trees on the wall

During supper the other night, I looked across the room and noticed how beautiful the shadows were on the wall. The trees from outside were pouring into the room in such a way that I was drawn to them. I had to jump up from the table to capture it...
I only grabbed 5 shots of it before it was gone.....

I love to take the time to notice the fleeting beauty around me........

skies are blue

so nice to see this!
It has certainly felt like spring is in the air lately......


I am wanting to eat lighter things, and feeling very in synch with the season change.
wish I had planted bulbs last fall to come up and be pretty ones in my garden. But first I need to make it a raised bed. Then I can do it.

I have been knitting a bunch lately- determined to finsh the alpaca rollneck sweater for my friend Jenny. Then, after that, I'd love to finsh the ribbed turtleneck sweater I started for me. It is such a wonderful heathered greenish blue. I have been getting more knitting done since I joined a Stich 'n Bitch group and go every week for a few hours. It's a fun group to be in.

I think the next thing after that may be ripping out this sweater:
and using the yarn to make something else. This was the most labor intensive sweater I ever made, and the yarn is linen and wool. But, for how much time and energy I put into this sweater, I don't like it very much. And I feel like I should be on the Cosby Show (remember Bill Cosby's sweaters?). I want a great sweater that I will reach for time and time again.

new little ones

Oscar and Chloe

and then there were three.....

They hardly had a rocky start at all, in spite of what I expected. They tussled just a bit and then they have all been getting along. They all sleep together in a big lump. Totally cute. Oscar is a huge pudge. He has been eating since he arrived. I moved the food dish off of the floor, since he would just lie in front of it and eat. Now he actually has to move his lard butt up the ramps in the cage to get to eat.

Chloe is sweet, and mellow. We couldn't have asked for better pets! We adopted them because the owner wasn't dealing with them at all. So a guy who helped him move one day, told them he would find them a better home. They hadn't been out of a cage for ages, and if they did, it was only to the confinement of a small bathroom. No wonder Oscar is a chunk!
The three of them together are totally fun to watch. Great entertainment. I love listening to their chortling. I love having something sweet, furry and cuddly to be with and to enjoy.

I am glad we adopted these little guys. The boys have been great with them too. More photos to come, but for now it is hard to capture them as they have this new freedom to run around, and they are exploring that to the fullest!

struggling

okay- need to kind of journal my thinking here for a bit.

I am having a hard time with the idea of my business class right now. okay, actually for over a week now. To begin with I was really psyched about it. I was loving the idea of a holistic community center. I still am. It pulls together all sorts of things that intrigue me and pull me.
Could it hold the ADD me for longer than a short while? Yes, I think so as it would be a maleable thing in many ways. I had journaled about doing it, and it is so right in so many ways. I was spinning in fabulous energy.

But... it was too big for me to do by myself. I am not a solitary person in too many ways. Taking the class and finding the time to do all of the work, and starting the center on my own.... no.... don't really have it in me to bite off that big a chunk alone.

So, last Monday I went in to class having shifted to doing the henna business. And it just feels somehow dissapointing. Yes, I can handle the workload now, as it is far less. But reality.... I feel it's not enough for this class.

And I know me, the henna will keep me sucked in for a while, but then it will be something that I am only doing for a bit. I tend to think it will be like my knitting..... which is always good, but it is something I do for a bit and make a sweater or two, then burn out, then get back to it a few months later.

So where does that leave me at the moment? not really sure. I want to be proud of what I create. I want an income, not just a little something on the side. I want something I love and will love for ages.

I have been thinking that I should do this class and use my tea business. But that's not right either, as I really feel like I need to be done with my tea business for now. It is another job where I work alone. Completely. I'm a shipper. Doesn't matter that I am passionate about the tea.

So, I think if I were to take this course for the henna, it would be a waste. $650 to develop something that is fine to do by the seat of my pants? no. To do it for the holistic community center would be great...when I find someone to do it with, and more is right, as the clas sis for developing a business, not 'just a class'. To do the class for my tea business isn't right either. I think it would be just spending a ton of time and money trying to salvage something that isn't right, and that I don't want to really do anymore. It would just be using it to do the class. I think right now it woud not be good.

I do want to make some money to call my own. I also still have young kids that need attention from me. I also need to be doing something I really want to do. So somehow I need to figure that piece out, and not let go of the fabulous energy that I have had going for a bit. I will keep spinning, and find something that is good. I have been sending good energy out into the universe, and I have faith that something right is there to find me.

pango's world

It's about to be rocked. We have enjoyed having our little ferret, who is sweet and entertaining. He is playful and interactive. The boys love him and love to hold him and play with him. Eli has saved his money to help buy fun tubes for him to climb through, and they create fun ways for him to go through it. But... we have had more than one ferret in the past. They are very social little animals and are so cute when they have playmates. I always said that I would never have "just one" ferret again.

Pango sleeping in his cage......

The other day, there was a post on freecycle for some ferrets needing a good home. I called, we went to visit them, and of course we will be getting them! I couldn't resist. It will be more work, and more cleaning up, but I do love them. Pango will grow to play with and accept these new ones, but he will be mad at first I think, and probably horror-stricken! How dare they come into HIS space!

But these new two have only been able to have a space as big as a small bathroom to play in. They have never been able to play in any space bigger. We give ours free run of the entire house. These little guys will be whipping around for days I think! and my boys will be entertained and have a blast. It will certainly cut down on the arguing over who gets to hold the one ferret that we have! and with three, it won't always be that they want a certain one, the way it might be if we had just two. Three will be a whole different dynamic. They are supposed to arrive on Sunday.

I love having animals........

sunny day skiing

Emmett and I skied today in the early afternoon. it was sunny and beautiful. We only did about 4 runs, but they were great.... and we had fun hanging out in the sunshine at the lodge. You can see how deserted it is.

Then I dropped him at home with Adam, and picked up Eli as he got off of the schoolbus. We skied a whole bunch for 2 hours, but the sun had just gone down. Much different temperatures then! So tomorrow, Eli has a 1/2 day of school, so I will take him and be there by 2, so he will get to experience spring skiing in the sunny warmth.

I don't get many photos of Eli and skiing since, he doesn't like his photo taken, and when we are skiing I can't video very well, since I am trying desperately to keep up!


but that said, I did get these of him just after his glorious wipeout... I wasn't quick enough on the draw to capture him sprawled... but digging the huge amount of snow out of his hindside just after! and he was cracking up too. I did get him being funny on video which I will add to the post tomorrow.....

spring skiiing

me and Lorie at the top of the Gunbarrel

so beautiful last week!!! I went skiing with my cousin Lorie last Thursday, and we had so much fun. It was great taking time and skiing so differently than I do with the kids. I do love skiing with the boys, but it really is different skiing at an adult pace.
The temperature was really warm, and I was hot wearing just a turtleneck! We skied down slowly and stopped alot to chat. It was so nice to really enjoy skiing that way.... and totally different from bombing down with my boys all winter!!
The snow was kind of like skiing in mashed potatoes, and we stuck to going down the Gunbarrel (a black diamond). There was hardly anyone skiing, probably about 40 people on the whole mountain. It was as if we had it to ourselves.

and we thought that would be the end of the skiing with no snow on the ground anywhere else, and no snow on the horizon, Sundown had planned on closing last Monday.... but...... then we got tons of snow over the weekend and they will be open a bit longer now... yeah!!!

one from the archives:

me, Sue, and 2 of my cousins(Francie and Sayre) in Garmisch Partenkirchen spring 1992

good spinning- short version

I am taking a comprehensive business class at University of Hartford's Entrepreneurial Center. I was going to try to start a holistic community center, but there seem too many obstacles at this time. I am going to start a henna business, and do a kick ass job of it, and have fun and make money doing something creative that I enjoy.

I think I am going to let go of my tea business. I am not quite sure how yet, as I want to keep a little bit of it, and need to figure that out. It is a business that I started by the seat of my pants, and didn't do a good job, but it was a great learning experience.

I have been driven with good and positive energy for a few weeks now, and it feels great, and I will keep it. I like the spinning that is happening now with me. I'll keep it, send my energy out into the universe to come back to me again with more good. even my kids have been affected by having such good stuff going on between them (not always, but way more than usual). I feel like I am exuding good energy. oh, and good perfume lately too.....

more old photos

This is me in my old room...... I love the natural light, and me reading..... you can even see my big old Teddy bear in the background .... he must have been waiting for me in my bed.
I still have that old bear. he is older and very well loved now... missing his eyes that my sweet puppy Shiloh chewed off 20 years ago.

oy! the desk! ('n Howie)

me and 'Howie'
summer 1989

I am in the process of cleaning my desk off- how the heck does it get so messy!? except that, yes, it is in the middle of our living space, and it just seems to be a natural place to set things down, including all sorts of papers that I need to get to, but don't. things to file, things to pay, things to deal with, etc....

I am starting a business class and will have a ton of work to do, and will need a good space, and need to organize the home space, as I will have less time to spend on it.
Okay, reality too is that I have been avoiding it and it has piled up and it is horrid. I hate it, but feel somehow overwhelmed by it, and can't figure out how to deal with it. So I have asked my friend Liz to help me. Liz Felter was a camper at Four Winds when I first was a counselor there. We have just reconnected, as she is a professional organizer, and connected when she did some work for my mom. So now, I need her. Help!!!

I love going through all of the stuff though, as I love being organized (I can organize other people, just not me!). I am finding all sorts of things as I get ready for her to come help.

I found these old photos of me and Holland (then she was "Howie"). She is in college now though, so yeah, this is old. My hair was short then, and it was summertime and we were at a horse show. I have great photos of her from then. Lots of old black and whites.

lots of henna

I've been doing a ton of henna in the past week. My friend's church has a world outreach program that, this year, is studying the Berber people of Morocco. They wanted to do henna, and of course she thought of me.... they wanted to serve Moroccan Mint tea also, which I provided too.
We chose 3 designs to do on their hands, and I taught 2 of my friends how to do it. So, we did about 130 people last Sunday, and another 120 or so on Wednesday night. This Sunday we will do another 3 hour stint, so maybe another hundred or so. And we have served about 25 gallons of tea using little 2 ounce cups! yikes!
lots of work, but fun, and good experience. Have been handing out alot of business cards too.

Then I also did this one on my friend Megan the other night. After it was dry, she wrapped it in t.p., and held onto her warm mug of tea. It came out fabulously dark, and looks great.

minivan. I liked!?!

okay, I admit. I liked it. I didn't want to though. it's a minivan. My car was in being fixed (from the wrecked part a few weeks ago). They gave me a minivan to use while my Pilot was in the shop for 4 days. So it was long enough to really get a feel for having this vehicle.

A friend of mine, a while back, told me of an article that described people who owned minivans versus those who had SUVs. The sociologist in me was intrigued by this, but insisted on loving my SUV. and mine isn't a huge-a-mundo one. I do love it, for many reasons. One is that it looks like a car, and I don't feel like I am "mommy " all the time driving it. I can feel like "Lindsey" when I am without my kids, which is something I really need right now.

But..... I did really like using the minivan, even though I didn't want to like it. It fit all of the ski gear so easily, and same with the groceries. My Pilot fits it all too, but this one had a low and cavernous area for it all. And each of the kids had their own bucket seat, their own automatic closing door, etc. They loved it. Lots of little conveniences. Emmett wants to have it back, now that we have my car back from the shop, and all fixed. Oh well.

playground snow

At emmett's school, there is a kindergarten teacher who loves to get out at recess and really do fun stuff with the kids. After the snow last week, he worked with the kids to make creative stuff on the playground. He piled tons of snow at the bottom of the twisty slide, then dug it out so at the end of the slide, the kids go through kind of an igloo. totally fun.
Then he also made this mini labyrynth.....

It was a sunny afternoon, and emmett and his best school buddy, and we moms, had a good time hanging out and playing after school.