I'm a Zombie . . .

I'm afraid that in the wrestling match I've been having with this

first week of school...well...let's just say I'm NOT winning.

Nothing in my brain is coming out coherently and my eyes

are so tired, I can't properly see the computer screen.

I finally hit that proverbial brick wall . . . and my phone the floor, it smashed the screen to bits!

Yep, it's just been one of those weeks . . . .

But one with a long weekend, so I can hopefully get caught up on some sleep and everything else,

and come back with fresh eyes. Did anyone else turn into a Zombie this week?

Have a great Labor Day weekend and be safe!

Love, Kim

XO

Let the crazy begin...

We made it through the first day of school . . .

{ KKlassen texture Peony and sunkissed)

And if you have ever had to fill out the stack of paperwork, you know just what I mean.

Somehow when they get to high school, the stack gets sooo big, and I have to sign my name

sooo many times, that it feels a bit like closing on a mortgage. Only minus the house and with some

more lists of supplies needed and checks written for yet more fees.

The morning started off well, they were out and on their way on time (that may never happen again)

and it was 6:30 A.M. and by 7 A.M. I had a load of laundry completed, the dog fed, and my navy bean soup started. I'm pretty sure THAT was probably a one time deal too. Oh, and I can't forget the quality time with the toad on the front porch that comes to greet me in the morning.

And then . . . cue dramatic music . . . my friend who moved last year called me to meet her for coffee.

Yep, she is back for an entire month. So I turned off the bean soup, threw on some clothes and some lipstick, and pinned up my dirty hair and off I went. And isn't that what's so nice about a good friend, when they don't care that you look like a hot mess early in the morning [ smile ].

We met at our usual Starbucks spot, and although I had already had some coffee at home, I decided I would have another. Now, if you love their Salted Caramel Mocha as much as I do and was disappointed when they were no longer making it, then let me tell you . . .  it's back!! Yep, with all it's whipped cream, drizzly caramel, salted goodness (with a spoon of course), to the very last drop . . . back! We had a great time catching up, and laughing, and even had some great conversation with some strangers next to us.

After she left, I stayed and tried to finish writing something I've only been working on for the last few months, or really I guess it's been since before school ended last spring. I've just needed to get the words right, and oh I do hope when I get if finished you'll read it. Because it is really long.....almost............but not quite a novel. More like a short story, but a real one. It's getting there, but I was having a hard time concentrating on it, as one of my ears couldn't help but want to listen to the woman next to me talk about her trip to Hawaii . . . sigh.

Okay, I think I've rambled on long enough and if I'm going to go to the beach today, I really need to get going. These first couple of weeks of school always make me feel a little scattered - is that bad that I already feel that way after the first day? lol  I'm so much more of a free spirit as I've gotten older and always need some time to readjust to a new schedule, with schedule being the key word. 

Happy Tuesday to you -

Love, Kim

XO

P.S. - I'll be visiting you when I get back later.



  

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Somehow by the middle of the week, things went a little haywire.

You could say that the sleep thief put me in a little bit of a sleep slump.

Now I'm playing catch up, forgive me if you have seen a few of these already?

{ school }

We are, Charger Nation . . . remember the countdown last week? Well after a really big gully washer

Friday afternoon, we were still able to get our scrimmage on. We are looking good!

This is our mascot and a new bronze statue at the school . . . taken from my instagram.

( rule of thirds }

A shot from our vacation in June in San Destin Florida, which is now in the path of Isaac! If you live in the path of this storm, you have my prayers.

{ side profile }

This was my big five-OH self-portrait, that by the way I had to take holding the camera, rather than using the tripod since the husband had forgotten to return it after borrowing it.

"Nothing has changed except the number. Age doesn't own me or define me. It doesn't tell me whether or

not I can have pink highlights, or wear feathers in my hair, it only marks how long I've been here." You can read the rest of my thoughts here.

{ small }

Big leaf, small ant.

{ motion }

My son at football practice before they could start practicing in pads . . . going out for a pass.

Well that's a wrap on August . . . see you in September.

We start back to school here on Monday, let the crazy begin! ; )

Love, Kim

XO

Lavender fields forever . . .

 While on a little adventure,

not exactly planned out,

it's always good thing when you find a sign that says open.

So we made our way down the long narrow road

where the air was filled with fragrant fields of lavender.

{ KKlassen texture dream it and warm sun }

While some were harvesting,

{ KKlassen texture dream it }

the bees and butterflies danced from one plant to another . . .

. . . in a nectar gathering, pollinating nirvana. 

And the best thing is that it was only two hours away. The Chappell Hill Lavender Farm is located just north of the historic town of Chappell Hill (Texas), a little town that time forgot. We had set out that morning in search of something else but even the best layed plans can become derailed by a "google" search and the scent of lavender.

I really could have spent all day there . .  sigh . . . but the other side of the road awaited.

Join me today over at my collaborative blog, here at Focusing On Life, to see what

I was looking for and found on the other side of this road.

Love, Kim

XO



   

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Howdy folks, there goes another week, and one closer to the start of school.
I know many have already started, but we have one more before we go back. . .

This year, I have two in high school. Big. Huge. Sigh!
One starting, and one ending. I think I'm gonna cry. Okay, I won't quit my day job... ; )

{ forest}

Well . . . this is pretty self-explanatory.

{ morning light }

I was going to use the one above for this, but this one wasn't going to pass for a forest.....

 

{ touch }

I barely got this focused before this lady bug, which I think resembles a DeLorean by the way, flew off.
But right before she (?) did, I'm pretty sure I heard, da da da da, da da, can't touch this!

{ newspaper }

Okay, so I sorta forgot about this prompt and didn't have a newspaper, but this IS pretty important
information in our household . . . 5 days, 17 hours, 47 minutes and 50 seconds until kick off. There are
two things we love in Texas, our football and some bling!!

{ coffee or tea or me }

Hmmm, I do like both, but I think coffee wins by a bean or would that be a tea bag? You know,
Carly Simon had some dreams she had clouds in her coffee, but I think she just mistook them for pecans.

Hope the rest of your weekend is a good one. Mine will probably be soggy, which is a good thing.

We need some rain, and my house needs cleanin'.

Love, Kim

XO



Be still . . .

  

As the dawn breaks over the horizon, for which I see no beginning or end,

I sit in stillness and know that you are God. When I silence my heart and mind,
I can hear you call my name. And as my eyes take in the beauty around me,

I see all that you have written.  - Kim

I had set my alarm, but hit snooze a few times too many. I was pretty sure I wouldn't make it on time for the show, but decided to just go anyway. I'm glad I did . . .  I raced out of the car with camera and tripod in hand, and this was the very first click of the morning. And surprise, this week I do have more than just the sunrise. ; ) 

And as soon as the sun rose just behind the clouds, it turned into this . . .

If you look really closely in the photo above, far in the distance in the golden light,

is this shrimp boat that I zoomed in on.

There is just something about the stillness at the start of the day, although that doesn't mean everything else around us is still. There seemed to be a fierce game of chase going on.

And I wasn't the only one in need of a little reflection.

And then I was off, just down the street, to sit and just think about nothing. It's one of my favorite spots along the coastal birding trail, a small wooden platform off in a little alcove. This place is kind of like

an eraser for my mind, where inspiration comes in the stillness. The silence of real life. Where you can hear things you can't see rustling about, where you can hear the buzzing of a dragonflies wings.

And on my walk, I have to say that I was a bit surprised to see Wisteria blooming this late in the season. The photo art Friday theme this week is container and I'm stretching this one a bit. The heavenly scent is

contained by this beautiful vine....I know, I know, but it's all I got.

{Flower Art Friday / Photo Art Friday - textures, RHWest Script, and age it from Pixel Dust}

As I started heading back to the car I just happened to spy this Night Heron up in the trees. He wasn't at all

liking the clicking of my camera and didn't stick around long.

And then shortly after that, I had found a bench in the shade and sat down to take a break from the heat. And there it was, this Green June Beetle rustling around the ground. It was incredible, as the metallic colors seemed to glow in the shade. Oh, but I didn't have my macro lens with me (it was still in the car), so I looked around for something to carry it back on, hoping the whole while it didn't fly away and that I could actually change my lens without losing it.  

Just check out that antennae! And it was no small beetle at about almost an inch long and half an inch wide. It was pretty difficult to really capture all its shiny metallic colors, and he didn't want to play dead and roll over so I could show you his belly that was a metallic copper. He would have made a great specimen for some resin jewelry, but I wasn't about to kill it.

{Shoot.Edit.Submit}

"Not to be able to stop thinking is a dreadful affliction, but we don't realize this

because almost everyone is suffering from it, so it is considered normal. This incessant

mental noise prevents you from finding that realm of inner stillness that is inseparable from being."

-Eckhart Tolle

How do you quiet your mind, do you have a special place?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend with some stillness!

Love, Kim

XO

    

Look down long enough . . .

. . . and you may lose your sense of direction.
Unless you are surrounded by a field of aromatic lavender, which is not a bad thing, but . . .

{Kim Klassen textures, kkred in hardlight and kkwarm sun in overlay}

"A proud man is always looking down on things and people;

and, of course, as long as you're looking down,

you can't see something that's above you."

- C. S. Lewis

Today, I'm hurting, feeling a bit angry, and a lot perplexed. I know this isn't something

I normally share here but I promised myself that I was going to be authentic when I started this blog.

And occasionally I need to stray from the candy store, because well, life isn't always sweet.

To quote my daughter from a paper she wrote: " Is it at all hypocritical that the the thing that confuses me in life is my own species? You would think that, being a human, I would understand them. But really, humans are the most inconsistent beings I have ever seen." Honestly, I wonder the same thing at times.

Life, between all the beautiful moments is just hard sometimes. Sometimes people make it harder. Sometimes those people aren't the ones you can choose, but the ones that you cannot.

You see, this weekend on facebook I saw a picture of my nephew. He turned 2. It was the first time

I had ever seen him, and it was a picture, on facebook from someone who is not related to him. And in all

honesty I thought I had come to terms with the fact that my brother, for a reason I do not know, does not include me in his life. But it got me, like an arrow in the heart and not the kind from cupid.

Right now, my brother is that proud man, who is unfortunately looking down on things and people.People I love very much.  My nephew is missing out on all the things his father is not looking at above him. I can't help but wonder how he will feel about that when he is older.

And quoting from her again, "Even if you look among your peers, your family even, you will see that all of you are completely different. No two people are the same, but yet we all share a common trait. We all live on this Earth, we all have souls and we all feel pain, happiness, heartbreak, joy. Why do other humans feel the need to cause someone just like them pain and suffering?" Well, that's the million dollar question for which I will gladly take a 2 cent answer.

You know, if you walk long enough with your head down I'm pretty sure at some point you will hit a brick wall. And I can think of only a few reasons why one would really need to look down anyway . . . when you come across a beautiful field of lavender (of course), to avoid stepping in the (BS) from the proud man in front of you, and while in Texas to avoid stepping in a pile of fire ants!

Oh, but most importantly,

"Never look down on anybody, unless your helping him up"

-Jesse Jackson

Love, Kim

XO

P.S. - come back next week, I'll be sharing more on that lavender field . . . happy thoughts only! ; )

   

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Yep, I'm so proud of myself . . . I'm finishing this Saturday afternoon instead of last minute.

Gosh, I'm not sure what got into myself. : ) Except that I have a date with my hubby later, and we need to do some school shopping, and football boy needs some new cleats for practice that starts on Monday.

And just in case you're wondering, cause I knew you were . . . the countdown 'til the first football game

is 13 days, 6 hours, 19 minutes and 12 seconds!! We are a little excited over here when it comes to our football. But with our temps still near 100 those games are going to be quite steamy, and I sure don't know how those boys play in that heat.

{ mobile -referring to mobile phone photos }

After watching the sunrise, I went and just sat here . . . sigh.

{ hanging by a thread }

Okay, you gotta know that with a prompt like this there are going to be spidy pics! I pulled this from the archives, and when I saw the prompt I knew exactly which one I was going to use. I watched this orb weaver spin his web AND catch this June bug, it was pretty darn cool to watch!

{ collage }

Well, in keeping with the first prompt I decided to make a collage of some of my instagram photos.

You can find me on instagram at - kimatpickingpoppies

And because it was hard to decide, you get two!

I do love instagram . . .

{ always look on the bright side }

I was getting ready to leave after watching the sunrise and decided to take a silhouette of a completely

different view than I normally do...I think I'll try this when the sun is coming over the horizon next time too.

{ home }

No words necessary . . .

Hope your weekend is swell!!

Love, Kim

XO