in the afternoon

I spent the afternoon journaling, sipping coffee, eating ice cream, and gardening. The weather has been so unseasonably warm this year -- but I'm not complaining. It's rather nice not having to worry about bundling up. And as for journaling, that's something I've started this week. I've always kept a diary, and I regularly fill up notebooks with my writing, but I intend to make this new journal visually appealing as well. I like sitting down in the afternoon to fill blank pages with quotes and song lyrics and blackout poems and short stories.

Do you journal?

ps i caved and got a formspring account...ask away, loves!

we went globetrotting.

I've spent the past four days surrounded by snowy vineyards, forests with impossibly tall trees, and wonderfully foggy lakes. I flew thirty-two thousand feet above the earth, took photographs in the cold until my fingers throbbed, and laughed until my sides ached. I experienced new things, met new people...and fell blissfully in love with a new country.

My dad was invited to be a keynote speaker at a conference in Canada, near Niagara Falls, and I jumped at the opportunity to come along (oh, the perks of being a pastor's daughter, ha!). It was such an adventure, and I never expected to fall so utterly in love with this gorgeous country, especially when it was blanketed by a fresh layer of snow.

I'm home now. Yes, it's nice to be back in my own bed and surrounded by family, but there is a part of me that misses Canada so. I'm a bit reluctant to get back into the daily grind of life, though I suppose all good things must come to an end. But the memories we made will be unforgettable and I feel crazy blessed to have these new experiences.

Canada? I'm coming back. Promise.

wallflower

[photos from my trip to paris]

Sometimes, I dream about moving to a foreign city, with hidden streets and secrets woven into the plaster. I intertwine my fantasy with the memories of Europe I have tucked away in my mind. Slipping in and out of shops and wandering the cobblestoned paths with no particular destination. Walking about, seeing but not being seen; just watching the masses of people going about their daily business. People fascinate me.
My favorite cafe in Paris is the one in Montmartre, the pastries and breads lined up artfully behind the shiny glass. Sitting at a little table with a buttery, flaky pain au chocolat and frothy cafe au lait, I'd rest my feet and record my observations. I'd gather up my notebook and camera to explore and wander some more, then head back to my little flat to sit on the roof and watch the sun set, only to repeat it all over again the next day.

It sounds terribly romantic, does it? Simply being an observer of life? Because sometimes being a wallflower in a bustling city sounds so tempting.