roof life...

texas theatre

this weekend we went to see a band at the

texas theatre, where oswald hid in the moments

after shooting kennedy and where he was

captured. upstairs from the lobby and

bar area, there are great spots for chatting.

i wish i had gotten more photos of them.

the bands played behind the giant movie screen.

it was perfectly echo-y and you could see

older parts of the building that had

been partially covered over the past 80 years.

jason took us on a tour of the 'works' of

the building...the original boilers and

greasy iron machinery i won't pretend

to know the purpose of. it seemed like every

time i would stop to take a picture i

would glance up and everyone had already

descended the next spooky

staircase and i was left behind. hearing

their voices fading away from me,

i didn't take half the pictures i would

have liked, but here's a few i managed to

come away with.

(actually, i believe chris took this one)

hello to a river...

last weekend we took a two day river vacation.

we dropped in our canoes at the possum kingdom dam

on the brazos river.

we paddled. and paddled. about twelve miles.

about an hour before dusk we set up camp on a perfect,

little island in the middle of the river. all sand

and barefoot-lovely grass. our friends made

butternut squash, corn, black beans, brussels, salsa

and honeyed pears on the fire. then we all passed

around scotch and ibuprophen out of necessity.

the coyotes made their living all night

and from every direction.

they would call to each other from each side of

the river. it would echo off the cliffs and settle down

into the river bottom.

i woke up many times during the night

and they were hard at work until just before dawn.

we had another giant meal for breakfast before shoving

off. taters, tempeh bacon, avacado, pico, beans, and tortillas.

the second day we stopped plenty, which was alright by

everyone. i feel like i gave my parts a good, solid

stretch....brain to soul.

and away......

this past weekend we had dinner with

chris' friend, glenn. he is a careflight

pilot and has built a huge hangar and beautiful home

attached right to it. he really took advantage of the

views all around with an admirable number of

windows and cozy places to take in the

countryside. so why didn't i take more/any photos of the

house and hangar? i couldn't peel my attention

away from this!......what a neat guy to let kids treat

a helicopter like a jungle gym!

having a photographer for a husband can really

come in handy, too...

summer camp '09

this past week a friend of mine, kristen, and i took the boys camping on the llano river. on the four hour drive home all i could think about was how whole. how at peace. how fulfilled. how lucky. how calm i felt in my chest. a lot of that had to do with kristen. she is a lesson in spontaneity, enthusiasm, acceptance, and plain old sugar sweet friendship. another part was the river. the llano is a spring-fed, cool, clear blanket of water that would rush over our shoulders, drowning out everything, arms flowing next to you like river grass.

i've been going to this spot since i was, to quote the spot's gracious owner, "an embryo". when i watch the boys running the rapids over and over, slipping on the rocks, i almost hear a satisfying click from the universe. that a piece of my life has been put in place. my kids getting to feel the same excitement, joy, and love of the moment that i felt as a kid. those feelings that as a kid feel like a bubbling in your chest. when i'm there i feel that way all over again.

each time i go there i am bowled over by how centered i feel. it always feels like home. when i die i want some of my ashes in that river. at that exact spot. thinking about that now doesn't seem morbid to me at all, but rather a sure sign that i'm blessed that i've had that place in my life from birth. and now i can sit on the rocks with my cold beer and watch my kids feeling whole on the water without even realizing it because they are so lost in the moment's joy. that's peace.

i won a major award!

i have a very talented and beautiful friend named ashley. 

i think she is really inspiring and sugar sweet, as well as being a fantastic jeweler.  

she had a giveaway on her friend's blog, harrilu, and I WON this fabulous necklace that i believe looks like coral.  roxie is convinced it is a horse.  

it looks tough with everything and i love it so much i'm gonna kiss it...