sperlygirl

wrapped up…

   this week's IMT is "intimacy" - this is one of my favorite photos of my son - taken the day after he was born. to me, it defines the ultimate moment of intimacy between a new mother and her long awaited treasure, kai. enfolded within those teeny, tiny fingers lay hopes, dreams, fears, possibilities and love.

treasures in the sky…

    last night, on the way to a dinner of comfort food with good friends - i was looking in the sky (since childhood i love to find creatures and objects from the shapes of clouds). the light in fall at dusk here is magical - and more so last night as a storm sat undecided on the horizon. we were talking and i was gazing until i found it..."look, j, look at that - peeking through the clouds... a rainbow!" always a treasure in the sky.

running through…

    i am a recreational runner - but i love to challenge myself and to train for an event. there is a 10K coming up that i hope to finish. i have not run that distance before so that's a good challenge. it's one of those things that's on my life list to check off. i admit that i am a fitness geek. if a couple of days go by and i haven't been able to workout i get cranky and crabby. so for me, it's much more of a mental necessity - plus i am always amazed at what our bodies are physically capable of enduring. i love to watch the ironman races and hear the stories of the "everyday athletes" who race. truly inspiring. after a long run today, i snapped this of my little man in the doorway.

from a little square…

    this is my artwork for this week's prompt - squares. i love the theory of mixed media collage but am still working my way of be comfortable within it. my own art, as i try to really discover its voice, is a fusion of image and words. for so long in my life, poetry, has been my art - not one i always share with the world. but i find solace in poetry. my great  grandmother was a poet and wrote on any scrap of paper she had. my grandmother still has those pieces of bags, old grocery receipts or lists...that's how my poems come to me - freely, quickly - i don't dwell over the words - they just spill out - needing to be recorded, remembered. the moments are random and fleeting and often catch me totally off guard. i can't "plan" for them...they just sort of arrive - much like this portrait with the little squares.  i had no plan (other than practicing with the gel transfer, i am trying, misty!) - but the squares grew into a quilt and then i was compelled to add the words - my quilt of words - which always seem to help me through.

little things…

  these are the 'little things' i want to etch into my mama memories...the little swirl of kai's hair, how blond it got this summer, how his hair catches the wind like crazy when we're tooling along in the stroller.  and how his little hair smells like his honey and milk shampoo.....i know all of this will change so quickly. **sigh**

saturday afternoon…

    today was a great day- as my aunt & uncle passed through - staying long enough to meet kai, enjoy a wonderful lunch, and catch up where the years had left off - and away they went. i so treasure when we have family come out to visit - even if it is only a brief visit.  then later on, kai and i, explored our neighborhood. things are so quiet around here now that summer has gracefully slipped into fall. kai babbled the whole way - pointing out discoveries here and there and waving to every person, animal and object in sight! as we were heading out...i looked up at the door and noticed marley - who looked like he desperately wanted to join the fun.

a look within…

   i tried umpteen times to post this last night but wordpress was having some hiccups with images and it wouldn't work...hopefully tonight is another story. this is my atc for inspire me thursday. it is a whimsical self-portrait - very simple - but to me it has this peaceful feeling i always long to carry around on the inside.

mi amore…

    j and i have been together since i was 20...in many ways that seems like a lifetime ago - 2 different people ago - and in so many ways nothing has changed. there are so many aspects about j that make me crazy about him still after all these years. but above all - he's a loyal friend, always believes and supports me and whatever i am passionate about, and he's honest (sometimes not always easy to hear...but always appreciated), and i burst with pride at what a wonderful papa he is with kai. thanks for the journey, j.

work in progress…

   tonight as i checked on my succulants,  i watched the street for awhile. i love to see folks from our balcony - they don't notice me from my birds eye view,  and i love to just see the bikes pedaling home or to the markets as supper time approaches. it's a very peaceful view.

  so my dear friend katy and i have decided we'll hook up with Inspire Me Thursdays to keep our juices flowing and stay creatively sparked. mine is a work in progress...but i have til thurs, right?? i work better under pressure anyway ;)

lost in laughter…

    tonight we watched and hung out with our friend's kids - whom we just think the world of. not only do i so admire that they are attending italian school and am just amazed at how much of the language they grasp - they are truly some of the "coolest" kids i know. their liveliness, laughter, and "goofiness" made a fun night for all. i am so amazed at what fatherhood has opened in jim. i love to watch the interaction and how he can talk with kids on their level - and make them laugh.  and we all shared many laughs tonight!