Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Monday, October 29, 2012

tides and seasons...

i am listening to hurricane sandy raging outside my window.  with every gust of wind i expect to lose power.  lots of people around us have already lost power.  i am thinking back to the weekend,  just one short day ago.  the glorious weekend, when the skies were sunny and the laughter was loud.  saturday was one of those days when everything feels so right.  the sky was so blue and the golden light filtered through the trees warming everything with an extra shot of gold.  this past weekend was girls weekend.  an annual event that reminds me of how lucky i am to have the friends i have.
i honestly believe that people are put in our lives that we are suppose to have relationships with.  we are meant to fall in love with them.  when we are young sometimes you can want your life to be filled with grandiosity.  then life happens and we realize what really matters.  friendship matters.   life is paved with ordinary days. when we all met i couldn't have imagined what would come next.  i didn't realize how much i would come to depend on you.  back then we were just baking pies for play group, getting through the day, swapping kid stories, hanging out at the pool club, changing diapers and makes plans.  no big deal.  at that time we were all new parents trying to find our way.  walking around blindly oblivious.  we needed some people in our corner.  we all shared so much of the same.  little did we know as time moved on we would celebrate more births,  attend pto meetings, go on field trips, teach CCD, cheer the kids on at the 4th of july road race, celebrate christmas teas, bad haircuts and every thing in between. we walked up hill together so much faster than we ever could have imagined.  then suddenly there were graduations and kids being kids and late night phone calls and aging parents, divorce and deaths.  now, weddings, more births, moves,  more of life to share with each other.   we are still needing each other, still depending on each other for support and reassurance that we can make it through whatever life might present us with.  we do know how lucky we are.  we just had no idea in the beginning where this friendship would lead us.
the irony is,  all those times together, all those ordinary days, all those times from brewing tea to passing wine back and forth made us the friends we are today. 

i hope that 20 years from now we are still arranging girls weekends.  i hope we are still sharing laughter, wiping up tears, celebrating milestones and jotting down recipes (if sue will give them to us)
and always, always,  cheering each other on. 


                                                                        love you guys....

                                                         we missed you Joan and Marie !!!!


xo

Friday, October 26, 2012

can't get this song out of my head...

obsessed

this just touched a piece of me i can't explain...

listen to it here.......     love

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

sometimes it may seem dark...

Dear Dad,



it's been two years today since i heard your voice.  heard your laugh.  sometimes i have great strength and sometimes i have great weakness.   sometimes i laugh at the memory and sometimes i cry.   there is no going back.  i will never be ready to let go of either side.  my children growing up or my parents growing old and leaving this earth.  are we ever ready?  life will always be good and hard,  and complicated and simple.  i was terrified when you were slipping away.  i sat at your bedside
thinking i was prepared -  but no one ever is.  but i knew,  as we all know,  life is fleeting and people are bigger in death.  when all is said and done all the hard times seem less hard and all the good times seem even better. all the memories we have will live on forever.   in those last few hours when time slipped through the hourglass -  it was so painful.   mom was by my side,  her strength was amazing.  watching her it was hard to show weakness. like so many people who had done this before i knew we would make it to the other side.  those moments made me feel so small, so sure a reminder that we really have no control over some of the most incredible moments in life, and also the most difficult. i am reminded today that someone somewhere is hurting, someone somewhere is acting out of fear.  someone somewhere is slowly losing someone they love and someone somewhere is learning how to cope.  it's an ongoing process.  i love you and i had no idea what it would look like down the road.  i do know that i miss you  every. single. day.  like the song says,  we are 240,000 miles from the moon but over the horizon is another beautiful sky.  i am reminded all the time that you are still looking out for me.  i know i am never alone.  i see you in so many things.  especially during this season,  your favorite time of year.  the trees, the colors, the blue sky, the geese heading south are all reminders of you.  in the evening i look out at the moon and i know you are there watching out for me,  just from  another place in the universe.

 i love you to the moon and back.

i remember what you told me in my darkest days.

nothing is forever.
life is not fair.
be good, it will all work out.

   xo


Like quiet ripples on Walden's Pond,
His legacy goes on and on.
Even angels in the snow,
Have a time when they must go.......



love sent, xo

Monday, October 22, 2012

if you do it right you will love where you are...

thank you for another beautiful, peaceful evening. 



love sent, xo

Sunday, October 21, 2012

my favorite moments from the weekend.

friday nights down pour.
 
 

alan jacksons beautiful concert.  he made my heart melt.  i loved every story that he told to go
with every song that he played.  he talked often of how grateful he was for all that he had been given.

saturdays weather was summer like.  amazing.
we enjoyed some caramel apples and beautiful skies.  all the pumpkins you could imagine.
 
                                                                   all the magic.

                             
                                                                    all the passages.

and all the sweetness
 
             
                      and why the children will need therapy when we are done with them.

 
 



                and the weekend ended with a new beginning .  all the best to the sweet new couple. 
                                                            wishing you a beautiful forever.  xo






 
 
 
 
love sent, xo

Friday, October 19, 2012

Spaghetti With Garlic, Olive Oil, and Chili Flakes

with only a few ingredients that are staples in most pantries, you can create a beautiful, flavorful, heartwarming meal from scratch.
 this is a perfect solution whenever you're in a bind. for example, if guests come over and you've got nothing to serve, they are certain to be wowed when you present them with this meal.
the simplest foods are often the most wonderful.


the pasta is the real star in this meal, as it's not drenched in heavy, overbearing sauce. because of this, it is really important to make sure you cook the pasta al dente. a good, flavorful extra-virgin olive oil is also essential as is mincing the garlic finely enough to avoid eating any big spicy chunks.

7 ounces of spaghetti
2 large or 3 small garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons of chili pepper flakes
1/4 to 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
Directions
The measurements in this recipe can be shifted depending on your taste preferences.
  1. Cook spaghetti according to the directions on the package, until it is al dente.
  2. Strain spaghetti and place in a large serving dish.
  3. Add minced garlic, chili pepper flakes, olive oil, salt, and pepper, and mix together well.
  4. Serve warm or at room temperature


recipe from yum sugar.

enjoy, xo

Monday, October 15, 2012

bella sera

everyones idea of home and happiness are unique.   it's all to easy to be distracted by our own concerns. but by acting more loving you will feel more loved.
 i want all of this life i am living.

 i want to slow down and fully embrace what is right in front of me.

my heaven on earth are moments like this... thanks for another fantastic weekend. 

















love sent, xo

Friday, October 12, 2012

disrupt your every day routine...

the day ahead is already pressing on.  the clock is ticking past 6:30 am.   there is one more
tap on the alarm for 5 more minutes sleep.  i remind myself it's friday and tomorrow i get
to move slower.  tomorrow i can prop myself up against the pillows and savour my coffee and
start the day much less rushed.  maybe even allow myself enough time to refuel a bit.
i want  to make myself  more aware and more reflective. today i want to be  some one who can stop and enjoy the moment.
not always rushing to the next appointment or meeting or event.  there will always
be emails to catch up on and bills to pay and laundry to finish.  so maybe today on this very
ordinary day i will force myself to take all the time i want to examine each hour and find
something meaningful in each minute.  i'm committing today to only love, kindness and friendship.
not to racing around and complaining.   my mind can go in a thousand directions but on this day i
plan to walk in peace.

love sent, xo

Monday, October 8, 2012

weekend, repeat.

that's kind of what i would like to do.. 

not sure what happened to last week but it flew by.  here we are already in the
second week of october.  so far so good.  love, love this month. 
the weekend was amazing.  it started off on friday with an 75 degree day. 
seriously,  it was a gift.  just had to get out early and enjoy the day.
sitting at an outside restaurant on the water sipping a cocktail on a sunny friday
afternoon is the BEST way to start a weekend. 
hoping for a month of awesome.  so far we are on track.
friday dinner was fantastic with my favorite people...... i love a good restaurant and i can replay
the details over in my mind and enjoy it again  and again.

saturday we got to celebrate a milestone birthday with my bff.... love this girl to the moon and back.
you are such a strong woman, so brave, so kind, so positive.   you make me realize the immense value in paying attention to the details of every day.  making every day count.  xo  happy happy birthday my beautiful friend.  wishing you a million more.



sunday some cooler weather crept in.  the colors of the trees and the crispness in the air makes everything magic.  we took in some football and family love.  everyday moments that remind me how lucky
i am.



blogging freezes time and keeps these everyday moments from escaping. 

love sent, xo