hello my friend, hello

Hello friends!!! It has been so long since I've visited this space. Thank you so much for checking in. It's been a busy stretch with a lot of big moments. One of the biggest lessons I took from mom's cancer battle was to take each day as it came, to thoroughly live in the moment. I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it feels to catch yourself, in your life, and go, my god, I love so many of these moments. I truly do that all the time. Here are a few moments since I last wrote....

On this afternoon, I had some of my daughter's buddies over and their beautiful mommas....whenever I tell my daughter they are coming over, she hugs me and says, "thank you mom! I love you so much." Every time. She is so elated just knowing her friends are on their way. I still feel that giddiness when I know I get to spend time with my pals too.

This photo was taken at my uncle's 60th birthday. I can't begin to tell you how much this all represents. My uncle is one of the funniest and kindest men I know. And now that he has met his quick witted Irish lass with the warmest heart, we're over the moon. And the beautiful lady lighting the cake, well, I can't talk about her without getting choked up because she is the closest woman I have to a mom now, and her presence in my life and her help navigating this tremendous grief, means everything. When our family is all together, there is this buzz in the air. You've never heard so much laughter. I remember when mom was first diagnosed, we rallied the family together, and played Cards Against Humanity, piecing together the filthiest jokes we could assemble. I remember seeing Mom laugh so hard. You can't ask for a better crew than that.

I will be so heartbroken if will these two lovebirds don't end up married one day. (No pressure!) I know that sounds a tad, shall we say, premature. But honestly, they are the sweetest buddies, who really do love one another, and let's be honest, their future kids would have The Best  heads of hair.

 Last weekend we had to say goodbye to our sweet Coops. Eighteen years together. When my hubby and I first moved out together, we adopted her from the SPCA. I remember walking in, seeing the wall of cats in cages and falling to pieces. They put her in my arms and said she was likely next to be put down. Well, I don't know if that was a sales tactic, but well played SPCA, well played. There was no way I was walking out without her. We lived in 7 homes together. She slept with us every night. She loved a good cup of tea (seriously, you had to always hold onto your tea or she was head down in it). When we first had our daugher, she disappeared for three days, apparently she was not amused. Our 70 pound dog was terrified of her. She was the best cat we could have asked for. She started getting wobbly and the vet told us her kidneys had failed, and it was impacting her ability to walk. So, we had to make the tough decision, but for her sake, the only decision. The vet told us that they never see cats that old anymore, especially ones that go outside. So we felt lucky that we got to enjoy her for so long. My friend said something so sweet to me, she said, "I think she just wanted to hang in a bit, to make sure you were okay, after losing your mom." xoxo

 My hubby did a Gran Fondo race this past weekend and we surprised him at the finish line to cheer him on. I was so crazy proud of him. His ability to tackle these endurance sports always blows my mind. Unfortunately for him, it was one of the hottest days of the year. He actually lost 6 pounds that day. I ate ice cream.

I went to Ikea and bought some desks for my daughter's playroom. She helped me assemble them. And by help I mean slowed the process down tremendously. And if you've ever assembled Ikea furniture, you'll know what I mean when I say, my confidence was soaring upon completion.  It's like climbing a mountain, you never think you'll get there, and then suddenly, you're screaming, "I did it!!! I f&#*ing did it!!!"

 This was something I've always wanted to do with her. We propped up canvases side by side and painted in the yard. Unfortunately, I left mine out overnight and a bird decided to show me what he thought of my original art.

We played a pick up game of baseball with our friends at a local park. I remember so many times thinking, I don't want to be anywhere else than in this moment. 

This is me saying hello. I was on my way home from work yesterday when I saw this black jumpsuit in the store. I swear to god, I watched so many episodes of Charlie's Angels as a child that I cannot resist a good jumpsuit. I used to want to be a private eye so badly that I would actually purposely throw my baseball into people's yards, so I could climb over the fence and investigate. I'm pretty sure the cops would call it trespassing, but I like to think I was great P.I. 

Have a fantastic weekend!! I leave you with this hilarious Netflix trailer, because this cast is off. the. hook.
xoxo

a moment of serenity

I captured these photos on my iphone this past week. What springs to mind when you think of serenity? For me it always comes back to expansive spaces in the great outdoors. Room to open your arms out wide and take a deep breath. I think it's important to take time in our day and see the beauty at our own doorstep. I hope you take a moment to find your own version of heaven.
xoxo

Images from the weekend....

 Papa came over for brunch in his new toy. He always tells me he sells carpet, but I'm beginning to think he might just be James Bond. 

 We went to Confederation Park, for the first time ever, and just loved it. We brought a picnic, went on the amazing miniature steam railway, played in the water park, climbed around on the great playground and took another spin on the train (because I was kind of geeking out about how much fun it was). If you're looking for a wonderful place to spend a Summer day with your little ones, I'd definitely add this park to your list.

We also caught this sweet gem of a movie this weekend (Inside Out) with our friends. Everyone really enjoyed it. Have you seen it? I loved the concept: our emotions are brought to life in individual characters (Like Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, etc) and the core memories we create foster the growth of our personality islands ( like Family, Friendship, Goofiness).  Even though Joy takes center stage, I think the movie beautifully illustrates the importance that sadness plays in our lives, and how joy and sadness work together to give our lives depth and complexity. Check it out. xoxoxo

get into nature.....

Hello friends! I saw these beautiful creatures this week. I'm trying to make our days of Summer full of mini adventures, so that each day stands out from the next. I saw this little video (below) and found it truly inspiring about how important it is to see new things, to see the world with child-like enthusiasm and break out of our daily routine. Jot a little list of mini adventures for yourself this Summer - pack up your dinner and eat it at the beach, do a little road trip to a town you've never seen before, learn how to cook something gourmet, hike a new trail, try a new sport like paddle boarding, fly in a float plane....whatever new experiences you can conjure up. Make each day count. xoxo

The Thousand Year Journey: Oregon To Patagonia from Kenny Laubbacher on Vimeo.