Blue Yonder

May I Have Seconds, Please?

What do you see when you look at this photo? 

I see the last of Grandmother's green beans being oh so carefully snapped by one very eager little helper. 

I see the remnants of our day-glo painting experience STILL stuck to the countertop. Do you see the orange there, just by his knee? 

I see the last boy to wear these little shorts, and I smile, thinking of all the adventures that they've seen. 

I see a dirty little belly, and I know that this young man has thrown himself into this day, lived it fully and without reservation. 

I see a simple everyday kind of moment, and I find it heartbreakingly, breathtakingly beautiful. 

I have the feeling sometimes that I'm going to come to the end of my life, look into the face of my creator, and squeal like a child just off the ferris wheel... "Again! Again!"

Peace Keeping

Howdy friends!

How's the week treating you? Did you know that Thanksgiving is next week? How the heck did THAT happen? 

Fortunately for me, I'm preparing a speech (which is really kind of a chat with slides) for a local group of moms. I'm not wild about the idea of public speaking, but the topic is very dear to my heart. The talk is meant to be all about slowing down and simplifying holiday celebrations to make them more meaningful for families. How could I not be a part of that?  The unexpected benefit of participating is that in order to prepare to speak,  I've been sort of forced to really focus my heart and mind on going  into this season with an attitude of peace and purpose. Now if only I can stay the course! 

Let's face it. What with all the gift and meal planning, the decorating, the photo ops, the many personalities and preferences that must be taken into consideration, the crowds, the events, the sheer number of bodies and voices and needs and desires, the making, the doing, the anticipation, expectation, lights and laughter and longing.... all of it is both wonderful and overwhelming. 

So I'm on a peace-keeping mission.... a mission to keep my own sense of peace, and to spread it thick over our celebrations.

One of the very small ways that I I hope to keep my head on straight in the midst of the holiday storm is my newfound love, the morning walk. Just carving out a little time, no matter how small, with some regularity is so important for me. And I must say, the dog is turning out to be a GREAT excuse to get outside and breathe before the day begins. 

We just go around the block. He proclaims his greatness by christening every stationary object, and I listen to NPR. I've been meaning to share some of the interesting things that I've heard along the way. To name just a very few: 

Spontaneous Smiley  - The kids love this one, and it has opened our eyes to the smiles all around us. We were already looking for hearts (like the one above, found a few doors down from our house), but now we're also looking for happiness wherever we go.... a worthy endeavor if ever there was one. 

My Parents Were Awesome - So fantastic.... the photos and the thought behind it. Once, all us old fogies were young whipper snappers with the world at our feet. And one day, our offspring will no doubt find new and improved ways to share our poor fashion choices with the world. 

Polar Obsession - Just imagining the world of this photographer/adventurer will take your breath away, let alone seeing his photos! 

Somehow all of these little stories add up in my mind to a more full perspective. There are smiles all around us. People are more than they seem. There are depths and wonders yet undiscovered. Today, and this moment, and this holiday season are just one drop in one big glorious bucket.

How about you? Heard anything new and interesting lately? 

Know any brilliant ways to find calm in the midst of the holiday madness? 

It Might Take All Day...

... to decide what to do with these apples. Applesauce? Apple Butter and Bread? Apple Cake?

... to trade in these pajamas for something more presentable. Is it bad that I dress, take the dog for a walk and then come home and get right back into my pajamas? 

... to clean the bathrooms and mop the floor, because today, today I'm going to come when they say, "mama come look at (read/play/watch) this," and I'm not even going to say, "just a minute" first. 

... to be able to pass an open window without pausing and smiling and breathing deeply of the cool autumn goodness. It must be a full 30 degrees cooler right now than it was yesterday!

... to  flip through this stack of old magazines and put sticky notes on all the best fall recipes. What are your favorites? 

... to assemble an autumn soundtrack. Just because.  This time of year I feel like I need some Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Coltrane, something warm and rich. What are you listening to? 

... to reacquaint myself with my camera. We've been missing each other. 

... to make good use of my spanking new black drawing pen. 

... to hug enough, hold enough, listen enough. 

It might take me all day, or even all weekend, and that's good enough for me. 

Have a great one y'all!

I Once Was a Girl

I once was a little girl. 

I did weird stuff like begging to shave my legs and praying that one day Madonna would be my best friend and mixing up all the sodas together into one nasty drink. 

Now I'm an old lady who tells her children not to do weird stuff like making obnoxious noises with their armpits (one of the unanticipated side effects of sending my kid to camp), wiping their boogers on the walls and having burping contests. Lord help me, Is that so much to ask? 

This weekend I will celebrate 12 years of being married to my old man. Where did the time go? 

He's not really that old. He's more along the lines of that whole Clooney/Pitt, salt and pepper scruffle-faced old. 

I really want to know how come men get to get all debonaire and wisened as they age and women just get to sag? That's near the top of my "Questions to ask God When I See Him Next" list. 

By the way, did you know that God is on Twitter? I'm a follower. How could I not be? 

Yes, I used to be a girl. I bought shoes because they looked like they might make me run fast, or because they had a little blue Ked's tag on the back and Rebecca Dwire's shoes had a little blue tag on the back and she wouldn't like me if mine didn't have a little blue tag on the back and then no one else would like me because Rebecca's word was the law and that was that. 

Now I'm an old woman and I'm looking to buy some shoes that will make the pain in my heel go away. I don't care what color the tag is. 

Now I'm an old woman  who is taking fish oil and coral calcium and neither of those things is bubblegum flavored or chewable. I want to know why not. 

I'm adding that to the  aforementioned list. 

Today's sketches were brought to you courtesy of my sketchbook. I didn't get around to Illustration Friday this week because I'm steadily working to bring you a new Book of Days. It should be out early next week. 

You should really buy it because it's got a lot of great family fun in it and some cute drawings and because it's really a killer deal at only $6 and besides... if you buy it, then I can buy expensive, tagless, styleless orthopedic footwear and non-chewable horsepills. 

I'm beginning to think that old age is making me cranky. 

In the case that you're feeling a little cranky too,  here's some fun stuff that might put a smile on your crotchety old face... at least they put a smile on MY crotchety old face: 

War Horse - Way cool, life sized horse puppets in the London West End Theater

Cheeming Boey - who draws on cups and probably doesn't have any blue tags on his shoes because he's too cool to care what Rebecca Dwire thinks of him. 

Awkward Family Photos - makes me feel SO much better about some of the parachute pants/ waterfall hair photos in my past. 

Crazy Dancing Wedding Party - I'm pretty sure that our entire families would have shriveled up and died if we did such a thing, but aren't they cute as they can be? If I knew them, I would tell them that 12 years will go by faster than they ever thought it could, and that he will be greying and she will sag in the strangest places, but that if they keep on dancing and laughing and taking their fish oil, they will be surprised at just how crazy wonderful life turns out to be. 

Happy weekend, y'all!

Sicko

You know what's great about this kid? 

Even when he feels really, really, REALLY bad, he is still so stinking funny and determined and full of all his usual "spit and swagger." 

His brothers thought they'd sneak in and put a different cartoon on the computer. 

They thought he was too sick to put up a fight. 

They thought wrong. 

He raised one little finger in their direction and said, "You don't want to do that! I have amazing powers of death and destruction! If I blow just ONE of my super germ breaths on you, you'll be sorry!"

They backed slowly away, and he smirked. 

He smirked long and hard. 

That boy.