Wednesday

"Things happen. Things collide". (p.133) - Let the Great World Spin.

There is a theme of the connectedness of people and events in this book (my July book club selection) that can be interpreted as either eerie, spiritual, or just plain chance. Something to think about.

The book really blew me away; I've been telling everyone I know to read it so now I'm telling you.

Happy Wednesday!

oh, bother

As many of you noticed, something went awry with this site yesterday and it disappeared for a few hours. The problem is resolved; however, every comment ever left seems to have been erased. I'm kind of sick about it. So much of what I enjoy about this space is the interaction I have with you all. I'm holding out a bit of hope that the comments will be found and returned; if they aren't recovered, I guess I'll keep their emotional content in my memory, if not the exact semantics.

Poppytalk is hosting a week of summer colors; I thought I'd play along at least for today, as I love yellow.

I hope you're having a nice Tuesday. xo

in the strawberry fields

Over the weekend we had the good fortune to be part of a group, led by Jon Rowley, that gathered at Thulen Farms in LaConnor to pick Shuksan strawberries. Shuksan strawberries, I learned, are a highly perishable variety of strawberry with a 3 week season and a 24 hour shelf life. This means they are always picked and sold or used on the same day. Indeed, we noticed late in the day as we were washing and cleaning the last of those we'd picked for making jam, many more berries with mushy parts than when we started.

We had an opportunity to sample and compare the Shuksan strawberry to four other varieties; we were impressed by the noticeable difference in sweetness. This memorable event ended with delicious strawberry shortcake made by Jon Rowley with biscuits provided by Anthony's that were baked that morning, and strawberry ice cream made by farmer Chris McKnight. A truly special day.

Saturday

I hope you're having a fine Saturday. xoxo

week 1

(at the Queen Anne Farmer's Market; last photo in my home)

At times this week I've had thoughts along the lines of "I will never get caught up on my to-do list before I die". This is the first week school's been out and we're all adjusting to a new rhythm. There have been moments of tension between my boys as they get used to being together all the time, and stresses/adjustments for me. Still, we've slept late, read lots, swam in the ocean, enjoyed time with friends, played and played and played at the beach, spent time at the park, taken walks in the neighborhood, built with lego, ate ice cream, and battled in many squirt gun fights. All in all, a good week; summer through and through.

two years

Hello, friends.

Today marks the two year anniverary of this blog! As I spent some time looking through my archives last night, it was fun and interesting to see the elements of my life I've been able to document here, how things here have changed over time, and how I've grown as a photographer and writer.

Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to visit here. This online community continues to surprise and inspire me every single day. Thank you, truly, from the bottom of my heart.

dreaming

As I was tucking Abbott into bed last night he asked me, "What do you dream about, Mom?" What a question. "What do you mean by that? While I'm sleeping?" "Yes." "I often don't remember. The moon maybe. You." "Oh. I think I dream about what I've been reading. It's nice reading before going to sleep, isn't it?" "Yes."

the longest

In celebration of the longest day of the year, I took a short walk around my neighborhood last evening between 9 and 9:30pm to enjoy the very last bit of daylight; here's a bit of what I saw. I find I'm more acutely tuned in to sound as it gets darker. Particularly, I notice the constant sound of the waves at night like no other time of day.

Did you do anything special to acknowledge the summer solstice? Happy Tuesday!

the first day

Happy first day of summer! You'd never know it from reading this blog, but I never used to be a huge fan of summer. Before I had children it seemed like I spent the majority of my summer indoors working, and it depressed me to feel like I was missing it. Since having children I spend hours outside every day of every summer, rain or shine. And I'm able to feel fully present in the season. Maria wrote an eloquent post about summer yesterday expressing many things that have been floating around in my head.

At our family meeting last night we started a list of things we hope to do over the summer. I also wrote up a loose weekly schedule and posted it on our family board. It occurred to me that school is highly structured for the boys and they're craving free time, but that they benefit from some structure and sense of what's coming next. (Abbott requested that I also add the upcoming desserts to the weekly schedule.)

Happy Monday! And happy summer. Though we had two fireside meals yesterday, I'm told sun is in our future this week. xo

this Father

When I asked Alexi what he wanted to do for Father's Day, he said he mainly didn't want to leave our neighborhood. The reason being, he'd like plenty of time to play piano with Abbott, read to Cal, play street hockey, spend some time batting and catching, and so on. And that is how he lives his life. He inspires us each and every day just like this, to do our best and give ourselves fully to those around us. We are so very thankful for it.

Happy Father's Day Alexi! And Happy Father's Day to all of you other fathers out there!

the end

Yep - it's finally here. The last day of school, the official beginning of our summer. You may be wondering what these flowers have to do with that. I'll tell you. I've been walking by them every day to and from school the past couple of weeks since they bloomed and have been wanting to photograph them. Yesterday I finally did so, as it was practically my last opportunity before next spring. Aren't they lovely?

I am kind of a wreck - I really hate goodbyes (goodbye to this school year and the teachers we've had this year). It has been an extraordinary school year. I feel like I've written about it ad nauseum over the past month, so I'll leave it at that. Next week we'll talk about summer; for now I'm wishing you a happy start to your weekend. xo

the sum of our day

At the end of the day I hear the real deal about the boys' days. When they're vulnerable, tired, I hear about what was fun, what they did, how they perceive what they did, what they're proud of, what made them sad, what questions they have. As I read to them or listen to Alexi read, I feel the house begin to settle and the breathing collectively slow. And then when the lights are finally out, I sit and think about the sum of our day.

progression

I hope your day is nice, too. Happy Wednesday!