back in the day

photo of m somewhere around high school age...i love the youth and free spirit...has it really been almost a month since i've blogged? so much to write about...gratefully i've been "living" more instead...less time on the internet and losing touch on facebook but it is there to go back to...this month we've been gone almost every weekend...memorial in the napa valley, bakersfield academy reunion and now we just got back from m's 20th h.s. reunion from monterey bay academy...so i thought a high school photo would be appropriate...

highlights from mba included a bon fire at the beach (yes we were the only ones to take our children to this chilly, windy, smokey late adventure...loved the sand, too much chocolate, hot drinks, conversations dodging sparks)...exploring the campus and talking to m about back in the day, potluck (including hay stacks of course!), dinner at chaminade in santa cruz (hearing stories and getting to know his h.s. friends while watching our children chase their's in a small space...i was surprised most people left their kids at home...) i LOVED the brunch the next morning...ate way too many chocolate dipped strawberries from the fountain...photo of the kids sharing these will have to follow later...and swimming/laying out with the kids at the pool...looking forward to hawaii and swimming with them in the ocean in just a few weeks...

well kids are up and ready for me to make pancakes so more later...

out of the haze

here's to hoping sea and the thoughts of time spent at the beach (this shot taken a couple of weeks ago on the first day of spring in coronado) can take me to a new place...

i have several friends who want me to confirm them on facebook...i usually include this blog in my reply and realized my past few blogs have been rather glum...the update i was going to do a week ago would have been "loss magnified" about the 14 people who crashed in montana. i went to school with almost all of them...7 of them were children 10 and under...was closest with the middle sister who didn't die and will most likely be heading to puc for the memorial this weekend (8.5 hour drive each way)...i guess 3000 people attended one of the first services so it is obviously affecting a lot of people...my sister was roommates in college with one girl who died...this same girl was friends with one of my good friends in st. helena...the friday before the plane went down the boy who died was comforting my friend's youngest son "your mommy will be back soon"...makes me think of my little coop preschool and losing a whole family out of my life...

anyway, i've been trying to "move past" this news but it colors so much...today it is cloudy out, we woke up late, children are still sick, i put on "johnny cash" on pandora which has been a lot of sad tunes...the gambler is on right now..."know when to hold them, when to fold them, when to walk away, when to run..." i read a lot of philosophy in to music...drinking lukewarm french press coffee surrounded by too many dishes and messes literal and symbolic...

then a friend IM'd me to see how i was doing and she helped get me out of my rut of negativity
...focus on getting our kids together to play...

so i'm choosing to focus on life and living...kids playing in their new playhouse and watering all the things that don't need to be watered...off to help my garden thrive and hope our family can, too...