camping weekend.

We had the chance to {finally} get out camping this weekend.  I was a little nervous as last year, Judah was just a newborn and therefore easy to keep entertained while camping.  While this year, our mobile little monkey kept us on our toes!  It was fun to see him run around with his cousins and explore new things-like the taste of a marshmallow (though the fire really made this mama nervous!).  Some other highlights for me included finishing a book, naps, snacks, and our fishing boat excursion on the lake...which Judah loved!  To end the weekend in a 'bang', we had a crazy thunderstorm/lightening storm hit.  It was beautiful and scary all at the same time...I'm just glad everyone stayed safe and our tent remained dry(!).

An awesome weekend to kick off our 2013 camping season...we're ready for it again next weekend!

pic pix: bits & pieces of our camping trip, Pine Lake, AB, 19-21 July, 2013

howdy from cowtown.

With the recent tragedy of the flood hitting my home town (and surrounding areas), I've been a bit caught up in finding ways to help/be a part.  Our direct community was not hit with the flood waters, but many other parts unfortunately were.  My regular routine is somewhat out the window and my social media updates (or anything to do with the internet) have been focused on finding ways to help and getting informed with what I need to know.

How can one volunteer with a busy one year old, and a baby bump that is half-way along?  With food!  I've been baking, meal making, and snack bag creating!  At this point, volunteers are many (with some of downtown still not open, volunteers are more) ... it's awesome to see how people are coming together.  Once the initial 'help drive' dies down and when people will try to be "normal" about life again, I'm anticipating another rush of need.  Not sure what that will look like...but, Calgary, I'm stocking my freezer in the meantime.

I've never experienced natural disaster hit hard in my own backyard (persay).  Being part of relief efforts locally is a whole different ball game than from the sidelines or actually travelling with the intent to help places in need.  I feel like I should/could be doing more, yet, I know that it'll become more evident in the days to follow.  It's just hard to go about life normally, when a 15 minute drive away, it is far from normal.

If you've been part of disaster relief, what did you do to help?  Your ideas might trigger something for me to do here...I'd love it if you'd share.

pic pix: food prep (the constant at this house!), my kitchen, 08.Nov.2012

something about rainy days.

Not sure about you, but after some warm days with sunshine, I find a rainy day so cozy.  As long as it's not snow in May (which yes, happens up here sometimes), the crisp bit of moisture is something I look forward to.  Now, here's hoping for sunny skies tomorrow(!).

"The best thing one can do when it's raining is to let it rain." Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

pic pix: wet & green, today, my backyard

merry & bright.

Merry Christmas Eve!

My computer technically fizzed out this week and I've tremendously missed sharing over here!  I'm hoping it's just a battery issue...we'll see(!).  Once I get my technical situation under control (and my head out of the 'holiday game'), I'll be back with regular posts.  Maybe my computer broke down around Christmas for a reason ... hmmm!

Within the hustle and bustle going on around us, we took this past weekend to go veg up in the mountains for a few days...our second home.  We booked a hotel and spa services (my husband rocks!) last minute and figured the 'important' things that weren't done before Christmas were just not going to get done this year.  I'm so glad we did.  The fresh -and freezing!- air did us good.  Simplifying our to-dos merited a sweet rest right in time for Christmas.

pic pix: Banff Getaway, December 21-23, 2012

pace

Listening to Matt serenade me with some Paul Simon, Neil Young, Mumford & Sons (just to name a few!), I'm enjoying our unedited life as it's happening.  There are laundry baskets full of clean clothes in each room, our bellies full with a delicious dinner, music filling our little pad, an organized mess of paper piles, the odd laugh, one sweet boy fast asleep...

It's been a quiet week since that cold bug infiltrated our systems.  Though being sick really bites, I've enjoyed just slowing down.  For, with quiet comes simplicity.  With simplicity, appreciation for God and His grace towards us.  With gratitude, in turn, can bring peace.

I'm a real geek when it comes to words, their meanings, and how they sound (yup, I'm a pun lover!).  I also love words in other languages...go figure(!).  Lately, when I've been thinking of the word "peace", I've immediately thought of it's italian counterpart "pace".

[pace/peace (italian): freedom of the mind from annoyance, distraction, etc.]

[pace (english): a rate of movement...]  

With entirely different roots to both of the words (peace - pax; pace - passus), it's more of an "interest" thing that these words overlap across two languages.  But the irony of their spelt connection is what draws me to ask this spellbinding* question tonight ...

Is my living pace bringing me peace?  Is yours?


pic pix: iPhone pic (taken with vscocam) of the park down the hill, 07.Nov.2012, Calgary, AB


*a silly pun for you :)

exposed

We were out for a walk the other day.  The weather was perfect - sunny skies, warm breeze, fall cool crisp.  I had my camera and couldn't wait to capture the beauty and colors.  I got set up as I continued to admire the golds, greys and greens ... "spectacular," I thought to myself.  After snapping what I thought was perfect, I checked the back of my digital screen to examine the results.  Though the image looked nice, it wasn't as *amazing* as what my eyes were seeing.  Usually, it never is, but I darn well do my best in trying to reproduce what I see.

But the colors in front of me seemed near impossible to emulate into my replicated, still image.  Where I live (where the Rocky Mountain Foothills meet the Prairies) most leaves turn to yellow, and the odd tree may have red leaves.  Grey overtakes the landscape as the grass turns grey and the fallen leaves reveal tree trunks that seemed to get lost in the composition.  The gold jumping out to the naked eye looks only like a simple yellow leaf with brown dots.  The sharp contrasts of colors - blue blue sky to the monochromatic palette - don't seem to pop as easy.

I feel sometimes life can look like that.  Different seasons, with different lights shining on and exposing certain areas ... not everything about me looking exact, complete and orderly all the time.  Though those attributes about me still exist, there are specific times of the year that my personality/character colors can't be captured on film as showpieces to be shared with others.

Right now, this is my season.  A time where I feel some of my strengths are being stripped down, and now exposed with my leaves all fallen off.  It maybe pretty in it's own way, but not ready to be photographed by others.  A time where my colorful palette is awaiting the debut time for when the Creator will fill my barrenness with a new vibrancy and gravitated qualities for me to share.

For now, it can't matter how others see me ... I know that God sees me as His creation ready to be photographed.  For in my exposed state, He still finds me beautiful, worth showing.

We still do not know one thousandth of one percent of what nature has revealed to us. 

~ Albert Einstein

pic pix: hard to find colors, Fish Creek Park, AB, 16.Oct.2012 

our saturday night walk in the park

awaiting the arrival

My mind has been, let's just say, "occupied" with when baby will finally makes it's debut!  The actual 40-week due date was May 25.  I have officially come to terms that we will be having a June baby instead of a May baby (yes, I know it is already June 4th today!).  I haven't felt inspired to write/think of anything but "baby" in the last week, but figured, it's time I share a bit of my goings on (besides being pregnant)...well, since my last post!

Another Mother's Day...

My brother recently graduated from his 4-year program down in Texas, so we decided to celebrate Mother's Day when he got back.

**just missing me & my dad in these shots ...

I covered some ceramic pots with fabric & modge podge, as a gift for Mom ... I think they turned out pretty cute.

Big Buckets ...

Baby really is growing inside of me.  I can barely recognize myself in pictures/the mirror let alone, get my arms around my belly these days!! 

Fishing & Walks ...
We live so close to such a beautiful park ... it's a good guess I am down there on a sunny day!  While Matt fishes, sometimes I read, snap away with my camera, or just sit there and take it all in ...

 *taken w/vsco cam - iphone

*taken w/vsco cam - iphone

 Here's hoping my next post will have some baby news!!!



pic pix: my life as of late, Calgary, AB, May-June.2012

lovin' it

This morning I woke up to such a beautiful surprise .... the sun!!  It was 5:45am, and the rays were already warming our room with golden happiness.  I am NOT your by-the-book morning person, but I couldn't help myself from wanting to rise that early and enjoy it.  The last week or so has been rainy & gray in Calgary, which has brought us some lush green to look at.  But let me tell you, today was a joyous awakening!

Here are some other things that I'm just lovin' this morning ...

 

 My baby bump is barely allowing me to see my toes ... but, nonetheless, if I lean forward a bit,
I can still see that they are there. Just over 3 weeks to go!!

The seedlings are coming along quite nicely.  It is feeling like a mini green house in here!

Scored this soap & soap tin with a girlfriend yesterday at HomeSense.  Yellow always makes me happy.

I've been on the hunt for a used rocking chair since about week 8 of this pregnancy!  My original thought was to sand a used one down and paint it "fire engine red".  Up until a few weeks ago, I was still without my coveted chair until my mother-in-law mentioned this gem in her basement (!).  It is in such nice condition, I don't have the heart to paint it ... I just heart it as is! 

and, of course ... m'love  :)

pic pix: Calgary, AB, April-May.2012

rain brings...

"I like rain, actually."

Bill Rodgers

There's a constant trickle of water falling from the sky ... I almost don't want to sleep for the sole reason of enjoying the sound of it coming down!  The wetness can't dampen this girl's spirits.  For rain = green, green = freshness, freshness = new beauty. 

"Rain is grace...rain is the sky descending to the earth...without rain, there would be no life."

John Updike

pic pix: wildflowers in spring, Burnet, TX, May.2010