A Brief Hiatus

It's been awhile since I've posted, the reason being the death of my uncle, my mom's only sibling. My mom has always been such a strong person, but this time my sisters and I detected sadness not seen since my dad passed away 3 years ago. Therefore, we're all rallying around her with extra visits, calls, and outings. This leaves me little time for anything "extra" like blogging.

We're hoping things get a little better soon. When they do, I'll be back!

Bas Bleu

I received a new Bas Bleu catalog in the mail today. Even though I haven't ordered anything lately (my husband is in real estate, so you can imagine!), I do love their unique products and selection of books. Like a kid with a toy catalog, I did some serious circling of items I'd love to have - for some reason, I find this satisfying enough!

Here are some of the things I circled:
Birds-in-Shoes Postcards - How could I resist these "quirky" cards with woodpeckers in clogs and robins in Mary Janes? I'd love to get 2 sets - one to use for correspondance and another to frame as a wall display.

Book - The Rural Life by Verlyn Klinkenborg
From the book: "In every ditch, every hollow, a cold, sepia brew of last year's leaves was steeping in a basin of discolored ice. I found myself staring into the tangled woods, wondering why humans had never learned to hibernate and whether it was too late to think again."
I hope my library has this!

Book Darts Tin - Tiny shiny clips to use in books or magazines to "hold your thought".

Women Writers Umbrella - featuring authors such as Jane Austen and Emily Dickison. I'd love to retire the ugly umbrella I got free at the bank!

Book - Mrs. Mike by Benedict and Nancy Freedman
I am a Mrs. Mike, after all. I think the library will have this one.

Twilight Turtle - A nightlight that projects the starry sky onto the ceiling. This is supposed be for a child's bedroom, but I'd love to drift off to some constellations on my ceiling, especially after a glass of wine.

For the time being I guess I'll just thank God for the library, use post-it notes instead of book darts, and look out the window if I want to see the stars. But there's just no substitute for the birds-with-shoes postcards! :(

reading, watching, listening

Here's the latest installment in my "Reading, Watching, Listening" post category. I hope occasionally one of you stumbles on something interesting here - so many of my favorites have come from your recommendations!

Reading:

A Year in the Maine Woods by Bernd Heinrich - I just started this, so I don't have much to say except I like the cover! After this one I plan to read Wife in the North by Judith O'reilly, which I read about on the blog Lesley's Book Nook.

Watching:

Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe

I've really been enjoying this show, especially because my kids and husband like it too and we can watch it all together. Other reasons for my enjoyment include Mike Rowe's sense of humor, voice, and muscles. ;)

Listening:

Music-wise, January and February are always odd months for me. The holiday music stops and I never know quite what to play. Many of my favorites, like Jack Johnson and Chris Isaak, seem a bit too summery this time of year. I've found this soundtrack to Imax's The Living Sea featuring Sting is perfect background music for cleaning, relaxing, or whatever I'm doing in the winter months. My kids also enjoy having it on when they are playing or doing crafts. The songs are so peaceful, and they remind us that winter's bleakness is only temporary.

2009

I'm posting this quickly, as my husband is in the shower and I don't need him looking over my shoulder at my resolutions! Maybe my haste will make what's important rise to the top?

My Brief Resolutions for 2009

- Try to walk a half hour each day (this is non-negotiable!)

- Say "no" if I really don't want to do something/go somewhere

- Make a little more time for myself instead of just complaining about it inside (If I can "make" my husband get the kids out of here for an hour so I can clean, then I should be able to do the same to give myself an hour in my little cabin, ALONE, without guilt

Nothing too exciting or life-changing, yet so important to me, Hopefully listing them here so I can revisit them often will help me stick to it all.

Now, it's time to chip away at another slab of the confetti cake I made yesterday!