god and science

astronauts were asked to assemble the top ten photos from the hubble spacecraft and they are awesome. doesn't this image makes your head spin? i can't help thinking how miraculous it is that this tiny, fleeting earth and its living beings are, well, even here at all. as my wonder at scientific discovery grows (what a photo! how cool!) so, too, does my belief in god.

abc's...

just spent the morning at my children's montessori school. many of the children are learning to read, and it is amazing to see windows opening to them as jumbles of letters transform into recognizable words. today i hope all children have the opportunity to experience this awakening, this joy. an entreaty to grown-ups: read with a child today.

(re)cycling art. saving planet.

earth day was yesterday and got me thinking about what else beyond the obvious we can do to help our planet. (i mean, do we really need to be reminded to turn off the lights, walk more, and carry reusable totes to trader joes?) i found inspiration from lisa kokin, who is a genius for recycling discarded objects into quirky, beautiful art.

window of the day

oh! to have such a profusion of flowers! sadly, it's not my little cottage, but from a gorgeous collection of window photos by QT Luong.

what i'm reading

this was a gift from my husband, who then had to make do without me on saturday while i devoured this book. it is gorgeous and haunting and as important as alan paton's cry the beloved country or coetzee's waiting for the barbarians.

paris!

i'm so excited! i'm going to paris next month with a friend. can't wait to break out my rusty french, my nikon, and hit the streets to soaksoaksoak it all up: the museums and tiny galleries, street life, the food. and of course, there's my quest to find the perfect chandelier from les puces.

road trip

i've never adjusted to life without spring breaks, so taking a few days off to explore, read, and enjoy all-you-can-eat hotel breakfasts.

blue hill at stone barns

my sons and i celebrated the first day of spring last month with a trip to blue hill at stone barns, one of our most favorite places. after saying hello to the cows and a hike around the gardens, we ate artisinal cheese sandwiches, farm-grown salad, and chocolate brownies at the bhsb outdoor cafe. yum! what a great way to celebrate the (chilly) arrival of the season.

happy weekend

and happy hunting. may everyone find LOTS of chocolate!

egg-stravaganza

looking forward to making eggs with the kids and the much-awaited arrival of mr. e.b. bunny this weelend. (photo by maureen shaugnessy)

pastry shop windows

the french have this fabulous expression, leche la vitrine, or lick the window. being french, it's figurative for drooling after something you see in a window. this photo reminds me of the craving for great pastry and my friend, shirley. she and a group of ladies have been mailing hundreds of boxes of home-made baked goods to soldiers in iraq every wednesday for the past three years. so today, my sons and i will bake brownies, not just for ourselves, but for the soldiers so far from cozy pastry shop windows.

bedroom fantasies

how fabulous are these bedrooms? they've convinced me i need a chandelier in mine. pronto! (photos from the inspired room. )

rainy monday (with thanks to a.a. milne)

John had
Great big
Waterproof
Boots on;
John had a
Great big
Waterproof
Hat;
John had a
Great big
Waterproof
Makintosh –
And that
(Said John)
Is that.

- A.A. Milne

window of the day

oh! to wear such a fabulous hat and watch the world go by. super photo (and hat) by stellahats.

art and the self-sufficient

there's a super inspirational article in today's new york times about how people prospered during the Depression by using their considerable skills to get by. if there's a bright side to these bumpy times, it's the thought that many of us are learning things our grandparents took for granted -- sewing, cooking, gardening, carpentry -- and in the process, expressing ourselves in ways that leave rich legacies for tomorrow. think about your most treasured heirlooms. for me, they're the sweaters knit by mom (plus her photos she developed in her closet-turned-darkroom!), baby quilts stitched by my sister-in-law, and a hand-embroidered christening gown given by a friend for my sons that's as delicate and light as wild queen anne's lace. all in all, a grand thing to remember when you're sweating the bills. or learning to thread a sewing machine.