A little downtown stroll with my fur boy this evening, right by the Farmers Market and the Christmas Market. I so enjoyed watching families search for their perfect tree and strap their winning selection atop their vehicles. There was excitement, anticipation and happiness in the air, as well as the gorgeous scent of fresh evergreens….
Category: photography
Highest compliment
Day 26 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A compliment that’s stayed with you. Answer: My favorite compliment is when someone forwards a photo of a heart or unusual photo and they tell me that it reminded them of me or they thought it looked like something I would see. I share my photos in the hope…
Stop and smell the…
Day 24 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A favorite scent. Answer: Lilacs. Any shade, any variety. I routinely adjust my running route based on lilac bushes blooming in my area. And I have no issue coming to a complete stop in the middle of the sidewalk and just breathing it in. I don’t even bother…
Joy
I spotted this little heart yesterday and it felt like a love note from earth. Day 22 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: An everyday item that brings you joy. Answer: The little heart leaf brought me a great deal of joy, but that’s not something you see everyday. So I will say my standing mixer….
That’s it. That’s the answer.
Day 21 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A favorite place to visit. Answer: New York City. And I cannot wait to see her next year.
Beyond Work
“Just be kind. Please. Just be kind. Especially during the holidays. Have an extra moment of grace, of understanding, of love. There are so many with stories of loss and struggle and hardships. And the illusions of the holiday and perfection and celebrations can make the hurt magnified. So just love. Smile more than you…
Simple Secret
“And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” – The Little Prince As I tried to finish out my work day, I could tell that I was missing a gorgeous sky show outside. Admittedly,…
Gems
Day 16 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A cherished friend. Answer: This prompt made me smile. I believe that all friends should be cherished. But if she’s reading this, I know the cherished friend that popped into my mind first knows exactly who she is.
Let me think about that
Day 15 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: Something you’re currently passionate about. Answer: Running? Making Christmas cookies? Spoiling my dog? Finding hearts in things? Taking photos? I have a lot of interests and things I enjoy right now, but passionate is a strong word. I guess if I had to call something a passion, it…
Everything
Day 14 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: One thing you love about your body. Answer: My initial reaction to this prompt? I love my eyeballs because they are capable of rolling in my head. I know I’m not alone in this, but a healthy body image has never really been my strong suit. But then…
Second Act
Check out yesterday’s sky at sunrise when I took the dog out… …and then an hour later when I left for work. I had assumed the sky show would be over once the colors faded. Imagine my surprise when I walked out the door again and saw the show was simply in its second act….
Turkey Trotting
Day 11 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A happy memory. Answer: Last Thursday. Thanksgiving, obviously, but beyond that, I got to participate in an in-person race with my older son — our first together since 2018. Which, of course, leads to countless other happy memories of races with both of my kids and others in…
Finnegan (Finn-again)
Day 10 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: Something that made you smile today. Answer: Otherwise known as something that makes me smile every day.
Light and Luxury
Can we take a few moments to admire the ridiculousness that was the late afternoon light in the park this afternoon? Everything looked like it had a golden filter applied. Such a beautiful afternoon. We walked and walked and walked. And Finn has slept and slept and slept ever since. 🙂 And we met three…
This and That
This fading Black-eyed Susan made me laugh. It looks like it has eyeballs. And there are still just a few trees left determined to keep the fall color show going. Day 8 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: A beautiful sound. Answer: The obvious answer would be music, especially Christmas music. Whitney Houston in the Preacher’s Wife…
Frost Flowers
Several years ago I read about something called “frost flowers” and I’ve wanted to see one in person ever since. But the timing (a brief window in late fall) and conditions have to be just right (first hard freezes have arrived, but ground is still warm) for these ribbons of ice crystals to form, so…
Simple
Day 5 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: An item you use every day. Answer: My cell phone camera.
Look for it next year, too.
Day 4 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge: Something in the room you’re in. Answer: Grampa’s chapel. Shown above, it was made by my Grampa more than 100 years ago, it’s one of the most precious things that I own, and I’m pretty sure I share it on this blog every year at Christmastime. But unless I want…
Well, Yellow There…
Three words: Gingkos are magic. It’s not often that I have to wait for people in the park to leave my frame so I can take a photo of something, but the gingkoes had a lot of people stopping in their tracks and wandering off the paths. Little kids tossed leaf piles in the air…
30 Days of Gratitude
The other day I got an email from a magazine I used to subscribe to (Bella Grace) and it included a link to an item called “30 Days of Gratitude.” It’s a 30-day calendar with a prompt each day to, well, promote gratitude. Here’s the intro: “There is always something to be grateful for, we…
Choose the better
“Hate has 4 letters, so does Love. Enemies has 7 letters, so does Friends. Lying has five letters, so does Truth. Negative has 8 letters, so does Positive. Under has 5 letters, so does Above. Cry has 3 letters, so does Joy. Angry has 5 letters, so does Happy. Right has 5 letters, so does…
Small journeys
On the way to the office this morning, I realized how much being home for the last year and a half has made me enjoy getting out and about — so much that I even appreciate the stoplights along my route to work. I love to look around, see what’s developing (in nature or man-made)….
Yellow
So far this fall has been the season of red. But I’m thinking yellow deserves some serious love for its showing as well.
Good choice
Every day you have an important choice to make. Whether to cherish or waste the most valuable blessing you have – time. Today you have the choice to spend it wisely, appreciating every minute of your life, loving the people that love you, focusing on all the good you have. Find what makes you happy,…
Seven Ways…
…to love yourself. 1.) Celebrate small things. 2.) REST. 3.) Say “no” to toxic people. 4.) Express what you need. 5.) Set boundaries. 6.) Slow down. 7.) Forgive yourself. I saw this list on Instagram (@chronically_cheerful) recently, which seems to be my magic 8 ball of self-care wisdom these days. And I thought those were…
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