an attitude of gratitude

"wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving." ~Kahlil Gibran



i have much to be thankful for in my life and for that i am grateful! Above all else, it is my family that keeps me afloat and fills my well full of love and support. when i stumble i always have a soft place to land and someone waiting there to hold my hand. when i fly i always have someone there cheering me on and encouraging me to go farther and farther.

today i take pause to thank my lucky stars for my family.

In the Sweetness

"In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed."
Kahlil Gibran

who would have guessed that early november would bring such beautiful, sunny days to the northwest. usually by now, we are holed up in our cozy houses, breaking out the rain gear and hunkering down for the drizzly season. but this year we have been graced with some of the most beautiful days i have seen in a long time. the air is crisp, the trees are golden, red, orange and every color in between. my heart is bursting and i am every so thankful for these sweet days. especially the ones where i take sierra to one of my favorite places and we have hot cocoa, drool over all the beautiful plants, and play hide and seek amongst the trees.

life is sweet!

no matter how you look at it

when the dawn is still dark, hold fast to those dreams, for the light is on the horizon and it will shine upon all those who lift their faces to the light.

Shine on my friends!

and then she was 4

Dear Sierra,
It brings tears to my eyes thinking of how much you have blossomed in this last year. With every day that passes you grow stronger, more sure of yourself and absolutely, positively more adorable. your laugh is infectious and you spread joy wherever you are.



right now you:
*love stuffed animals (especially swirly the pink dolphin and pookie the unicorn)
*are passionate about gymnastics (you're going to rock at this dear one)
*have started circle preschool and are making a few great friends
*love to draw, paint and craft. Can't wait to do more of this together
*start every sentence with: "actually....." or "you know what"
*are very strong willed and are starting to let people know just exactly what you think!
*you are best buds with Jackson and watching the two of you together melts my heart. except when you're fighting (sigh), but I'm willing to overlook that because i know it's all part of the process of growing up.
*are becoming a beautiful little girl whose love of life is inspiring and contagious!



spread your wings sisi ryder! the world is waiting for you and i know you are going to do great things. i know you're only 4, but it's never to early to start.

Shine on girlfriend

brave girls club

have you ever had an amazing experience that you just can't wait to share with your friends and family? one that transforms your spirit and outlook on life? one that will forever be in your heart and puts a huge ole' smile on your face everytime you think about it? and then you get home and try to put into words and everything you say just doesn't seem to paint the right picture or do it justice. well i am fortunate to have just had one of those experiences at Brave Girls Club in mccall, idaho. i have been thinking of the right words to express my feelings and gratitude for everything that happened in that retreat and i just can't do it yet. maybe I never will, but for now, i wanted to share a few images that shed a light into one of the most incredible weeks I've experienced yet.

>



so for now, until i find the words to tell the story i want to tell, i'm going to bask in the goodness and unconditional love that surrounded us all as we weeded through our lives. i'm going to hold a candle to that dark place where the demons live and know that i'm loved, really deeply loved.
just
as
i am!

and i'm going to go out and DO IT ANYWAY!

Lesson learned

huh....

there is actually a method for mowing the lawn. who knew? apparantly, not me! i was pretty proud of myself for taking on the machine. me vs. a HUGE amount of wet grass. i actually had a good time doing it. until i was all done and realized that now, the lawn is mowed YES however there are huge piles of wet grass all over the yard. UGGH. not only does it look bad, but if you leave it there it rots and ruins the grass growing underneath. '

crap.

so this afternoon, i brought out my rake and got busy. as you can see, this is going to be a lot of work.


no, that nice, large and fancy house is not mine. it is my father in laws. and yes, we love living next door to grandpa.

this is our house:

nice, tiny, yet still lovely in it's own way.

oops, i digress. back to the task at hand. RAKING. lots and lots of raking. luckily i had some helpers.




one hour later:


i'm not even close to being done, but my arms and abs are TOAST.

time for a glass of wine!

have a great weekend everyone. we'll be celebrating both Sierra's 4th bday and Sam's 38th on sunday. i'll be back with photos of that but probably not for a week or so.

why you ask?

cuz, i'll be at Brave Girls Camp next week with these two lovely gals, along with many women i've yet to meet.

i am over the moon excited!

seriously

i can't even sit still.

it's a problem.

"These are the days of miracle and wonder" ~ Paul Simon



one of the things i love best about being a mama are the moments that i am drawn back into the world of being silly again. we must of spent 20 minutes with me spraying the hose at the kids while they remained safe from getting wet behind the door. they truly thought this was one of the funnest things to do in the planet. it's moments like this that turn me into a giant puddle of sappy love.

there is nothing better in the world than a giggle fit!