Today I got to take my little buddy Lucy to make her very own BFF. Because BFFs are so very special, we had to go to a very special place: Build-A-Bear Workshop. After perusing a wide assortment of puppies, kitties, bears, and other critters, Lucy found her perfect companion. A purple unicorn My Little Pony. And she was…
Category: favorite things
Today I was Grateful for…
“Gratitude is one of the sweet shortcuts to finding peace of mind and happiness inside. No matter what is going on outside of us, there’s always something we could be grateful for.” – Barry Neil Kaufman, writer I just realized that it’s been awhile since I’ve put together a gratitude list. Lately I’ve let outside stuff and…
Not So Long Ago…
…in an arena not so far away… Late last week the kids and I went to the St. Louis Blues game for Star Wars Night. It was the boys’ first game. I hadn’t been in at least 24 or 25 years. It was a nod to one’s inner geek and a nod to one’s inner jock that made…
20 Teachings to Start the Week
Things have been a little hectic lately, so I’ve been bad about blogging. Here are a few of my recent random iPhone photos accompanying 20 teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh that I found today. Love, love, love some of these. Here’s a link to the full article, but below you can find the free prize inside. 1.) People…
He Really Was a Good Man.
This throwback photo seemed to be the perfect image to post along with this fascinating look at Charles Schulz and Peanuts on Brain Pickings called “Peanuts and the Quiet Pain of Childhood: How Charles Schulz Made an Art of Difficult Emotions.” A friend shared the article on Facebook this morning and I’ve been thinking about it…
This.
“To help heal others, you must first heal thyself. To do this, you must practice being gentle in all areas of life. Release all emotions that no longer serve you. Replace guilt with acceptance, swap fear for love. Have a warm and caring heart. Every cell in your body radiates peace and, because of this,…
More or Less
“There is no resolution that, if kept, will make me more worthy of love.” — Nadia Bolz-Weber I’m not sure I understand the “new year, new you” approach to the turning of the calendar. Why would I want a new me? It’s taken a long time and a lot of work to become this me. But there is…
It Will Be Happier?
“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come, Whispering ‘it will be happier’…” – Alfred Lord Tennyson I love that quote from Tennyson. I love to think that next year is going to be happier — especially when this year was such a good one. It’s always fun to look over blog posts to…
Life Lately: Holiday Edition
A few photos on the iPhone lately include glimpses of… …my kitties’ company… and cupcake baking. A full Sunday in the kitchen and I had four dozen from-scratch cupcakes to show for it: red velvet (top left), peppermint (middle), egg nog (lower left), and gingerbread with cinnamon frosting (right row). The irony of this photo…
This and That
If photos reflect a current state of mind, then mine has been a little quirky.
A Very Good Day
In anticipation of the holiday next week and in an effort to get somewhat caught up, the boys and I all took yesterday off for a full day of shopping and cheer. We went across the river over into downtown Saint Charles for some lunch and a bit of shopping. I don’t get over there…
God Winks
For the past few weeks, for whatever reason, I’ve been thinking a lot about a story I wrote and photographed for a dear friend’s magazine a long time ago. The story was about a local business called Seeds of Happiness (Seeds shown above), but it was never published. It’s bothered me from time to time that I…
If the World is a Fair Place…
Temperatures in the 70s with less than two weeks until Christmas? Really? Yes, please. I thought this called for a walk through Laumeier Sculpture Park first thing this morning. And it didn’t disappoint. Lots of fun details. But then there was this installation by Raqs Media Collective. I loved this. Here’s the exhibit description: “Laumeier…
Have Yourself…
…a merry little Wednesday. Isn’t my little buddy Lucy adorable? Tonight we had so much fun at the Garden Glow! What a trooper she was, walking through the entire display. Oddly enough, I didn’t bring my good camera with me. But I really didn’t miss it. I had so much fun in the company of my…
Cookie Love
“Baking cookies is comforting, and cookies are the sweetest little bit of comfort food. They are very bite-sized and personal.” – Sandra Lee Lemonade Pie Cookies. These are the cookies that came from a Pinterest recipe I used for our office cookie crawl today. This is the first Pinterest recipe that I’ve tried that actually worked out….
Breathing Space
When one has a camera, a cold and rainy afternoon, and no interest whatsoever in Black Friday shopping, the Butterfly House is a perfect place to wander about, reflect, and decompress. It’s amazing how much there is to see in such a relatively small space. I am so grateful this town has such a variety of beautiful places in…
Where Do I Begin?
“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.” — Pablo Picasso What an interesting day. At the end of a work trip, a brief window of time allowed for a quick run through at the Hallmark Visitor’s Center before catching the flight home. This was a stop that…
Birthday Boy
Belated birthday dinner for my eldest. The big 23. A special occasion, smart phones were purposely moved to the center of the table/out of reach, while actual, focused conversations took place among three undistracted participants. It was nice. Of course, once the meal was consumed and after I was given the check, one by one,…
Running Around Town
The Spring Girls on the Run 5K was so much fun that it only made sense to run the fall 5K as well. And it didn’t disappoint. I never get tired of the view of our downtown. Almost all of the races I’ve run have had the arch as the backdrop. So, so lucky. Today’s…
Sunday Surprises
Early this morning I headed to the Botanical Garden to see if anything was still in bloom or if any fall colors were still hanging in there. Much to my surprise, I found a little bit of both! In fact, I had more than 130 photos to wade through by the time I got home. Here are…
Thanks for Everything…and Nothing in Particular
“I still get wildly enthusiastic about little things… I play with leaves. I skip down the street and run against the wind.” – Leo Buscaglia, author Today I was wildly enthusiastic about…a single sunflower defying the change of seasons. I can see. And enjoy. Kids’ artwork in a hallway of the local elementary school (my polling place this…
Weekend, Part II
Today started out with a beautiful mist — and it only grew lovelier. This was the perfect day for a trip with my Mom and sister to Warm Springs Ranch, home to the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales. We got to see lots of these pretty fellas. I think this one wanted a scratch. It’s hard…
Weekend, Part I
So how much fun was this weekend? My answer? A LOT of fun. Saturday morning, I headed to the middle of the state to spend the weekend with my family. First stop: the local nature center with my sister to take an ornament-making class. This plant is real. It stopped me in my tracks on…
Because…
…today is National Cat Day. Then again, these aren’t just cats. They’re family. And we love them.
hey there, friends 