you would go about life as normal, you would change anything but you make the day count more, make your time more meaningful.

Don't get me wrong there is a lot I need to work on, but I feel like I'm pretty good about the details. Taking everyday photography has really helped me to find gratitude in daily life and appreciate the little things I may not have noticed before, but 

There are too many days were busyness takes over and often a day will go by and i can't find the details. Because you mind is focused on whatever the end result instead if letting the end result move you through the day.

Taking photos helps with the details I think, but it's more than that. I'm talking about stuff you can't photography. The mood in your home in the morning before school particularly when it gets crazy, the goodbye you share or are am I took quick to shut the door looking for peace, the do I spend my day focused on me or reaching out to family and friends, am I taking time to nourish my body's and soul, am I taking moments to express gratitude, do I longer at night or am I too quick to jump in bed,  I help ease the tension of after school with positivity, do I smile, I I suppress a crazy thought, do I make sure to touch Adam,

I think when we become conscious of our days we life becomes more meaningful and we slow down and stop to smell the roses so to speak , or at least that is true for me. Indtead of walking up begrudging the day because piles of laundry are waiting or your going back to the same desk and the same faces as the day before and shift our thinking to this day being the best so far I believe it truely can be.

It reminds me of quote I heard once, could have been in a movie I can't now remember, "tomorrow is my best day"

right now + reminder

I'm appreciating very much the relationship I have with my boy.

I'm listening to the puppies (Lola and her friend Junebug) play out back.

I'm organizing photos.

I'm loving this summer.

I'm looking for a good movie to see. Any suggestions? Is been forever since I've seen a good movie.

I'm craving Indian food.

I'm feeling like there's change on the horizon. Not sure what it is, but I'm confident it has something to do with the SHIFTING I've been calling in this year.

I'm drinking a ton of water to try to curb my sugar addiction (yep I'm addicted). Some days it works, some days it doesn't. Today it's working!

I'm planning time to spend in my studio. Yes!

I'm writing thank you notes.

I'm trusting God.

I'm looking forward to spending the day with my camera. Consider this a reminder -- tomorrow is the 12th!!

I'm navigating through some of my personal roadblocks. I'm beginning to really look at my fears in the face and make an ACTION (being the operative word) plan to overcome them. 

I'm waiting for Adam to get home. We have a date tonight.

I'm happy.

puerto penasco.

Puerto Penasco, Mexico. It's where we spent a week of our summer vacation. It was everything and nothing I thought it would be. What can I say -- we loved it.

Highlights:



The sunsets.

Walks along the beach -- at night, in the morning -- couldn't get enough.



The food! By far one of the best parts of being there was eating the local cuisine. And the fresh tortillas -- yes please!



Getting to practice my Spanish. Soy no bueno!





Getting the much needed downtime. It's was nice to unplug and set my todo list aside. We all needed this break.







Cornrows. Girls loved having their salty hair out of their face for the week. I did too!



Megan got stung by a jelly fish. She said it hurt like crazy, but Adam used his urine, as per the locals advice, to alleviate the pain and she was fine after that. She may need therapy in the future!



Tess caught a fish. Not her first fish, but I believe the first one she caught in the ocean.





Mangoes on the beach with spicy red peppers made especially for you -- to die for. Seriously! I'm going to be recreating these for sure.



To say it was crazy hot would be an understatement -- it was sweltering. I don't think the thermostat said it was ever above the 90 degrees, but with the 90% humidity it must have been well into the 100s. We were sticky & sandy the entire week. Good times!





Hitting the beach every morning when the tide was out looking for crabs, starfish, clams and the kids even spotted an octopus.



Hour and hours and hours on the beach playing and reading a book. I read The Rosie Project and laughed the whole way through.





I received a most delightful massage.





I thoroughly enjoyed just how different the landscape, the streets, the buildings were from home. There was something so captivating about the rawness of Mexico.





At first I thought it would be strange, you know, to be celebrating the fourth of July in a different country, but being there made me appreciate home and so grateful to be an American. I love the USA.

stories from the past

I was privileged to spend the weekend at my dad’s family reunion. You see I wasn’t technically invited, it wasn’t for my generation, I was only there to document the event, but as I witnessed my dad, my aunts & uncle gather together with long lost cousins, (some of them meeting for the very first time) I knew this was exactly where I needed to be surrounded by their laughter and tears and what seemed like endless hours of storytelling about generations past. I felt like I found a little bit of myself as I witnessed this gathering I didn’t know was lost.



I have always had this extreme fondness for my Grandma Gretchen, whom I never had the privilege of meeting in this life. I guess you could say my affection for her came from the fact that I was named after her, and for the longest time I wanted to be like her. Growing up my parents had this picture of my grandma and grandpa in Hawaii sipping a drink out of a coconut. I remember telling myself I would get to Hawaii one day and drink from a coconut too. When I was in my late teens I taught myself to knit and discovered knitting came naturally. “Of course it did” I would tell myself. “I’m just like my Grandmother”.

So naturally being at this family reunion and hearing stories about my grandma with her eight sisters and three bothers I was intrigued, fascinated about their life in Montana back in the 1930s. Made me wonder what my life would be like if they had never left Great Falls in 1955. Perhaps that is why I sometimes craved small town living and romanticize life on the prairie — am I a Montanan at heart?

There were several stories that really struck me, but none more than this made me long for my Grandma more than I had before. She had two brothers who passed away. Her oldest brother Willis, died before she was born, she never knew him. Her next oldest brother Ellsworth died when he was about 20 in a work accident, which would have made my grandma a teenager. I couldn’t help, but recognize the similarities in our life story (brothers dying by accident at the prime of their life) and wished, so deeply wished, my grandma had been alive for me when my brother passed away and had been able to shed some light, given me some words of wisdom that would have helped my younger, inexperienced self heal.

Her generation is gone now, the last of her siblings, Doris, died in 2009. I met my great aunt Doris a few times in Montana as I recall, but I was too young, too immature to understand what a treasure I had in her. Why didn't I sit and talk with her about my grandma? Why didn’t I ask her about life in Montana? How could I have been so careless? How could I just watch my grandparents generation die (both my  mothers&fathers) without really trying to understand their world?

I didn’t see. I didn’t understand, but I do now.

Being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I’ve always been taught the importance of family history and genealogy work, but I didn’t understand until now the blessings that come from connecting the family tree. I was always so wrapped up in my immediate family to seek among the branches for answers, for connections, but oh I see how wrong I was. There is something very special about being surrounded by individuals who share the same blood, the same family history, the same scandals (yes there are several), the same heartaches, the same smile, the same laughter.

This past weekend the genealogy bug stirred deep in me. Getting to know those who have gone before, who are part of me, seeing them through their stories, and understanding their world is now inching it's way to the top of my list.

I'd say I can't wait to get started -- but I already have.


Have you done any genealogy work?
I'm a bit intimidated, should I be?

HEALTH | FITBIT

About a month ago I took the plunge and bought myself a fitbit flex.

Yep I jumped on the fitbit bandwagon. I was feeling sort of sluggish -- well, let's be honest. I've been feeling sort of sluggish for years. It's the kind of tired I can move through because I have to, but if I had the chance to take sporadic naps throughout the day I would. I've lived with it for years so it feels very much apart of my daily rhythm. There are times I will myself not to think about it and the tired seems less pronounced, but sadly it is always there weighing me down. Yes I've sought help. I've had numerous tests done and the conclusion is my body's chemistry seems to be a-ok.

With the medical world giving me zero answers I am left to my own devices.

Maybe being tired was coming from not being active enough? I know it’s sounds counter intuitive, but have you ever noticed the days you do nothing, like traveling or an all day movie marathon, when you’re sitting constantly, how tired you feel? Adam and I have talked about this phenomenon several times, how strange it is the less you do the more tired you feel and the more active you are the more energized you feel. It seems lazy begets lazy and active begets active.

So I wanted to figure it out — was I tired because I wasn't active enough or am I just tired?

That's where the fitbit comes in. I remember my friend Tory telling me about her fitbit when she visited in February. We were on a hike (we should have been snowshoeing but there was no snow — crazy) and she called out with enthusiasm, “I reached my goal!” Of course, having absolutely no idea what she was talking about, I made her explain. She told me all about her bracelet and how it tracks her movement throughout the day. I thought it was a great idea. If I could track my activity it would give me a more accurate indication of how active I am during my day. (I have always been one to exercised in the morning, but I was curious how active I was the rest of the day.)

I thought about just buying a pedometer, I mean it’s much cheaper, but I liked the idea of being able to track other things, like my sleep which I thought could be crucial when trying to understand my tiredness, so I went with fitbit and have been tracking my movement ever since.



My observation after using it a month:

01) I noticed how much it helped motivate me to stay moving. Just knowing it was on and tracking my steps was enough for me to want to stay on my toes. Instead of taking an elevator or parking as close to a store as possible, I opted to pick the option that would allow me to get more steps.

02) I realized it wasn't hard to get 8000 steps in a day. On the days I run, which is about 3 times a week, I get about 10,000 steps right off the bat. At first I loved it because I would reach my goal so early in the morning, but then it was defeating the purpose for the rest of the day — I wasn't as motivated. So I decided I would change my goal each day depending on what I was doing. When I ran I would make my goal somewhere between 15,000-18,000 steps a day. On a slow day, a day I’m traveling or a Sunday, I would adjust my goal lower to about 5000. On an average day my goal is set to about 8000 - 10,000 steps.

03) I’m actually a lot more active than I thought. Even the days I’m home taking care of my duties there I found I’m constantly moving. And on the days I’m more sedentary, the ones where I’m on the computer or working on a project, I make sure to take little breaks and go for a walk or do something active.

My fitbit experiment has been successful. It has helped me to be more aware and motivate me to stay on my feet, but sadly it didn’t help me understand more why I am so tired all the time. It’s definitely not because I’m not active enough. I feel really good about how much I move on any given day, even though some days are better than others.

I’m back to the drawing board and will share with you soon what experiment I did next to get to the bottom of being tired 24/7.

Bur for now, if you are looking for something to help motivate you to move this summer go get a fitbit or look for another like minded device that will help you track it and give you an idea of where you’re at so you can decide where you want to go.

xo amy gretchen

12of12 | June

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01. Tess making pancakes.
02. Adam finally getting out of bed for the first time in weeks and me joining him outside after my workout.
03. Megan cuddling with the puppy before heading off to dance.
04. Tess doing her 30 minutes of practice a day.
05. Bella finally made it home from California. They were suppose to arrive at 10am, but didn't show up till 1pm, which made her extremely late for chamber days with the Fry Street Quartet. :/
06. ...Which she went right to after I grabbed her.
07. Did a bit of shopping with Megan after getting her from dance. I'm not sure why I didn't take a picture of the swim toys we purchased.
08. She tried on all the glasses and hats in the place.
09. Afternoon swim.
10. The hose means someone is vacuuming the kitchen. Hallelujah! Why do I feel like it needs to be done every 30 mins??
11. Spend sometime outside enjoying the view/yard while dinner was cooking.
12. Last thing I did tonight was drop Tess off at her friends house. She is going on a camping trip with them in the morning. Good times!

I hope you all had a better go at it than me. It was an off day for me today, honestly I've been a little off since I got back from Squam. Can't really pin point it, but the fact that Adam has been sick since I walked in the door and I'm trying not to eat dairy, gluten, or sugar is not helping matters (more on that later). Unfortunately, I hardly took any pictures, but luckily when I finally sorted through my photos I had 12 to use. Seriously, around 5pm I really thought I wouldn't even have 9.

Anyway, you win some and lose some I suppose, but the fact that I actually did it is a win for me :)

Summer is full swing over here so I hope it's the same for you. Looking forward to seeing some of your lazy summer days. Makes sure to head on over to our Facebook group and share your day.

Have a lovely weekend!!

tales of the city

I have been dying to share the latest Squam Art Worshops offering. They're hitting the streets of Providence for their first ever Squam in the CITY!

I am beyond thrilled to be apart of it. One of my absolute favorite things is to get lost in the city with my camera. There’s something so unique about shooting in a city that you can’t find anywhere else. It’s the collision between people and architecture that gives the urban environment it’s unique ability to awaken the senses.

My workshop is called Tales of the City. During our time together we'll be going on a photo walk throughout Providence in search of the unique bits and elements that will help you capture a complete story of your experience of this ever moving, ever changing city and bring it to life.

Please come! It would be so much fun to get lost in the city together.

Check out Squam Art Workshops for more information about this retreat and the other classes being offered. I must admit, as delighted as I am to be teaching, I would love just as much to participate. This event is going to be amazing!

happy day. xo

captive island | flipagram

I completely forgot to bring my Canon camera with me on our latest trip to Captiva Island, FL. I know shocking, right? I was dumb founded as I walked into the airport and realized the heaviness from my camera that's usually wrapped around my body was missing.

It was shocking at first, I stood in the terminal a good minute before I could speak and tell Adam what was wrong, but must say I rose above. I saw it as a challenge to make the most of my iPhone and simultaneously get a break from carrying around my heavy camera in paradise.

In fact instead of taking so many photos I took a lot more video. I have plans to make a small film of our time there, not sure when they will happen, but for now I put together this flipagram of the photos I took.



Hope your having a delightful weekend.
xo

12of12 | May

01. First person I saw this morning was Bella. Up, showered, and eating breakfast.
02. Waking up Tess, and it turns out, the puppy as well.
03. Gathering together for prayers and scriptures before going our separate ways.
04. Megan on her way out the door to school.
05. Making breakfast
06. Eggs with tomato, feta, and avocado -- a favorite.
07. One of my favorite pieces in our home -- metal cubby.
08. Bella greeting the puppy as she comes home from school.
09. Megan and Tess doing the dinner dishes.
10. It rained/hailed this afternoon.
11. For FHE we worked on paper-mache for our Stake Primary float. It was extremely messy. I think it took as much time to clean up as it did to make.
12. Watching the sun fall behind the house from the top of the hill in our backyard. I love it here.

I love Mondays, and today was no different. Unfortunately I don't feel I adequately showed the productivity that Mondays usually hold. I find it's so easy to get caught up in the activity I'm doing that I forget to document. Does that ever happen to you? Oh well, I am happy with what I did capture and the bits I'm sharing. Feels good to put such a full day behind me and head to bed.

Hope it was a delightful day and that you enjoyed documenting your Monday. Don't forget to head on over to the facebook group to share your day with all of us.

Remember it is never too late to join or start participating 12of12.

Have a good one! xo

my people

Sitting ocean side feeling the sun at my back listening to nothing but the waves crashing over and over against the shore. 

This is heaven -- except I'm alone (adam's in his meetings). 

As much as I believe I'm an introvert I don't love being alone. I need people, no, I need my people.

I want to hear the girls racing up along the beach, splashing in the water, they would love it here. I want to lean over and rest my head on Adam's shoulder, feel him around my waist. It's not conversation I'm craving or just not being lonely, no, it's closeness. It's sharing a delightful heavenly moment with those I love -- and I must say, I missed sharing that with them this morning. 

a typewriter

I remember when my friend Maya Stein told me about the typewriter she had while growing up. It sat  on a table always available and ready to get used.

That tradition she had in her childhood home, stayed with me and inspired me to do the same. It seemed liked such a novel idea, especially now as old typewriters have started to resurface, to not just have the typewriter as decoration, but a constant invitation for our daily words.

Determined to make this happen from day one at The Ledge I found a typewriter on ebay while at the rental. I did my best to find the right ribbon, which turned out is discontinued, so I had to wind it myself. I then placed it on the table in our living room with a fresh piece of white paper and nothing but the date and waited to see what happened.



It wasn't long before I started to hear the clacking of the keys. The first few pages were full of the girls just messing around getting to know this new machine that didn't have (or so it seemed) a number one or an apostrophe. They spelled their names and typed individual letters over and over -- some light, some so hard the letters pierced a hole in the paper. They hit the return key to watch the carriage move back and forth.

Once they had settled in, understood the ins and outs, the words started to come. They write about their day, what's going on at the moment, what they like/dislike, their friends have even given it a go. Lately they even go a little deeper and share what's in their heart -- I love their willingness to be vulnerable with our family. I have really come to love the clacking of the keys. You never know what goodness you're going to find there, what stories they're going to share.

What I didn't understand when Maya first told me about her typewriter, but am beginning to see, is just how much life it holds. It has become this delightful spot in our home where our thoughts are coming together to create this magical memoir of our life here at The Ledge.

PL update

Hello.

I just realized last week that I never shared the video I made updating you on my 2014 project life. I started working on it the week we moved and got it finished, but with everything going on completely forgot to share it on my blog.

Of course its outdated now, well, sort of. What I mean is we are on week 18 so I should be working on at least week 16, but the truth is, I haven't done my project life since I've moved. GASP! It actually does stress me out because I have more then two months to sort through. I'm trying not to let it overwhelm me or I think I will just completely give it up.

Sigh.

Definitely giving myself permission to be way way behind and catch up as I can. I'm heading out of town this weekend and hope to do a lot of PL work on the go.

So what you see in the video is all I've completed so far for 2014, but just so you're aware I filmed it back on week 9.


PL | 2014 update from Amy gretchen on Vimeo.

Are you doing Project Life? If so are you up to date?