what's wrong with these photos....

two nights before we left florida

and

headed for home

this is the sunset mother nature blessed us with

and

then after being home only three days

this is the wisconsin reality she threw in our faces

~

actually i think mother nature must have a new

highly under qualified

assistant

that has a mean streak and was fired from his last job

working for her temporarily

{we can only hope}

~

anyhow

the sunset photo above is untouched

{straight out of the camera}

and

honestly

the sky was that orange

~

and

the snow photo

{also straight out of the camera}

well

it has been touched

and

crumpled

and

torn into tiny pieces

stomped on

and

burned

~

what

i'm not bitter

i'm not

~

seriously

i "savored" the entire minute it took for that photo to go up in flames

*

so i'm a bit nuts...

while i was in florida

i was taunted by the squirrels

okay

i wasn't really taunted. actually i was completely entertained.

but

oh they were tricky little buggers

~

everyday

when i walked around with just my portrait lens {17-55} on my camera

they were everywhere

~

they'd sing and dance and even smile at me like a party was going on

{once i think i even saw party hats and confetti}

but

as soon as i'd grab my zoom lens {70-300}

and

go back out to capture all that dancing and singing

they were nowhere to be found

so i diligently practiced my

"make like a tree"

antics

thinking

i can play this game

too

{you silly little totally charming and furry things you}

and

before long

i had them totally faked out

so

in the end

they gave up toying with me

{being completely cooperative the best they knew how}

and

then invited me to share in all their fun

as long as i'd teach them the hustle

~

hence

the tiny white party lights

~

wish you could have been there

*

it's simple...

i "savored" january

and

in savoring i realized how simple life can be

and

how simply i can live

~

most of you know i spent the month of january in florida. and to tell you that i tried to savor everyday would be an understatement. i not only savored my time there. i sucked it up until it oozed back out of my pores. these are the photos to prove it.

in living simply, i didn't miss any of my "stuff" at home.

all the little things i buy or save that fill up a corner here or a spot on a shelf over there. the stuff that has to be dusted constantly. nope. i didn't miss any of it.

i didn't miss all the clothes and shoes that were still in my closet that i didn't take with me. i liked having only options a, b and c when it came to choosing what t-shirt to wear on any given day. the rest of the alphabet options are really unnecessary.

~

standing on the beach multiple times a day seeing how the color of the water constantly changed, was all i needed to be happy. rubbing sand off the bottom of my feet before getting into bed every night, no matter how often i swept the hardwood floors, became a habit i loved.

~

i learned that sitting in the warmth of the sun for the sake of doing nothing else, is never a waste of time. and that walking miles and miles a day through an ever changing environment kept me focused. focused on just how simply i could live.

~

really. how many lipsticks does a woman need to be happy. my new answer. one. even with my love of face creams. i only packed one. so no decisions had to be made after i washed my face at night. do you have any idea how freeing that kind of thing is. very.

~

as soon as we got home. before i unpacked my suitcase. i cleaned out my closet. i filled two huge garbage bags that are now ready to go to good-will. and that feels amazing.

and that's just the beginning.

the rest of the house is going to get an overhaul too. mostly those drawers and closets that tend to almost grow things when you're not looking. you know what i mean.

you go into your junk drawer to find batteries and an hour later you're all like "wow. i forgot we had this and what cord does this go to and why do i have 4 screwdrivers that are all the same size" and when you finish rummaging, you walk away with a magnetic key holder for under your car and forget that you were looking for batteries in the first place.

~

so i was thinking that maybe simple or simply or simplify would have to my new word for the year since that's what i feel like i'm doing. but i wouldn't have gotten to this point without savoring everything the past month. so i will keep "savor" and i will keep savoring everything life wants to throw at me.

granted. my expectations are a bit high after an amazing start. but maybe sometimes that all we need. a whole lot of good in order to savor everything else that comes our way.

~

and

now to my hubby. thank you for giving me a gift that i will never forget. thank you for everything and i mean everything you did in order for me to have the time of my life.

just like dirty dancing. i really owe it all to you.

and

these photos you took of me. wow.

thank you. thank you for seeing me the way i truly am and letting me be me.

authentically me. the me that only you can bring out. the me that only you know.

*

because.....

we don't all read or know the same bloggers

{thank you thea and jen}

and

because

i know you will love this video

and

because

i have just gotten home from florida

and

because

i don't have the strength today to write a post or upload any photos

~

tomorrow i will share my current thoughts about life

and

some photos that mean the world to me

and

why i might have to change my word for 2011

*

a bit more of this and some of my stupidity....

this is a friend of ours

he and his wife came down to visit us for a few days. i told them they didn't have to jump. in fact i was a bit nervous to let them. but they insisted. actually he insisted and his wife came along for the ride. she's so darn sweet.

these girls were too cute. they're from destin

{i think}

you'd think after awhile i'd learn to carry a notebook with me to keep track of everyone. but no. i rely on my memory. actually i try to rely on my memory.

i found this cute couple biking and taking photos in town.

they're from cedar rapids, which is in my neck of the woods.

you know. wisconsin. iowa. illinois. we're like triplets.

check out these jumpers. they're from tampa and mississippi.

{once again. i think}

the girl in the pink was totally getting into the fun.

here's

samantha. lucy. and tracy.

all from my favorite little shop

perspicacity

{is the hair in the middle photo hilarious or what}

i adore these two guys

~

if my memory is right

they're from bloomington, illinois

and

i think they would have done anything for me. i should have asked for cartwheels.

and

here's where my stupidity comes into play

~

these two girls are twins and are the sweetest people i think i have ever met.

obviously one is pregnant

{terri}

and

is due in a month

and

the other is not

{tracy}

{i pray that i have their names right}

~

anyhow

both of them are married to men serving to protect our country. they are originally from phoenix. terri lives an hour from here. tracy lives in las vegas.

so what would a really good photographer do after spending that much time with strangers to know that much about them.

she'd be smart enough to have her camera set to get a photo that it's in focus. but noooooo. instead she first uses one camera with the wrong setting that totally overexposes the photo. in seeing what is happening she runs to her hubby and grabs the other camera. changes lenses. runs back to the girls and is blinded by the bright sun which prevents her from seeing that her red focal point was not in the center where it should have been. arrghhhh.

~

thank god i had taken photos on their camera first. please tell me those turned out if you're reading this. my fingers are crossed.

and

the jumper. she did that pose in every jump and totally cracked me up. i didn't ask but i bet she played volleyball in high school.

~~~~~

thank you thank you thank you

to all my jumpers

you truly made my january one i'll never forget

*

babies are so entertaining...

is it just me or does this white sand look like snow

*

i know her....

my mind

~not to mention my heart~

is achingly full. in a good way.

in a 'truly i can't believe this is my life' way. in a 'wake me up has this been a dream' way.

~

often when a new year begins, my mind won't rest. it works overtime designing a plan where the things i don't need. get tossed. and the things that remain, need to be beautified. unfortunately as honest and easy as that may sound. it rarely happens.

and

instead

it makes me feel anxious

like i have bricks tied to my feet while i'm in the middle of the ball pit at mcdonalds

~

add my germaphobic tendencies to that picture and let me just tell you. it's not pretty.

~

but

not this year. this year has had a completely different beginning. and my mind is clear.

well as clear as it probably ever will be. or ever has been.

~i am a woman after all~

~

it's as if someone else is doing the thinking for me. and maybe even the worrying.

~

i feel like

maybe

every now and then

i'm standing outside

wide-eyed

in my favorite pair of boots. looking in. my face pressed up tightly against the window while my fingerless gloved hands cradle my face. watching someone who might be me. who looks strangely like me. crooked nose and all. wondering what she's going to do next.

and

then

quietly yet suddenly

the one i've been watching

grabs my hand

and

makes me run with her

and

i realize that she's wearing the same gloves that i am

and

that we share the same breath

~

i am her

*