The post in which I love winter !

You know me.

I hate winter.

But for one not too cold day in February, 2013,

in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec,

surrounded by peeps I love so much.

and with some winter fun activities to collaborate on,

I loved winter.

For a day.

Now it can go away.

So my red boot wearing days can begin…

Happy Wednesday, Beautiful Ones !

Sharing the joy is a gift !

From this week’s Joy List :

1. Cold Play in concert at Mohegan Sun last Saturday with my Baby !

The band was awesome and in great form for our evening together in CT.

2. David and I bundling up to go to the New Year’s Eve fireworks in Hampton, NH, only to come home without having seen said fireworks when there was an hour and a half delay that we were way too cold to wait through in spite of bundling up.

3. My friend Suzanne is here and we are cooking up some eucalyptus bundles !

Such fun !

And the opening is always such a sweet surprise !

My indoor clothesline. Not as wonderful as hanging pieces by the fire like at e.b.’s but my sunny studio worked in a pinch.

Hearts abound – looks like early Valentine’s day pieces !

3. Having chosen my Word of the Year!

Drum roll…..

 

My

 

Word of the Year for 2013

 

is

present.

As in be present,

live life in the present tense,

and I am present.

I also love that the word has the second meaning of “a gift”.

Being present is a gift for me. It offers me comfort when I get overwhelmed with crazy life, and brings me back to what is the only thing we know for sure.

This present moment…

 

I made myself a little rock with my word.

It is actually a special rock given to me by my sister Kristina. It came in a bag with a few friends that had a note in it that read “Some rocks from the Rockies for the Rock Fairy” ! Love that !!! She thought about her crazy rock collecting sister when she was on her trip to Alberta last fall and brought home some rocks for me, and gave them to me as part of my Christmas gift ! May sound weird, but I think this was my very favorite gift this Christmas. Thanks, Sister !

I have the rock in one of my little Word of The Year boxes as well.

They are still available in my etsy shop if you would like a rock and a box for yourself.

So far, the joy has been easy to find in this new 2013 year.

May it continue that way for all of us !

Big Love, Beautiful Ones !

 

Check out Meri’s Musing for more joy sharing.

The Day after…

It would seem that elections give me headaches.

It must be all that line drawing, “I win, you lose” and battleground crap. I am so happy with the outcome, as I believe in Barack Obama. He is the only candidate that gives me any hope that we can ever get closer to living in that field that Rumi talks about.

I know it won’t happen in my life time, but there is always hope.

I have a horrible headache this morning and I have many things to accomplish today.

Tomorrow, I leave for a week long visit up north.

(Jessie on the right, with her mom, my sister, Natalie)

Number 1 is time with my niece Jessica, who is 21, and who really wanted to make a plan for some Aunt/Niece time when I saw her about a month ago. How could I refuse ??? So we are taking two days in a hotel in Mont Tremblant, to hang out and spend precious time together !!! We got a great deal on the hotel as it is kind of the dead season up there until the snow falls. I am so excited to be with that girl!

I will also see my mom, my two sisters and a friend or two, (there is never enough time to see everyone I would love to see !)

and then on Monday,

I head back down to VT to spend some time with e.b. !

It is bundle up time in VT in every sense of the word,

and I need to share some of that time with my amazing friend !

Off to pop some Advil and hope that this headache doesn’t slow me down too much.

Wishing you a happy Wednesday, Beautiful Ones !

Soul Treats

Taking a little blog break to enjoy the last bits of summer 2012.

This will include putting my feet in the sand and sea here at home today.

Tomorrow, I will be traveling to my cottage north of Montreal for a weekend with my sweet sisters and some swimming in the magical waters of Lac Bibitte.

The weekend will also include hugging and smooching a 3 month old baby Anderson, and some time with his mom and his dad.

And finally, a visit with my beautiful artist friend, e.b., which is an incredible Soul treat  that is sure to fill me up some more.

Be good to yourselves, Beautiful Ones !

Love and light !

Share the Joy Thursday–So Blessed !

From this week’s Joy List :

self-portraits with fuchsia scarf

hugs from friends named Kim

(and sleeping on a good friend’s couch ! thanks, Suzy !)

new momma smiles

first meetings

baby perfection

(smooches, Anderson, sweet baby boy !)

home, hospitality and cappuccino making skills that my sister Natalie shared

(and a great spaghetti dinner prepared by Dave, and shared with Nathan and Mommy)

breakfast out with a 21 year old niece Jessica that I love so much

(but who hates having her picture taken !)

and my own yellow house on Orange Street

where the seashell peonies bloom so beautifully,

and Love greets me at the door.

*******************

Phew !

A quick baby meeting trip up north and here we are Thursday already !

I had a really nice time though, and saw many loved ones in a short period of time.

Good for the heart !

The rest of this week and the beginning of next will be spent preparing for another up-coming art and soul adventure with my friend Colleen. Very excited !!!

More later.

Tease.

Happy Thursday, Beautiful Ones !

 

for more joy, visit Meri’s Musings today.

Celebrate the Good Things !

I escaped Black Friday to Montreal, Quebec where Thanksgiving is celebrated in October, and where shopping and bargains have nothing to do with the traditional festivities.

I instead got to surprise my sister Natalie and most of my family by showing up on Sunday for a birthday lunch in Montreal’s Chinatown.

My Mom and I arrived a little early so we walked around and played for a bit, trying to stay out of sight of the restaurant where we were meeting.

It was a blast to see the looks of surprise on my sister’s face when she saw me, and also to hear Miss Katie yell out “Kimmy !!!” when we made our entrance.

Then it was time to decorate the birthday girl a little.

My beautiful sister, Natalie in her birthday regalia !

(Today is her actual birthday. Happy Birthday, Sista !!! I love you !)

My Mom and I hit the dollar store before the party so we all got to take part in the fun !

Thomas reviewed the technique for eating periwinkles in black bean sauce for those who were new to the game, and for us old pros who have been eating them since we were his age.

It may look a little gross but man, are they yummy !

Kate wasn’t into the periwinkles. Rice was more to her taste.

Check out her special chopstick style !

We sang a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday very loudly in the restaurant, with noise makers hoots as a finale.

Then we gathered in the street for some pictures to document the day.

Thomas really makes this one of my Uncle Charlie, my cousin Mathieu, and his beautiful girlfriend, Nadia. Typical Thomas pose !

I love this one of Mathieu swinging Katie around. She kept her legs pointed straight, like a ballerina !

Charlie took this picture of all the girls and our hambone, Tom.

Lots of happy faces !

It was kind of a whirlwind trip but so worth the time driving there and back.

I love my family very much, and being there to celebrate Life and all the good things about it is very, very precious to me.

Okay, now it is time to buckle down !

The craft fair benefiting the Manchester West High School Theatre Knights program is on Saturday, December 3rd !

Off I go to finish crafting !

Happy Tuesday, Beautiful Ones !

I hope your day has a little bit of life celebration in it too.