sperlygirl

wishes of a new year full of promise...

as 2008 winds down, i think of all the treasured moments that took place, the happy ones and challenging ones, the meaningful ones and the ordinary ones - and i am so grateful for each.

i am also thankful for this teeny space that has provided so much - for all the encouragement, inspiration, community, and new friends it has found. my heart swells with gratitude for the friendships it has brought.

on the eve of this new year, my deepest wishes are this - that next year i take it easy on myself, step confidently into my creative pursuits, breathe deeply, find the beauty in the ordinary moments and savor them, to keep those i love close and let the little things go and to find the possibility and promise in each and every day.

i wish the same for you...have a lovely new year!

a simple pleasure...

right now, i find such pleasure in the simplest of moments...a shared hot chocolate with the boy as he carefully spoons each sweet bite of the whipped cream and laughs when the chocolate begins to coat his face. an empty cafe to savor this moment as the sun shines from high in the sky on the empty sidewalks outside. soaking up every last moment of 2008 and wrapping her up fondly. hope you will enjoy this beautiful tune these last few days of this year.

taming the winter chills...

it has been so cold here lately - unusually so - and we've been bundled up inside the house and out in attempts to tame the winter chills. walks are now brief and seem to wind up at a bar with a cafe or cioccolata calda (hot cocoa). evenings are spent snuggled deep under blankets to read bedtime stories, write posts, or watch a movie. and evenings come to a close with the comforts of a warm bath. wishing you much warmth on these chilly winter days...

making way for the new...

i always like this part of the holidays - the in-between christmas and new years. i like to go through things, try to simplify my life a bit, purge some of the old things to make room for the new, review some of the thoughts, patterns, or habits i wish to release to make room for possibilities in the new year. i will post more on that later...but tell me what would you wish to acquire in 2009? if you had no obstacles placed in your way, i'd love to hear.

announcing...

my dear friend kt and i, after many lengthy conversations and sewing sessions, decided to create a blog together...

finally, we're ready to share diventare.

"diventare" means 'to become' in italian...and since our friendship began here and we continue to live here - we found it only fitting. the purpose of diventare is to help inspire ourselves creatively and push past our own self-imposed limits. the site will be updated twice weekly and our truest hope is that it may inspire others too to break past their limits...so here's to the journey!

holiday wishes...

wishing each of you a holiday full of laughter, love, joy, and warmth ~ and a new year that rings full of promise and possibility.

a tune to quietly ring in christmas...

evening out the scales...

finally, now that a break has arrived i am feeling the scales balance themselves out a bit and am able to enjoy this time of year for what it means to me -- connecting with those i care most about in this world. be it long walks with a little boy who is content to run up and down large piles of sand by the seaside, or sharing emails with friends from different points of my life, or phone conversations with family and friends who are my selected family, to long talks about the world, life, and of course films with j, and being able to carve out the creative time i crave for painting or even a sewing project. it is a time to re-balance the scales, to rejuvenate, and to hibernate a bit from the outside world and listen to the whisperings of my heart. this is the true gift of the holiday season.

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant."
~Robert Louis Stevenson

a glimpse into my day...

this is what greeted me when i went in to wake kai from his "tunnel time" (nap is what we hope happens - reality is something different)....a chalk mural embellished his otherwise plain covered bed! while the art teacher in me felt a swell of pride for his fearless attempts at a large canvas, the mama in me was tallying up just how many loads of laundry this would make this weekend!

where is she...

another rainy, gray day here so i decided to post a photo from the last day the sun shined strong and i went for a walk to capture her warmth. i am seeking stillness these days - wanting to wrap up the last busy week at school and just soak in some simple, peaceful, still days ahead.

a nest at my feet...

earlier this week as i came inside i passed by this teeny nest. it had been blown out of a nearby tree during some stormy winds lately. i felt so happy when i saw it - like a little universal message delivered to my feet. the birds have been in my paintings as of late (the couple i have been able to actually work on  lately).

 "The very idea of a bird is a symbol and a suggestion to the poet. A bird seems to be at the top of the scale, so vehement and intense his life. . . . The beautiful vagabonds, endowed with every grace, masters of all climes, and knowing no bounds -- how many human aspirations are realised in their free, holiday-lives -- and how many suggestions to the poet in their flight and song!"
~John Burroughs