Tuesday, April 5, 2011

slipping into spring.

today i have a little spring in my step. while it's not particularly sunny outside (ok...it's down-right grey) it's plenty warmer than our last few days and there's a fierce wind blowing. while i like to think it's sending away the last signs of winter, i also can't help but feel it stirring up something inside of me.

call it an impatience for the final push into warmer weather.
or maybe a little excitement for all the fun that's to come over the next few months.
or maybe, just maybe, it's a little nostalgia.

exactly one month from today, e will finish up with law school. and i am yet again asking a question i ask almost every post on this blog: where oh where has the time gone? as i sit and think about this (almost daily) i once again must remind myself that it feels like it's flown so fast because we've done such a great job at focusing on the now. with all the things to think about in the future...where will we go, how will we get there and what will we do when we arrive...isn't it just great to look back?

and to be honest, looking back on my two previous springs in new england is exactly what excites me to look forward. while i know in my mind that there will be many more shall we say, brisk, temps ahead, i know in my heart those days will be behind me before i can even blink.
so, despite this grey, drizzly, windy day, i choose to bask in its warmth.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

wading through winter

and when your strife strikes at your sleep,
remember spring swaps snow for leaves.
-mumford + sons

february may be the shortest month, but it sure does take forever to get through. waiting for march 1 right now feels like i'm six years old all over again waiting for santa clause to come.

this warmer weekend we've been promised is much needed. as the piles of snow begin to slow.ly. melt, the sidewalks + streets flood with water and my selection of suitable shoes is limited even more.

this being my third year up here, i'm well aware that the turn into spring is much further away than march 1. but a gal can dream for sure.

Monday, February 14, 2011

warm love.

valentine's day has always been a favorite of mine. i love pink. i love red. i love hearts. and, i'm a huge fan of love. love for anything really: the husby, the friends, mac+cheese, designer shoes, the cat - WHATever.

some people may argue that i use "love" too much, as i'm always loving one thing or another - OK, maybe it does go a little overboard when i go on + on about the little old man who lives next door... but i personally think that we don't use love enough.

a few days before this one, you can normally find me preparing some home-made valentine's for all my peeps. i glitter them up nice + pretty with some sweet messages + send them on down the coast or across the country to be opened - fingers crossed i'll make it on a fridge. but this year, i failed. between work, traveling and just getting caught up in my daily life in general, i didn't make those lovie dovie hellos. and i feel worse for it. i know that those things bring a smile to those who receive them. and the thoughts of those smiles make me all warm + fuzzy inside. and isn't that the best feeling of all? isn't that what this love thing's all about?

e + i have a rather nice, simple valentine's tradition. we exchange cards + make the same dinner. every year. when we first started, it was early in our relationship + i didn't want to make a big fuss about it all. plus, it was important to me to have not just this day stand out + be filled with love, but all the days in between. he couldn't have agreed more which is what has helped make us so fantastic these many years later.

whatever you do today, i hope you see some love. the warm, fuzzy kind. send it on out there too, cause it will always - in some way, shape or form - come back to you.

and for my ladies who normally get one of those sparkly beauts: this one's for you:
happy valentine's day!

Monday, January 3, 2011

beginning, again.

for the new years that e + i have been together, we've had this tradition on december 31. we'll write a list of all our highlights from the past year + then we'll write a list of our resolutions for the year to come. the highlights part is especially fun, as you'll be amazed at how many things you tend to remember once you get going (e.g. that really tasty meal you had at that road stand on the cape, or the ultra-long card game you played that one rainy day...) and you can imagine that over the years, it's been quite cool to look back on our memories and resolutions.

this year, over a bottle of wine + a croque madame, we noted that we've been very good about our resolutions of the past, which made us excited to create new ones for 2011. however, i couldn't help but notice as we tapped the pen to our thoughts, the list of resolutions this year was shorter than previous. and i thought, (while our highlights portion grew from page, to page, to page) do the number of ways we vow to better ourselves with each passing year decrease as, well...each year passes?

i seem to always write a slew of words that inspire me to get up, get out + get something immediately out of the brand new year's arrival. after all, it is a refreshing, clean slate that you can do anything with if you choose. my sister put it best when she said, "for the rest of the year, there is no 12:01 like this one." and i agree. it is an end + a beginning all at once and i find excitement in that fact.

last year i made a commitment to stop thinking by way of, "new year, new you," simply because i like myself just fine + therefore only wanted to change a few things. and not to toot my own horn but, i once again did an admirable job sticking to my resolutions (tooot, toooo!). so i'm at it again this year - new year, same me (with more minor improvements!).

on the list for 2011, i resolve to:
  • FINALLY get some wedding pictures up around the apt. it's been almost 2 years...
  • lose the road rage.
  • visit + experience (food, sights, sounds) at least three new cities.
  • give my daily uniform (skinny jeans, v-neck shirt + cardigan, with boots) a rest at least twice a week. (side note: this will be a toughie. i mean, really hard. if you know me, you're probably asking what on this green earth will i wear...i'll keep you updated).
  • slow down my schedule...just a teeny bit, to enjoy more "me" time.
  • volunteer. it's about time i put this resolution (and some hours on my free weekends) to good use.
  • be OK if one or none of these work. after all, in the first few days of a new year, how am i to know who i'll be, what i'll do, or where i'll go, for the next 11 months! ;)
happy new year to you + yours - cheers to making it the best one yet!