Homegrown

Each week, my share from Compost in my Shoe comes and I am always floored. The beauty. The care. The love that goes into these plants... it's remarkable. I have talked tirelessly about it recently. Shamelessly and tirelessly.

While I am a huge advocate from getting your food locally from people you know, I am also a huge advocate for growing your own stuff. This is not only good for you, it's good for the planet too! Pretty much everybody wins.

This is part of the share from this week. It smells DIVINE. I pull off this stock of herbs all week - putting them on fresh fish, in veggies, and in salad dressings. What doesn't get used up there gets tossed in a pot and turned into fresh juice or stock - vegetable or chicken. It turns into something we can use later. But it never, ever gets wasted.

I can't stress enough how happy I am that this is part of our life : fresh food, straight from the earth. If we get it from someone or if we get it from our yard. It's homegrown...with love...with purpose...with a mission.

He is back.

He's back.

Gone for 5 days and what felt like an eternity on a school trip to Washington D.C., my little man is back - safe and sound. Sleeping well and just as ornery and surly as he ever was.

I wouldn't trade it for the world. The sass. The drama. The tween attitude. I really wouldn't. I am so happy for all of it here at home...sleeping soundly in bed with heavy covers over him and a battle of the wills from the moment he wakes up these days. He is safe. And he is home. And he is with me. And I couldn't ask for more.

You see, just before this trip, Graham lost a classmate unexpectedly. She was only 13 years old - far too soon to be gone. Far too soon for her parents to bury her in the ground already. We are all mourning this loss and her absence. It is a tragedy I cannot even imagine...a parent's worst nightmare altogether.

So when I say I don't mind the sass and the drama - I am not kidding. I am thinking of Lucy - her parents and her family and her classmates. I don't care about laundry or stinky feet or someone climbing in bed with me at 3 AM because they don't feel good. I don't care about the hardships that come with tweens or the struggles ahead with teenage drinking or bad grades or whatever our story may be. I don't really care about anything but this foot in my bed - safe, happy, loved, here.

So I am glad. He is back. He is here with us today. And that is something I will never take for granted.

Grateful for what is....

I have been missing a little of the light lately. I am busy at my desk with too much to do and not enough time to do it.

I have been feeling depleted. Too many things have been pulling at me and I haven't had the will to work them all out. I feel the need to put the brakes on and stop everything. I feel the need to take care of me.

Sometimes, though, moments like this happen. Even when you are in a hurry running from appointment to commitment, life pulls you in and begs you to stop and stare. I really almost don't remember taking this photo, but I am glad I did. Because every time I see it as I have scrolled through the photos on my phone this week, I breathe a deep sigh of relief and become grateful for what is instead of what isn't.

Sweet, messy life.

Life is sweet and messy. Take a big bite. Frosting, sprinkles and all. Get the crumbs everywhere. Wash it down with milk and stop worrying about depriving yourself of yet more delicious treats. Just jump in and savor the sweetness.

Love the seeds.

"You must scatter the seeds. Love the seeds. Have complete faith in the seeds. Only then, will they become all that you hope for."  Unknown

Harvesting

While harvesting has to be one of the most rewarding experiences, I can't help but see how it can be one of the most arduous tasks. Just when you think that you can coast into a comfortable place, you realize that there is mountains of work left to be done. Perhaps all those seeds didn't take. Or maybe they got taken by something. Maybe your crop got too much sun or rain. It's here that you find out.  And even after you reap your bountiful or pitiful harvest, you are still in for the work... the cleaning, the storing, the bottling, the canning, the preserving and the cooking. The work is never really done. It just continues in a new form. But the gratitude for the work done and the reward in front of you should always remain strong and big in your heart.

#knowyourfarmer

Mr. Lettuce - getting his bath.

Today, I got to spend a little time on my friend Jim's farm. We are working on a project together and it makes my soul sing for many reasons that I won't go into here. I have always loved a bit of gardening. But the fantasy of having my very own small scale farm is something I have dreamed about ever since I transplanted various seedlings in the forest behind my house growing up.

I have spent some time with Jim before. Documenting him, his plantings, and parts of his life in his new venture. But, today I really got it. I mean - it clicked on a level I can't express in words. The care he has for his plants and the love he has for this craft is no joke. I can assure you that every single seed is planted with care. Every crop harvested is done meticulously by hand. Every plant is processed with love. There are no pesticides. There are no chemicals in site. Just a few guinea fowl and a lot of mushroom compost and mulch.

To give you and example, each of the farm shares he has are harvested by hand. They are then INDIVIDUALLY bathed in a gentle water bath and precariously placed in coolers until delivery - which is typically the next day. This is not done for just the lettuce, but the bok choy, the carrots, the early garlic, the herbs, the potatoes, the kale, the onions, the spinach and the rest of the share. Each share is packaged immaculately and delivered TO YOUR DOORSTEP each week.

Not only is it remarkable that they grow delicious, fresh, wholesome produce from seed and deliver it to your doorstep each week. But the process of harvesting and packaging each item is done with such care you actually can tell the difference. I promise - you can taste it in the butter lettuce and the Russian River Kale. Each bite is a unique experience that takes you beyond the refrigerated aisles of your local Publix.

So next time you reach for that bag of packaged spinach - think again. Where did it come from? Who has handled it? Was it loved? Was it treated with gentle care? Who grew it? Do they really love this food? Do they actually care about what is going into this?

Get to know that farmer. I promise, it'll be the best thing you ever did.

creatures

Yesterday we went to Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia for a quick Spring Break road trip. We had a fantastic time and the weather was picture perfect. Cool breezes and sunshine made up for the crowds and long lines.

There really was a lot of interesting exhibits, but I love the giraffes the most. Something about these creatures fascinates me - they are an interesting study in evolution. I chatted with the exhibit curator for a while in the back while others paid a few dollars to feed them leafy greens and pet their heads all while dodging their extremely long tongues!  We talked mostly about their nature and personalities of the individual giraffes (apparently they are very kind and gentle, but not super bright animals overall).

As we strolled around the zoo, our group talked about how amazing it is that life takes on such unique forms and how these creatures all adapt to their surroundings. Elephants use their huge ears to cool off in the hot deserts of Africa. Sea anemone and the clown fish have a symbiotic relationship and protect each other. Long necks allow those giraffe to eat those top leaves on the trees so they don't go hungry out in the plains. It's really amazing what evolution produces if you think about it.

I normally hate zoos and aquariums and anything that exploits animals for our own personal entertainment or use. But, yesterday I was grateful I had the opportunity to see these creatures up close and personal. I will probably never have the chance again in my life to touch a giraffe. Or see an elephant that closely. And many of these animals have been born in captivity or would have otherwise perished at the hands of people who were far more irresponsible than the keepers at this zoo.

What about you? Do you hate zoos? Love them? What have you been up to this week?

The Road to Authenticity.

Sometimes you find yourself wondering how it is you ended up in the place you have landed. Maybe your dreams were different or bigger than where you are right now. Maybe you imagined yourself halfway around the world by now. Or maybe you just are stuck with a beat-up old life that you are dragging around behind you.

If you stop for a minute to soak it all in - I mean, REALLY soak up where you are and where you have been and where you are standing right now - you will come to find that you are, in fact, EXACTLY where you were ever meant to be in that moment.

When that all sinks in - no matter how good or bad the spot, you will eventually find that you are really on the very road to discovering something you never even knew existed. And the overwhelming excitement of that alone is one of the best parts of not knowing where you are or where you are going. Because this is the sign...the BIG SIGN. This is the very sign that tells you that are on the road to living the most authentic life you could ever imagine.

Enjoy the road. Enjoy the ride.

Twelve and a bit.

He is changing so much these days. Watching him grow and change before my eyes sorta makes me feel like I am watching a time lapse video of a plant emerging from the soil. It happens so fast. And each day I am sure he is another inch taller. Each moment, his face looks a little bit different.

I have many nephews. I have seen this happen up close and personal. I have watched them all emerge as young men in a matter of what seemed weeks. For the life of me, I just can't understand how it all happens so fast. Before you know it, 10 years of your life are gone. You blink again, and 20 years have passed you by like lightening. They become men.

These days are just slipping through my fingers. I hate how quick it's all happening. I hate that in a few short years, he will be off with friends on all-weekend benders. I hate that a few years after that he will be off at college and I will see him a half a dozen times a year - and beg him to shave and get a haircut and let me wash his clothes and feed him something nutritious.

If I could just slow it down a little more. If I could just pause the clock and sit with him on the couch for a few more minutes...if nothing more than just to watch him grow.

The Rebirth of Spring.

By now, you may have figured out some of my favorite things are A) spring; B) flowers; C) all things spring; D) and some food.

It's true. And this time of year, I am quite shameless about my posts of flowers and sprouts and sunshine and weather.

I can't stop myself from feeling inspired at this time of year. And I usually ride the wave. While I do love winter and all it's bleak, sleepy, cocooning glory, I seem to embrace the energy of spring the most. The possibilities seem endless and inspiration is everywhere.

We are approaching my most favorite week of all - Easter week. While we are getting ready for an egg hunt - complete with plastic eggs and far too much chocolate- Spring awaits. The concept of Spring and Rebirth is embodied in this very holiday. The chance of refreshing and renewing one's life lies in every bloom, in every egg, in every little new life emerging right now. It seems to beg for us to rewrite those New Year's Resolutions into something we REALLY feel passion for.

Spring makes me feel rebirth is possible on every front. It makes me ready to embrace change once again. It makes me want to push through all the blocks and set my dreams free - like chicks from the egg...ready to fly away at any moment.

Baby Basil

Grow, little babies. G R  O   W  

Stretch your baby arms up to the big blue sky.

Drink in the water and the rain and the sun.

And stretch high... higher than you ever thought possible.

With all the hope of being in my belly in a few short weeks.

Grow, baby basil. GROW!

Props

Today I was shooting a product here at my house that was screaming for these delicate babies  as props.

I have been shooting more and more propped, staged shots recently and I am LOVING it. I love setting a bit of a scene without making the shot appear to have been staged. I always want anything I shoot to look like someone just dropped the items in the photos as they appear. Those excellent photos you see in magazines - never like that. Those shots take multiple professionals and hours of labor to make the photographs appear the way they do.

The trick in the world of commercial (and often personal) photography is to make it all look like it just happened naturally and without effort. The real truth is it all takes work. So even though it all looks effortlessly perfect, the good looking stuff stuff always happens with a lot of work and elbow grease.

Isn't that really true about everything though? Haven't we been taught that the real stuff takes work and props and hours of preparation? So why do we still ruminate on other peoples lovely Facebook photos and their well-curated lives? Why is it that we feel the need to compete with something that has been staged and propped beyond comprehension? Those friends of yours at Disney World in their matching outfits....that just didn't happen magically. Take your filters off. There is a lot you may not be seeing. Tantrums. Threats. Bribery. A mom with PMS and a dad with a hangover. It all looks good in the photograph. But it's all propped the same as my commercial shoots always are. Outfits are bought ahead of time. Tickets were purchased well in advance. Travel plans coordinated months prior to the posting of the photo. And that photo - they knew exactly where they wanted it taken. It wasn't a happy accident. It rarely ever is.

So my advice is this: Take the lenses off. Remove the props. Things are the same on the other side of the screen for all of us. The struggle for perfection can be real for some people. But don't buy in. Because the real stuff is where you get to the juicy center part. That's where life is lived.

And those props...they are just there to soften those hard edges. 

Feeling Blue

It's not easy being this girl...can't you tell?

Someone has a case of the blues today. Rainy days and busy people make for sad puppy dogs around these parts. I have been working my fanny off and haven't had as much time for fun with her. Not as many walks or balls thrown. And she feels it. Can't you tell.

Don't worry Bella. I see a happy forecast in your future of ball throwing and beach time. And that's a promise I can keep.

Healthy snacks

I have been working really hard the past few months on my nutrition and changing a few things. I have always been a healthy eater and enjoy most foods. I devour my Farm Share from Jim every week when it gets here in about 2 days flat. Nothing excites me more than fresh food.

As much as I like the fresh stuff, I find myself snacking on things I don't need. Cheese. Chips. Hummus. And being gluten free limits my choices some days.

So I have been working with my girl Jessie over at Best Kept Self on a nutrition plan that I can really get behind. And despite some road bumps (we shall never mention the smoothies again), I have done really well.

One of the things I have work hardest on is changing up the snacks...chips for kale chips sprinkled with sea salt. Cheddar cheese for edamame cooked to the perfect al dente texture. So far, I haven's missed much. Until the past few days at least. Nobody is perfect, right?

I have struggled these past few days with a sick child and a sick me. So when you need health to take a front seat and actually command some control, it somehow slips into the background making convenience take the wheel. Whatever is in my fridge seems to be what I grab for first. And whatever is good for me is out the door with any warm thoughts.

I saw the effect on good health a few weeks ago and it was amazing. I got the inevitable winter cold. For me, they usually last 2 weeks. This lasted 3 days. I was floored. It was the proof I needed. My body fat doesn't want to budge, but a cold running it's course in 3 days was PROOF of wellness.

So today, I will snack on kale chips. Tomorrow, I will down some fresh juice first thing. And pump up those vitamins. Because there is nothing better than a little TLC for yourself.

Sick days

These sick days are wearing us thin. Patience and joy seem to be hard to find in the midst of sniffles and coughs.

But snuggles with sweet puppies are always welcomed!

look...and see.

Mysteries, Yes

Truly, we live with mysteries too marvelous
to be understood.

How grass can be nourishing in the
mouths of the lambs.
How rivers and stones are forever
in allegiance with gravity,
while we ourselves dream of rising.

How two hands touch and the bonds
will never be broken.
How people come, from delight or the
scars of damage,
to the comfort of a poem.

Let me keep my distance, always, from those
who think they have the answers.

Let me keep company always with those who say
"Look!" and laugh in astonishment,
and bow their heads.

—Mary Oliver

Welcoming Spring.

Over the years, there have been many symbols that showed me the onset of Spring. Changing temperatures are a clear sign. But it's those visual pieces that stir me to remember the joy that Spring ushers in with her arrival.

When I was a child, the crocus blooms peeking up through the melting snow in our backyard were my first sign of the excitement of Spring's approach. In high school and in college, the budding azaleas made me pull out my shorts and search for the sunscreen.  And later, the lovely daffodil bulbs that carpeted my backyard in the south were clear signs of the arrival of the party of Springtime.

In recent years though, I have bid farewell to Winter with the onset of these gorgeous blooms. The Tulip Magnolia is a sweet smelling spring tree that buds in my yard each year. I love what the tree (and really all of Spring) represents: rebirth and regeneration and growth and perseverance. The cycle of life - carrying on as it should - in beauty and grace.

So today was the magical day. Gloomy and cloudy and overcast and drizzly. But this has been trying to happen for a week and today was finally the day. I am so glad. Because all this means to me now is that spring is sitting on my doorstep, waiting for me to welcome it inside.

Planting seeds

I am pretty sure that planting seeds is the most important part of gardening. Without the seed, there is no life. Sure, there is water and sunshine and nourishment and love that come into play, but nothing happens without that little seed. It's amazing how much power one of those little babies holds in it's tiny, dried up shell.

Every seed has potential. They just need special care to flourish as they were meant to. Sort of like ideas, thoughts, dreams. They need a place to grow. Someone to tend them. Nourishing those seeds is a full-time gig though. It takes hard work and perseverance. But it also takes love and light. Gentle care. With that, the seed sprouts and grows into something.

With the right care, all seeds become what they were destined to be.

This glorious day...

I hope you are enjoying this glorious day today - wherever you are. Sunshine abounds here, so I am going to get out in it.

And with that I bid you a happy Sunday...I am officially caught up on my blogging!