smilin' moon

When it's quiet...

It usually means my little companion is up to something.

This is what I discovered the other day when I realized that the house was too silent...

Shirt stripped off, markings on her arms and belly, but still showing some style with the blingy pink shoes.

That's my girl.

She's learning a valuable lesson early; Better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

Thanks, little Edie, for keeping me smiling!

I'm so glad I still have you around here with me while the older kids are away.  And so glad I keep my camera nearby.

xo,

jody

sweet freckles!

Lucy had First Communion practice and photos on Saturday morning.

We got up early to curl hair and get her in her new fancy, white dress.

I couldn't resist her freckles and took lots of pictures...I shot mostly on manual F1.4, using my 50mm lense.  I really don't know what I'm doing, but I absolutely love learning and experiementing.  I also edited some of my pics using Florabella actions.  Love them!

Mostly, though, I love little Lucy's freckles, her sweet & soft personality, and her innocence.

 

xo

jody

She's 2!

 

She wanted to be a fairy and she wanted cupcakes.  She tore into the gifts from her family.  She giggled at the ponies, purses, magic wands & girlie gifts her sister and brothers picked out for her.

She wore fairy wings & jumped to her heart's delight on the trampoline.

 
Little Edie turned 2 today!

It's gone too quickly...the baby days & wobbly stepping days. 

She's sure-footed now and knows exactly what she likes. 

I can't help but look back to her birthday last year, and her actual birth day in 2009:

 
Keep on soaring, little Edith Rose!

We are all so proud of you!

xo

a rare day in February

Last weekend:

Fifty degrees.

Sunshine.

Football.

Vitamin D.

 
Fresh tulips.

Sunlight warming the living room.

A bright spot for curling up with a book.

And when the sun sets, a place to enjoy a big glass of wine.

After 8 long days, the stomach flu has left our house!

Cheers!

picture time!

     We set out late Sunday afternoon with a goal: to get that ONE great shot of our kids for this year's Christmas card.  We had about 20 minutes of good sunlight left in the day---we would have had an hour, but fights broke out about clothing, issues with hair, dirty diapers and general chaos...but it's all good, right?

      We chose our battles and I compromised the "look" that I was going for with the kids.  I wanted a picture of them all holding hands, walking towards me---but we couldn't get it.  This is where I knew I should have called my photograher-friend to do this for us.     What we got, though, were pictures that captured the real looks of our kids and the real imperfect(which I wouldn't trade) that is our lives.
     I am still chuckling about Charlie wearing a size 2 shirt...pulled out of the closet at the last minute...he's a stubborn one.

    

      After torturing them in the cold wind for what seemed like over an hour, we treated them to our favorite local Mexican joint.  We laughed over the craziness of it all and my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed our cocktails...well-earned!:)

     Have a great week...xxoo

          jody

 

 

 

  

seeing

you can look at things in life,

or you can see them.

it could have been all the flooding here in town

and the fact that we have been without drinking water for days,

or maybe it's that the heat and humidity finally lifted

and it feels like we can breathe again,

but i find i am seeing more beauty

and finding gratitude

for all of summer's blessings.

falling in love with our home again

after being convinced that we should move, even putting an offer on another house.

  

loving our short family trip to chicago,

the colors and unexpected surprises at the lincoln park zoo,

city lights,

fun times with my brother and his family,

new places to discover together,

 

summer skies,

our kids and friends splashing their way through summer's scorching days,

my grandma--soon to be 95 years old,

dinners prepared with our garden's goodness,

 

friendships developing and flourishing during tender youthful years.

seeing it all.

and full of gratitude.

xo

jody

putting it out there!

I finally put myself out there on Tuesday!

I did my first "Mardi Market"...a little grass-roots craft/art/anything goes-every Tuesday evening event in a small town a few miles away. 

The temperature was at least 100 or more with the humidity...and there were only a small number of shoppers out for the evening, but it was a great exercise in courage for me.  A meaningful way to get out of my comfort zone and make myself a bit vulnerable.

I'm so glad I went.  I received some nice feedback, and I loved seeing the other side of selling art in a way other than etsy.  I loved connecting with other artists/crafters and talking to the folks out shopping.  I found that I really love describing how I created a piece or the inspiration behind it.  Totally inspiring to see someone be drawn to a piece that I actually created! 

Thank you, dear, sweet, husband, for encouraging me and literally pushing me out the door to do this. You knew it would be safe...and it was!

(some of my pieces)

(my favorite piece---loved making this with vintage hardware!)

(these are small vintage clay tiles that became mixed media, altered pieces of happiness)

(my right hand man and our little sidekick)

(a distracted shop-keeper)

(two more helpers trickle in as the evening progresses)

Lesson:

I highly recommend putting yourself out there.

In whatever way leads you a little or a lot out of your comfort zone!

xxoo

jody

to summer, with love...

you warm us.

energize us.

slow us down.

speed us up.

mesh us together.

give us space from one another.

season us with spontaneity.

grace us with fresh food for our bodies,

fresh flowers and wildness from nature

for our spirits and senses.

we love you, summer.

xo

creative goodness from the weekend

when you're ten

  A few weeks ago I took pictures of my son, Henry, and his friends at soccer practice.  Henry (the one on the left) is ten years old...and eleven is coming up pretty fast in August.

Looking at this picture got me thinking about being ten years old.

I remember thinking to myself that "I can't believe I'm ten"...and I remember lying in bed at night thinking what a big number 10 was.  And I hoped and prayed that my dad wouldn't die, because my mom was around 10 or so when her dad died suddenly.  Age ten came with risks, with an awareness of mortality.  But it also came with dreams.

What did you love to do when you were ten?

I loved to draw and write.  I wrote a family newspaper.  I wrote articles on our family's adventures and taped pictures inside.

I drew pictures of girls, fashion women, homes, tables, chairs, corner shops...whatever I could imagine.

I felt joy when I created, when I moved my body (I was tiny and gymnastics was my sport), when I expressed myself through writing and art, and I adored family and all it stood for. 

What was 10 like for you?

What were your joys, your dreams?  Do you still have them?

I find that I am re-discovering them...surrendering to the simple loves of childhood.

And it feels right.

xo

jody