Spring Blossoms

"Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love!" -Sitting Bull

WW - The Light of the Soul

"What is soul?  It's like electricity - we don't really know what it is, but it's a force that can light a room".  ~Ray Charles

The Simple Things are the Sweetest

Linking up today for Simple Things Sunday.

In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary. ~Aaron Rose

Poetic Winter Photography Challenge - Solitude

I'm joining in the Poetic Winter Photography Challenge hosted by Alicia at Project Alicia, Rebecca of Bumbles and Light, Kristi of Live and Love Out Loud and Faith of Sweet Violet. It's an inspiring 4-week photo challenge aimed at capturing the poetic beauty of winter through photography. I admire the talent these ladies exhibit through their beautiful images. Be sure to stop by their blogs for some fun and inspiration!

"Language... has created the word "loneliness" to express the pain of being alone.  And it has created the word "solitude" to express the glory of being alone."

 ~Paul Johannes Tillich, The Eternal Now

 "Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." ~John Muir

 "True silence is the rest of the mind, and is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment."  ~William Penn

 "When we cannot bear to be alone, it means we do not properly value the only companion we will have from birth to death - ourselves."  ~Eda LeShan

 "Only in quiet waters do things mirror themselves undistorted.  Only in a quiet mind is adequate perception of the world."  ~Hans Margolius

"It is only when we silent the blaring sounds of our daily existence that we can finally hear the whispers of truth that life reveals to us, as it stands knocking on the doorsteps of our hearts."  ~K.T. Jong

Solitude is something I rarely experience these days. Not even in the bathroom, the car, or, well, anywhere really. I love being surrounded by my family, but it does not always allow for the peace of mind or the inner-reflection that solitude can provide.

I wish I had more time to play around with some textures and text in Photoshop, but for now, this will have to do. I had a hard enough time accomplishing this much, lol. I can't wait to see everyone else's gorgeous entries. These talented ladies always gather a fabulous and diverse crowd!

 
Thanks so much for visiting!!

 

Thought For The Day

If I had my child to raise all over again,
I'd build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I'd finger-paint more, and point the finger less.
I would do less correcting and more connecting.
I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.
I'd take more hikes and fly more kites.
I'd stop playing serious, and seriously play.
I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.
I'd do more hugging and less tugging.
~Diane Loomans, from "If I Had My Child To Raise Over Again"

Autumn Poems for Kids & Halloween Fun

We've all been enjoying the Autumn season around here. We've baked cookies, made crafts, read stories, researched the history of Halloween, and decorated and selected costumes for the big day. The kids are all geared up for Saturday's festivities and can hardly wait to don their costumes and set out into the night in search of tricks and treats.

I wanted to share some fun poems and jokes that I've used as we create crafts and baked treats. These will help get your little spooks into the spirit of the holiday:

The Pumpkins At Pumpkin Time
by Grace Cornell Tall

Back into your garden-beds!
Here come the holidays!
And woe to the golden pumpkin-heads
Attracting too much praise.

Hide behind the hoe, the plow,
Cling fast to the vine!
Those who come to praise you now
Will soon sit down to dine.

Bonfire Days
by Grace Strickler Dawson

Ho! for the leaves that eddy down,
Crumpled yellow and withered brown,
Hither and yonder and up the street
And trampled under the passing feet;
Swirling, billowing, drifting by,
With a whisper soft and a rustling sigh,
Starting aloft to windy ways,
Telling the coming of bonfire days.

October's Party
by George Cooper

October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came-
The Chesnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.


Jokes:

Why didn't the skeleton cross the road?
He didn't have the guts.

What was the witch's favorite class in school?
Spelling!

What do the birds sing on Halloween?
Twick or Tweat.

Why don't angry witches ride their brooms?
They're afraid of flying off the handle.

What do witches put on their hair?
Scare spray

What's the ratio of a pumpkin's circumference to its diameter?
Pumpkin Pi

How do you mend a broken Jack-o-lantern?
With a pumpkin patch

What does a skeleton orders at a restaurant?
Spare ribs

Who's making that noise?

A Failed Experiment

What started out as a science experiment ended up as just another plant I've killed. A few days ago we set out to learn about how plants absorb water and nutrients and then create the food they need through photosynthesis. We found a nifty little experiment in our book, 501 Science Experiments, where you take 4 white flowers, put three in water colored with food coloring and one in plain water.


Then, over several hours you begin to see the coloring travel through the stems and eventually color the petals. Sounded cool and my kids surely would have been impressed with our green, blue and red flowers...except that NOTHING happened. We checked after several hours, overnight, even one, two, three days later. Nothing changed, except that the flowers wilted, lost their petals and eventually died. Hmmmm. Not quite the result we had anticipated. (Well, truth be told, I do have quite a knack for killing any living thing that grows in soil.)


Still, all was not a loss. Aiden came running in through the front door this evening with a leaf he'd found from a Magnolia tree and exclaimed, "Mom, look what I found!" He then peeled back the top of the leaf and said, "See Mom, that green stuff, that's called Chlorophyll. that's where the plant gets it's energy."
Guess he learned something after all!
Here's an experiment from the same book that did go well. We made a compass by magnetizing a needle and using thread, a card, a pencil and a glass. It really pointed due North (we checked) and this was Aiden's face when he first saw it work...

Mom, Your Knees Are Old

So here I am, screaming toward my 35th birthday and hating every minute of it. I don't know why but 35 bothers me way more than 30 did. I was the same way at 25. It's the mid-decade crisis. I guess it's that I'm leaving my early thirties behind and will now be in my LATE thirties and thus, nearly 40. That's what bothers me. It's like the end of another era. Another ugly bump on my way over the hill.
To add insult to injury, not only have I gone up a size (obviously not getting back to my pre-3rd-baby size) but my three year old told me today, "Mom your knees are old." I mean, geez! I had noticed the crows feet starting to show, and I've been covering up the gray hair for years, but now my knees look old?!
Why do our bodies age so much faster then our brains? I don't feel 35. I can't even believe I've been alive for 35 years. I keep waiting for the day when I'll feel like a grown up. I am just starting to get used to being a married mom with 3 kids. I don't even know how that happened so quick. Time flies is an understatement.
Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't change it a bit. I love my life (most days), but foot loose and fancy free, I am not. Do I have to be 35 too? Ok, I'm whining. Sorry. I know there are much worse things in the world. Like turning 36. Guess I should count my blessings instead of my birthday candles.

Apparently Money Does Grow on Trees

It was a hot and sticky day and we were on our third errand, heading into the grocery store. My 6 year old darling son asked if he could get "just a small toy, like a parachute man or car or something?" as a reward for his "best behavior." My reply was "No, I'm not buying anything extra, just the groceries we need." He persisted, pleading and reminding me of how "good" he'd been on our outing. Good? hmm, arguable at best, I thought to myself. Again, I said "no" and the whining ensued. I was in no mood to deal with this, as I was hot, tired and busy wrestling a wiggly and hungry 10 month old into the shopping cart while using one leg to block my three year old from running into the parking lot. I muttered something about how "money doesn't grow on trees" and instantly realized that I'd finally become my mother. The real kicker came when I realized I'd been outsmarted, however, as ds emphatically replied (his voice giving away his annoyance at my ignorance), "Yes it does! It's made of paper isn't it?!"

Life's messy. And sometimes big messes come in little packages. This one was presented to me just this morning. Good thing I've got a Woolly Hoover. It is amazing. Does a very thorough job and never looses suction. Some days I don't know how I'd live without it!

A Snore of a Book

Brynie always likes to read before bed. Apparently this particular book didn't hold her interest for it has quite literally put her to sleep (pun intended.) Perhaps it wouldn't have worn her out so quickly had she not been reading upside down.

Entrepreneur in Training

After visiting the Stockley Gardens Arts Festival last weekend and watching the kids line up for face painting, Aiden decided to open his own face painting business. He was very resourceful in finding brushes and Sidewalk paint...and his first customer. Notice the sheer delight in her expression.

Scoring Machines, Bid Dirls and Teenage Grass

• As I mentioned before, today was the season's last soccer game. Aiden didn't score any goals today, but he played great defense. Last week however, he was in the zone and scored three goals. After his third goal, in his typical exuberant fashion, he exlaimed, "Yes! I'm a scoring machine!"

• A few days ago, after her nightly bath, I dried Bryn's hair with the blow dryer - this was a first. She usually hates having her hair brushed, so I doubted she'd last until her locks were completely dry. But, I was trying to avoid the usual morning tangles so I was very encouraging about how beautiful her hair was turning out as I dried it. To my surprise, she enjoyed the whole experience and afterward looked into the mirror, smiled, and then pranced through the house singing, "Hooray, I bid dirl, I bid dirl!"

• Dh recently planted some grass seed in the front yard to fill in some sparse areas. Aiden and his new friend Maddie were playing in the yard a day or so later when he pointed out the seeded areas to her and told her we were growing baby grass and that she mustn't step on it. Well, about a week later Maddie was again playing in the yard with Aiden and remarked, "Your baby grass has grown a lot." To which Aiden replied, oh so matter-of -factly, "Yeah, now it's teenage grass."