I want to savasana...

Depending on the day, sometimes I have to admit, I am in quite a hurry to roll over, namaste, and walk on out. This week though, when I am instructed to start wiggling my fingers and toes, and wake my body back up, my mind says, "nooooo!" I do not want to move. I do not want to get up. I want to stay in that sweet savasana. Pure relaxation, rejuvination, and a reward for getting through all those chaturangas! My not wanting to get up has made me think about how tired I must be. It's not until I am instructed into savasana that I really give myself a chance to let go. So I am going to soak it all up, every second, and I may even try and find some even outside of yoga class as well.

I want to open windows...

Let the fresh air in! If I had it my way, we would not put the heat or air on until the very last unbearable moment. I don't mind wearing my scarf and hat inside the house and as if right now, I am welcoming the sweat. But then one day I'll come home and the house will be warm in the winter o cool in the summer. We are very big on energy saving so we do keep it at a modest temperature, but it is always the husband who turns it on. He has not given in yet with the evenings feeling fantastic the last couple days. With the windows open I can hear the people lingering in the park until the last bit of sunlight and the birds chirpping away. We are getting some stale, old air out and welcoming the fresh, new air of spring. As long as I can get them all closed before the storm comes, I think we can last awhile longer.

I want to make something delicious .....

Google "cake pop" images and the cutest, most creatively perfect little desserts will come up. Possibly you have tried them lately at Starbucks as well. I warn you though, once you have one, you'll dream of your next one. So this is my first attempt in making them. After seeing those cutesy images, I thought, "I can do that!" I wanted to make them but needed a reason and the Easter family gathering seemed like a good time to try and share. They didn't turn out too pretty (they were supposes to llok like easter eggs,haha), but they were an impressive presentation because they were new and exciting to the fam. We had four left over after sending other extras home and I have now ate one a day since Sunday. So make, eat one, share, and then give away!! Too cute and just too dangerous to keep in the house! Trying to make something delicious was so successful I can't even keep them in the house!

I want to go new places....

New places, new faces-it was about time for a new adventure. So I took my first visit to the Big Apple with my mom last week! Had a great time being complete tourists- double decker bus, the today show, and eating NY cheesecake and pizza. But the best part were the broadway shows. The costumes, the dances, singing, the set, were just beautiful. I would go to two a day if I could.

After a few days in the city, I was thinking that as a New Yorker, can you ever see everything? Is there enough time to soak it all up. The bakeries, the shops, the shows- how can you fit it all in? So then I was thinking about the hidden gems that are in my own city. Or the places that I pass and always say I want to try. So maybe when I am in need of that new place I can save my money and adventure to a new place in my own town. I do get stuck going and love going to the same spots but a new place for a fun change can be a quick adventure but can also a nice reminder of how good we have it.

I want to sew...

I had an idea last Friday about pillows. So I made a couple, sewing by hand. They turned out pretty cute but after showing my new project and talking with my sister, the idea of a sewing machine was brought up. If you don't know, sewing machines are expensive. Spending that much money on something that I do not even really know how to use, seems a little irresponsible. So off to my mom's house I went to see the power of the machine. The machine though was doing something crazy and was not working properly. What a big bummer. It is fixed now but I'm trying to save time, and driving to and from is not helping.
But help has come!! After spending a lovely afternoon with my mother in law yesterday, I mentioned going to my mom's to sew, and she said that'she had not used her sewing machine in years and I could take it to my house! Woo hoo! Best of all, the sewing machine is literally as old as me, born the same year, so I'm figuring we'll get along just fine.
But very wrong I was. It has been a battle and oh very frustrating. Of course I thought I would get a hang of it in seconds, but it has taken hours! Luckily I have the day off! Let's just say it's a good thing this camera can't zoom.  I am stepping away from the machine for now, but will give it a go in a few hours and give it a go again with fresh eyes. A little break can do wonders.

I want to feel good about crying...

I am not ashamed to cry. I cry when I'm mad, when I'm sad, and very often at televsion commercials. Graduations, dance recitals, sports events, you name it, I am fighting back the tears. And I don't even have kids yet!

So crying at movies should not be a big surprise. The big surprise is what movies the tears come and won't stop. This weekend I was working on some craft stuff and decided to put on a movie to have in the background. But the movie pulled me in and I cried the whole way through. And wow did it feel good. Letting the tears go, what a release! Best thing of all was that the movie didn't make me feel all sad and depressed when it was over. Probably because, embarrassing as it is, the movie was Toy Story 3!

I want to road trip...

Our initial plans for the day were to drive up to Lexington, KY and visit some awesome friends for the weekend. But with a crazy weather forecast of hail and possible flooding, are plans of outdoor fun weekend were over. So we rescheduled for June but we already had the day off for today. What to do, what to do? We decided to take a day trip up to one of my favorite places on earth. Good ole' Boone, NC. Great day for some hiking, a little shopping, and eating good food. Best of all Penny Lane could join us on our day trip.

Here she is doing what she loves best. Freedom, fresh air, and a little splashing on the stream. I think we are all tired enough today that even though we will not be where we had planned to be for the weekend, being inside tomorrow watching the rain and relaxing will be a fine time for all.

I want to take pictures...

With my new tablet, I must admit, life has become a little easier. I did not ask for the tablet but my husband has a way of surprising me with things that help me and end up helping him as well. I am no longer asking the time constantly thanks to last years watch for christmas. And now my calendar, meeting notes, to do lists, and camera are all in one place and are easily transported from one bag to the next without question or wonder of where they disappeared to.

I also admit that I am forgetful and I never bring my camera anywhere- missing wonderful photo opportunities of the beauty of everyday life. So the camera on the tab is now with me pretty much wherever I go. So my challenge to myself is to find that beauty and take a quick picture everyday. Maybe it's a tree or my dog, or my students hard at work. I would like to capture those moments. As I scroll through my photos I will be reminded of all the beauty and blessings that surrounds us daily.

Starting off easy today with the wonderfulness of my apple. Grows on a tree at it's own speed with these bright mix of colors. Yummy to taste with nutrition benefits too! Beautiful apple I see...

I want to practice my spanish...

Hubs and I used to have Spanish Wednesdays and Sundays where we would only speak Spanish in the house. And after our South American trip in December we said we wanted to keep that practice up. So far we have not done a very good job. But we did start listening to some seriously fun Spanish music when cleaning the house!

This morning I was asked to translate for a parent and I got by fine, only because I am used to talking about school in Spanish. If I stay on the same subjects, no problem. But take me out of the school or average day context, I'm struggling. So maybe I can talk the husband into getting out the paper at dinner andchallenging ourselves to Spanish current event talk. This is going to be tricky and we will need to have a dictionary very close by. Vamos a ver!

I want to be graceful...

Right now I have two cuts on my right knee and a bruise on my left leg. One cut came from me rushing like a fool. Why can't I give myself more time to get ready in the morning! I cut myself shaving as if it was the first time I ever did it. Having just a few extra minutes could have saved my poor knee. The other cut came from running into a table and the bruise, who knows.

This is not unusual either. I am always running into things because of rushing around and not paying attention. And believe it or not at one time in my life I was a dancer- ballerina even! Haha. I must say yoga has helped me being graceful in balance and in posture, but in walking, I need more help. To be graceful and float in and out of rooms is the dream. Maybe I will start practicing by sneaking up on my husband, tippy toes and all.

I want to make a good presentation...

I could be talking about a presentation at work or for something important but I am talking about Thursday night's dinner presentation. Yes, food again.

When I cook, I like to say I cook with a lot of love. And when cooking with love, love is the most important part so the look of it can be a little off at times. I hear "Smells good" a lot more often then "looks good." For today I am trying a little love with a little of style and going for presentation. Pictured here we have layers of garlic polenta slices and bread crumb/parmesean encrusted eggplant, topped with sauteed onions tomatoes and spinach. So for today, the description sounds pretty fancey and as you can see from the pic, the presentation was not so bad either. But I can't seem to get it all. It was good, but didn't have that "yummy, yummy in my tummy" awesomeness. Hopefully the presentation points saved the meal and next time I will put double the love in to make it just right.

I want to cook like Life Alive

In October, the hubs and I went to visit his brother and sister in law in Lowell, Mass, right outside Boston. The trip was great, seeing them was the highlight, of course, but a close second was eating at Life Alive. http://www.lifealive.com/ Thanks to the sister in law knowing we would love it. It was obviously good because it is now April and I am still talking about it. The week after we got home I printed out their menu to see if I could somehow recreate their amazing vegetarian dishes. The whole menu is vegetarian and amazing. So naturally fresh and good it made us feel naturally fresh and good eating it. If you're ever in Lowell or Cambridge, it is a must. Or if I cook you dinner just ask for an inspired live alive dish and I will do my best.

Here is tonight's life alive inspired dish- israeli couscous (which, by the way, is amazing in itself), kale, onion, spinach, red wine vinegar, salt, cumin, and some lime. The hubster even said, "I love the kale in here." The great sounds of success!

I want to yoga at home....

Planning my life around a yoga class schedule can get a little crazy. I may have extra time before so I try to fit other things in or I may be running late and it throws everything off. Both situations make me anxious and frazzled about what to do. This is the main reason why I like to practice bright and early before the work day even begins. The only thing that can get in my way is me forgetting to set the alarm or me just turning it off. Some mornings I just need those few extra moments of sleep. So the morning yoga is out and practicing at home at a convenient time later on in the day is in. As an extra bonus, the hubster joined me a couple times this past week. Being in class and being at home are very different but both are very rewarding. So yay for getting that practice in where ever it is.

Iwant to ride my bike!

Riding my bike is one of my very favorite things to do. With the cold weather, my bike has been locked in the shed and there has been no hair helmet hair for months. Yesterday morning I decided that the hubster and I would ride to get our groceries for the evening. It was a gorgeous day, we needed groceries, and the workout helped too. And a work out it was. Who pays attention to all the hills when driving? Yikes! There was some definite huffing puffing going on a couple times. This deep breathing has clued us in that we may be a little out of shape. Ouch! So tomorrow, if the morning is rain free, I will be on the bike again to work. Leaving a little earlier than the cool day in early October, my last ride to work. Hopefully I'll get the hang of it again in a couple of weeks...

I want to sing...

I love singing. Singing in the car, shower, while cooking, while cleaning...I love it. You would think that with all that singing that I sing well. Well, I do not. I doesn't sound terrible or anything. Not sure my husband would be able to stand it, but it doesn't sound good either. Either way, it feels good to belt it out. Belt it out even if I don't know the exact words. Belt it out at a stop light with a car next to me. Belt it out!!