November coming to an end

Yet another beautiful November day. Even though it rained, it was unseasonably warm and beautiful.

Tomorrow is the last day in the month of November and I stop to reflect. Where has yet another year gone. Have I spent most of the year wishing it away? Waiting in anticipation of things to come? What do I do after they get here--wait in anticipation of more things to come?  Often times I think I take pictures of so many things because I can't cram all the images, thoughts, memories and events into my brain and I don't want to miss any part of anything. I want to be able to take it all in. To enjoy every scent, every image, every feeling.

So with that being said...I went back thru some pictures from earlier this year and reflected on my thoughts and feelings when I took them. Sharing with you some pictures of the mighty susquehanna river. Before creating this day for myself, my last memory of watching the susquehanna flood was around 1976. I remember standing at the top of the stairs & watching the water lap up. I was too young to know or understand the feelings people were having from the flood of 1972. This year has created new understandings for me of those feelings. The sense of loss, devestation, recovery.

Taken from the stairs I remember standing on as a child in 1972

A friend and I were discussing the differences between being the first born & the last born. We were discussing how with the first child most people are cautious, hesitant, more home bound. With the 2nd & following kids the parents are more laid back, more ready to just pick up and go.  He mentioned that in the first 5 weeks of his 2nd child's life the child has experienced a flood, an earthquake & a hurricane. This kiddo was only born in August 2011. It made me wonder if his child will grow up hearing about the flood of 2011 the same way we grew up hearing about Agnes-the flood of 1972.

Beautiful November Day

Not a great first day for hunters in NEPA. Weather was too warm and the deer didn't want to move...but man oh man..what a beautiful day!

As I sit here writing this, it is 56 degrees out and we have the bedroom windows open. So beautiful. The pups could stay outside as long as they want. No fear of them becoming popsicles. Last night the moon was a thumbnail, today it is a tad bigger. Maybe more of a sliver shape. Clear skies so the moon can be seen clearly.

I did make it out at lunch today and it was a beautiful, sunny day. I am writing about this so when next year we are piled deep in snow, freezing weather and ice...I can reflect back on this day and how beautiful it was. Don't get me wrong, I think the snow and freezing weather are beautiful as well--when someone else is driving.  But it's nice not to worry about having to save days off for snow days.

Hope the weather where you are is just as beautiful and in the same breath I hope for more favorable weather for the hunters tomorrow. A tad cooler, a little more overcast....things that make the deer move.

Hugs!

day before deer season in NEPA

Another beautiful sunny, Sunday out there. My girls are outside getting their dose of vitamin D & I hope to be joining them shortly.  Few errands to run before I can.

Tomorrow is the first day of deer here in NEPA. I think it's considered a holiday for most. Schools close, men schedule vacation time, wives empty out the freezers in anticipation. What is my role in all this? My errands this morning consist of helping the man get ready. Buying clothes, hanging the stand, making sure we know where everything is that he will need in the AM. Than tomorrow I will groggily wish him good luck & than fall back asleep until it is time to get the pups up and leash walk them before heading off to work at an appropriate enough time so as not to disturb the deer that may be crossing. I will wait with anticipation for the phone call to tell me that he got the handsome buck that we've been watching, than I will be calling around for prices on a freezer. When I get home the deer will be ready for pictures (my favorite part) and than off we'll go to the butcher. When the meat comes home, there will be lots of chili, kielbasa & roasts made. Yum! I like the benefits of deer season.

Hoping to get out for some pictures today. Did not make it to Hillside Farms yesterday. But I did find lots of fun stuff at the Red Cross Craft show. Hats, fingerless gloves, fork necklaces, pottery for my brother.

Enjoy your day! Hope the sun is shining where you are.

Cheers!

Saturdays!

If you noticed, I am sorry for not posting yesterday. The day got the better of me and I was asleep before I knew it. Oops. But I do promise to make it up to you today. I've been a busy little beaver this morning (2 cups of coffee can help facilitate that).

1) Uploaded my Turkey Day pictures, want to share some with you.
2) Beautiful, unseasonably beautiful weather for NEPA in late November. I am loving it. I can't wait to get out & play in it some more. More pictures at the park-I'm thinking! I found some new places I want to explore.
3) Support local business Saturday! I will be doing my part. Today is the Red Cross Craft Show at the Kingston Armory & I know 2 vendors I've made contact with & want to hit up. But I think I will find lots of other fun stuff there too.  (Plus I'm taking my camera to try & get some awesome pics inside the armory) Than I hope to hit Hillside Farms up after that. Both with my camera & my wallet. A small serving of milk is on the agenda for this lactose intolerant gal.

So to get you started...while you wait in anticipation of my day..here are some pics I wanted to share with you!
Kisses!

This is from a new album idea I am toying with. Morning Drive. Couldn't resist snapping this little guys picture. He  held on for most of my drive.

Pumpkin in the swamp. Accompanied by a "root ball"

Ducks in a newly formed pond

Francis Slocum State Park on Turkey Day

These are the beautiful geese I wrote about the other day. I tried to get them as they were coming in for a landing, just gracing the water but my camera acted up. I was glad to find this picture in the pile this AM. 

Francis Slocum State Park. Turkey Day 2011. Leaving you with the calm, serenity this picture provides. I hope you have a calm, serene day. 


Cheers! 

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving. A special thanks to my friends that shared special pictures and thoughts with me today.

I spent Thanksgiving enjoying a cozy little dinner for two at a restaurant. Thanks to my hubby for the wonderful company & conversation. It was quaint, it was intimate & it was just perfect.

I spent the morning attempting to take some artsy type photos at our local state park. I think some turned out well but the one I really wanted didn't turn out. As I was walking up to the boat launch, I heard some geese in the distance. This was a great sound as it was just me, the water, the wind & the sun in the launch area. I turned to look for the geese & saw they were in a beautiful formation not too far from me. I pulled up the 35 mm to take some pics (I just believe the pics on the 35 mm turn out better) and ran into an error. So than I scrambled to turn the digital on & it is older so it just wouldn't get to where I needed to be. So I finally took a deep breath, relaxed and enjoyed the view before me. Those beautiful geese came in for a landing on the water & it was one of the most awesome sights I have seen. Graceful, beautiful, peaceful, tranquil.

My whole morning was filled with grace, beauty, peace & tranquility. I saw about a dozen deer on my drive over to the park. Followed by about 2 dozen ducks in a pond near a new housing development, than the geese at the park. That was a new part of the park for me to explore & I can't wait to get back there & spend some more time. I even packed my hiking boots today not knowing what I felt like doing. Every time I go to the park it seems like news things pop out at me. Today I found two new parking spaces & a new trail to explore. Can't wait.

So I'll leave you tonight with an artsy photo I took this summer. This was around the time of our flooding in 2011.

Enjoy your many blessings, find peace, light and love in all that you do. Love yourself always.

Eve of Thanksgiving

It is the eve of thanksgiving. People are sending messages back & forth wishing each other a happy thanksgiving, posting what they are grateful for. Right about now, I am grateful to have a long weekend, a loving husband who likes to dote on me and a bed filled with warm pups waiting to cuddle up with their mom.

But in all seriousness, there are lots of things I am thankful for this holiday season.
1) My husband. I am such a lucky gal to have married such a wonderful man. Thanks for making me smile & laugh. xoxo
2) My brother. I've written about my brother Dave who has passed on, but my brother John is very special to me to. We may not be as close as siblings should be, or do the normal family things siblings should do. But he is never far from my thoughts.
3) My friends. We really do have a lot of friends in our life. Maybe they aren't friends that you get to talk to every day or even every week. But when you do catch up with them they bring such a smile to your face.
4) My job. As much as it aggravates me when I am trying to learn something new and don't have the proper resources, I am thankful to have my job and work with the same group of people for several years now.
5) My hometown. I am happy to be back in NEPA and reconnecting with old acquaintances.

I hope you are inspired to think about 5 things you are thankful for during this thankful holiday season.

Many Cheers & Joys!

Rumi

Rumi is a 13th century Persian poet that my yoga instructor turned me onto. I can't thank my yoga instructor enough. Rumi's words always touch me.

Sharing some simple words with you tonight.

THE GUEST HOUSE

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.

Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

-- Jelaluddin Rumi,
    translation by Coleman Barks

Tired

Feeling very tired tonight. Possibly the weather, a little cold & gloomy today. Possibly coming down with something, helped myself to two glasses of OJ and 2 bowls of homemade chicken noodle soup w/ lots of yummy garlic in it.  What ever it is causing my tiredness I am determined to beat it. I even brought a banana up to bed with me thinking that may help in some way. lol

So sorry for the short post and lack of inspiration. But I will leave you with a new picture. I did get my hair done & am in love with it. New color & new cut!

So I've been playing with the idea in my head that it takes 30 days of continuously doing something for it to become a habit. Playing with it, because I keep telling myself if I can do my blog for 30 days straight than things will continue to flow out of me and people will continue to be inspired.

Today my 30 days challenge was confirmed via an email. The subject of the email was called "The 100 day challenge". It was about a local yoga studio student and how she started her yoga practice. She started on a 30 day challenge, was proud of herself for accomplishing that. Went on to 40 days, than 60 days, than 100 days. She said each day it was easier to carve a niche of time to do what she now felt a devotion to. This is a student that only goes to the yoga studio 1 night a week, the rest of her practice is first AM in the studio or getting up at 5AM to put an hour in before she wakes her daughter up. She is now at 199 days.

She almost mentioned something else that plagues me at times. She can't seem to stop the conversations in her head. While she may be on the mat & doing her practice, her mind is still having conversations that she can't seem to quiet. That happens to me a lot & that was some of the reason I started my blog.  I figured I have all these conversations going on, why not share them with the world. Better than trying to stiffle them and letting them fester til a later date.

So I am now on day 8 of posting with 22 more to go for it to become a habit. I am loving this experience and the horizons it has opened to me.

Many more journeys to come, I assure you of that.
*Namaste*

Beautiful, Simple Day

Today was such a beautiful, simple day.
The sun was shining, kissing us with rays of golden love.
The warmth felt like a wonderful, welcome embrace.

Some necessary shopping this AM. A stop at the library. A nap with hubby & pups followed by a nice dinner.

I like simple, beautiful days!

Lights in the Night Sky

It seems in the last few days I have heard the same saying or something close to it over & over again.

-When you look up in the night sky and see the stars, know that someone you love is looking down on   you-

As we were driving back from picking up dinner and a movie tonight, I pondered that idea. I know the idea that someone watching over you is not a real portrait of reality but a means to make an uncomfortable situation more bearable. The thought that someone you love is as close as the stars in the sky.

My mother always taught me that when someone dies, they are never far away from you. She taught me to see my loved ones in the wind blowing the trees, the flowers showering us with the pretty blooms, the sun warming us with it's rays.

When my brother passed away it was a very difficult time for all of us. Sometimes I felt like I was being punished because almost a month after he passed away we were on the road (in a Hertz truck) moving to NM. Unlike other people that I knew, I didn't have a grave that I could go to visit. I couldn't just go to sit & talk with him. In time, I did learn to see my brother in all the things around me. Sometimes I even imagined he was holding my hand as I went thru some very difficult choices.

Yesterday I was shocked yet again. I saw a picture of my youngest nephew & was blown away. I can't get over how much of my brother I see in him. He is turning into such a handsome young man. I wanted to tell him how much he reminded me of my brother but held back because I don't know how much he knows of my brother. I don't know if my sister shares those memories, those thoughts with her children. I know my future children will know of all the wonderful people who touched their life without them ever having met them.

I will explain to my future children why a slight breeze can bring a smile to my face, why certain scents can bring a tear to my eye. I will make sure that my future children know to cherish those they love and remember them even after they have left this life.

I believe in writing letters to those who are no longer with us. I believe in having conversations with those who are gone. And I do believe that my husband's grandmother's spirit plays inside a certain little cat of ours.

Memories are a wonderful thing. A thing of beauty to be shared.

Peace & Love

Life

So after a very long day at work, I was trying to decide what I would write my blog about tonight. I thought I'd show you some new pictures of my hair, but the camera battery died and it's late.

Thanks to El Sed for providing me some inspiration tonight. As I was sitting here plugging away at facebook, I hear an odd noise coming from across the room. Than the TV goes on mute. I reluctantly turn my head to see if what I am hearing is real. Good old El Sed cracks up in laughter. Amused by my befuddled look, I suppose.


So what could he have been doing that would warrant a blog post, you ask? Well there are many things he could have been doing. He is after all my husband and loves to make me laugh. But tonight, tonight there are no words to share. Just a picture for your viewing pleasure.

This is the song I heard....

And all of that was followed up by him asking me to spell for him...mathematically. I had to type it out to spell it for him.


So I end with  "conjunction junction what's your function". I hope it's stuck in your head now too.

Cheers!

Helicopters

I love how inspiration for my blog can come from anywhere.

This morning it was when I stepped out the door, on my way to work. I stepped onto the stoop and stopped to take in the morning air. It was a beautiful morning, I was on time, feeling good about having accomplished some tasks this morning before leaving.

I paused to watch a leaf falling from the sky. I watched the leaf twirl as it descended & marvelled about how it reminded me of watching helicopter seeds as a kid. The leaf turned round & round, just like those helicopter seeds, just at a much slower pace.

You see the helicopter seeds have some place to be. They have a mission, a goal. They are going to land somewhere, take root & some day turn into a tree that is produced by helicopter seeds and in turn produces more helicopter seeds. My leaf on the other hand was able to take its time. It had fulfilled its journey for the tree & was now starting on a new journey-becoming compost to help the trees grow. A longer, slower process that allows more time for slowing down.

I appreciated that reminder this morning. To slow down, take a little deeper breath and appreciate all that is around you.

Rainy Morning

Quite the morning. As it gets closer to deer season here in NEPA, I tend to go down the driveway a little slower & start looking for the deer. Start taking notice of where they are at, what time they are there, which path they seem to be travelling. While I am not a hunter, I like to think these little rituals are my part in helping my husband (the hunter) with his quest.

I noticed this morning was a little bit warmer & just attributed it to the rainy morning. Hopped in the car & started my path down the drive.

I looked in the open field to my right & was pleasantly surprised to see 2 doe & a spiker. That right there made for a good morning for me. I love to see them in the open field. They were skiddish and so I travelled on down a little slower.

Low and behold out my front window is this massive buck travelling the path of our driveway. Come to think of it, he was taking the same path as the black bear I saw last year. This buck's rack was gorgeous. I quickly tried to set up the camera phone for a pic but decided he was too far away to get a good picture (darn me for not grabbing the camera this morning). So I slowly proceed down the driveway not wanting to spook him. This old buck is a hoot. He hops off into the swampy area & proceeds to eat some foliage. I creep up towards him--with the camera phone ready--he is playing with me. He knows I want his picture & comes closer but ducks away just as I snap the picture. This goes on for several minutes. Than he puts on a show for me (guess he likes the perfume I chose today)..he goes over to the newly fallen trees in the swamp & proceeds to do a rub. This is a sound that I don't recall ever hearing before but it was pretty cool. Cool enough that it made me consider sitting in the woods just to listen to this sound again (just not during hunting season).

Once the buck was done "rubbing", he came around to give me another view & than back up on to the driveway behind my car. At this point I was darning the rain. If it wasn't raining I'd have an awesome pic, via my side mirror, to show you. But the rain drops were not allowing the pic to happen. Often, I take my camera and do random shots. I tried this with the camera phone & it just was not happening. So sorry but you'll just have to take my word for it that this boy was a beauty!

The sound of him rubbing and the sight of his beautiful rack is something I will cherish for some time to come. While I hope his rack will soon be hanging in our house, I must admit...he seemed like one pretty smart cookie & I don't think he'll be getting caught.

Quotes

So often for inspiration;  I write quotes in a notebook, save in a word doc or write on my new fancy write board desk to be used at a later time for screen savers, words in a card or in this case inspiration for my blog.

Today I spent some time thinking about what I wanted to write about. I was going to post a picture of the pups but decided I'd save them for another day. I thought about writing about my nephew getting married, but everyone knows that from facebook. I thought about writing about my day, but it was a typical day. I can tell you I am coloring my hair tonight. That's new, well not new that I'm coloring..just a new color for me.  I'm naturally a blonde, but today I think I will try something different & just go a tad darker. A golden brown, I believe it is called. Just in case...I bought a highlight kit to lighten it up if it's too dark. (That's happened before. Oops)

So here are some of the quotes.  I looked these up after a visit from my father. He had a 5 year absence in visiting/contact & I suspect it will be another 5 years or more (another blog story).

-Obstacles are great incentives! (there is a reason this one made it first on my desk list)

-Go back a little to leap further! 

-Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. 

-Today you are you. That is Truer than true. There is no one else who is youer than you. Thanks Dr Seuss. 

-Being Crazy isn't enough! (so true)

Namaste..hope your day was great!

Beautiful Day

Today is one of those beautiful November days where you just feel inspired.

So today I will throw on my muck boots and grab my gloves. The pups and I will go out, do some yard work, play with the critters, put the garden away for winter & maybe take some fun pics.

Best part of all this is...you never even have to change out of your pajamas until it is all over! I love these days.

We got married!

Well I guess this isn't news to most of you because we did it in 2005....but I love this picture & just wanted to share it with you.

Also wanted to congratulate my nephew who got married yesterday 11-11-11. Lots of love to you & your new wife.

Hello & Welcome!

Where to start...
First I would like to thank my husband for turning me onto London Andrews (londonandrews.blogspot.com) and for the inspiration that her blog posts provide me. So thank you to both of you.

Not quite sure yet what I want to do with my blog or where I want it to take me. I also started a photo blog because that's really what I felt compelled to do but I think having an open outlet like "blogger" will allow me to write & post pictures.

I worry that I won't offer you enough inspiration or perhaps too much inspiration. Either way I hope you enjoy this new journey with me.

Cheers!