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the sun came out.
The sun came made an appearance this weekend and it was glorious.
Day after day of rain got to us all. So when the perfect weather coincided with a couple of free days, it was on EVERYONE’S mind and seemed to be the one and only thing talked about.
But I have to say while enjoying the warmth on my newly freckled nose, all I could think about was this article, The Gift of Charles, reported on CNN.
I used to work as a hospice social worker and my husband is still deeply involved in hospice work. It is something that means a tremendous amount to me.
I haven’t worked directly with clients and families for a few years but the beautiful article and video reminded me of how much I learned while working in hospice. The ability to be a part of a family’s most private moments of love and transition and the amazing wisdom shared with me were worth more than anything I could give to them.
Almost every family had a story of their lives together that they wanted to share–an opportunity to reminisce, laugh, cry, and forgive. I listened and was grateful to have that privilege.
Reminded of the love that the Thompsons have for each other and especially shared with Charles, it made me appreciate my family laughing and playing around me even more. Made all the better by that brilliant sun.
Dari Design Studio Winner
You’ve won the class of your choice, Tan! Thank you to everyone who left a comment and thank you to Dariela and Dariana for the great giveaway!
thinking
I’ve been contemplating a lot this week.
Some of it is really exciting. A new collaboration with some wonderful people with creative minds. A class taught by a friend and packed with tons of information which has me thinking about what I want to do when I grow up. (Because I’m now definitely believing that you’re not really grown up until you hit 40…)
The good is often balanced with the kind of bad though, isn’t it? I’m also feeling pretty disappointed with a friend I trusted with some information. It’s the worst feeling when you start reevaluating who you are–your openness and honesty–and start feeling that you need to close yourself off to offer some protection.
But I’ve decided that I have to be who I am. Sometimes it may hurt me, but more often than not, it creates amazing opportunities for growth. At least that’s what I’m telling myself right now… ;)
Dari Design Studio Giveaway!
One thing I’ve learned over the past year of writing a blog: navigating Photoshop can be challenging.
I know that it has always intimidated me. If you want to talk about steep learning curves, probably the steepest one I’ve ever encountered is me staring at the mountain of Photoshop. Analyzing all the icons and options often induced a cold sweat and heart palpitations. But I’m happy to say, over the last few months I’ve taken steps to understand and utilize Photoshop in my blog. No more cold sweats!
A big part of that increased confidence was a Photoshop review class that Dariela Cruz of Dari Design Studio invited me to take. I met Dariela at Altitude Design Summit back in January and immediately connected with her openness, energy and creativity. Not only did I learn about her bilingual blog, Mami Talks, but I was really excited to hear that she had recently created a new business with her sister, Dariana.
Dari Design Studio is a design company that offers many options for design work. In my opinion, one of the best things about their business is the opportunity to learn Photoshop! The classes are very affordable and because Dariana teaches the classes online, they are also accessible to everyone, no matter where you live. Seriously–as long as you have Internet access, you can be anywhere in the world. (That is no small thing for people who don’t live in urban areas like me…)
Dariana was extremely patient (Although I had newly acquired Photoshop skills before I took the class, I was still pretty new to it!) and walked me through projects I wanted more practice with: creating collages and how to make unobtrusive watermarks. I also left the class with a great handbook to refer back to if I ever get stuck. Both Dariela and Dariana are so wonderful about being available if I ever have any questions–they really do a wonderful job of supporting people while they learn new skills. Now I need to use my skills and go back and put watermarks on all my photos!
I’m happy to tell you that Dari Design Studio is offering salt+pine readers a chance to win a free class of their choice! They currently offer classes at a beginner level, an intermediate level and also customized classes. There is definitely something for everyone.
For a chance to win, I won’t make you jump through lots of hoops. Just visit Dari Design Studio and leave a comment below sharing which class you would like to take. That’s it! A super easy way to win an opportunity to learn (or polish) your Photoshop skills! And don’t worry if you don’t currently have Photoshop. You can download a free 30 day trial. :)
(All images via Dari Design Studio)
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Giveaway guidelines:
You have until Friday, April 27th at midnight to enter.
The winner will be chosen via random.org and announced sometime on Monday, April 30th. So keep your fingers crossed and an eye on salt + pine that day! :)
Good luck!
some zen bliss.
Have you ever spent some time blowing bubbles and then watching their path?
Liv and I did this weekend.
It was amazingly relaxing.
(A good activity for two girls who tend to absorb stress like nobody’s business…)
What do you do when you need to pull back a little?
(P.S. Sandra invited me over to her blog, Raincoast Cottage, to share my creative space. If you want to see where I blog from, now’s your chance… ;) )
long live camp salt + pine…
I’m sorry for the radio silence over the last week. I tried to be as offline as possible and to tell you the truth, I really liked it. We had a wonderful time as a family during our “camp.” I know it probably seemed like we had activities planned down to the minute, but it was just Joe and I thinking of some fun things to do and then surprising the kids each morning with the idea for the day. It was great to challenge ourselves and limit all of the things that are supposed to make lives easier and better to focus on each other. Even though there were others around us in the various places we went, it was really just the family together. We could concentrate on each other and share our thoughts, opinions, jokes, and questions without anyone getting distracted.
Lately I’ve been feeling kind of wistful about Ben and Liv growing up. That wistful feeling was one of the motivating factors in our time together last week. They are getting older–gaining independence and zooming around at the speed of light. Obviously Iris is getting older too, but it’s different. She’s still my little one and is happy to occupy that spot.
Although Olivia is teetering on the border and is toying with the same ideas, Ben has definitely entered new territory. It’s a place where I’m not the center of his universe anymore. He’s probably more likely to share what is going on in his head with his friends than he is with me. He wants more privacy and more independence. And so I feel like he is just a teeny bit out of grasp. I know that is okay–that’s what is supposed to happen at that age. But it’s still a little heartbreaking to watch him go off on his own in various ways and hope that everything is going to be okay.
I’m not sure I’m making much sense in what I’m trying to say. I guess it’s hard to put into words…the feeling of watching the kids grow up and letting them go, but also giving them the space and access to come back and feel safe, accepted and heard.
Having these little time-outs as a family hopefully lets them know that they’ll always have that place.
days 3 & 4
Tea in Victoria, British Columbia…
camp s+p: day 2.
Outdoor activity cancelled due to immense amount of rain. Alternate activity? An immense amount of bowling.
Major newsflash: I WON! (Well, I won one round.)
I’m really not that competitive, but I had to announce it because this is huge. I usually get a gutter ball on the first try and maybe one or two pins on the second try. So, a total score of about 10 for a game. But I was on fire, you guys! A truly magical rainy day if there ever was one…
(Don’t you love how guy in the background looks like he is in a ballet performance? I think it’s my new favorite photo.)
The boys were hiding from the camera today, but one of these days I’ll get a photo of them!
spring break 2012
It’s spring break time around these parts. Instead of a big trip or sending the kids to a camp, Joe and I created a secret agenda of activities for the week. The kids won’t know where they are headed or what they are doing each day until they get there. The mission is to have fun and relax. (Before you think we are extremely creative or virtuous, know this: our kids bicker incessantly for fun when bored. Thus, Camp Salt + Pine was created to keep our sanity.)
As a kick off, today is all about food. Because our children love to eat….all the time.
After the kids learned how to make their own steel cut oatmeal with a berry compote this morning (fancy!), we headed off to Mystery Bay Farm on Marrowstone Island. Once they figured out where we were, our kids were super excited to feed the Mystery Bay kids recently born and see how Rachael, Scott and Olivia make our goat cheese.
We were hoping the one last pregnant mama goat would go into labor while we were there, but no such luck. So we drowned our sorrows in chèvre, took some for the road, and felt much better.
After stopping for lunch and devising a plan for what to make for dinner (each child is in charge of prepping and cooking a part of the meal), we stopped at Red Dog Farm’s self-serve stand to pick up some vegetables and see the farmers planting for the season and then finally popped into Chimacum Corner Farmstand to round out the grocery list.
And as I type, they are working away in the kitchen. Mama’s got a glass of wine, a tiny bit of time to document the day and a dinner on the way. I’d say life is pretty good.