Be dazzled
You’re never too old
Or too young
To enjoy the rich, vibrant honey
Of a dazzling sunset
With your best buddy –
(Makes it even sweeter if you’re brother and sister).
Thank you everyone for entering my give-away. The lucky winner is the amazing Inner Chick - do visit and say hi to her!
Prepare to be bedazzled at Skywatch!
On the beach
A day out at the beach
Can fill you with joy
And teach you that you need to make time for rest –
And space for play and imagination.
Even when stripped down to the bare bones,
We still have a rusty beauty.
At the end of the day,
It is enough simply to be,
And to be who we are.
For more life lessons, please visit: Our World.
Sunny side up
I’ll be England by the time you read this
(So won’t be visiting you all as frequently as usual).
My sister has warned me that there will be plenty of rain.
Weather aside, I’m sure there will be plenty of time for play and laughter –
As long as we remember that we all carry a piece of sunshine within.
Make each day your masterpiece. — John Wooden
For more sunny side up posts, please visit: Our World.
Midsummer roses
Midsummer is one of the biggest holidays in Sweden. It’s all about eating and dancing around the maypole. Usually in the rain.
One year, I’m going to photograph it all… But this year, we spent so long at the pool before lunch that we just didn’t have the energy to go down to the local celebrations.
We did celebrate the light, the warmth and the sun in our own way.
Life may not always be a dance on roses, but that doesn’t stop you from dancing in a shower of rose petals.
It’s all about your attitude.
You can complain that roses have thorns.
Or you can rejoice that thorns have roses.
For more midsummer (or midwinter) beauty, please visit: Our World.
Signs of love
A wave of guerrilla goodness has been sweeping my world.
Last week on my way to work, the entire square was plastered with words of encouragement:
“Your smile lights up the world!” and “Have a lovely day!”
This one made me laugh. “Your mother loves you!”
And this weekend, as I was shivering on the path by our lake,
I spied a heart drawn in the earth.
The next day, I was walking in the woods in a snow blizzard
When I caught sight of this heart planter hanging from a tree.
My spirits lifted immediately!
But my favourite signs of love
Are always these treasures: my kids.
And with that, I wish my compassionate and lovely son a Happy 9th Birthday.
For more kindness, please visit: Our World.
March delight
Sunny days and freezing nights
Create March magic:
Sparkling snowflakes,
Trees dressed in frosty crystals
And melting snowy spikes
That freeze the face and cause delight.
For more joyful shots, please visit: Our World.
Butterflies of joy
Beautiful butterfly
Shining like mother of pearl
A painting of fleeting delicacy
Poised to fly to freedom
Through the silver rain –
Reminding me that joy comes when you least expect it
And that transformation can lead to great beauty.
For more loveliness, please visit: The Creative Exchange and Communal Global.
Sadly, My World is not continuing but I’d like to continue documenting the small unseen miracles of life here anyway. Rest in peace Klaus Peter.
A slice of heaven
If I were to cut open the pie of heaven
And serve myself a slice
It would be a glorious golden canopy
Served with a dollop of dog, laughter and kids.
For more beauty, please visit: Skywatch. And, of course, Camera Critters.
I’m away at the rented summer cottage (or just relaxing at home) and playing with the anklebiters and my niece and Oscar and just enjoying life, so I’m posting a little less. Only two more weeks of summer holiday – so have got to make the most of it!
Remember to click the photo to see the larger (better) version!
Sky of love
Is there anything more touching than the love between a little brother and his big sister?
The most precious things in the world are not our possessions but those golden moments that we feel in our hearts.
For more love, please visit: Skywatch.
The boy
Is there anything more pleasant than skimming knees and stones with your best buddy when you’re a young boy?
There’s a boy like this in every class: noisy, unafraid and full of life.
But somewhere along the line, he was too full of life –
Leading to problems at school, and visits to doctors
And then, a diagnosis with four letters.
Somehow, that label stuck with him, and although he’s only 11,
People whisper about his tantrums, violent outbursts and shake their heads.
I know this boy. He’s the one who walked up to school with me the other day,
The one bursting with love and wonder and tenderness
At the birth of his baby sister.
He spent 20 minutes describing how wonderful she is.
Yes – there’s a boy like this in every class.
Which leads me to wonder if the only labels kids really need are the four letters: L O V E.
For more stories, please visit: Camera Critters.
I’d like to give a special shout-out to Jillsy’s May Challenge, which is about childhood. Why not join in?
Beauty
It’s tough being a kid these days.
Those bullies in the playground, those endless billboards showing perfect hair, perfect teeth, the perfect body…
It makes you want to hide from the world; it’s all too easy to make kids feel ugly or unwanted.
We have to give them the self-confidence to believe in themselves
And realize that they too are filled with light and beauty.
Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.
– Confucius
For more beauty, please visit: Camera Critters.
Spring treasures
Some spring treasures that have brightened my week include …
The dazzling beauty of a daughter’s smile
The thrill of a son’s daring somersault
(Nothing shouts “Spring!” louder than a trampoline in a muddy garden!)
The burst of flavours and laughter popping on my tongue
And, finally, the brave budding of fragile flowers through the last of the ice.
Oh – and I just can’t resist a final final shot of spring – pussy willows with a message of warmth and promise hidden inside.
For more spring (or autumn) glimpses, please visit: My World.
Peacemaker
I can hardly believe it but my ‘baby’ boy is 8!
It seems only yesterday he was a round baby who didn’t want to leave my side.
He’s still quite shy and doesn’t like being in the limelight.
But once you get to know him, he’s a generous and loyal friend.
And a peacemaker, apparently.
A few weeks ago, a gang of boys at school were getting ready to chase and attack another group of boys.
Anklebiter #2 and his friends linked arms and started singing, “We want peace on earth!”
This startled the kids so much that they stopped in their tracks and decided to resolve their argument by talking instead.
Oh, the things we can learn from our kids!
But what I love most is his compassion and humour.
There’s never a dull moment here at home!
Edit: No real cockroaches were harmed… this is a big plastic one on his head!
For more treasures, please visit: My World!
The igloo
When life gives you snow…
You build an igloo! (Well, at least our neighbour does!)
It was easy this year because of all the snow piled up at the side of his house.
He dug and shovelled and decorated with delightful frosty animals and candles.
How snug to sneak in there, hide yourself away and watch the world go by!
It’s a large igloo – it has two rooms.
And a door at the front that comes with hands…
But perhaps the most magical moment is wiggling your way out through the tiny window at the back,
Climbing up to the top of the igloo
And sliding down.
Repeat until tired and bright-eyed and in need of hot chocolate!
For more cool stories, please visit: My World!
At play
Now that November has settled on us like a soft grey shawl, it’s hard to imagine that only a few short weeks ago, our world was bathed in sunlight and autumn leaves.
The beginning of October was celebrated with an adventure to the climbing tree,
Where no child was too old to fill her boots with water
Or enjoy the warmth of the old tree and the delicious chill of bare feet in cool air.
Small boys played with sticks – and shadows,
And finally, exhausted from jumping off the tree too many times,
Enjoyed the last rays of sunshine on the patchwork quilt of autumn grass.
For more stories, please visit: My World!
Cloud dancing
Is there anything more delightful than dancing in the clouds
And weaving rainbows to wear in your hair?
And what is more magical than watching fire
Melt into glowing embers in the sky?
And there, in the softness at the end of the day,
You can find enchantment and beauty and love.
For more stories, please visit: Skywatch.
Forest gold
In September and October, the woods are full of people with baskets, torches and little trowels.
Because that is when you can find forest gold.
Hiding there under moss and in the dark damp secret places of the woods, if you look very carefully, you can uncover chanterelles and other delicious mushrooms.
(However, if you ask a Swede where to find great mushrooms, they will say, “Over there!” as they point to an area of forest the size of a small country. Their mushroom spots are guarded jealously and the location handed down from generation to generation.)
I took the anklebiters, the dog and an empty basket in the hopes of picking some of our own forest gold.
Chanterelles are very small and hard to find. You have to concentrate on the tiny details of the forest floor.
Soon the woods were ringing with excited cries, “I’ve found a house of mushrooms!”
“I’ve found a palace!” “I’ve found a whole family!”
“Have you found any yet, mama?” shouted the happy children.
“Well, I’ve found the last blueberry,” I said helpfully.
Soon, the basket was full of edible gold.
Dusk crept over the silent trees with the setting sun breaking free and shining gloriously for a few minutes.
I looked up – and discovered my very own forest gold.
For more stories. please visit: My World.
(Click the photos to enlarge.)
Towards life, towards adventure
Life is uncharted territory; an unknown path leading to endless possibilities and adventures.
It tells its story one moment at a time.
Let’s run up that hill and embrace it with both hands open.
For more inspiration, please visit: Skywatch.
Treasure on the wind
“I would like to believe when I die that I have given myself away like a tree that sows seeds every spring and never counts the loss, because it is not loss. It is adding to future life. It’s the tree’s way of being. Strongly rooted perhaps, but spilling out its treasure on the wind.”
– May Sarton
Don’t you just love those glorious late summer skies? What treasures are you grateful for?
(Click the photo to enlarge.)
For more lovely skies, please visit: Skywatch.
The boys of summer
Sometimes a glorious summer evening explodes with sunny delight.
Calling your name so that you have to get out there and enjoy that light.
You rush to get yourself a set of wheels and you’re off!
Small or big, gliding is the only way to meet the intense joy of a light night.
And no matter how tough you look, there is still an appreciative spirit inside…
You are never too tough to enjoy a lovely sunset.
It really is all too easy to judge people by the way they look, isn’t it?
For more great shots, please visit: My World.
A confusion of words
The anklebiters are growing so fast and we like to mark their progress on the wall in the hall.
Getting tall is one thing – but this?
A: Mama, I’m really high! Look!
Me: You mean you’re tall?
A: No! I’m high. So high that when I look down at the ground, I feel all dizzy!
Catnapping and popcorn
As you probably know, Sir Pe and I went to our friends’ house to babysit their four kids and our two while the parents had a night out. We had a lovely time watching films and indulging in far too much popcorn. (Luckily, the dog acted as a super-charged canine vacuum cleaner so that no evidence of our wild night was to be seen…)
Everyone was very tired and fell into beds and mattresses on the floor with drooping eyelids at around 9.15 in the evening.
Everyone, that is, except the 3-yr-old, who found renewed energy to run around giggling – keeping the other kids awake.
He woke me up at three in the morning by lying on top of me. No sooner had I gone back to sleep than the other kids woke up (or so it seemed). OK – they didn’t wake up until 6 am, but still…
Sleep is so overrated, don’t you think?
No – I don’t agree either. (I do love my sleep!)
Photo courtesy of the Internet – possibly from the LOL Cats site.
Which is why I will probably be doing some catnapping today.
Now, if only I could stop that coat hanger from sticking into my back…
See you on the other side…
I’m gathering my strength. Breathing deeply. Filling my energy sources with chocolate. Making sure I have plenty of earplugs.
Because today, we are all going to a friend’s house for a sleepover.
The only difference is that my friend and her husband won’t be there. That’s right – they are leaving Sir Pe and I (and the dog) in charge of our two kids, their four kids (8 yrs old and younger) and their house…
We may none of us be the same again.
Wish us luck – and see you on the other side of the padded cell.
Awesome-proof
Oh, all right! I’ll join in… Both Kelli and Patti in Denmark tagged me separately to tell me that I was … well … awesome! Proof, if you need it, that they are bonkers…
The difficult part of this tag is that instead of telling you all how wonderful I think they are, I’m supposed to tell you why I’m so great. I’m not sure if you are ready for this – but here goes!
I am awesome because:
- I’ve got my own teeth, hair and wrinkles. And I don’t bite my nails, eat my hair or suck my toes.
- I can already embarrass my kids at the tender ages of 6 and nearly 8. Just imagine how honed my skills will be when they are teenagers!
- What I lack in sewing, housekeeping and cooking skills (I’ve got milk splashes on my ceiling, for goodness sake!), I make up for with my imagination.
- I can scream like a girl. In fact, I spend all summer screaming whenever I see wasps. I’ve developed a scream that can kill them of a heart attack from a distance of 3 metres.
- I can cut off a subject’s head when taking a photo and have mastered the art of lop-sided composition. (That pig just wouldn’t pose!)
- I climb the stairs instead of using the lift or moving escalator.
- I encourage my kids to play, scream and get dirty. My motto is: You’re kids! You’re supposed to run around screaming and get dirty! Whenever I complain about the anklebiters being too noisy or bringing in too much dirt into the house, then they throw that motto right back in my face. In fact, once my daughter looked down at herself and said apologetically, “Sorry, mama! I wasn’t doing my job today. I’m just too clean!”
Who says what?