Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Life Savors


tea
Tea is the best way to start a day, perfect as a mid-afternoon treat, and wonderful to soothe away the worries of the day at day's end.


walks on the bog
Every time we walk the bogs we find treasures...whether it be an elusive deer track, a confidence shared, or ruby red berries collected along the way.


the beach
Nothing, and I mean nothing, compares to sinking your bare feet into the sand at the edge of the shore, listening to the waves, and just wandering down the beach for what seems like forever before turning around to head back into the real world. I cherish the times I spend at the beach.




snuggling
I am a snuggler. I think feeling someone else pressed up against my side makes me feel secure and safe. It could be one of the kids, Joe, or even the dogs. I am tickled that I have passed this snuggling trait on down to the kids.
 

the thrill of perusing the library shelves in search of something to read
I never get to read a best seller when it's actually a best seller. Instead I aimlessly wander the stacks of the library and emerge with six or seven possible treasures. I am rarely disappointed and have discovered some favorite authors with my willy nilly approach to book choosing.


a cat in my lap
It's been years and years since I've had a cat that really LOVES to curl up in my lap. Miss Charlotte not only loves it, she follows me around and the instant I sit down, she leaps into my lap, curls into a ball and purrs like a freight train. I am in heaven.


magazines in the mailbox
I adore magazines and get several in the mail that are just for me. Each time they arrive in my mailbox I do a little leap and click my heels together in happiness!

hunting for heart shaped rocks
Treasure hunting never gets old. I can spend hours sitting on the beach amidst a pile of polished stones...sifting them through my fingers, hoping to find one that happens to be in the shape of a heart. I have heart shaped rocks lined up on windowsills and piled into glass jars in my kitchen. I even have teeny tiny ones on a heart shaped dish above my sink. Looking at them while I do the dishes makes me happy.

                             

a warm quilt on a cold day
The best quilts are made for you with love and our favorite is well worn and warms you up instantaneously despite being a bit threadbare. Must be all that love woven into the fabric.

 

walking hand in hand with a child
The child can be mine, a beloved niece or nephew, or one of my daycare friends. Clasping that small, soft, warm hand slipped into my own with love and trust is something I could never get enough of.

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Maine: by the numbers

7: days spent at the lake in Maine

                          

                            

37: bags of Humpty Dumpty potato chips consumed in those 7 days
6: bags of Humpty Dumpty potato chips we bought to bring home
5: nights there were sleepovers with cousins in cabins or tents
2: nights random nieces appeared on my doorstep at bedtime
0: number of times I heard "I'm bored."
1847: collecitive number of mosquito bites
1: nights I had to make dinner
3: movies enjoyed under the stars

                          

0:number of showers the kids got in 6 days
17: rides in the boat

                          

3: number of boat rides where Sam got to "drive"
359: rocks the kids painted that we had to haul home
 
5: time I got up each morning
4:beds in our cabin

                          

0: number of nights Sam slept in a bed
6:number of nights Sam slept on the recliner
7:spectacular dinners AND desserts
1: trip to town for supplies
4 (okay 5): trips to town for alcohol
2: nights we heard moose

                                    

6:nights we heard loons
5: days spent sitting by the lake
1: day spent on the party barge
1:spectacular, amazing, relaxing week

                                   

78: times I remarked that this was the BEST VACATION EVER!