The days are finally a little bit cooler. Yes, this is the April I know and love. I'm taking FULL advantage of each day because it's one of the few times of the year in Charlotte that I can be outside as much as I like. We've been eating meals outside, planting our garden, landscaping, hanging out on the picnic blanket with Clara each night before she goes to bed, watching Sophie ride her bike & scooter, trying to get photos of our resident birds. If only it could be like this all year long....
Sophie captures a nice moment. Look at Clara ~ no hands!
A lovely bluebird sitting on the fence.
Sisterly Love.
Because March was so hot, we went ahead and planted all of our veggies. Now I'm seeing reports that we may have frost this week. Guess I'll be busy covering all of the baby plants! Mother Nature is always full of surprises!
I often find articles, photos, etc that are so good that I wish I could share them. Then I realized that I have the perfect space for sharing. So here goes...
~ I recently found this wonderful blog via Green's Going Green. I am often inspired or moved by Rhonda's posts or by links that she's shared. This article really made me stop and think. I've often thought that palliative workers are really special people. Like anyone I don't want to be close to death and have regrets. We lost a close family friend this week and I thought of him when I read this article ~ peace at his closing is one thing I wished so strongly for him. At this point in my life, I often think of how happy and at peace I am and I know I'm making the right choices in my life....even though a lot of them have been tough decisions, etc. This moment in time is just a tiny snapshot in my entire life however and I'm hoping I can continue to make the right decisions for me. Begin with the end in mind....I always loved that. What would you want for people to say about you? A friend called me this week and left a darling voice mail and, in it, she said, "Thank you for being so......well, perfect". I'm far from perfect but I know she was just telling me that I'm a good friend. And it warmed my soul. If she feels that way about me, I know I'm doing something right in my life.
~ I loved this video so much that I watched it about three times. I believe it was also originally found on Down to Earth. I had some really tough moments this week while I cared for Clara during her feverish nights. Whew. This video really helped me to get through some of those moments. I was thankful I had it for viewing right at my fingertips! After watching, I would immediately change my mindset and feel grateful that I have the privilege of caring for Clara, no matter how hard.
~ Food issues are a passion of mine. I read Robyn O'Brien's book a few years ago. When I came across this video last week, I watched it and, even though I didn't learn anything new, I think Robyn has a great way of explaining and simplifying the issues so that anyone can understand. I admire her courage to stand up and fight the system, even if it was on her own. I wish everyone would watch this short video to get a better understanding of what we're up against in our food system. Do one thing!
~ I discovered this tumblr feed recently. I'd share my original source but I've seen it mentioned in so many places that I have no idea where I first saw it. Each time I look through the posts, I laugh a little bit harder. I have no clue why it's so funny to me but it just is! Maybe it goes along with my own decorating jealousy issues....
~ When I'm looking for a little inspiration, I filter through Tiny White Daisies. In her shared images, I ALWAYS find something to inspire me....
~ It's been a while since I've seen a party online that really inspired me. No longer. This Madeline party is truly one of the nicest parties I've EVER seen. So adorable. I wouldn't even want to know how much it set the parents back....
~ I had the absolute pleasure of seeing Joshua Roman perform last Saturday night at the Charlotte Symphony. His cello performance literally blew my mind. I don't recall ever being in a space where an entire audience was at a musician's mercy. He was so at ease with the instrument....he just seems madly in love with his cello. As I was looking for a video to link, I found this one which he filmed backstage while playing for the Charlotte Symphony. He is so amazingly talented. Feel the love, Joshua!
This time of year seems so perfect. Today is a little more mild and absolutely gorgeous. Even though illness has overtaken our house (Clara's had a fever for 3 days and I finally gave up the fight and got an antibiotic this morning. It's an ear infection.) and this week seems like a blur, Clara and I have been out for little visits to the garden each day. I'm in love with all of the vibrant colours of the plants.
The gorgeous underbellies of the Swiss Chard plants, deep dark green combined with fuschia stems.
Simple white petunias. Survived the mild winter and still thriving...
Dazzling violet impatiens.
Citrusy yellow snapdragons. Another plant that survived the entire winter.
Lovely cornflower blue. One of my favorite colours. I don't remember the name of this plant though....
Purply dianthus blooms.
To-die-for gorgeous salmon colored Gerbera daisies. I can't claim these. They were purchased. Part of a gift for our new neighbors...they're livening up my kitchen windowsill at the moment. I may have to head back to the store to get more for us. They're that beautiful.
PS ~ I was feeling a little English today ~ hence the spelling of "colour"! Why not?
It's becoming a little bit of a tradition. At least a couple of times a month Clara falls asleep right as I arrive at school to pick up Sophie....and since she doesn't transition well, we just head off for a walk around the corporate park. There are always at least a few things to catch our attention. Here goes....
Clara wakes from her nap and ponders the wonders of the universe! Poor thing....I had the carriage covered while she was napping and she woke up so sweaty...
I love the blooms on this bush ~ they remind me of lilies....
Sophie had an awesome idea ~ let's lift the tops of the bluebird boxes to see if there are any eggs inside....
Could you die? There were five delicious little perfect bluebird eggs inside. If you'd seen my reaction, you'd have thought I'd just won the $521 million lottery! The box was too tall for me so I had to lift my camera up and just hope that the eggs were within the frame (which is why this photo is not good quality!).
I adore this photo. Sophie pointed out "It's your friend, Mommy". She says this whenever we see a red cardinal. Her comment is always followed up by, "It's Harry Winston." This is the name we've given to our resident cardinal. At age five, she must realize it's not the same one, right? This shot was taken from a very large distance, across the pond. Wish I could have been closer...
I took this photo of the lone male mallard because I wanted to see if his curly tail feathers would turn out. So glad they did....
This blooming dogwood down the hill was so beautiful!
Sophie took this photo of the lone duck. I think it's really cute ~ she did a good job!
This tree was magnificent. The blooms were to-die-for GORGEOUS. I don't remember ever seeing this before....but I'd love one in my yard!!
Sophie gives a great big smile when she spots a frog in the pond!
I think the soccer love is more on my part than Sophie's. Or maybe not. She definitely loves it. My mom came to visit for two days and she was able to accompany us to soccer practice. Afterwards, she remarked that Sophie is the only girl who smiles throughout the entire practice. True. Every day when I pick her up from school, she also asks me when it's time to play soccer again. One of my new pleasures is going to practice and to games and watching her play. I love it. Most of my Mom friends love soccer practice because it's Dad's duty to take the kid(s) while they get quiet time alone at home. Um, no thanks ~ I wouldn't want to miss out on all of the fun.
I love looking at the photos.....Sophie in her uniform....well, the cuteness is unbearable! After a couple of weeks of play, it's apparent that Soph is a natural defensive player. She instinctively goes to the goal when the opposing team comes close to scoring. In the last game, she took part in blocking two shots. On occasion she's been frustrated that her teammates score more goals than she does but I'm trying to teach her that blocking the opposing team's goals is just as valuable. We all know that the offense typically gets all of the glory....but then I remind myself that my favorite player on the US team during the last World Cup was none other than Tim Howard. And I think that Sophie is my own little Tim Howard. May the soccer love continue....
A couple of weeks ago we played a game of Rummikub with some houseguests. After picking up a tile at each of my turns, I was never able to put down an "initial meld" (Rummikub speak). I've played this game hundreds of times. I love it! But this has never happened before. I even doubted myself because I couldn't find a set with a value of 3o to lay down. Alain looked at my tiles as well and confirmed that I was stuck. I spent a good hour researching the directions and online to find out how to proceed but I never really found a good answer. I was in disbelief.....and I had to take a photo to prove my predicament. Crazy, huh? I would love to know the odds of this happening....and I wonder if it will ever happen to me again!!!
