this moment

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

nuggets :: keepin' on

The thing about waiting two weeks to write a blog post is that so much has happened.  Stopping and jotting it all down in these quiet moments before bed helps to remind me of all that there is to be grateful for in this life.  My life.  Our life.

nuggets.

Nicest Friends & Neighbors Award 2012

My guys went on a road trip a few weekends ago and left me all by my lonesome at the top of Johns Street.  I had plenty to do while they were gone and so I promptly dug in and worked on various work & home projects.  I have a pretty active imagination, but usually feel really safe & secure in our home.  Notice I said usually.  

Friday night's freaky chain of events started at 1:06 am and wrapped up around 3:36 am.  For real.  My neighbors, pictured above, helped me not to lose my shit when I thought someone was in my house (call #1), then behind my house & possibly in my house through an open sliding glass window (call #2) and then trying to break down my faux front door in the boy's room (call #3).  Each and every time I called, Jill tried to calm me down and Scott got dressed and drove up here ready to investigate.  

In the end, some thing had made its way into our heater vent and was scurrying around from room to room, which sounded like some one was scurrying around from room to room. I am forever indebted to S + J and cannot for the life of me figure out what you get someone who extends this kind of friendship.  Flowers?  A thank you card?  A new flashlight?  Tequila?  Yes, probably tequila.

The reason for the guys' road trip was to celebrate this special lady's 90th birthday.  The whole family gathered and honored her well into the evening down in Newport Beach.  Here is a link to more photos from the evening (note that Grady got a hold of the camera at the end of evening and did a photo shoot with a few of his beautiful girl cousins!).  Happy Birthday, Beezer!

Trevor, Hayden, David, Steve & Grady

Steve's oldest nephew, Trevor, is joining the United States Coast Guard and this was a chance for the Hecht men to gather for a rare photo op (included in the above link).  What a handsome lot they are.  We're hoping Trevor gets transferred for training to the U.S. Coast Guard Station in Two Rock, which is just 10 minutes down Highway One from our place.

Kerrigan, Trevor, Hayden & Grady Hecht

Every year we try to gather the Hecht cousins and take a photo.  This was my one request when Steve left for the weekend.  I absolutely love it.

Watched the movie Tree of Life with Brad Pitt, Sean Penn & Jessica Chastain (she was such a great character to watch).  Have you seen it?  Beautiful cinematography and truly lovely set design.   There was a real ethereal quality to the entire film and left me pondering what it all meant, but not in that frustrating-silly-ending kind of way.  More of a thoughtful dialogue about our path or purpose while we're on this earth.  I really enjoyed it.

Anyone who knows us well also knows that we have struggled for eight years to get our kid to eat pretty much anything other than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  The last few months he's made leaps and bounds by trying all sorts of things (fish, salad, beets and more).  But he's still cautious and never overindulges.

That is until last week.

The poor thing made himself ill by scarfing down three granola bars & three apple juice boxes while I was in a PTA meeting.  He felt really terrible and had to sit out during his basketball practice.  I know this isn't funny per se, but it's a first for us.  Gluttony was never one of his personality traits and after this episode, I don't think we'll see the likes of it again anytime soon.

Yes, he's still sporting shorts in the dead of winter with morning temps below 30 degrees.  He told me he wants to feel the weather and apparently he can't do that wearing pants.

This little beauty is going with me to San Francisco this weekend.  I found a photography shop on Valencia called Photobooth through The Impossible Project's website.  The owner helped me find the right film for this camera and offered to show me how to load the film properly and give it a whirl.  This small business and this owner made me want to drive 50+ miles on a Saturday just to give him the business.  Can't wait to try out my $5 thrifted Land Camera!

Batches of waffles were made for the week with the help of an assistant moonlighting as a taste tester.  By the way, my husband makes the best waffles in town.  Seriously.

2012 resolutions for the boy:

1. Read 1,000 books this year
2. Take more photographs alongside my mom when she is taking photographs
3. Get better in math 

Spent a really relaxing day at the spa at Cavallo Point last week.  Started the morning with yoga in a warm & peaceful refurbished church on the property and then sauntered over to the spa.  Warm soaking pools, steam rooms & hot tubs were the perfect antidote to the rainy day we were having.

Lunch by the fire in our bathrobes was so relaxing it almost put me to sleep.  It's funny when you just keep going and going and going and then stop.  I needed this day more than I knew and my body was just waiting for me to figure it out.

The intent was to celebrate Jill's birthday and we quietly did, but the end result was my body saying you need a time out.  I crawled into bed when I got home and pretty much didn't leave home three days.  Oh, how I needed that.

Our rain finally came.  We had an incredible storm on Sunday evening and the requisite road closures and flooding were like old friends.  Where have you been?  What took you so long?  Everyone's talking about you.  Stay awhile?  Okay, see you in a week or so.

Iggy Pop for Dad

Hearts cut out from magazines

This one is my favorite - Love, not fight.

We started making our first batch of handmade Valentine's Day cards this week.  We usually start this process at the beginning of February, but we had a lot of perusing through magazines to do + cutting out hearts + glue + sewing + stamping + possible glitter (always a possibility for glitter, right?) and typing to do.  So, phase one is complete and I just love how they are turning out.

G:  Mom, what does rococo mean?
Me:  Um, let's look it up.
Me:  Rococo - of or relating to an artistic style esp. of the 18th century marked by fanciful curved forms and elaborate ornamentation.
G:  Cool.
Me:  Where did you read that?
G:  Moomin.
Me:  Of course.

I have total and complete satisfaction with my purging and organization around here this month, says the Virgo.  I'm still trying to do at least one task a day (and usually more) and finish it.  I went through Grady's artwork from school for the last four years and finally dated all of his drawings and paintings with an old-school library date stamp.  It felt so good to catalog all of that and I've vowed to make sure I date stamp new works coming in this year.

The boy came home today playing Stairway to Heaven on his recorder.  He was so proud and announced his class will have a spring concert at the Tomales Town Hall on April 19th.  Mark your calendars.

I stopped to take this picture on the Valley Ford-Freestone road on my way to work.  I know I keep gushing about where I live, but I really do love this place the longer we live here.  The community I'm part of and the raw beauty of the natural world that surrounds me is overwhelming.  Through the lens of a camera I hope to capture what I see and have it conveyed here in this space.  I find myself constantly looking for places to pull off the road so that I can try to capture exactly what it is I'm feeling as I'm seeing it with my own eyes.

I have inherited a wonderful Canon film camera, plus extra lenses and a tripod from a dear friend who no longer has the interest in cataloging life through film.  He gifted them to me and I'm looking forward to playing around with film (so 90's right?) and seeing how that changes my viewfinder at home and out in the world.

I tied this baker's twine around my wrist on New Year's Day.  My thought behind it was to have it serve as a reminder of the intention I made for the coming year and to wear it until it falls off.

Moderation.

Yes, the month is almost over and I'm still on course.  I'm sloughing off the old, balancing new routines, mindfully working and taking care of me, my friends, my family, my crazy chickens and my community obligations.

However, I think I will cut it free on February 1st and start anew for that month.  A sort of mini-New Year each month and a quick reminder to keep on keepin' on...moderately.

Book Love

I read this really beautiful post a few days ago and it got me thinking about the books in my household and how their role has changed over the past decade.  

Four years ago we said goodbye to our cable/satellite service.  And while we still order movies through Netflix, our everyday television has been replaced by lots of other things.   Reading is at the top of that list and G's new year's resolution is to read 1,000 books.  I'd say we better get started.

We make our bi-monthly pilgrimages to the mobile library and those are two of my favorite days out of the month.  I go out of my way to make sure nothing gets double-booked on my calendar, so that I can pick up my library friend on my way to Tomales and enjoy the 20 whole minutes before school is out to chat it up with our favorite librarian, make small talk with the other book-loving ladies and quietly (or not so quietly on this book bus!) peruse the newest titles and grab any books holds - all before Grady and the gang of eager readers from the elementary school bombard the mobile library.  There is such a frenzy around Terry & her library on wheels.

As I looked around my home today, I saw books in almost every room.

The entryway held books from Grady's school book bag.

The living room basket held books read and books-to-read recently checked out from our mobile librarian.

Grady's desk held books he received for xmas and to-be-read, as well.

I ordered several Anorak magazines for him for xmas and they are made from such rich and delicious card stock.  The content is 100% illustrated and written by children.  I found G reading this issue just after dinner tonight.

The laundry room houses quite a collection of bird books, journals and illustrated books from our resident artist.

The kitchen shelves store my absolute favorite and most used cookbooks.  These are my go-to recipes and reference books.

The kitchen bar cart also houses food magazines and books that haven't found a home yet.  And yes, that is a very dated copy of How Babies Are Made.

We are almost done with Lemony Snicket's book #2 The Reptile Room.  These are such charming, odd little books.

My current book is a light read from Mindy Kaling and it's cute & funny.

This is my on-deck chair next to my bed.  Lots of books in progress this month.

Steve has finally given up on Moby Dick, but he gave it the good college try for two+ months.  He's also reading Toby Alone to the boy.

My new year purge created a little bit of wiggle room on G's bookshelves.  It's so hard to get rid of books that loved one's have given him.  He was more ruthless about it all and ready to let the little kid books go.  I saved a small stack to put in storage and donated the rest.  It was time.

The graphic novel is all the rage with this boy right now and he finds Garfield quite hilarious. Really?  Yes, really.

Books on tape are just as satisfying to him.  He listened to Tin Tin, Shel Silverstein & Harry Potter for hours today.

National Geographic for Kids disappointed us a few years ago when we ordered it for Grady. Lots of advertising and sub par articles.  We cancelled the subscription and Steve wrote a letter to National Geographic letting them know why.  The classroom copy that G gets every month is ad-free and really wonderful.  He's read this copy at least a half dozen times in the last week.

This dictionary has lived at my side for almost 25 years.  It was my dictionary in high school and traveled with me to my first job as a legal secretary.  I reference this book almost daily and still prefer it to the dictionary on my computer.

I pulled this awesome book out this morning to reference a really wonderful recipe for fruit leather.  I'm still on my purging kick and needed to extricate two milk containers full of frozen strawberries from the freezer.  Mission accomplished.

My kitchen table was also a nice resting place for a few new magazines.  My friend has been sharing his Martha Stewart Living magazine with me.  He originally accused me of sending him this subscription as a joke and when I feigned indignation at the implication, he quickly apologized and has been hand-delivering the newest issues to my doorstep each month.  Martha would be proud.

The top of my washer holds a few thrift store finds that I picked up.  I'm waiting for just the right kid to come along or have a birthday party and then they will find a happy home.

I'm on year three of this One Line A Day book.  It's been such a lovely way of marking the day with notes about the weather, quotes from the boy that I don't want to forget or jotting down special occasions.  One of the best presents I've ever received.  Truly.

I realized after I took these pictures how much I love having books around me.  They are an extended part of the family and a true reflection of who we are or hope to be.  A beautiful snapshot of what we're into at this very moment.

What are you reading?

this moment

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

this moment

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

nuggets :: let it go

nuggets :: little bits of the season in photos and words from the last week

The new year started out with a purging frenzy in our household.  I dug in on January 1st and tackled desk drawers, desk files, magazines, bookshelves, wardrobe closets for our entire family, the junk-catcher-dresser-top that lives in Grady's room, spice drawers & food pantry cabinets, the freezer and linen closets.  This business has gone on strong for a week around here and I've barely scratched the surface on this little Martha Stewart-fueled shakedown on Johns Street. 

*Stuff* really weighs me down and I just love the feeling and process of sorting, labeling, purging and debating whether or not I really need this thing.  And just how much space I'm willing to fork over for it.  The more I do this, the more ruthless I become.

It's sort of amusing how much stock we give to our things.  I like being surrounded by beautiful objects, sentimental tchotchkes and a freshly set table.  And when it all shakes out, I'm pretty damned sure I'm really not going to miss that can of expired kidney beans or the half-used tube of oh-so-wrong-for-me coral lipstick.  There is something absolutely freeing about the ability to let go of *stuff*.

And I have vowed to keep this purge alive all throughout the month of January.  I have to admit, after one week I feel like I could quit - but I'm going to push through and keep moving from space-to-space, room-to-room, building-to-building around our property and hopefully feel better for it come January 31st.  I've even enlisted the help of my husband and while he's not a maniac like I am, he slowly joined the crazy train and is getting in the spirit with clothing donations and a big 'ole office purge.  Love that man.

Last Friday my car hugged the rugged coast for the 45-mile trek up to The Sea Ranch Lodge for a work-related meeting and tour of the property.

I drove about three hours round trip in total silence.  No phone.  No podcasts.  No scanning  through the channels on the radio.  Just me and my thoughts.  Oh, and the incredible view.

I am in utter amazement at the beauty that surrounds me on a daily basis.  I stopped along the highway and took a few pictures.  Made a few notes to myself and got back in the car.  Such an inspired way to start the weekend and a bit of a reminder to continue to slow down, take it all in and appreciate where I am in life, in proximity to the ocean and in this natural world.

Lately, my kid is into gaming.  Not on a handheld device, television or computer.  Oh, no.  He's into trying to whip his mother and father any chance he can get in good old fashioned Jenga. 

There's a lot of trash-talking and banter flying around our dining room table these days.  Jenga, Uno, Monopoly, Battleship, Yahtzee, Scrabble and on and on.  I absolutely love this time together.  Even when I lose (which is very often).

You know that movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray?  Yeah, so I hate that movie.  It drives me mad every time the day starts over.  Well, it just so happens that I'm actually living that movie.  We are on day 27 of the plastic snake making an evening appearance in my bed.  Under the pillow?  Yep.  Under the sheets?  Uh-huh.  Creatively displayed on the headboard.  Done!  Oh, this boy thinks he is so clever and hilarious.  He cracks himself up.  

I just love this picture of the kids (G + his God sisters).  I had the pleasure of taking them to the de Young Museum to see the permanent collections and wander from room-to-room following their lead.

I enjoyed watching them run from one thing to the next with such excitement and total abandon.  Pausing every so often to notice the different mediums and names of favorite art pieces.  Climbing trees, befriending dogs and people and the excited way they chat about pieces of art they remember from their last visit.

This piece is Black Moon, 1959 by Louise Nevelson and is G's newest fascination at the de Young.  He was immediately drawn to it and learned it was made of wood, paint & nails.  He wants to try and make his own.  Oh, my.  Where ever will we put that?

We hit the museum that day, as well as the Academy of Sciences across the way and boy did we need a treat after all that looking, talking and art appreciating and science facts.  We stopped at Lala's Creamery in Petaluma for the sweetest treats and the kids quizzed each other on random facts.  Grady busted out his new knowledge of the Plimsoll line and really impressed his mother.  The girls?  Not so much.

Okay, so we received a new "green" bin from our garbage company just before New Year's Eve.  Grady was so excited when he rolled it onto our property.

He ran in the house and grabbed a stack of books, a pillow, his baby blanket a flashlight and an empty Altoids tin.


Me:  Where are you going with all that?  
The Boy:  Um, nowhere.

He jumped in the bin, used the Altoids tin to prop the lid up a bit and to allow a little air to come in and quickly set about reading.  He did this for days.  If we were looking for him and couldn't find him - we looked in the bin.  I find this very amusing and these photos are from this past Saturday afternoon.  His father took this as a sign that he should perhaps take a break from work and take him to the Tin Tin movie (which he loved).  When they arrived back home, guess what he did?  Yep, he jumped back in the "green" bin and picked up right where he left off.

Sunday happened to be Steve's birthday eve and Grady wanted to bake the annual Hecht Kahlua Kake by himself (minus the frosting).  He was so proud and offered to lick all of the spoons & bowls clean for me.  See exhibit A, above.

Steve Hecht circa 1987.  Wow, right?  Look at that head of hair, those baby blues and the sweet suit jacket.  Happy birthday, my love.  Thanks for being born.  

Gee, I wonder who Grady looks like?  Hecht, Jr. is what he's taken to calling himself these days (even though talking about yourself in the third person is a little creepy...).

The guys are going on a road trip to Southern California tomorrow and I'm sure going to miss them.

And their hair.