July 2011
2 posts
June 2011
2 posts
May 2011
10 posts
WatchCamille’s rehearsal for this year’s tap show. I shot this with my camera so the quality is really poor and I missed the first little bit but I wanted friends and family who couldn’t come to get an idea of what she’s doing these days. This is her trio in the beginning of the show- it’s an adaptation of Cinderella and she’s one of the three Steppin’...
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summer is coming soon
I just found these photos sitting in a draft post from last summer. Another example of something I began and didn’t find the time to finish before it got buried. (There are 33 drafts waiting here. ahem) These aren’t the same kids that I spent time with today. Both of them have shorter hair and they’re taller and wiser and have different interests and friends than...
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Juliet Grows Up Some More
It’s been a very busy week around here. One with lots of signals that I don’t have little babies or even little kids anymore. The only evidence I caught on film was Juliet deciding that the time was right to try riding the big girl bike, the one without training wheels.
Camille helped her get balanced and held her around the waist until she got going. And Juliet just did it! No...
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Easy Peasey Risi Bisi
I was flipping through the May issue of Bon Appetit and getting lost amid the delicious and textural focus on Italy. My eyes stumbled over the words Risi e Bisi and something in the back of my brain felt a snag. You know when that happens? Risi Bisi, risi bisi…what is that? Slowly a taste and then images started firing and I had it! One of my all-time favorite dishes that I had...
From a Mother to her Daughters
My Daughters, you are…
from Flo who’s from Helen and Myrtle and Myrtle and Carrie and Anna
from lineage passed from steady hand and steadfast heart
from quilting needles and milking pails, and feather dusters and accordian keys, and canning jars and pens on paper
from apron strings and hair pinned up, from special brown shoes and polyester “waists”, from...
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Children's Day
My friends Mandy and Dawn publish this great resource linking to local activities. Yesterday they mentioned the Children’s Day celebration at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park. My calendar for the day was blank so I ditched the list of things I could get done and off we went. After all, I do have two children worth celebrating.
We’ve walked...
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Eat This
The sun has decided to turn on it’s intensity on high. The forecast projects weather in the mid-upper 80s all week; today it’s 90. Believe it or not, it seems like forever since we’ve had warm weather. Our summer never quite materialized last year and the winter/spring has been colder and wetter than normal. Suddenly, I’m faced with this gorgeous weather, a...
Calling the Light
Living well is the best revenge.- George Herbert
I remember well the fear of September 2001. A month away from giving birth to my first child, I stood alarmed as one tower flamed and smoke trailed across a blue NY sky. I knew it was terrorism before I watched the second plane fly directly into Tower #2 and erupt into a ball of fire. I turned to my mother and said, nothing is every...
April 2011
7 posts
2 tags
For the Life and Love of a Tide Pool
Two gorgeous days in a row. I’m becoming optimistic that our weather has finally turned around. Sunny days are here again! My friend Angela called me this morning inviting me to join a group that was heading to the Tide Pools at South Cardiff Beach. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds. Well, okay, I guess we could drag ourselves to the beach to play with friends. Twist my...
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sunkisst
We kicked back at the pool today. That shine reflecting on the water? Apparently it’s called the sun and it decided to come out to play today. It is late April after all.
The girls swam for four hours! We hopped between the big pool, the kiddie pool and the hot tub. Handstands, somersaults, back flips, cannonballs, spinning, ring around the rosie, laps, jumping, slashing, floating,...
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Strawberry Secrets
You know you’ve lived in California too long when strawberries aren’t exciting anymore. We receive them in our CSA box well into the fall so we haven’t had much time to miss when they start popping up again in February.. The appeal has already worn off mid-April so I decided I needed to sweeten the deal.
Big Confession #1: My kids had never had Strawberry Shortcake....
The Tooth Fairy's Supervisor
Juliet lost her first tooth yesterday! Just before we left to go to the Earth Day Festival in Balboa Park so she was excited she lost it on a holiday. :) All four of her front teeth are loose and I was certain she would lose one of the top ones first because it was wigglier sooner. But this little itty bitty one caught up fast and she’s been pushing it with her tongue for a...
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WatchDrive with us down the California coast! We just got home from visiting Santa Cruz and San Jose, visiting family and unschooling friends. I’ll get a post up about our trip soon- it was so fun!
On our way home, with about 7 hours to go, I felt a longing to share the beautiful drive so I started snapping photos out the window of our car. Here, in a little over two minutes, zip 400 miles...
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leftovers alchemy
Penne Pasta
Marinated Artichokes
Avocado
Pine Nuts
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
I just tossed it all together and oh so yummy. Had to snap a quick picture so I wouldn’t forget to make it again!
March 2011
6 posts
3 tags
that's better
So what do you do when you’ve got a list a mile long? Stress pouring out of your ears? Feeling grumpy from a terrible night’s sleep? Lots of decisions and plans to be researched and hammered out? Phone calls to make?
You make a new mess to deal with. I ignored my list yesterday and re-organized my kitchen. Yup. Camille and I emptied every single cupboard and...
guest posting
Do you know Heart Rockin’ Mama? Jean is one of those souls that is so endearing that I can’t help but adore her…without ever having met her in the flesh. Eons ago on my old blogger blog, Jean and I connected and we’ve been friends ever since. But it’s not just an online relationship we have; we like each other so much that we’ve taken it to the big leagues by...
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Eureka!
Look what I learned today! All of these photos are SOOC (straight out of the camera), except this one above that I just cropped into a square for fun. No adjustments to color, contrast, exposure, sharpness- no nothin’. I took these photos today in bright, direct sunlight. Can you believe it? The background isn’t lit up! There are other flowers, grass, pavement, bushes,...
Consider this
Juliet told me about a dream she had in which she went to the moon.
Me: Did you see any aliens?
J: No, just lots of unicorns.
Imagining that possibility that had me laughing out loud at the expression on the faces of our scientific-oriented astronauts as they stepped out of their high-tech space shuttle. Prancing, dancing, colorful unicorns spread across the lunar landscape. Not...
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My Dancer Pt 2
So does she look bored? Everything shifted when she changed dance studios last January 2010. Camille’s most favorite teacher in the whole entire world suddenly and unexpected sold her studio and quit teaching. Camille looked to her as a mentor and had been with her since she began with Mommy and Me classes at age two. Dance was fun, dynamic, there were pretty costumes for...
February 2011
6 posts
3 tags
My Dancer Part 1
Waaaay back on my old blog, I wrote something about Camille and dance, her focus and love since she started at age 2. I’m bringing that post back here today and then tomorrow I’ll post an update on the current state of dance in our lives.
From 6/12/2008:
It’s the time of year again when we pull out the bobby pins and lip gloss and hustle to dance performances. It...
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There's No Place like (my horse-filled) Home
Wizard of Oz: As for you, my galvanized friend, you want a heart. You don’t know how lucky you are not to have one. Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.
Tin Woodsman: But I still want one.
Last weekend we saw the Broadway touring production of the Wizard of Oz, to which Juliet wore her ruby red slippers. I wish I had a pair because sometimes...
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Mission San Juan Capistrano
My friends Mandy and Dawn have this fun new blog called Oh! The Places We Go!. It’s purpose is to share ideas for things to do and places to visit in Southern California. I’m so glad for this new resource- it gives me so many ideas and saves me time in researching what’s happening in the area.
When they asked me to do a guest blog for them, I was thrilled! I...
free time
Apparently today was some holiday because the neighborhood kids were knocking at our door this morning to play. It was nearly 10:00 and we hadn’t eaten breakfast yet because we were still in bed reading about Chewandswallow and Mike Mulligan and Mary Anne. So we got up, ate pancakes and off went the girls to play. There was talk of a grandfather bringing his microscope from med school to...
a record
I’m re-discovering why I like blogging: having a record. Going through a notebook the other day I found something I had scribbled last month while I was sitting in the park. I had a few moments alone while the girls played and felt moved to record what was happening. Not in a grandious, this-needs-to-be-shared way, but in a simple remembrance for me. I’m glad I did...
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spring
I’ve been sick. And it sucks.
For two weeks I’ve had a cold or maybe a touch of the flu and I don’t feel like myself. I rarely get sick so I don’t do well when I’m supposed to be resting. I see dirty dishes and laundry piling up even more than usual. I see surfaces that need cleaning and random things that are calling for a home. My to-do list just gets...
January 2011
1 post
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December 2010
8 posts
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::to future and past flo::
So, yes, I didn’t participate as I wanted to in reverb10. December isn’t the best month to start a new project, especially when I’ve been stalling to begin with. I’ve been thinking about the prompts, however, and many days simply wasn’t moved to share. One last attempt and then I’m off, likely, for the rest of the year. With that thought: Merry Christmas!
...
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Santa Claus is comin' to Town
Lest you think we’re all work and no play around here*:
Who wants Santa to slide down their chin-mney?
* I do apologize for the picture quality but we were laughing too hard to care!
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'tis the season
I accomplished exactly one thing today and it may be the most amazing thing I’ve ever done. I made peppermint bark.
Yes, it’s that good. And easy, although I don’t like the process being interrupted three times for chilling. But worth it? Oh, yes.
Basically, I melted white chocolate and then sprinkled it with peppermints, chilled, spread...
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::make::
Day 6: reverb10
Prompt: Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make but you need to clear some time for?
I made the image above this morning. This is a photo I shot yesterday for my 52 weeks of BAM! project over on flickr. To create the final image, I used Picasa, a basic, free photo editor. I’d like to make photos...
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::wonder and letting go::
Days 4 and 5 reverb10:Day 4 Prompt: Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?
Day 5 Prompt: Let go. What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why?
I skipped day four because the prompt wasn’t inspiring me enough and because I wanted to watch a movie with my family instead of finding my thinking cap. Imagine my delight to discover a connection between...
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::moment::
Day 3: reverb10
Prompt: Moment. Pick one moment when you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).
There was a moment this year when I felt my life surging;
through my whole body feelings were merging.
On the beach I sat atop a crusty old gondola ride,
unsure I’d ever get to the mile-away other side.
Camille had said,...
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::imperfect::
Day 2: reverb10
Prompt: Writing. What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?
I distract myself from my fear of imperfection. Writing has always been a treasure, since the time my teachers took notice and I learned a new way to get approval. I’m no longer a student but those figments trail behind like unexposed rolls of...
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::blessed::
I’ve been stumbling around my blog the past few days trying put my thoughts into cohesive sentences. I’ve been failing as my draft folder can testify. You see, life has been so very full that writing here fell to the bottom of my priorities. Establishing a writing routine is important to me, though, and I’ve been so very full of reflection on this year that...
August 2010
5 posts
1 tag
Good to Know
Me (digging in wet sand on the beach): Oh, look, there goes a sand crab scrambling into the water!
Juliet (digging, too): Oh, yeah! Look at him go!
Me: He's rockin' in the free world. (pause) Juliet, do you feel free?
Juliet: No. I feel rashy.
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.life and loss.
BAM! Week 8, Aug 7, 2010
Last night I decided to make a footbath and get some quiet space after a really busy, happy, emotional, challenging, fun week. As I was picking baby roses from the yard I was reminded of a Baby Rose I know only through her mom’s writing about her loss and grieving process. This led me to think about another family who marked the birth and death of...
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.polished.
BAM! Week 7, July 31, 2010
Ever have a week where everything comes together perfectly? I did. Today was the last pearl on the strand with a theater date with Camille to see In the Heights downtown. It was an inspirational story of hope, dreams, persistence and faith; of seeing a better way and reaching for it every day. Of relationships and connection. Of family and trust.
This week was...
July 2010
20 posts
1 tag
“I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the...”
– Diane Ackerman, poet
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.I'm That Mom. Take 2
The impromptu blog carnival Ronnie started turned into an Independence Day celebration complete with sparkly fireworks, proclamations and a parade of happy families. I had no idea this would happen!
When I wrote the first little post I was simply highlighting a little part of our day that makes us smile. It’s how we connect; through all the small details that can be so easily...