hi and hello.

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It’s been so long since I’ve said hello.

So, hello!

Spring is really here it seems and with that I’ve been finding myself driving to work in the sunshine, blasting my country music as loud as it will go. Spring has a way of bringing pure joy with it, doesn’t it? Take today, for example. I was running later than usual to work, and there were no eggs left in the fridge, but bygonnit! It was sunny out! And about to be over 50 degrees! And so smiling was what I had to give and I gave it all I’ve got. I just love that.

We are ONE WEEK away from our west coast trip and I don’t think I could be more excited about it if I tried. Can you believe it’s here already? I can hardly. Give it to me, California. GIVE IT ALL TO ME. My list of things to do is longer than a ball of twine, and each day I add more and more. Whatever we do, whatever we see, I know I’ll just be thankful to be there experiencing it. I’ve been dreaming of this for SO SO long. When Zan and I were talking about it the other day, which we do most everyday, we realized that this is the first trip we’ve taken together in a long time. We went out to San Diego forever ago, and since then, only road trips here and there or family vacations. So, we’re excited about that! Traveling together is fun and I can’t wait to see the other side of the country with that guy by my side. He did warn me once not to take TOO MANY photos, but I told him I can’t promise anything like that. HELLO. :)

In other everyday news, tonight I’m eating tacos and adding clothes to my “vacation pile”, which also seems to be getting bigger by the minute. I’m planning to travel with just a carry-on, so I guess I have some work to do in that department. I ordered the weekender from Everlane, and hooray! I think it will be perfect. Also, the Sandlot’s on currently, so you can’t really beat that. ABC Family! It never lets me down.

// see above:

some favorite instas from the past few months.
We’re visiting my Gram again this weekend
{she’s back at home!} and I’m so looking
forward to giving her a hug. ♥

ribbon, Studio Carta
necklace + bracelet, The Jones Market
hand lettered print, Brim Papery

on the first real snow and cameras and instagram.

Processed with VSCOcam with m3 preset

One more week of school and then 12 whole days of footloose and fancy freeeeeeee.

This weekend we got our first real snow fall. By first real snow, I mean it was the first time we had to go out and shovel the driveway. Do I love it? No, but kind of yes. I get in this ho ho ho spirit when I’m out there and just power through it while singing Christmas music quietly under my breath. I would sing them louder, but sometimes wonder what the neighbors might think. The shoveling gives me a back-ache and I seriously get SO hot and sweaty, but the coming inside after to hot chocolate part makes it all worth it. Oh, joy. It snowed a little bit early last week, and certainly stuck in most places because of the cold, but the storm this weekend was the real deal– the white all over, magic kind of morning. Today I didn’t even make it outside except to wrestle with the mounds of heavy white fluff in the driveway. Other than that it was present wrapping, and movie watching, and a stay-in-your-pajamas all day sort of Sunday. And I didn’t feel guilty one bit and that is the best part of all.

On Saturday my sister and I went to Harvard Square and had a full day shopping and eating and loving that little gem of a place that is part of our city. Before we were leaving the house I grabbed my camera and discovered that {what I thought was the lens} was cracked! The lens cap was on, but it seemed that I had jammed it on improperly and when I took the cap off I discovered THIS. Oh, no. I thought to myself. No no no no no. So I did get sad, but I didn’t panic. I looked up the lens and found that it wasn’t too expensive should I have to get another one, and then I looked up a camera store in Harvard Square and I grabbed my small lens {50 mm} to use that for the day and off we went. LUCKILY I discovered at the camera shop that the lens of the camera was actually fine and that it was just the filter that had cracked. HUNTS PHOTO SAVED THE DAY. And my heart. Also, the plus side was that I got to play a little more with my 50 mm lens, which I haven’t done as often as I’d like. I still find it a little tricky for me to focus and I often find later that my pictures aren’t perfectly crisp. Any advice from the photographers out there? I’ll post some of my photos later this week, but that’s going to be one of my goals for 2014, which is an ongoing goal for me in general. Keep on keeping on.

Besides being excited about Christmas soon, and snowfalls lately, and giving gifts to people I love, I’ve also been really excited about my instagram following growing rapidly these last few weeks. Instagram has always been my favorite– I love how it is an extension of this blog, how truly it reflects me and my life, and my love of photography, and more than anything I love the connections it gives me to friends near and far. I spend a lot of time curating my feed, not to make it seem perfect, no not that at all, but to make it feel real. Be YOU, I always hear people saying, and this is me being me absolutely. And I know that having lots of followers doesn’t matter in the bigger picture of life, but I do like the idea of a community, a community of friends and nice people that feel connected and so hooray for growing a following– for people appreciating my photos and my words and just all around for KINDNESS and LOVE and LIFE. Amen.

I hope YOU had a happy weekend and warm wishes for a quick work week!

9 DAYS TIL CHRISTMAS! JOY TO THE WORLD!

//

P.S. for those of you that have asked, I edit my instagram photos with VSCO cam.
I’d been thinking of doing a tutorial, except for that I recently found one by Mary Beth that is AMAZING. So just go visit her post and she wonderfully explains it all.

Happy picture taking!

new print // “the rain”

the oh hellos print

I made this pretty photo from my instagram feed into a new print.

{thanks for the encouragement.}

You can listen to the song {a favorite} here.

And buy my print here.

//

{Please link back to my blog or shop if you pin this image or use it on your own site.}
THANK YOU.

– – – – – – –

I have been humming this song in my head for weeks. It’s one of those feel good melodies that you can just take with you wherever you go. When I listen in the car, I press the back button at least three times, each time, maybe more. I just love the words. So reassuring, I always think.

Sunday I strolled through Beacon Hill in the rain. I went out to brunch with friends, one of those, I-could-have-stayed-all-day brunches. You know the kind— so good for the soul. And then, I walked through the rain some more. I don’t usually love the rain, but I did on Sunday. On Sunday, the rain was beautiful.

I hope you had a beautiful day, too.

{more} summer snapshots.

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Just popping in to say hello! It’s been quite the eventful August so far and there is nothing to do about it but be thankful. The end of the summer has always been the busiest for me, and this one proves no different. I’m in the midst of this adoration of summer, but the teacher in me is starting to get the itch. It’s one part pre-nostalgic and one part nervously excited.

I LOVE summer {the most}, but gosh darnit, I love a new school year, too.

Oh, life!

I read this quote from Bonnie Tsang on instagram this morning that made me smile… “First blessing, woke up to a 5am alarm clock. Second blessing, got off the bed for a life worth attending. Third blessing, THIS {in which she posted a glorious picture of the sunrise}.” I loved it and felt like I could connect instantly, especially now in this time of adventure and freedom. I feel especially blessed this summer with all I have done {and still have yet to do}! I want to tuck these moments away into my blankets for a reminder when days are short and the winds start to get cold. Luckily, I have this blog to look back on, and next summer to look forward to, and hopefully lots of happenings in the in-between… may life’s adventures always be aplenty. I wish this for me, but I also most sincerely wish this for all of you! ♥

//

I finished up my summer gig in Charlestown last Friday and Zanner and I headed straight to the thruway for the long drive to Syracuse. We spent the weekend dancing at my cousin’s wedding {the last of the bunch!}, spending time with family, and thoroughly enjoying the Skaneateles water. There really is nothing better than home. Zan had to drive back for work Monday, but I’ve been enjoying Syracuse/Skan-town to the nines {my sister’s here, too!} and we even took a mid-week trip up to Lake Placid, New York, which, if you know me, is a major favorite— and absolutely a place worth visiting if you’ve never been!

I’ll be back next week with some Nikon photos to share {I’ve been doing a little practicing with my new lens, which is, in a word, DELICIOUS}.

Have a happy weekend! And LONG LIVE SUMMER!

//

{Elizabeth! I’m so glad you love
Joy Prouty’s instagram
as much as I do!
Such a treat, right?}

Some more of my favorite
instagrammers to follow:

Mary | Lauren | Sean | Jenn