Road salt stain resulting from snow melting off of cars in the parking garage at work…topped with a little golden leaf…together it reminded me of a Christmas tree this afternoon. This yuletide top-of-mind awareness could be a result of me missing the holidays or the fact that I’m feeling guilty because I still haven’t taken…

This weekend brought an indoor tennis tournament over in Illinois with Tanner — which meant a detour to one of my favorite places: Our Lady of the Snows.  I don’t know what it is, but I feel more at peace in that space than just about anywhere else. The silence is profound and envelopes you…

Country Bear Jamboree is ready for the New Year with his snazzy top hat. I love these people. To see more of Country Bear Jamboree, go here. And here’s an old costume… and another, and another, and another.

Well, aren’t you just a dapper little fella? Every Sunday from December through the end of February, if it’s under 50 degrees, our zoo brings out a few penguins for a little parade. And for the first time since moving here years ago, we actually went to join the parade route and witness it for…

Lots of cleaning both at home and at the office have led to the discovery of many lost little treasures.  These little guys are among my favorite discoveries. While these were a fun find, the best was a super old polaroid camera (sans film).  Yay! New camera toy, right? Wrong.  I researched the camera online…

I stumbled onto a tumblr blog today called The Burning House. At first, I was taken aback. (Admittedly, a burning house is an unusually sensitive subject right now thanks to a dryer fire in our basement over the holidays. No worries, no damage, our new dryer is nicer than the old one anyway. But still….

First day post-holiday vacation meant that I had to tiptoe around the house to get ready as two kids and two cats slept. Although somebody woke up long enough to realize that my bed was fair game.  Good thing that lump of fur was occupying so much space because I seriously thought about crawling back…

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive…

It’s 60 degrees. In December.  Even the birds seem confused. But I think we’re all good with it.  In fact, our neighbors have lawn chairs set up in the driveway to watch their kids learn how to use their Christmas bicycles.  Happy New Year!

  Ever wonder what your kids would unearth if they ever cleaned their rooms?  One of my offspring (who shall remain nameless as credit for his effort) found this little guy today.  Wonder if he’ll find R2-D2 the next time he cleans?  Sadly, we’ll probably have to wait another six years or so to find…

Wasn’t expecting to wake up to this today! (And I wasn’t expecting it to melt by lunchtime.) 

“Maybe Christmas, he thought… doesn’t come from a store.  Maybe Christmas, perhaps… means a little bit more.” Quote from back-to-back episodes of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” that played on Christmas day — the classic cartoon and the Jim Carrey version. Love, love, love. Every year, it becomes more and more obvious how much truth there…

If it can’t be a white Christmas, then an unseasonably sunshiny day is the next best thing.  And my sister and I took advantage of it — both on Christmas Eve and Christmas day.  While Christmas day’s walk was confined to our parents’ neighborhood, Christmas Eve’s walk took us to the wooded trails around a…

Annual trip to Our Lady of the Snows’ Journey Into Bethlehem… A sweet Christmas surprise from a wonderful friend… Beautiful afternoon sunshine that prompted me to open the windows a bit to give the kitties fresh air,  just in time to hear… …my neighbor playing Silent Night on the harmonica in the backyard — so…

Tanner gave me this carnation at his orchestra concert…  two weeks ago!  This beautiful bloom isn’t beginning to show signs of winding down.  Petals aren’t even slightly withered.  It’s still going strong and making a tiny festive splash in our kitchen. 

I’d forgotten all about this little treasure. It’s always so fun to sift through past photo files because each photo comes with a story. Could be a little story based on a hike or even a baking adventure. But some stories are big. Like this one. This silly guy was a piece of street graffiti…

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” – Norman Vincent Peale Everything is softer and more beautiful? Everything is also brighter and funnier and sparklier and snowier… Over the past few days, I’ve come to own two funny little snowmen — one was my own purchase…

I’m still geeking out about this portrait of Mary and Jesus that I saw yesterday at my favorite store. It was tucked into the corner of the storefront window and I nearly missed it. In fact, I didn’t see it as I walked to the store. In all fairness, this store is the definition of…

For nineteen years, I’ve been a mother to boys.  Trains. Robots. Planes. Pokemon.  Racquets. Bats. Balls.  Dinosaurs. Dirt. Bugs. Firetrucks. Super Bowls.  Hysterical laughter associated with various bodily functions.  Even our Christmas tree speaks “boy” with its multiple tributes to various professional athletes.  (One such athlete [baseball player] who shall remain nameless [Albert] was recently removed from our tree mid-holiday. Not that I’m not…

Shortbread, egg nog fudge, Mexican wedding cookies, chocolate crinkles,  pretty cookies of unknown name and origin…this can only mean… …my office’s annual Cookie Crawl. With all of the themes, decorating and baking, it seems like an awful lot of work for a two-hour sugar high and I grumble about it ahead of time. But it…

…of life last week according to the iPhone. Celebrating a new Hipstapak on the Hipstamatic, rare mid-week lunch with one of my boys, silliest visit to the party store, holiday preparations and silent reflections.  (Within these photos is also a sneak preview of event happening next week.)

Tonight was spent at the last Winter Orchestra Concert of my baby’s high school career.  Bittersweet. I sat just a few rows from the front, camera in hand, ready to move to the edge of my seat to preserve the Kodak moment. I’d like to think it doesn’t happen too often, but tonight I was…