Heart and Soul

On Friday, I went for a walk.

Applause, cheer, marvel...
I know, I know.
One small step for fitness,
one big step for my heart and soul.

Since the new year, I have been watching my eldest son leave the house every single morning, and walk. He makes no exceptions, accepts no excuses. I remember when it was hard, when he made blisters, when he felt frustrated. Now, he's running, and going out twice a day. He feels good. He inspires me, and every day I would think to myself woulda-coulda-shoulda... and yesterday, I did. I didn't go as far, or as fast, but I took the first step.

And, I want to do it again, and again, and again... sort of. I know myself. I have a drawer full of excuses, and rationales for not ever going out again, and later, or sooner (probably sooner) I will use one of those excuses and try to skip my walk, my fitness excursion. There will be bumps in the road, set-backs, sick days, busy days, too hot, too cold, too wet, too frickin' lazy. But come Saturday morning, I am going to be here, at Chickenblog, and I am going to profess or confess... I am going to post some pictures from my ventures, and make myself accountable... whether a twenty minute wander, or a long, long stroll, I'll write about it.

If I don't make it fun, intriguing... if I don't add an element of extra-interest, I will be even less inclined to stick to my goals, so I will always carry my iPhone, and I will pay attention to what I see, I will smell the roses, enjoying the trek mindfully engaged.

So, what are my goals?

Let's see...Move:
Walk
Swim
Hula Hoop
Bicycle
Yoga
Chase goats

Inspire:
My heart
My soul
My friends
I would love it if You joined me, near or far, wherever you are in your journey. We know the benefits of exercise, we've read about discipline and diligence... I am not training for an event, counting calories, or checking my pace against Lance Armstrong... I just want to keep an appointment with myself to make movement a regular part of my week. Accountable. Simple. Happy. Accepting.

Deep Thoughts and Big Words

This week I learned a new word...

Bloviate: blo·vi·ate/ˈblōvēˌāt/
Verb:
Talk at length, esp. in an inflated or empty way.

Then I made up a new word...

Boviate: bo·vi·ate/ˈblōvēˌāt/
Verb:
Talk at length, esp. in an inflated or empty way, about cows, or with cows
Then Geoff taught me another word...

Logorrhea: law-guh-ree-uh
Noun:
a communication disorder resulting in incoherent talkativeness
Then I thought about...

Chickenblogorrhea: chee-ken-blaw-guh-ree-uh
Noun:
a communication disorder resulting in 2,186 posts about love, life, the universe, and nothing, with photographs
I love Life
and Geoff
and new words
and turkey corndogs with yellow mustard
and Chickenblog

{this moment}

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.

:: Inspired by Soule Mama ::

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

Beauty Day

When cousins, Katalina and Austin, came to visit we had all kinds of fun.
We went to the beach, we celebrated a ninetieth birthday. We shared a movie night. We colored our hair. Went out for falafel and smoothies.

Hold on!

Back up... what did you just say?

I said, we had a movie night. We watched the original Muppets Movie. It was great. There was backyard fun, lots of friends...

No, no... that other part... !

Oh! You mean coloring our hair green, and blue, and pink, and purple? It went like this...

Katalina broke out her new toy, a beauty kit for hair coloring, and not only was she eager to give it a try, she was more than happy to share. What a sweetie.

We took a mirror outside, in the shade of the front entry. We got some combs, chairs... read the directions, and got started.

Sometimes, something fun can be infectious. Hair coloring is definitely fun and infectious. The fun was long lasting, and the dye was only temporary.

The color is rubbed across the hair. Some colors were easier to apply than others.

It was good to have some help.

But not so hard you couldn't do it yourself.

Purple!

Gabe, are you up next?

Yeah. He wasn't too sure.

But it was irresistible.

Alex went in for blues.

Maria added pink.

Dude, you look awesome.

I was tempted, I admit, but Benjamin stayed au naturel.

Still... I wanted to play with somebody's head, and so I started looking for a good-looking volunteer, and found one...

Yes. I love it.

This.
Be still my heart.

Have I mentioned... it was irresistible, infectious fun? Katalina welcomed her great-aunt Delia into her beauty salon, for a wisp of pink.

My mom had no worries. It washes out, we assured her, half-way confident.

Gabe sees the way the tide is turning... I think he's in.

Our beautiful birthday lady is following Benjamin's lead, and declining our offer. She could have picked any color, but I think she was happy just to watch.


Nice color choice, mom.

Making waves. I gave him a blue wave, now Ashlie is working in a hot pink one.

We were all cracking up, and no one was worrying about our plans to go out to lunch. In public. Guess we looked too good to worry.

Aunt Becky and Grandma, enjoying the shade and play.

Ashlie's artistic hands.

Austin, we are so glad you came to our house on your vacation. You and your family bring good times with you, wherever you go.

Everyone showing their true colors, our beauty day continued out on the town!
Thank you, Katalina, for sharing your hair colors, and vacation, with us. We loved it!

Bird House & Barn

...a Farm Report

The sunflowers we planted, sometime... in June?... have grown, and grown, and grown. Some have done all they can, while the Mammoths are still turning toward the sun. I am tempted to plant a whole new crop. It might work. Seems like our summer weather always stays through October.


I like to imagine they are bowing their heads in quiet meditation. More likely, they are stooped over in utter inelegance, worn out by a week of excessive heat and humidity. That's how I feel, anyway.


The really story... their heads are heavy with beautiful sunflowers seeds! It's harvest time.


Maria and Alex joined me in the garden. Following directions Alex read, we cut the flower heads, leaving them at least twelve inches of stem. We brushed off loose bits, then slipped each one into a paper sack, where they can dry, with air to freely circulate around them.


The bags, with these flower heads inside, are hanging in the barn. When they are dry, we'll loosen the seeds, then consider our options. I hope we can successfully toast them, a bit. I should ask Annie how they prepare pipas, en España.

Happy New School Year

Maria is in second grade, and Max survived taking care of business for the start of his freshman year. It has begun... the new year. New teachers, new classes, new expectations, re-newed hopes.
The re-newed hopes are mine...

I hope I can remember to keep an interesting, fresh, inspired selection of food on hand for snacks and lunches.

I hope we get up early, and leave on time, every single day of the year.

I hope no one gets a homework assignment that requires Herculean effort, causes family strife, or devastates our weekend plans.

I hope we don't stink. You know, like when we run out of clean socks, can't find the very important form, can't volunteer, or dread volunteering. Stink, as in running late for pick-up, or forgetting that it's crazy hair day. It stinks to be the mom that didn't read the memo about the special assembly, the special meeting, the special once-in-a-lifetime event. Speaking of special, it can stink to have special needs, to not fit the "regular" bill.

I hope we keep our humor. I hope we don't give up, or feel like surrendering.

I hope we can enjoy making HenCakes...

Hencakes are free form. First I pour the body, and I let the batter dribble up for the tail. Then I pour a small bit more for the head, comb, and beak. Pretty simple. And don't bother imagining me making stacks of hencakes... there are only ever a few, maybe only one. We're also known for our GroundCakes... groundhog pancakes. Of course, those only come out once a year!
Maria says her teacher is nice. She has familiar friends in her class, new ones too. She asked if she'll be dropped off at the curb, like the big kids, but not today, not yet. Maria declared the hardest part about school, so far, is remembering to wear socks.

It's the second day, of second grade... forms are filled, socks are on, breakfast was delicious, and she wore a ribbon in her hair. So far, so good.