Sand between the Toes

The summer has been difficult with all of our money troubles here @ home, but we did get the chance to travel a bit to the beach. Timothy was nearly nine months-old and he was so curious about everything. Loud noises, like the ocean, though, made him nervous. He didn’t mind the sand so much–and there’s something wonderful about babies at the beach, even though it’s an enormous pain in the booty to bring a baby there. You haul all of the paraphernalia up to the ocean, and he only wants to stay for ten minutes. We got about an hour of time seaside before he got fussy. I had one swim in some really rough water. The riptide was exceptionally strong that day; I wished my older son, Matt, had tagged along because I feel safer swimming with him nearby. I guess because I didn’t get to swim that much, I am missing the beach now more than ever. I just feel more like myself near the ocean. Everything in me gets very centered. It’s my dream to have a beach house to live in for the whole summer. Matt and I would be so happy there, and CJ would too because–growing up in Vancouver–the ocean is a part of him as well. We are in financial chaos so even considering a home there is futile for now. Hope we win the Publisher’s Clearing House Sweepstakes! 🙂

 

Bind Us Together–Acrostic Poem

Before leaving for work
I glance back at the bed–
Not too subtle, but you are asleep,
Dreaming of what, I can only imagine.

Under the covers, your form a smooth topography–
So tempting to rejoin you

There. Warm sheets, my lips pressed
On your shoulder like a just-licked postage stamp,
Greedy for more of your touch,
Eager to hear one of your sleepy sighs.
Tousled black hair, a shadowy corona encircling your
Head—I can feel its seductive softness
Even now, poised on the morning’s edge–I smile, and
Remember.

 

Clandestine

Under the eaves
of the weather-worn gazebo
she whispered secrets
with hidden meanings
I was meant to decode.

The words tickled my ear,
flitting against the skin
like a moth’s fragile wings.

Never tell, she implored,
yellow-tipped dandelions wilting
in her delicate fist.

Summer’s daughter, magical
friend I had scavenged and stolen
from the lost and found,
with cryptic love-messages fit for an oracle.

 

Leather–acrostic poem

Love, with you, has never been
Expected. A faceted jewel nestled in a secret box,
A star that streaks across the evening sky, your eyes
Transforming from cocoa to caramel when the sun
Hits the irises. Love watercolors our world and allows the light
Entrance into hidden niches. Our Eden before the Fall,
Resilient and eternal.

…it’s my three-year wedding anniversary, and the theme is “leather.” Hence the title 🙂

 

Mother’s Day Virtual Gallery Wall

…so much better than a store-bought card. My husband put this digital gallery together for me so that I could enjoy the reminiscence of our family’s history. There is so much still going on in our lives but the art and photographs he picked for this work capture different moments that are really important to me. The wedding photo is the focal point; on the left are two of his works–the first is “The Fairie Queene” that he drew of me before we met in person. The Superman collage was one that he did last summer–he planned to mail it into a contest but I rescued and framed it. The right-side of the digital gallery features my collage of the “Nude Gypsy” whom I feel represents what may be trapped inside of me, longing to come out and liberate me from my day job teaching English. The scrapbook page features my two lovely pets–Gypsy, the calico, is now being loved and raised by my sister because Dixie, the orange-striped she-devil, doesn’t play well with others. The two photos on the bottom are of my son, who at the time was a small tyke. I did make that crazy cardboard truck for his Halloween costume, and the other photo is from his first Communion–Easter. Interestingly, today is also his Confirmation. This reminds me how things come full circle in life. What a milestone.

 

Happy Valentine’s Day

…Cupid gave us the best present ever–a snow day! Huzzah! I shoveled and then the plow pushed all of the snow back over the sidewalk. *sigh* Oh well. It’s better than being in school today!

This is the card I got from my hubby for Valentine’s Day. We have this inside joke that he can never buy me a card, because he’s an artist and every card he’s given to me, he’s made. This year, he made this wonderful Photoshop collage featuring both of our artwork. I was so lucky to get engaged on Valentine’s Day & be married to such a creative person. 🙂