riding with the top down.

I am back from my quick visit to Kansas City and I just woke up from the best sleep I have gotten in a few days. Today is a beautiful and busy day... I wanted to blog some on my weekend, but I only have a little time right now. So for now, my faithful readers, all I have to report to you is that convertibles are the bomb.

busy bee

Like all of you, I am sure, I have been busy. It is just that time of year for me... that time of year when my head becomes a whirlwind of relatively unorganized thoughts about wrapping up my "cleaning" job and starting up with my Day Camp job. This Friday staff begins to arrive to kick off the summer. Some returning staff I can't wait to see and the others are newbies who are my friends too, they just don't know it yet. Meanwhile, there are some dirty buildings on the property looming over my head, but mostly I am changing gears so I can prepare to be the best Day Camp Director a girl can be. And I am so e.x.c.i.t.e.d. I love Day Campy Camp with a deep love and I am ready to bring-it-on. So-- I have been feeling busy. Camp will be busy too, but a different, summer camp kind of busy. Although, before camp really begins on June 3, I've got a few things to do:

An important yet quick trip to Missouri for a wedding, a friend is taking me to what I am thinking will be the best concert of all time (it doesn't feel right without you though, Val...), I will become a trained archer(!), I will get a mammogram (sorry, but it's true), help a friend grade some CPR and lifeguarding tests, and I will briefly celebrate two years of marriage with the hubs.

All that's to say... Summer is coming my friends... Summer is coming.

oops...

It now seems kind of silly that I bought a candle holder with holes. I walked in to find this on my dresser. oops.

too good not to share

A friend shared this with me and it just made my heart smile. 

Falconbridge Family Film from Michel Sandy on Vimeo.

It almost makes me want to have kids someday... almost.

bringing down the wall

Ever since I was a kid this wall has guarded camp from the raging waters of the bay. I have sat on this wall so many times, dangling my feet over the side and looking out at the water. It's just a really beautiful spot. Years ago, I remember sitting on the wall with a fellow camper as she sobbed about the tragedy of her best friend's brain injury. One summer, a boy told me he liked me while standing on the wall (weird). My first summer working at camp I would sit on the wall and write letters to my boyfriend. On one particularly early morning I was writing a letter and a gust of wind stole my paper and threw it into the bay... I tried, to no avail, everything short of jumping in the shallow water to save my letter. For some reason I remember these things. Mostly, I just think it is a uniquely rugged and relatively dangerous wall and I love it. 

But it isn't really holding up as a wall should and camp is eroding away beneath it. So this large monster of a rig is fixing this erosion problem with a more sloping rock effect. Although a great improvement, it is kind of sad to see the wall go...

These have been staring at me a lot lately. I can tell they want to be worn. They want to explore the neighborhood again. Hit the pavement that they haven't seen since fall gave way to winter. I don't know how to tell them this- but I don't share their same passion. I want to run, I do, but it is just so hard at first. My mind is telling me yes, but my body is telling me no... please, please, no. 

the 2nd sunday in may

Today was mother's day and I just love mothers. I am so thankful for mothers and all of the heart and soul and blood sweat and tears they pour into children. If you are a mother, I love you and think you are wonderful. I hope your day was happy!

We got to spend the day with our mothers and I am thankful that we were able to spend time with both families in one day. I could blog this evening and post pictures of my mother and her beautiful memory, or of the aunt who chose to love and raise me. I think pictures tell such amazing stories.

But tonight I discovered a new little gem on our iMac called photo booth. So, instead, I leave you with this picture... because what mother wouldn't want to see these faces in pop art?

iHave iMac and iConfusion

...It's true, we have crossed over to the dark side. Ben and I have been contemplating buying a new computer for about 6 months now, and it was just a matter of what and when. Our old dinosaur of a laptop caused Ben to never get near the computer for any reason- its virus-ridden issues were too much for him to deal with. (SO excited to have a new computer). We have done our homework over the past few months (and relied heavily on friends' advice) and we ultimately decided on a Mac. I took up a good hour of this nice waif of a man's time at the Apple store-- and a week later came back to him to finally take the plunge and buy ourselves a Mac. I haven't used an Apple computer since the olden days where "Apples for Students" allowed me to play a lot of Oregon Trail and Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?, and all my files were on floppy disk. Buying a new computer is an investment, and it's a difficult one when you know little to nothing about them. All I know is, we hated our old computer and we hope to love this new one. 

We opened the box last night, and let me tell you, this is one beautiful piece of machinery. The first time we booted it up it gave us this amazing welcome presentation with bright flashy colors. Oh, I wish it would do that every time... 

Then, I got to clicking on some words and icons and found myself in a world of confusion. It is relatively user friendly, and it is so nicely organized (which I love) but it is just different. I found myself longing for the control panel and windows wireless internet preferences and some differentiation between backspace and delete. I just couldn't figure a few things out. 

As I have been playing with it and reading some tutorials, I am figuring it out, and I think I am really going to like this thing.

my mom's china

Tonight I hosted girl's Bible study at my house. I made Mexican food because today is, after all, the day that Mexico kicked France's butt. Anyway, I really enjoy the fabulous beautiful women I get to spend my Tuesday nights with. One of the girls just got engaged recently and was talking about what to register for and what not to register for, where to register, and so on. So, we laughed a lot about the stupid things some of us had registered for when we were engaged. We also laughed at the fact that those of us who had been married got a blender as a gift and not one of us really uses the stupid thing... not ever...ever...ever.

Then we talked about the dying trend of fine China, wondering what it would be like to actually use China. And why doesn't anyone register for it anymore (if you did though, I commend you!). It just seems so impractical I guess. To be completely honest, I would love to host dinners where it would be only appropriate to serve the meal on fine China. Tonight's enchiladas just were not the meal to start that tradition, however.

I happen to have China. A complete dinner set for 8. It was my mother's and it is very of the times (of the "I got married in the 80's" time). It has a very sweet pattern of these tiny cream colored flowers with blue centers and wispy light green leaves, and of course, a shiny silver trim. But I never use it, because it's C-h-i-n-a. And goodness knows I don't have great intentions on buying a China cabinet. So it sits in a drawer for no one to see. It got me to thinking, this China is important to me because it was my mom's, but I never use it, nor do I display it. It just is special that I (at the ripe old age of 23) own my very own China which was passed down to me from my mom.

It's weird, you know, I hold so dear these things left behind my mom. Things that were hers and are now mine, and I love that. It is hard sometimes, because these things don't carry memories for me. It seems a little odd that of everyone who was a part of my mom's short life, I knew her the very least, and I am her only daughter. I think that my memories of her are made up in my mind by stories I've been told and the things of hers I now have. They are really not memories that I actually have. So, I am glad that I have her China. It doesn't mean a lot to me as dinnerware- but it helps to make her feel real to me... She was a classy lady who was not afraid to register for some Lenox China.