Take A "Photo" Hike

This was the perfect weekend for it. A little chill - enough to enjoy being bundled up. Sparkling white snow crunching beneath my feet. Rays of sunshine peeking through the trees. *sigh* It was a perfect day for being outside.


On Sunday, I took advantage of the new snow we had gotten (one of only a couple snows this year). The hubby was out with the boys. I woke up ambitious and got a lot done around the house. Then it was my "me" time. I took photos of the birds at the feeder, then threw on my boots and headed out to the nearby state park for a hike in the woods.


It felt so good to be outside. I could have hiked all day, but by the time I got back to my car the sun was already on its way out. I even stopped on the way home to say hello to the ducks that hang out at our neighborhood boatlaunch looking for a handout from the frequenters who stopped to feed them.


It's rare that I get days to myself, and I found this one to be particularly refreshing.

Mile High

I have posted before about my love/hate relationship with heels. I love how they look, LOVE to wear them, hate how GARGANTUAN they make me. I'm already 5'11". With the size feet that I have (size 11.... eeek!) to keep balance with all that height, those little 1" heels look like I'm just standing on a pebble in the back - they make my foot look even longer than flats do. I need some heel height to balance out my long foot and give it nice shape. But then, even with only 3" heels I'm 6'2". What's worse, my husband is the same height as me, so any inches that I add are just inches I hover over him.

Regardless, my love of heels has won. I recently bought two pairs of boots with heels between 3" and 4". And I love them. I wear my "Wang" boots by Blowfish nearly every day. I've since seen them on clearance and almost bought a second pair for when my first pair inevitably wears out.

Still, I have to draw the line somewhere. It was hard not to purchase these boots I tried on the other day. I threw them on just for a laugh, and almost found myself immediately at the register. They are rediculously tall - 6" heels with about a 2" platform. That makes me about, oh, 6'5". But they were easy to walk in, super comfy, and not nearly as hooker-ish as I thought once I put them on. I had two people comment on how cute they were right there in the store. Alas, they were a bit too much. One of those items that I would love and admire at home, but be too afraid to wear out and about. But I just had to post about them, because they were just that cool.

Kindness

I don't even have many words for this. It just breaks my heart.



What is wrong with people!? :(

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Show a little kindness. The world needs it.

Griffin

My fluffy kitty Griffin loves going for litte strolls in the back yard with me. He doesn't get to go out often, but he's always begging at the door. We got some snow the other day (not much of it this winter), and he thought he wanted to go outside to check it out. Once out there he changed his mind. He's about as much a fan of being in the snow as I am. :/

It's Always Grilling Season

We love to grill. All year. Sunshine, rain, snow.... doesn't matter. I've ruined a grill cover or two chiping the ice away to get 'er going.

And one of our favorite things to grill is pizza. No pizza tastes as good as a grilled pizza. Especially when the combination of toppings is as perfect as what I chose last night. It was my best ever. I was worried it would be an odd combination, but my BBQ-Pepperoni-Hot Turkey Sausage-Pineapple-Tomato-Hot Pepper pizza turned out simply amazing. Sweet, tangy, spicy, smokey..... delicious. All topped off with my favorite brew from right here in the mitten.

It's too cold to bike, rollerblade, swim - all the summertime things I'm anxious to do - but when I'm at the grill with a beer in hand I'd almost think it was summer.... if we hadn't gotten inches of snow just hours after I finished. :)

Maybe it really is winter?

I am not a winter person. In fact, I usually despise it. So I've had no complaints this year about the lack of snow, ice, and cold. Zero. But I do have to admit that when we had a very, very heavy snow the other day, I was quite pleased. We hopped in my husband's truck and went for a country drive (thank goodness because my car NEVER would have made it in that snow.) It truly was a winter wonderland.

Maybe it's a matter of "absence makes the heart grow fonder", but for once, I remembered and appreciated just how beautiful winter can be.

Winter Warmth

It felt so nice this weekend to go out and enjoy the unseasonably warm weather we've been having this winter. Though it's been warmer than any winter I can remember, being Michigan it has still been very grey and dreary. This perfect combination of winter "warmth" and sunshine was too much to pass up. I spent some time at our favorite metro park with my husband and my father, and it was a perfect afternoon.

But what REALLY made my day, were the chickadees! They landed on us time and time again to take seed we offered. I love chickadees, and they sure added that magic touch to the afternoon.