pockets full of brownstones and trees

“We need enormous pockets, pockets big enough for our families and our friends, and even the people who aren't on our lists, people we've never met but still want to protect. We need pockets for boroughs and for cities, a pocket that could hold the universe.”  ― Jonathan Safran Foer

Its hard to believe its already September. 

These city trees that once bore blossoms  bright 

will soon lose their leaves along the streets.

Lyla and I walked Mr. D to his metro stop before taking an early morning jog. 

We stopped by Trader Joe's 

and with a stroller full of bread, fruit and sunflowers, we made our way back home. 

While there are definitely some things I will happily walk away from once we move

(so long weekly street cleaning and twice-a-week trash days), 

there is definitely a lot I will miss about the rows of brownstones and old brick sidewalks.

I'd like to carry these things in enormous pockets... wherever we go. 

here in Boston...

“I want 

To do with you what spring does with the cherry trees.” 

― Pablo Neruda, Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair

Mr. D didn't get home until a little after 11 pm last night.

I haven't quite gotten used to missing him all day long...

(and it actually makes me quite sad to think about getting used to it) - 

so this spring weather is just the thing I need to distract and lift my spirits. 

Also, I have a batch of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies in the oven and its not even 10 am

(one of the joys of working from home)!

Whenever life seems a little daunting, 

it helps so much to focus on those little daily things that make me smile -

like long afternoon walks under the blossoming trees lining brownstone streets 

and the smell of warm cookies filling the air. 

the need for a sunrise

“Our minds, as well as our bodies, have need of the out-of-doors. Our spirits, too, need simple things, elemental things, the sun and the wind and the rain, moonlight and starlight, sunrise and mist and mossy forest trails, the perfumes of dawn and the smell of fresh-turned earth and the ancient music of wind among the trees.” 

― Edwin Way Teale

 The best part about commuting an hour and half in to work with Mr. D every day

is that we leave as the sun begins pouring liquid gold over the rolling hills. 

To witness it takes your breath away like that first cold ocean wave against your legs, 

its grandeur and vastness spread out before you full of hope and possibility.

This is our last week of work here in the District before we head to Boston. 

I prepped the temp this morning on work projects while I'm on maternity leave

and I've begun boxing my office things for the trek up North. 

Sometimes I dont know which is more surreal:

the fact that we are officially moving in less than a week

or the fact that we will meet baby girl in 10 weeks or less. 

So many adventures ahead...

and thankfully lots of sunrises along the way. 

 

today's best fit: baby's first shoes

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go...”

― Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!

 As soon as I find out if sweet babe is a boy or a girl, I am buying his/her first pair of shoes...

these moccasins from Freshly Picked to be exact. 

I like all the stuff over at Freshly Picked...

but my favorite by far are the moccasins for kids and babies. 

I wonder which color I'll be buying ?!!

a sudden gift at a sudden moment

“Sometimes love is a surprise, an instant of recognition, a sudden gift at a sudden moment that makes everything different from then on. Some people will say that's not love, that you can't really love someone you don't know. But, I'm not so sure. Love doesn't seem to follow a plan; it's not a series of steps. It can hit with the force of nature--an earthquake, a tidal wave, a storm of wild relentless energy that is beyond your simple attempts at control.” 

― Deb Caletti

 We ordered pizza in and watched Modern Family last night while I addressed envelopes.

It was around 10:30pm when I finished the last of the addresses and Mr. D had just headed in to the bedroom. I laid back on the couch stretching my feet out and stayed really still. Suddenly for some reason, I just knew I was going to feel baby. AND if not seconds later...I felt four little taps like fluttering wings below my belly button. 

And THEN what felt like a little wave rolled through my abdomen...

I ran excitedly in to the bedroom and laid flat across the bed and pushed on my stomach a little where I had felt the fluttering and with Mr.D's hand right over the spot ...we both felt a distinct little kick! 

It may have been little, but our eyes both grew big with amazement. Thats our baby! 

I could hardly sleep last night and when I woke up 

it felt like Christmas morning.

How I welcomed December in...

“That is why, walking across a school campus on this particular December morning, 

I keep searching the sky. As if I expected to see, rather like hearts, 

a lost pair of kites hurrying toward heaven.”
― Truman Capote

 This morning we ate Belgian waffles with raspberries on top while still cozy in bed

and laughed as Lucy howled about welcoming the new day.

Later, I opened the window in our bathroom and watched the steam from the shower 

puff up and swirl against the cold air.

And that is how I welcomed December in...

with warm steam filling my lungs and cold air simultaneously taking my breath away.

 Happy December!

photos talen by Mr.D

happy little things

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”
― Albert Camus

Waking up to a crisp blue autumn sky peeking through bright orange and yellow leaves

and Moose's head resting on the edge of the bed 

is a great start to any day...

but it was an especially welcomed treat this morning.

Today I am focused on the little things making me smile:

- flirting with Mr. D at the red light before he turned left toward downtown 

and me, right toward old town

- the colorful trees like bright flower bouquets lining the streets

- the warm smell of a fire burning in the cool fresh air

- holding hot chocolate in the warm mug between my hands

- my grandmother's turquoise ring 

- Thanksgiving around the corner and Christmas songs in my head

May your day be filled with lots of happy little things!

wednesdays.

“Wednesdays were the best thing about Atlantis. 

The middle of the week was a traditional holiday there. 

Everyone stopped work and celebrated the fact that half the week was over.”
― Walter Moers

 Some days there is just nothing better than pulling your hair up 

and feeling a cool autumn breeze tickle the back of your neck.

This morning, a single bird sang a soulful harmony to a chorus of dry, colorful leaves swaying 

just outside our bedroom window. Its so dark in the mornings now 

and the alarm seems to sound so frightfully soon each day...but this morning I awoke to 

this lone little bird's tune filling our room and making its way through the somber sky's moonlit hue.

Happy Wednesday!

photo from weheartit.com

magic, dreams and lots of good madness.

“May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. 

I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, 

and don't forget to make some art -- 

write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. 

And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself.”
― Neil Gaiman

 I have really never been happier or more surprised than I was yesterday. 

A joy that is too hard to ascribe feelings to in the form of those simple lines and curves 

that come together to make words...

I am so happy and thankful to be sharing this adventurous life with the man I am married to - 

there is no one else in the world that I would rather spend days like yesterday with than him. 

This is my very favorite time of year...

and it is proving to be even grander than I had ever hoped or planned

and that is what makes life especially beautiful - those unexpected gifts.

Photograph by Amber of Live It Out Photography

hot chocolate.

“He stared at his hot chocolate like it held the secret to the universe.”
― Lilith Saintcrow

 Yesterday, Mr. D and I both were feeling under the weather

so on this chilly October morning the warmth of hot chocolate in my hand is almost as good 

as a warm bath or a big cozy towel just out of the drier. 

The weekend came and went so quickly that I am just barely able to digest 

the word "Tuesday" on my calendar staring back at me, not to mention "October."

But this is my very favorite time of year and I am looking so forward to the days ahead.

Sick or not sick, I am sure this wont be my only cup of hot chocolate today

and I am already looking forward to the next one...

however careful to slowly enjoy every warm, smooth sip of the one currently nestled between my hands.

It is only Tuesday, after all.

date night and new seasons.

“What is that you express in your eyes? 

It seems to me more than all the print I have read in my life.”
― Walt Whitman

 Mr. D took me to dinner last night. We went to Floriana in Dupont. 

The restaurant is housed in an old brownstone and our table for two was right in front of the fireplace.

The food was delicious, but the candle light and the gray-haired waiter who 

described the menu with his hands - 

as if he himself was garnishing the dishes right in mid-air - 

made the night even more delightful.

The misty rain falling in between the white Christmas lights outside 

filled me with such excitement for this new season. 

Mostly, though, just glad I have Mr. D to enjoy it alongside.

--------

Tonight we are going to Opera in the Outfield

and Friday we head to the Big Apple. 

I can hardly wait....

Photo #1 by Stefany Alves
Photo #2 by Husband

with flowers and the moon....

"With freedom, books, flowers, and the moon, 

who could not be happy?"
— Oscar Wilde

 I came home last night to these beauties and a winsome letter that still has me smiling.

Aren't they so bright and appealing? 

I have the best husband.

I was feeling pretty exhausted when I got off work yesterday, 

and a night at home with that husband of mine was just what I needed.

---------

Warm tea in hand, 

I am looking forward to today (and tomorrow) with a whole new light.

Sometimes that's all it takes....

a good book waiting at home, a mug of warm tea, a vase of flowers, words dear, 

a song to listen to and the mindfulness to seek out even the little things that bring joy

in order to delight in the day... whatever it holds. 

a collision.

"The most interesting information comes from children,
for they tell all they know and then stop."
— Mark Twain

One Summer night, 

the sky was laying on top of the field -

a collision that resulted in a million fireflies twinkling in the twilight.

So thick was their presence

that you would inevitably swallow them whole if you ran out into their midst.

 So majestic was their design

that one could hardly comprehend the spectacular scene illuminated in the space 

where this magnificent collision took place.

-------

I grew up catching lightening bugs in jars, 

but according to husband they don't exist out West. 

So, we have been outside catching fireflies every night to make up for this.

 photograph taken by amber.

book club

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough 

or a book long enough to suit me.” 

― C.S. Lewis

My first book club meeting is tonight

and I am just about to finish the second book...and I kind of don't want it to end.

a carton of ice cream...and then some

"Nothing's a better cure for writer's block 

than to eat ice cream right out of the carton."
— Don Roff

Currently our freezer has seven cartons of Trader Joe's Peppermint Ice Cream inside it.

I am a lover of ice cream and sadly my very favorite flavor can only be bought once a year

so when I saw the last shipment of peppermint at Trader Joe's,

I bought them out.

I have found ice cream to not only be a cure for writers block, 

but for almost anything the day can possibly throw at you. 

Thank you Mr. D for letting me eat it straight out of the carton...

I leave the lid in the freezer (so that it doesnt make a mess on the counter)

and I wrap a big paper towel around the carton, then I

sit on the couch with my knees to my chest and savor every spoonful.

[I realize that one day when I have to set a good example, 

I may have to break this guilty little pleasure of mine - 

and in that case, ice cream is best enjoyed in a big mug or a tall glass]

found here.

home.

"The journey itself is my home." — Basho

 A couple of nights before the flight West last week, Mr. D picked me up from work numero dos in Georgetown.
It was midnight and my feet were killing me,
but before I knew it our car had taken a quick detour.
We parked outside the gates of Arlington Cemetery and headed on foot toward the bridge.
Down the grassy hill. Across the faintly lit parkway

and right down to the bank of the Potomac River.

I would not have traded that night for anything.

This was our view. 

And it was one of those etheral moments, where I have never been more sure of where I was standing,

my feet hidden in the grassy ledge, the line of ducks out for a midnight swim along the silent river

and a panoramic scene sprawled out before us like so many history books and postcards paint.

The magnitude of where we were standing weighed so heavily on me.

And yet.

It all glistened so clearly in the palm of my hand. 

The moment you start the biggest game of your life, knowing it will be full of hard climbs, 

tears and the thrill of a runners high. And you run at it full force and

full of joy because there is absolutely no where else you would rather be...
[having really nothing to do with your geographical location at all]

twentyfive. well, almost.

"Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You."
— Dr. Seuss (Happy Birthday to You!) 

 We celebrated my birthday last night at my parent's house in the country

with hummingbird cake and peppermint ice cream 

[my very favorite cake and my very favorite ice cream...

which is sadly only sold once a year and thankfully around my birthday as luck would have it)]

On Sunday, Nov. 21st I will turn 25. 

A quarter of a century. And I know its going to be a good year. At least I hope. 

I feel more comfortable with who I am than I have ever felt before. 

A year of strength and facing fears, soaring high and simply living. 

Plus, I will never be 25 again, so it might as well be the best 25 that Ill ever be. 

I'm all dressed up at work today

because straight from work Mr. D and I are celebrating downtown.

Here's to the weekend,

to friends and family who love,

to the holiday season and peppermint ice cream 

and to the next quarter of a century!

My favorite time of year for many, many reasons.

thankfulness.

I can hardly wait for this week to be over. 

My birthday is Sunday and a trip West awaits just days after.

Also, I have exciting news to share soon.

Its delicate and vulnerable and oh so warm in my chest

just waiting on a few things. 

In the meantime, I have never been so thankful for friends dear. 

Friends who's words have been truly uplifting and in many ways healing. 

 This is very much the month to be thankful. 

because you called it so

"Ah me, but where are now the songs I sang 

When life was sweet because you call’d them sweet?" 

— Christina Rossetti (Poems of Christina Rosetti)

It is amazing how sweet confirmation can be

sincere words said as I walked across the street warmed my soul 

against the cold night breeze

a renewed strength and a bonfire

alight in my chest.

Found strength because you called it strength 

and I believed you.

Never underestimate the power tangled in thoughtful words...

sweet to both the tongue and ear.

So glad it is Friday and so thankful for this tiny respite.

I'm off to meet my beau for lunch - indian food on a blanket in Franklin park anyone?

photo from http://www.inhabitny.com/

sometimes its the little things...

globes and maps of all sizes, dates and colors

reading the names of nail polish colors

warm towels

the weight of the sheets right before drifting asleep

the smell of paper fresh off the copy machine

a good song on the radio first thing in the morning

walking barefoot

thunder storms

tree swings

the sound of gravel under the tires

when trees dance

fresh flowers at street vendors

parades. for any reason. any where.

balloons attached to ribbons

the fresh sting of the first truly cold day in winter

the first day its warm enough to go without a coat in spring

handwritten letters

walking into a bookstore with absolutely no where else to be

a new pack of crayons

writing with fine point art pens

playing christmas music on the piano

drawing a perfect circle the first time, freehand

dropping my keys in the bowl by the door when I get home from work

making lists (and rarely using them)

the noise of farmer's markets

eating Smart Food Popcorn on road trips

people watching. any place. any time. 

watching a picture develop in the dark room

peppermint ice cream

when a photograph captures it just as good or better than you remembered