More Fall: Trying black & white again

I've spent a bit of time on Pinterest recently. You know, just that tiny bit of time one spends there when one isn't addicted to it at all. Searching for specific ideas and projects. Never getting carried away by other Pinner's beautifully edited collections of images.

Right.

One of the things I have learned, and why, yes of course I learn things on Pinterest - important things, not to say vital, you know, really useful and such. Anyway. One of the things I learned is that I should try to experiment a bit more with black & white in my photography.

That time-sucking imagine-pinning monster has a way of showing you what you like. And what you forgot you liked. Such as black & white photography. Dreamy photos, Fall photos.

So in a pathetic little attempt to bring some of that look-how-great-my-dream-photography-/wardrobe-/cooking-skill-/very-next-DIY-project-is to my actual real life, here is a few of my Fall photos in black & white:

Hey, there has got to be some credit for getting off my pinboard and onto my camera...

Something about Fall

I like Fall. No, actually, that is an understatement. I love Fall.

But lately, I have been looking at the trees slowly turning color and thinking - Stop. Not just yet. Don't you dare turn color now. I mean, wait a minute, when did it get to be October? I'm not ready yet.

It seems that for all of those thing that make Fall wonderful, you need time. Plenty of time. Think about it: walks in the wood, drinking a hot cup of tea and just looking a tree outside your window, reading books (ok, magazines for all busy moms) all cuddled up under a soft knitted blanket, picking the perfect pumpkin, sleeping in on a Sunday morning, breathing the crisp air, making big batches of pumpkin soup and baking apple tarts (more on that later. Unless I'm taking a nap).

Ahhhh... Sounds lovely, no?

I've been nagging my older son to finish his homework on time and go practice the guitar when all he really wants to do is ride his bike with the neighborhood kids. He had a really hard time adjusting after the long summer break, his first ever real summer break after his first year of school. You can tell he misses those lazy days of summer, where all he had to do was get up when he woke up, throw on some shorts and a tee, grab some breakfast and see who'd be there to play with.

All of a sudden he is faced with deadlines and worksheets that need to be finished until the Fall break in two weeks. Guitar practice after not touching the instrument much over the summer. Books to be read, additional assignments to complete. Getting out of bed when it's all of a sudden still dark in the morning. Wearing a jacket.

I told him he'd have to adjust to the school year routine and just finish the things he had to do first and then he'd have time to play.

Today it dawned on me that I am not all that different.

I have to force myself out of bed in the morning when all I'd really like to do is take a nap. For three days straight. All of a sudden I am faced with deadlines and assignments and to dos. At work, where there are events to prepare and newsletters to write, at home where there is a house full of messes, from refrigerator to closets that have been neglected all summer long and need to be taken care of now. And at school and kindergarten, where it seems that no day goes by without some teacher telling me what I have to do or make sure that my kid does. And don't even get me started on the holidays, because I know they are just around the corner just another thing I should be on top of.

I just nod in silence.

Of course I add it to my list and mostly we cross things off and get them done.

But for some reason, it is so much harder this year. It's not so much that I miss the lazy summer days, it's more that I miss the time to enjoy this season. And with every tree I pass that is sporting yellow leaves it reminds me that this goes by so quickly.

Within the blink of an eye October will be gone.

Will I have taken photos, made apple pies and sat in that last bit of sun that still has the warmth to it? Will I have had the time to made myself a cup of tea and sip it, slowly, why it is still hot? Will we have collected pretty leaves and chestnuts and made those felt acorns I have been meaning to try forever?

Or will it all just rush by in a blur, a whirlwind of to dos and tasks to be crossed off? Where finishing my annual family photo book is just another thing on the list I that I need to force myself to focus and work on? Or will I be able to slow down and enjoy that task, because it's about our family memories and I really like doing it.

But that is just the thing. I like the things on my list. Well, mostly (let's just not talk about housekeeping here, ok? Cleaning out closets is fine. Dusting? Yawn.). Most of the things I do enjoy - given the time to do them. And not under pressure to complete the next item and the next and then the one that just came on top of it.

So I am here and now making a pledge to slow down. At least a bit. To squeeze in the little things that I love so much. To sit in the sun. Find the most beautiful leaf of all. Make hot chocolate. Go read some poetry for a change. Find books about the season to read with the boys. Or take half an hour to go into the woods and take some photos (and actually noticing in the process that there are still plenty of green leaves on the trees. No rush.)

But most of all, slow down enough to enjoy the things I am doing anyway. And help my kids do the same.

Wishing you a wonderful Fall,
Swenja

Vacation photo dump: the beach

Salty air, the sound of waves, bare feet on the sand and kids chasing seagulls (turns out those aren't so easy to catch)... yep, we escaped to the beach over the weekend. On a whim, just for a few days. With pretty much zero time to pack.

It was lovely.

Of course the kids caught croup. Sigh. Nothing is perfect, right?

It was still wonderful to get away for a bit before school starts again. And it was even better to spend my birthday on the beach. Not wiping crumbs off the counter, baking my own cake or folding laundry. Nope, just eating ice cream, sitting in the sand, having some fresh mint tea and watch the kids have fun.

Here's a little photo dump of our mini vacation:

Big brother with his surfer style hair. Too cute. Of course I get an eye roll when I say that. "Mom!"

My men!

 Don't you just love those chubby feet? He's just growing out of the toddler chubbiness.

And he is one big funny goofball. Making the strangest faces when I try to take his photo.

It was even warm enough to splash around the water a bit.

Beach sunsets. Seriously: is there anything better?

Love the light.

I didn't really want to leave, but our house wasn't directly at the beach and the kids had to get some sleep.

Going shopping for a bit. Mmmmhhh, chocolates! Tartes! Quiches!

Seagulls. Hungry seagulls.

Catching crabs and other tiny critters.

Trying to relax for a bit.

"All seashells are pretty, mommy". So they all went into the bucket. 

This is a seagull trap. Seriously. The bait? Waffles. I mean, you can catch anything or anyone with waffles, right?

Except for seagulls as it turns out.

Big brother didn't give up though. It was pretty funny.

I could spend days just wandering the beach and looking for treasures.

Some are real, others images I treasure, scenes and details captures that will remind me of the beach when I am back at home.

Some black and white -  I really don't know why I don't do this more often. I mean, it's not like you have to use a different roll of film and decide in advance anymore, right?

Well, so much for now. I need to catch up on my sleep - the remaining week will be busy and there are way too many photos of big brother's birthday still on my camera, waiting to be sorted and edited. But for now, I will go to bed and think of walking barefoot on the beach.

{the simple things} guitar practice

When big brother was two years old, the Easter bunny got him a guitar. A light blue, wooden toy guitar. He loved it. Like any good rock star, his guitar didn't last all that long. So the next year the Easter bunny came back, this time with the smallest size of a "real" guitar he could find.

He has been playing with it ever since, and this year we finally ended up getting him enrolled in guitar lessons. I have no idea where he got his love of music from - sports and music are two things I am an absolute failure at. But then again, my boys didn't get too much from their mommy, anyway.

He's had weekly lessons for a couple of weeks now, and he does practice most days. He will protest when you ask him to practice, mind you. But once he actually puts down what he was doing and gets his guitar, he enjoys it.

He's a little bit frustrated with the fact that he has to start learning the basics, he'd much rather learn chords and play all his favorite songs (current play list includes I can see clearly now, Let her go and anything by Eric Clapton, preferably Layla). But he does keep practicing, and I love that he found something to enjoy. He's not someone who's great at team sports and he doesn't like the fact that all his friends play soccer. Playing the guitar or going fishing with daddy is so much more like him.

Speaking of daddy - well, after taking big brother to his lessons once or twice, he too caught the guitar bug and started to take lessons. Now they practice together a few times a week, especially on Sundays. Can't wait for them to be able to play on long summer nights!

I have a feeling the Easter bunny will have to be bringing a bigger guitar this year... 

Linking up with the simple things sunday.

Happy Sunday everyone!

Swenja

{the simple things} new playground

We live in the middle of a new development, and just as our part of it got finished last year, the next part started. Sigh. More excavators, dump trucks, cranes and the like. A little boy's heaven, you'd think. Unless your little boys have been used to that for a good four years now. A dump truck? Yawn. Look, there's a new crane! Oh what else is new....

Anyway. The good news is that the city finally finished the new playground that is right between our part of the development and the new one. The process started last summer, and the fun part was that all the kids and parents who live here got invited to a planning meeting to make a wish list of things they'd like for the playground. 

The not so fun part was the wet summer and the fact that building the playground took much, much longer than anticipated. It got finished just before Christmas, but the sand didn't get in until this year. So now it's all done! And it's great. Last Sunday we got a little bit of sunshine (while I'm typing it's snowing outside. Again. Sigh.), so we got some much needed fresh air.

The slide seems to be everyone's favorite. We've been to the playground a few times since it opened, but last week was little brother's first time of going down the slide all by himself. Before that he's stand at the top, holding up traffic and wait for big brother or friends to go down with him. Now he does it all by himself.

I love the details. Such as the swinging bench.

Oh and yes, that is a mouse sitting on a box of explosives. Go figure...

But the best part? The playground is so close that I can literally see the kid from my back deck - or open the upstairs window and tell them dinner is ready. Not that I can let the little one out there all by himself yet, but I'm sure that time will come sooner than I'd like to think.

How about you? What are your favorite playgrounds and do you ever let your kids there unattended?

Sharing with Rebecca's simple things sunday today. 

Happy Sunday,

Swenja