warm winter

February 20, 2012

it has been warm down here in south florida. unseasonably warm. like around 80 degrees every afternoon. living in a climate that is boiling h-o-t for most of the year, i look forward to the cooler weather that comes with wintertime. (let’s be real here, it never really gets that cold this close to the equator.)  but this year we’ve only had a few cool days and nights. i crave more of that crisp scarf + jeans weather.

i’ve been moaning and complaining a bit about it lately. wishing for more cooler weather. wanting what i don’t have.

time for a shift in my thinking. time to embrace what i am being given. the most beautiful and perfect weather. days of no humidity and no extreme heat. sunshine in excess. beautiful breezes. time to be grateful for what i do have and stop focusing on what is not.

the occasional cool day will arrive here and there. and i’ll wrap my new grey scarf around my neck and soak it up when it happens.

in the meantime, i am going to enjoy all of the things that i can do in these beautiful warm winter days…

  • get back to my running program at the park down the road
  • open the sunroof on the minivan and blast some adelle
  • take family walks with the boys in the wagon
  • spend a little extra time letting the boys run around after school while chatting with friends
  • wear my favorite flip flops all the time
  • take lots of photos of the boys playing in the front yard in the magic sunset light with out freezing my fingers off

bubbles courtesy of tate’s new bubble blower.

how are you spending your winter days?

posted in: live + learn, mine, photograph

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linked 52 | body parts

February 17, 2012

teeny tiny feet. 2 lbs 11 oz.
one year + 23 lbs later…
my niece was born 11 weeks early. you can read about her birth and homecoming. we just celebrated her first birthday. photos coming soon…

friends also linking up: Stacey, Michelle, Tracey, Heather, Andrea, Jenn, Jessica, Amanda, Amanda, Kristin, Sara, Lesli, Janet, Naomi, Rhonda, Rose, Carla, Lena, Heidi, Kristin, Heather, Amy, Liza and Veronica.

posted in: linked 52, photograph

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my little space

February 13, 2012

i dreamed about it for a long time. conjured up images of a cozy little space that was all my own. a nook. with a comfy chair and a bookshelf. a place to read + relax.

and i finally have it…


in my very busy life, i need some space. some quiet. some calm. and this is where i find it. in a corner of our bedroom. the chair is the glider i sat in to nurse both of my boys. and rock them to sleep when they were tiny babies. it is so comfortable. and familiar. and full of good memories. like a well worn soft sweater.

the bookshelf is filled with a random assortment of books and magazines. some i am reading now. some i have already finished. and plenty that i want to read. there is quite a range in reading materials:

  • artful blogging magazine
  • shutter sisters expressive photography book
  • the first of the twilight series books that i have not opened yet but plan to savor on a very specific weekend this summer
  • tori spelling’s latest book (yes, i have read all of her books because i can relate to her as a mom. she even got married on the very same day that i did – odd coincidence)
  • eckhart tolle’s a new earth
  • 1-2-3 magic (child discipline book that does work like magic when we follow it)
  • seeing the everyday magazine which has the most beautiful photographs + stories
  • and one of my favorite magazines, whole living

with the window shutters turned down, the most beautiful afternoon light spills in on my little space. but my most favorite time to sit there is at night. with only the bedside lamp on to give the room a warm glow. i can enjoy the silence in the house as all of the boys are sleeping.

it is the space i go to when i am having a really great phone conversation with a friend. often enjoying a cup of hot green tea. and rocking in my glider.

although i have this space, i don’t use it as often as i could. because i am always on the go. with an endless to do list. but this cozy place is here for me anytime i need it. so i am going to give myself the time to enjoy it just a little more. because it feeds my soul.

where is your little space?

posted in: tracy

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stretching my creative wings

February 11, 2012

as i have worked on my project life journal for the past five weeks, i have been aware of a desire to document more than just people in my photos. because stories can be told with pieces of the everyday. and there is such beauty in the everyday. the ordinary. the usual. it is about seeing it differently. the perspective. the angle. the details.

i want to do more with my camera. to expand my view. to grow and learn. to stretch my creative wings.

i am ready for more.

after a wonderful conversation with my friend renee, i am inspired to make it happen. to let my photography evolve. and truly reflect a new found awareness and authenticity. 

until now, i just have not allowed myself to take more creative photos. because of fear. the fear that i am not good enough. that i am not creative enough. that i will fail and my images will suck. and everyone will know that i am just pretending. playing dress-up as a photographer. i tell myself that really cool photos are only shot by genuinely “artsy” and creative people. which i’m not. so i will surly fail. right? hello limitations and negative energy!

create: to evolve from one’s own thought or imagination

the urge to step over that safe line of sticking to what i always do is getting stronger than the fear inside of me. i can’t not do it anymore.

so i am ready to let myself see the extraordinary in the simplicity of the everyday. i am going to search it out with my camera. and with my heart. i’m going to learn. and grow. and create. and evolve from my own thoughts and imagination.

i started today…

i’m going to post my images on my photography journal. i would like to commit to taking photos every day. i know the more i photograph, the more i will grow. but this is about being authentic. and real life tends to happen. especially with little ones. so instead of feeling the pressure to create, i will commit to posting as often as i can. a few images each day. or a few each week. whatever feels right. because i want to see what i see. i want to do this. and i am excited to start this new journey. after all, pictures make me happy.

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linked 52 | quiet

February 10, 2012

sometimes i plan out a photo in my head before i even pick up my camera. creating an idea of what i want it to look like. often i find this to be such a limiting perspective. because i get so stuck on what i think i want it to be. and unintentionally fight against what i really see. because i’m too worried about how i thought it was supposed to look.

and thankfully, some days i just let it all go. i might start with the awkward shots but then it morphs from there. into just going wherever the image takes me. to be able to simply see what i see. no limits. no rules. no expectation. it is a conscious choice. a voice in my head that speaks to me. telling me to let go.

and i listen.

i wanted to take a few photos of quinn playing with his star wars legos for my project life journal. after trying to get him to stand in just the right light in his bedroom, all i got were a few forced smiles from him. and blurry shots because he just could not hold his hands still. so, i gave up. i gave in. and i let him do his thing.

and magic happened.

he sat down on his bedroom floor carefully putting together his beloved star wars lego ship. i noticed the light from the window behind him. even though he was facing the dark hallway, i got over my fear and cranked up my iso. i laid down on the floor next to him. and took a few photos.

what i got was so real + pure. a piece of him. so focused and concentrated on his lego building efforts. in the quiet of his room. playing as he does most days now when he get home from preschool. a moment of him being him. and doing what he loves.

the more i am aware, the more i can let go. simplify my photography. quiet my head. trust my view. and just see what i see…

Friends also participating: Stacey, Michelle, Tracey, Heather, Andrea, Jenn, Jessica, Amanda, Amanda, Kristin, Sara, Lesli, Janet, Naomi, Rhonda, Rose, Carla, Lena, Heidi, Kristin, Heather, Amy, and Veronica.

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