SEA to Sea // Autumn

Oh I love the Fall it's such a beautiful (and crazy busy) time of year! I took a little walk with baby Zeb to hunt for pretty leaves and it was such a highlight for me this week in the midst of the chaos. We saw a neighbor and he looked at him, smiled and said "I'm with my mom" it totally melted me! 

We also went to the pumpkin patch with Josie's preschool class and I managed to make Bridget's delicious roasted pumpkin apple soup too, her recipe HERE! The leaves are changing and the weather is cooling a bit. I've had my share of a few pumpkin spice lattes and the birthday's are in full swing in our family and I can't wait to get my boots and scarves out in full rotation again too! Thankful for the blessing that the changing seasons can bring. What's your favorite thing about Autumn? xoxo

This week my set is first and then Stacy's - read about the stark contrast of her Autumn in San Diego HERE!

SEA to Sea is a weekly collaborative project I am doing with my dear friend Stacy Bostrom focusing on a theme of gratitude and grace each week and sharing our captures and thoughts together from the city of Seattle to the Shores of San Diego…other themes found HERE.

SEA to Sea // Evening

Oh I have such a love hate relationship with the evening hours, the rushing to get homework done and dinner on the table and bedtime and bath time and all the chaos in between. We are always trying different things to help make the evening hours run smoother around here. There are sweet things about the evening too, a time to take a deep breath and settle in and let the day wind down…I was amazed at how similar some of the photos in the weeks set were. Somehow knowing that we are all in this together is beautiful and comforting and reminds me that seasons come and seasons go just like days turning to night - the rhythm of life. It's all a gift.

Check out Stacy's thoughts this week on the evening HERE.

SEA to Sea is a weekly collaborative project I am doing with my dear friend Stacy Bostrom focusing on a theme of gratitude and grace each week and sharing our captures and thoughts together from the city of Seattle to the Shores of San Diego…other themes found HERE.

SEA to Sea // Morning

Last week Stacy and I started a photo journal together focusing on a simple theme, photographing and sharing our findings side by side…I am really loving this exercise in searching for gratitude and grace it's been a gift so far. {You can read the first post HERE}

This weeks theme was morning. 

Mornings have always been hard for me, it takes me like three hours to wake up and, well that's not always appreciated or understood by everyone I live with :). Especially on days before school it's the mad dash to get everyone up and dressed and fed and lunches packed and paperwork collected and the dog fed and schedules squared away…it's hectic and like I said I am usually still waking up.

Not everyone in our house is a grouch in the morning though (fine I admit I am a grouch in the morning). Chris is very bright eyed when he pops out of bed and most of our kids are up with the sun as well. My oldest last week came tearing into our room and said, and I quote: "Mom I slept in until SIX FIFTY TWO!!! My record is seven twenty five so that's really close to my record, isn't' that great!" Um, yeah Simon that's really great…he's eight, and that's his record :). Ha!

But my favorite thing about the morning is coffee, everything must start with coffee and a lot of times that's how my family convinces me out of bed. They all like to make and bring me my first cup in the morning and it's pretty much my favorite, I love it. I love coffee. Like LOVE LOVE LOVE…and let it be known while I am on the subject of coffee - miss Stacy Bostrom makes hands down the best french press of your life. I don't know how she does it but it's seriously the best with a big glug of cream, I look forward to it every time I stay with her!

So what about you, are you a morning person? Don't forget to check out Stacy's thoughts on the morning this week too right HERE!

{and just a note because we've been asked a few times - we don't talk about our photos or what to photograph beforehand other than the prompt itself so any similarities are purely coincidence and I love seeing them so much!}

SEA to Sea // Learn

I'm so excited to share about a new collaborative project I am taking on with my dear friend Stacy Bostrom. We are setting out to focus on a weekly topic side by side me from the beautiful city of Seattle she on the gorgeous shores of San Diego - from SEA to Sea as we have decided to call it : simple themes of gratitude and grace. 

We will be posting a weekly collection of diptychs (inspired by the infamous 3191 project) and our own thoughts on the weeks theme. I so look forward to sharing in this project and finding inspiration in the coming months. This weeks prompt // Learn.

This week my older boys headed back to School which is always a little bittersweet but honestly I think we've all been a bit excited about the structure of school and the schedules of fall and continuing the learning and growing that they do so very fast.

We had our back to school feast the night before the first day - a low key celebration with some family, yummy salmon Papa caught on his summer exertions and some cake and ice cream too to celebrate nana's birthday. Chris read our verse for the school year, we chose John 13:35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. It was crazy and wild and the night didn't go perfectly smooth but I love marking the start of the school year in this way and the kids look forward to the tradition so much!

And the thing that we are praying over our home and family for the coming year is that as we teach our kids how to love learning and school that we would also show them what it means to love one another. Through the great successes and struggles of growing up that they would see just how much they are truly loved and feel safe and secure to spread their wings and try with all there might.

(Levi first grade, Simon third grade)

…also on a comical note and for my own record books I have to mention that on the day that I sent my older two back to school (the first year that they are both going full day!) my baby Zeb decided to learn how to climb out of his crib and in turn refuse any sort of nap…I swear they have secret meetings to plan this sort of parental torture :)

Make sure to head over to Stacy's blog and read her beautiful thoughts this week on learning...