9/52

"A portrait of my girls, once a week, every week, in 2016."

Bridget: What are you thinking about, sweet girl?

Claire: Your signature smirk, adorable as always.

Joining in with Jodi for the 52 Week Project

Now is Now

Beautiful moments from my week:

• A family walk in the spring-like weather
• Cozy time on the couch crocheting when the weather turned cold and snowy again
• Meeting a friend for a good chat and a bit of crochet
• Trying a new recipe for a delicious and easy to make meal that everyone loved (well, except Claire, but that is a tall order)
• Taking a load of clothing to the consignment shop, the purge continues
• Listening to an inspiring podcast
• Cuddling with my girls
• Planning the garden
• Seeing a slight reduction in our grocery bill
• Noticing that the days are definitely getting longer
• Coffee - always

It has been another full week: full of everyday life and full of wonderful little moments that deserve to be celebrated.

(My focus for this year is: Now is Now. Read more about it here)

For a Sweet Little Girl

My sister had a baby girl on February 18th - a healthy, adorable, chubby, precious, baby girl. Her name is Thea Rose.

To welcome little Thea into the world, I made this card:

There is nothing sweeter than a baby girl.

 I'm joining in the Winter Project Link Party at Thistlebear.

8/52

"A portrait of my girls, once a week, every week, in 2016."

A spring walk in February made possible by some unseasonably warm weather. 

Claire stomped through every puddle and needed constant reminders to stay out of the mud while Bridget carefully considered her path and kept to the dry sidewalk. You girls: so much alike, yet so different. 

Joining in with Jodi for the 52 Week Project.

Now is Now

Today on my way home from work I stopped and bought some tulips. Because today is a good day: my sister had her baby girl and the sun is shining.

I am about to head into the kitchen to make an Asian soup for dinner, something new that I am excited to try.

Hope you have had a wonderful day.

(My focus for this year is: Now is Now. Read more about it here)

I've Started Another Project

I still need to do the edging on both my Cozy Stripe Blanket and my Harlequin Shawl, so naturally I started another crochet project.

I gathered all my cotton yarn together in a basket, got myself comfortable and warm on the couch, and started making some simple, colorful granny squares.

My plan is to make as many squares as I can - with colorful centers and the third round in white - and then seam them all together into a blanket for our master bedroom. Sounds perfect, doesn't it?

This is going to be my long-term, portable, not-too-intense project, one that I can work on while watching TV, answering random questions from the girls, watching swim lessons, waiting for dinner to cook...I'm sure you know what I mean. Plus it will put a considerable dent in my yarn stash, which is always a good thing.

This project is making me very happy already, colorful squares certainly have that effect.

Oh, and did you notice I have sewn in my ends already? Looks like someone has learned her lesson.

I'm joining in the Winter Project Link Party at Thistlebear.

7/52

"A portrait of my girls, once a week, every week, in 2016."

Sweet sisters, at least most of the time; not long after this picture was taken I needed to break up a tickle fight that had gotten a little out of hand in the living room.

Joining in with Jodi for the 52 Week Project.

Now is Now

A list of beautiful moments from my week:

• seeing the sun shining through the windows
• writing Valentines with my girls
• eating simple meals
• crochet, always crochet
• a good purge of my closet, so therapeutic
• learning a few new photo editing tricks in Lightroom
• splurging on blueberries
• listening to music from my teen years
• watching the tulip bulb sprout on the kitchen windowsill

It feels wonderful to be present and take notice of these moments, enjoying them fully and completely.

What were some of your best moments this week?

(My focus for this year is: Now is Now. Read more about it here)

6/52

"A portrait of my girls, once a week, every week, in 2016."

When a little sister is feeling poorly, a hug from a big sister does wonders to aid in her recovery.

Joining in with Jodi for the 52 Week Project.

We have had some very unseasonable weather lately. There are actually a few shoots growing in that garden which is completely baffling. Out of curiosity, I looked back at my 6/52 photo from last year; oh my goodness, what a stark and alarming difference between this year and last!

Now is Now

A cup of green tea at the end of the work day provides a moment of pause and an opportunity to regroup before the after school/evening activities.

Watching my girls play and listening to their constant narrative. It makes me smile and laugh aloud when I see that time and time again they prefer to play with paper dolls that they have drawn and cut out themselves rather than the actual dolls that are sitting untouched in the toy bin.

Reading this book. I finally got it from the library mostly just to see what all the fuss was about. To be honest, I am a naturally tidy person and do not identify with many of the "problem areas" identified in the book, however there is always room for improvement, isn't there? I have learned a few things and I am planning on a good sort through of my clothing this weekend.

So there you have it, another week. There were many moments this week when I felt completely in the Now, completely present in the moment; it is wonderful to feel this way after existing in such a hurried and distracted state for so long and I love being able to share some of these moments in this space.

That being said, and in the interest of keeping it real, there were moments this week when I wished the day was a little longer so that I could fit more in, when I added too much to my 'to-do' list even though I now know better, when I spent all my time getting ready for the next day and did not for a minute relish the day I was in. Needless to say, I felt tired, irritated and frustrated. But then I began to think about the realities of life and my perspective shifted. I began to think about how present I felt over the course of the week on average rather than on a strictly daily basis. I quickly came to realize that the Now moments were there, the calm was there, the enjoyment was there, I just needed to step back and look at the bigger picture. Mondays and Tuesdays are very full days for our family (work, school, dinner, Girl Guides) so sitting with a cup of tea at the end of the day is not realistic if everyone is to eat and get to where they need to be on time. It is usually these days when I feel most overwhelmed by all there is to do and my inability to stop even for a moment. But when I step back and look at the whole week, the hurry and demands of those two days are diluted by all the other times when I was present and enjoying the wonderful moments, people, ideas, and things that were right in front of me. Perspective is a truly powerful tool, my friends, and even a small shift can have a dramatic effect.

I hope you have all had a wonderfully present week. Thank you so much for reading.

(Read more about Now is Now here)

The Harlequin Shawl

Friends, I am making a shawl. I never thought I would see the day, but I guess you just never know. I always kind of thought shawls were for old ladies (which I am not, despite what my grey hair may hint at), but after working on my own shawl and seeing such gorgeous results, my mind is changed. And after a quick peruse around the internet and I am even more convinced that shawls are also for the younger crowd (including me).

I started my shawl back in the summer and then set it aside while I was working furiously on my Cozy Stripe Blanket.

When I picked it up again at the beginning of the year I crocheted and then ripped out many rows as I got reacquainted with the pattern. It is a somewhat finicky pattern and I even had to make a few corrections to it so that everything would line up properly.

It is looking absolutely lovely. I laid it out flat for the first time in order to take this picture and it quite literally stopped me in my tracks...it is so pretty, and my girls wholeheartedly agreed with me when I declared this aloud. I love that it resembles lace, so delicate and feminine.

I am using Caron Simply Soft in Soft Mint, a beautiful yarn and a gorgeous color that definitely gives this shawl a more modern look (no old lady here).

I've reached that blissful point in this project when I can see the end in sight and am really excited to finish - I only have one more row to do before I move on to the border - so I am working on it whenever I can.

Such a happy project, one I never thought I would do, but goodness I am so glad that I did.

Stay tuned. I do predict that I will be finished soon.

I'm joining in the Winter Project Link Party at Thistlebear.