Perspectives

Today I really noticed that it is light quite late, now ('til 17:45 PM). So, if spring is surely hesitating weatherwise the lighter evenings has their clear message: spring is on its way!

Stopping by some blogs I also realize that spring is the topic of the hour: loads of bloggers write about the anticipation of warmer climate. So have I.
For some reason it hit me today that it hasn't been more than 3-4 years that I have been one of those people who talk of seasons and long for summer. Up until year 2007 my highest priority was trying to keep my oldest son as happy as possible in a relation with a father that was trouble.
I never noticed whether it was spring or fall and had no time to think about what temperature it was or at what time it got dark.

I can still vividly remember the happy days, after my son managed to turn everything around, when I for the first time heard spring birds and felt spring-soil-scents outside.
I remember realizing that there had been many years passing by, during which many bigger things had constantly been on my must-do list, where I never was carefree enough to "smell the flowers".
The joy that day when I realized it!
So, now I fully enjoy seeing all those magnificent geese flying above me, making their distinct sounds. I enjoy the smaller birds twirping and the longer evenings. I feel longing for spring and I look forward to good things:
I'm not on hold any longer and I have the perspective and experience to appreciate it!

I love being able to notice and enjoy all those seemingly small things, I am thankful for it.

To the left my son, the young man, who lived through hard times for 16 years, to the right the mother who lived through hard times for 18 years and in the middle: my son, the boy, who knows no hard times at all. How we all appreciate and love each other. Like nothing else!

Beaches a little north of Miami... (part 1)

Is there anything better than, coming down after a sleep-in, finding a son and a dog jumping hooraying, saluting my coming down? They both almost raced each other in order to get to me first and the son exclaimed:
-I looooove you
and kissed my lips!
The dog almost volted in the air in pure extatic frantic happiness. How blessed I am!
In my heart there was nothing but love and warmth.

****
Saturday was a beach day!

Nothing out of the ordinary, for some readers, if it wasn't for the fact that it is cold here.
So cold my fingers literally got numb taking the pics. The camera wouldn't obey the clicks my finger tried to make, after a while.
But I'm not complaining. It was beautiful and refilling of the soul. In the evening I felt as if I had had a day of vacation or that the weekend was longer than it was and I think the visit to the beaches had something to do with that.
Yes, I said beaches! I got the family to endulge me to two beach visits, despite the temperature!

Ice cold, is the word.

Weird looking ice clumps out in the ocean makes it look like Greenland or Antarctica!

Johannes thinks it is way too cold to step outside at all...

Funkie disagrees.

He enjoyed barking out into the chilly wind!

I get chills from the beauty aswell as from the cold.

When the sun paid us the compliment of a visit I could hardly believe my eyes.

Mommy's love.

Marcus and Funkie walks in order not to freeze stiff....

Note the wind capturing Funkie's ear!! Cute dog.

Johannes' mood improved and running was fun, aswell as climbing and jumping.

A favourite pic of all times: dad and dog running happily!

Noone was up for a picnic, I can assure you ;-)

The "bath path".

It was time to go into town for coffee and cake after the cold sejour att the beach.

The boy was happy to get inside and ordered two chocolate cookies!

After spending time at the beach and a whole lot of time being spent together the heart gets comfortable, warm and very loving. It feels more "open" and present.  I have long days during the work week, since we opted to buy a house in the town where our hearts were. So I travel 3-4 hours a day which means that the free time or "together time" is minimal monday through friday. 

But the weekends: wow!

We enjoy long breakfasts together, we visit favourite places, we hug and kiss and we plan and dream. We do all those things a lot and we really enjoy it to the fullest.

To me it's like this: I need the hectic full week days in order to love and enjoy the weekends. I need the cold winter in order to love the warm summer. That is one of the many wonderful things of living, aging and getting to know yourself: you befriend your own "you" and you know what you need to feel good.

This passed weekend hubby and I made huge plans for the future! Exciting!!

We live in an attached house and we really dream of a totally detached house with a bigger garden (when the boy is a little bit older, now we wouldn't have time to manage a big garden). As of this winter  we're at a place in life where we can start saving up money and now we decided we're going to start.

Buying a house is expensive in our country, due to the market and the high taxes, so we're going to save for quite some years but we're going to start and that in itself feels exhillirating. I'll keep you posted!

Anticipation

Today the sweetest boy woke me up earlier than usual on weelkends: around 07:00 AM (hope I get the AM-PM right, it drives me nuts trying to!). I thought it was later, so after he snutted my hair I suggested we'd go downstairs to watch the Clone Wars movie he rented last evening. And we did and here I am!

Yesterday there was a tiny bit of more snowing but before that we had time to get some spring feeling. I am anticipating spring, I guess you could say? I hear the twirping of birds and can smell spring soil.

The boy hasn't been a total 100% well after the illness week, he has been a little whinier than usual.

He's as cute as can be when he offers kisses!

This is pretty much what it looks like now: The Boy watches a favourite on TV, he's snutting my hair and I juggle blogging with conversations with him. I'm a multi tasker for sure!

This little face is anticipating starting his first year in school, in august. He's nervous as well as excited.

This one always anticipates a walk and a kiss. Love from mom is a given. Mostly he anticipates a snack!

We can have the windows open! We're really hoping for - and looking for - spring bringing it on....

Melting snow. After a long very cold and extremely snowy winter, this is a welcome sight.

The blue sky help our outdoor furniture anticipate summer, with BBQs, strawberry cakes and coffee...!

The Boy is never still, almost. He's a very energized boy who loves playing and having fun.

Being silly is always fun. This boy is happy and has a good life. He knows nothing else!

There. He can sit still and look serious too.

Oh, how I love!

Popsicles are being LOVED.

In to a game. Really in to it.

The older brother, Alexander, is very much loved by his younger brother. Here Johannes talks to his brother and they'll talk about everything: pre school, games, food, toys, movies and the dog!

A good conversation and Johannes asks his brother to come for a visit soon, so they can play together. Alexander is now at a place in life where he anticipates. How happy that makes me! He anticipates having a lot of fun with friends, doing very well at his jobs (yes, he's got two!) and eventually applying to Police Academy. He anticipates putting the bad guys away and especially the bad guys who torment children and women, he can't stand the thought of them. 

Saturday with mom, dad, dog and popcorn! That is a way to spend a saturday.

Anticipation is a huge part of life. It is one thing that absolutely drives me. My biggest passions in life are my family, my work and my friends. At work I have the ambition to change the world, of course, otherwise I wouldn't do it. A story like the one Alexander offers inspires me a whole lot: being dealt horrible cards, in life, with much fear and many years of terror and turning those very cards into the "force" that guides you to do better and change the world (yes, he's wants to be in the world-changing business too!!), that is mind turning and big. It is humbling.  It seems I'm getting the courage to share my story, bit by bit, here in this blog and I thank Kelle for that inspiration! Kelle shares in her blog "Enjoying the small things" and she does it well.