Day 104

Checkin' out the garden.

Day 103

This dress is FOURTEEN years old. No lie. I had it made during my senior year in Senegal. (1997)
I do not think that there's anything special about this dress. (Other than it's age and the fact that I still have it)... My daughter told me that it's ugly. I agree, it's too big for me, it fits strangely, and it's plain.

Day 102

Janis reflected in Maisy's headlight ring.

Day 101

It's SPRING!!!

Day 100

My Crock-pot is so old-school. I love it.

Day 99

Another treasure from my little girl. How I love her. That she finds beauty in everything, that she sees the most ordinary object as something more. I hope the way she views the world never changes.

Day 98

You don't know me.

Day 97

Poor, sad plant. I do hope he revives himself!

Day 96

I don't know if this is considered "cheating" for the challenge, but I took this photo back in July, and wanted to post it today, since tunnels have been on my mind.
There are a couple of reasons that this is so. One, I am reading The Stand, by Stephen King, and recently passed the scene where Larry Underwood is determined to get out of New York city through the tunnel - which happens to be full of dead bodies. He reunites with a recently made friend named Rita in there, and together they fight their way through the darkness toward the other side. Toward the end of their horrifying stumbling, Rita says to Larry, "I can see, Larry! It's the end of the tunnel!"
This leads me to the second reason that tunnels have been on my mind. I've been in my own tunnel, mostly in the dark, mostly in fear. I have seen my own horrors in this tunnel, and the only thing that makes me keep walking forward is the daunting idea of going back to the beginning. Today, I am beginning to see some light. Soon, I will be out of this and onto the other side. My spirit has been refreshed by this glimpse, and I am about to sprint toward the light, and whatever lies beyond.

Day 95

Still sick. Not happy about it.

I wonder. Or do I wander?

I wonder what it takes to feel loved. I love and love and love until my ♥ cracks, but I never, ever feel loved. I think maybe it's impossible. I'm thirty-one years old, and live every day longing for that feeling, and I don't even know what that feeling is supposed to be. I know what being needed is, boy do I. But that's not the same thing. How can a person find and capture the thing they are looking for when they don't even know what it is? More things to ponder while I lay awake at night...

Day 94

Coffee. Yes.

Day 93

As my oldest daughter has been known to say, "It's froggy out."

Day 92

This is my favorite soap in the whole world. Maybe because it reminds me of my mom, or maybe because I just adore the smell of Lavender.

Day 91

Aaaah! My favorite book of all time. I gave away my copy, and then realized that I could just hop onto Amazon and get a new one! Here it is. Hooray!!

Day 90

The world is all tilted, and I wonder how we can keep hanging on.

Day 89

My dreams are killing me slowly.

Day 88

A lot of good this did me. I'm sick. Of course I'm sick! I've been wiping green snot from three noses for a week.

Day 87

More of my husband's handy-work. Our son's ceiling.

Day 86

My husband is such a handy fellow. He's building this trellis from scratch. What I mean by that is, he had some pallets that were a little needy, he cut these pieces from them, sanded them, stained them, and is now putting them up like this all the way around our pool deck. It would be so much easier to go to some home improvement store and just buy trellis. But he is taking something old and unusable, and turning it into a thing of beauty and functionality.

Day 85

Since we moved into our house, a little over a year ago, our power has never gone out. That is, until last night, when the temperature dipped into the mid-20's, and we had no heat for at least six hours. Needless to say, we were quite unprepared for the whole fiasco. Today I am making a list of things we would need if the power were to be out for more than just one night. A generator would be fantastic, but one that could power our house would cost at least $2,000. Solar panels? I would love to install some, but again, the cost is rather high. So! More lanterns like the one shown, guaranteed to last for days and days. Candles. Something with which to heat water. A space heater that uses something other than electricity. My brain is a little fuzzy this morning due to lack of sleep. I will work on my list some more later.
I have learned a few things. 1. It can always happen to you! 2. Don't ever be smug about the place that you live, because life just loves to get twisty. 3. Be prepared for anything. Especially when you have small children who are afraid of the dark.

Day 84

Hey! You're not a fruit.

Day 83

Rabbit Stew.

Day 82

I've got nothin'.

Day 81

Best shower gel ever.

Day 80

Peering through layers of confusion and life-things and figuring out how to come through them to the other side - the side of light and peace.

Day 79

Aww. Friends.

Day 78

New baby bunny - Sahara's daddy got him for her as a birthday gift - she's ecstatic.

Day 77

My favorite necklace ever, for obvious reasons.