GROWTH

Don't hate me.

I love winter. 

Snow blanket!

I love the cold air, seeing big fat snowflake drift down silently, bundling up, burrowing under the covers, drinking warm beverages, and eating hearty breakfasts. 

Homemade chai and waffles anyone? They don't sound nearly as good in July. 

I love that it gets dark early in the evenings, and it's perfect for cozying up to read a book, watching a movie, or just sharing conversation. 

But.

Now that the end of winter is in sight, I am waking up from my snuggly sweet potato slumber. I crave more movement each day. After a lovely winter weekend away from it all, I am ready for my internal spring. 

I want to do ALL KINDS OF NEW THINGS. Like take yoga teacher training, just because, and go swimming and walking and ride my bike and get up early and practice centering prayer. 

Plant in our living room, preparing for spring! 

Do you secretly love winter? What are all the things you want to do now that spring draws near?

Road trip!

Sometimes I think I should blog more about how much I love this guy:

But I don't want to make you all sick. ;). We are pretty excited over here in our casita, because we are going on our first weekend roadtrip! The destination? It's a mystery! Why a mystery, you are probably asking, and for who? (whom?)

I happen to love surprises. It's genetic, mom's side. So naturally, I thought it was slightly unfair that I would not get to propose to Caleb. After all, I thought, I would be so good at it! Several months after he proposed to me, I proposed to him. Only fair, after all! 

[Side note: You guys. I got so nervous. Tunnel vision. And we were already ENGAGED after all. But that's another story.]

Caleb planned our honeymoon. Initially, we thought we'd both plan it; but I ended up having so much other stuff that we decided it was better for me to have one less thing to control. So I didn't know where we were going until we got there. And here is the road we turned down off the highway:

Magical!

This weekend, it's my turn. I know where we're going, and I'm putting Caleb in the car and blindfolding him for all two hours and fifteen minutes of the drive! (Maybe - his sense of direction is eerily good, which is useful for someone like me that doesn't know right from left.)

I will give you some hints, but don't tell Caleb. And using internet search tools is cheating. Only guesses from yo' brain.  

1. It's cozy. After all, my life motto is ABC (always be cozy)

2. It's sustainable. Fair trade coffee. Local produce, seasonally. 

3. There are $5 wine tastings on Friday and Saturday nights.

4. Olympic size pool, baby. Indoor. 

That's enough hints for now...
Guess away!

**bonus points if you can name the special occasion we'll be celebrating**

accidental musician

This weekend, I had the chance to go out with my sisters. I've never had sisters before, but thanks to marriage, I have two! At one point, we were talking about music. As some of you know, I took piano lessons for about a year and hated it the whole time. I quit and I have never regretted it. I may be one of the only people in the world who thinks this. My instrument was always my voice. I loved singing in a choir in grade school and high school. In college, I opted to not double major, just so I could spend my final semester taking Intro to Art Studio and Voice. (Two separate classes.) I also got my singing fix by going to a time of prayer every day at 3:30 pm with an incredible professor, who is now a published editor. We sang a cappella hymns every day, cementing my personal love of hymns.

Prayer chapel

Sometimes though, now that I am married, I am an accidental musician.

It almost always happens in the closet. Perhaps you could even call me a closet musician. For you see, in our closet, Caleb keeps his guitar.

Sometimes it happens when I enter, sometimes when I leave. Sometimes when I am getting a scarf off the door rack:

Initially it scared me. "Who is playing the guitar in my house?" Then it moved to surprise, "Where is that guitar music coming from?" Then I realized it was me. For whenever you bump the wall, shut a dresser drawer too hard or move the drawer, the guitar makes its own little noise. Which is quite lovely and surprisingly musical. 

Perhaps someday, I will find another outlet for my love of singing (besides singing this when no one is home). Until then, I will just keep enjoying being an accidental musician. 

We can do hard things (and how kids can carry grown-ups).

I am a little obsessed with Elizabeth Gilbert's book Eat, Pray, Love. Every time I read it, I feel like I am on a pilgrimage/ great adventure. And so I have read it way more times than is probably normal...

So there is this part, under the "Pray" section where she's in India. She is staying in an ashram, a sort of Indian, yogic monastery. She follows their practices, goes to bed early, and wakes up (at 3:00 am) for a time of prayer. There's this one prayer she just can't get on board with. It's an hour and a half of chanting in an ancient language. It's a hymn of love, but there is no love in it for her.

Then one morning, she decides to dedicate this practice to her nephew, Nick. And so she does. It's a powerful experience for her and for the first time, the hymn flies by.
"The hour and a half was finished. It felt like ten minutes had passed. I realized what had happened - that Nicky had carried me through it. The little soul I'd wanted to help had actually been helping me." (p 169)

There is the cutest little boy waiting for a sponsor where I work. His name is Marvin Adrian. I seriously can't believe no one has sponsored him yet. (I am not sure if it is kosher for me to post his picture on my blog.) So tonight, I dedicated my yoga practice to him. When we were doing core work, our awesome teacher encouraged us to tell ourselves, "I can do hard things!"

Well, sweet Adrian, I sent that message over to you. I already know I can do hard things. But you are only four. And the world is going to tell you otherwise. But know that you can do hard things. You've got a lot of odds stacked against you. But you can do hard things. You can grow up healthy and strong. You can change the world. You know what else? We believe in you. And we have an awful lot to learn from you and your sweet smile.

So while I sending out these prayers and messages to Adrian, guess what happened? We did some crazy core work. I don't even know what we did, but I made it my offering. And you know what? Adrian carried me through it. And before I realized it, it was over.

As E.G. said, "The little soul I'd wanted to help had actually been helping me."

photography

I really like taking photos. It gives me a lot of life. Here are some of my recent pictures with titles.

What gives you life?
Which one is your favorite?

succulent

floating sideways

Find the rocking horse

Canopy

My husband and coworker (work creeping)

Untitled

my life: an exploration of color

chow

"Spring? Are you here yet?"

baby bull

cast iron

2014 Resolution

I never make these, just so you know. I always say that if there is something you want to change, you should just do it, and not wait until a whole new year rolls around.

That said, I was really sick at the beginning of January and spent a lot of time laying in bed and thinking, with no internet and having already watched the two movies we had. (one was Elf, obviously.)

And I decided that it had been a while since I reflected and thought about my life and it's path. So I planted a little seed of reflection inside and let it grow.

And yesterday, January 27, 2014, I decided I did want to resolve to do something more this year.

Are you ready?

Here it goes....

I resolve to look more at the sky. If this resolution doesn't make sense, you should go look at the sky. And maybe make it your resolution too.

Best Day Ever?

I haven't blogged since our wedding.

I have been seeing a lot of wedding decorations/ signs that say,"Best day ever!" I like the phrase because it's so full of excitement. When I think back about our wedding day, I remember how awesome it was. It was beautiful and special because so many people were there to see us make such an important promise. I wanted to make all the people just stay for days and days so I could take them in and be with them. Even still, I have a hard time labeling a wedding day "Best Day Ever". Here's why:

1. It happens so fast. Everyone says this. We started our day out with yoga, and that hour of quiet time was so important to let the weight of the day sink in. I felt very present to every moment throughout the day, but even still, the minutes just ticked by faster somehow.

2. So many more days are yet to come! We really miss something when we don't count the little moments of joy each day. The best day ever was that day when Caleb and I were brushing our teeth and he made me laugh so hard I had to sit down on the floor. And then it happened (at least) once a week for four months. The best day ever was when we went on a walk and saw the sun setting and realized we'd been both been contemplating the same thing for days, but hadn't been able to verbalize it until then. The best day ever was when I hung out with my girl friends for the first time after the wedding and remembered how great girl time is. The best day ever was today when I realized how blessed I am to be coworkers with my husband. The best day ever is tomorrow and was yesterday. It will be two weeks from today and it was last month.*

3. College was not the best four years of your life. And neither will your wedding day be the best day of your marriage.

And now, here is a question for you, but you don't have to leave a comment, unless you want to. What makes a best day ever for you?

*I guess by this description, the best day ever could and should apply to a wedding day.