oh, backyard, i love you.

i keep meaning to post pictures of the progress of our backyard, because it's changed so much since we first moved in to our home.

it used to look like this! and, wow! monrovia used to look like that too. teeny, tiny and two. this is when i was super-really-about-to-pop-pregnant with ruby and we had just moved in to our house.

now that same part of the yard looks like this:

and even though we have a ways to go, it is my favorite to be out there because we play and host and hang and make space for those who don't have their own and eat and drink and make merry and make bubbles and swing and hang from the monkey bars and garden and harvest and...it is good.

maybe i'll do a backyard tour sometime, but this is a glimpse of just the last week out there for now! it's a busy spot:

lots and lots of play

working on an interactive art piece for our neighborhood block party

 sky watching above our orange tree

 hosting a meal for youth from oakland leadership center

and just because tutus were involved and so that makes it cuter,

we made tutus and ate ice cream sundaes at a preschool ballerina party!

plus just sitting of course, because we all need to rest!

here's to rest, and places to just be, and home that feels like a landing place.

dangling legs

this.

my favorite kind of parenting moment.

unplanned.

fleeting.

sweet.

my girls sitting on the kitchen counter, 

legs swinging and grins on their faces

as i make dinner 

and all they do is hang out.

i think playdates and fun experiences are great and all,

but i love the unscheduled; it feels like a precious thing.

and i feel like my girls thrive when given time that is free and open 

where they can play, sit, hang out, pretend, goof around, imagine, fritter time away.

(and as i think of it

that's also pretty great for my soul too.)

(what's a favorite mundane moment you've had with your kiddo?)

for today

i've borrowed this format, and it felt like a good way to come back to the blog after vacation.

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...cars racing by, a bright blue sky filled with streaks of clouds, empty cafe tables + chairs

I am thinking...about how to have good family and personal rhythms, how quickly time passes by, how wonderful it is that no matter where you live or how much money you have you can look up and see the beauty of the sky, about how i should plan the rest of my week, and what to make for dinner

I am thankful...for my daughters, for the peace of my backyard, for the rest that comes with summer months, for health insurance, for good laughs, for a bit of time to be alone, for friends with history

In the kitchen...fruit flies on the attack! otherwise, i need some new recipes for summer fruit and veggies. we have a garden full of summer harvest and i'd love some good ideas.

I am wearing...workout clothes (knocked out a brisk hour walk this morning without kids and it felt so refreshing!) 

I am creating...space to do things that are life-giving for me this summer: working out, reading, painting, hanging out in backyard.

I am going...to celebrate the points of joy each day brings; feels easy lately to be worn down by relational conflict or obligations. i want to be grateful for the goodness each day brings, and for the beauty around me.

I am wondering...what my girls will be like when they are all grown up. any guesses? 

I am reading...americanah! i actually just finished it last night. matt bought it for me for mother's day; the main character is a nigerian who emigrates to the us. i loved it! i need a new summer book recommendation!

I am hoping...that matt recovers quickly and easily from knee surgery so he can surf, run, and chase our girls around in no time. he had surgery this morning and is now resting on the couch. (ouch)

I am looking forward to...my girls being back at m's oral deaf school for summer camp. it's sort or a home base even though we've been gone for a couple of years. there is something about going back to a place where we were for such a formative season, and something precious about m getting to be with peers who have hearing loss too.

I am learning...to be patient. photoshop! to shut my mouth and listen. to plan ahead (as much as this non-planner can)

Around the house...various states of unpacking from being here and there and not quite all-the-way putting everything away, some laundry to fold, artichoke flowers on the table, new growth on my succulents on the kitchen windowsill, a summery white quilt on our bed.

A favorite quote for today...
"the way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice." peggy o'mara

One of my favorite things...
little bare feet pattering across the floor, hot coffee first thing in the morning, the sunday new york times, hearing from a long distance friend, drinking bubbly

A few plans for the rest of the week:
clean my studio, trim my succulents, take the girls to summer camp, make a new recipe, catch up on freelance, watch an episode or two of mad men, walk a new trail.

A peek into my day...

7 am. bright and early we got in the car and drove an hour to summer "camp"!

my happy girl, surrounded by old friends and new ones, 

and content to be with lots of kids just like her.

so?
new recipes?
books?