It’s another dull, gray day here in Columbus, Ohio. Almost everyone I have talked to around here in the past few days is ready for some sunshine and Spring weather but according to the calender we have several more weeks of this doom and gloom to contend with. This morning after an additional cup of coffee, I noticed at about 9am that it wasn’t much lighter than at 7am and I was figuring out how many hours until bedtime. I was planning to either sit on the computer all day or take a nap . Then the sun peaked out for a minute and I decided to bundle up and head outside with my camera to at least get some fresh air in hopes that it would wake me up. I only got a couple of shots worthy of posting but a little exercise and fresh air certainly helped get us through the day.

I bet he is wishing for Spring too!

I bet someone is missing this but probably better that they don’t find it now

a little evidence of life

like a crook of an arm or leg

Other than this I’ve got nothing. Not feeling too crafty or too motivated these days. Just feeling like hibernating and drinking tea and eating oranges. So that’s what I plan on doing!

May this be the year we soar to new heights

Dance with reckless abandon

Stretch ourselves

Take risks

Toast our friends

May this be the year…………

Photos taken at First Night Columbus 2009

Kristina Isabelle/High Jinks Dance Co

KidCo

From where I am sitting I can see behind me, a favorite window seat. A place to perch, read a book and catch the afternoon sun that pours through the witches balls my family has gifted me each Christmas. A view of the garden my husband and I dug the first year we moved here. I can see the door most used by friends that stop by to visit. From here we often watch neighbors, strangers and dogs coming and going on their path to the park. The same path that I ran so many times in the last several months.
To my right is a buffet that holds linens used by both my Mother and my Grandmother,  two shiny silver lights that create just the right ambiance when lit, clay pieces my children have made and a drawer that holds bits and pieces of the past year in review.
To my left is the kitchen; the often messy and most used room in our home.  Countless meals prepared and shared here. But my view from this seat only allows a glimpse of that chaos. My eye is drawn straight to the window that overlooks my back yard. From here I can see trees and beautiful summer sunsets. I can hear the band play on crisp Fall mornings and the baseball team usher in the beginings of Spring.
And in front of me it is like a wide angle lens. The dinning room table scattered today with colored pencils, drawings, stuffed animals. The book shelf, full of knowledge; of books waiting to be read, project ideas jumping off the pages various markers and blank papers waiting to be filled.  A notebook recording 2009’s days,  pages scrawled and lists and appointments checked off.  Then there is the basket of clean laundry for five folded and waiting to be put away.
But again my eye is drawn past the chores. Now into my warm and comfortable living room. The room that holds so many possibilities. There are plenty more books in this room. There is music both recorded and waiting to be thumped out. There is a fireplace, art that I have shown in this past year and family photos preserved. The furniture is comfy as is the floor covered in an old family rug. An often joked about, over-priced, coffee table where games are  played. This room is inviting and both calm and busy at the same time.  My living room is eclectic.  There are disco balls hanging in front of an antique mirror that seems to pull me forward into the future yet reflects all that is behind me.  Plants full of life  and treasures picked up in places both near and far, serving as memories of past experiences. And just outside the set of double windows there is the tree house that our family and friend built together, a new trampoline and the sounds of happy children gathering in the sand box.

I am surrounded on all sides by beauty and comfort and the encouragement brought on by this past year.  But when I look beyond all of this, there is the future. One that fills me with anticipation. 2009 was a year of  progress for me personally.  It was a year that I stretched myself in ways I never imagined. It was a year that I took time out for myself. Because my children are a little older, I was able to move my focus away from the all encompassing  parenting of the past 14 years. It was a nice year, a busy year.

2010….sounds sci-fi almost. Hard to believe it is here. It is the now. I have plans. Plans to really embrace this year in a new but familiar way.  Simplify and return to what I know. A year of comfort and focus. A year  free of judgment and of what is “supposed to be”. A fresh yet reminiscent outlook. I am very comfortable where I sit but I plan to get up and move around  little. Maybe venture out  more and choose  a new seat from my familiar surroundings,   because where I have been is also where I am going. Welcome 2010!!!

The week between Christmas and New Years. I am feeling like I am on vacation. We don’t have too many commitments this week. We still have family visiting and a few more Holiday events to look forward to.  I might put some stuff away or not. I might start an organizational project or not. I might just stay in my jammies and eat cookies until I have to be somewhere at 7pm tonight!

But this is what the past week or so has looked like!

I made a cool mosaic at Big Huge Labs, but couldn’t get it to work! So you have to settle for a few photos posted haphazardly.

We have new games to play, books to read, a new trampoline covered in snow that needs to be jumped on, movies to watch, new toys to play with and lots of treats that still need to be eaten. What do you plan to do with your week between?

May your days be filled with comfort and joy!

I am still really enjoying the Black and White November Challenge.  I walk the same path most mornings.  Varying it a bit;  one day this way another day that way.  But most days I feel like I have seen it all before, so  its often hard to find things to take photos of.  This challenge has helped me look at the same old scene in a different way.  Thanks Maya!

I took this photo in black and white but I wanted to add in some of the army green from her boots.