November Lovelies/ December Delights

Learning to go with the flow... and dance in the rain more often.

Experimenting with mixed media with a warm cafe au lait.

Celebrating the last bits of fig season by
throwing them in a bed of arugula, basalmic, and goat chevre.

Savoring a Sunday morning at the Menil and pondering
about Madame de Menil and her fantastic vision for her community

Savoring my recent travels to California
and planning my 2013 travel schedule

Realizing how precious your free time is
when work projects start piling up

St. Arnold's + Sean of the Dead + avec Ai Wei Wei et mon petit copain

Rockets 5K Run + Meeting Clyde Drexler and Robert Horry
+ Getting a complimentary upgrade to the lower bowl =
Pretty much all signs I need to watch the Rockets more closely this season

Sprint training = Apparently the easiest way to run faster
is actually going out and running faster (Go figure! ha!)

Going to the Houston Dairymaids as part of mon petit copain's
birthday week (Happy Birthday, JT)

Fall boots and art deco details at the esperson

Re-learning how to square dance and handing out drinks
Casa de Esperanza's Birthday Bash

For this month's entry, I really tried to whittle this down to ten images, but I just could not. My heart is full and my life is overflowing with so many snapshots of beauty lately. I suppose, it's just a testament to the meaning of "limitless grace."

Slowing down long enough to realize that life is full of things to be grateful for (especially in November with Thanksgiving). What does slowing down mean to you?

For me, it's reading a book with a nice scone and a cup of tea in a cafe, putting my phone down and actually eating my lunch away from my desk, going for a walk (even if it's just for 15 minutes while I listen to my Pandora stations), scheduling time to do volunteer work for a couple of hours, or just taking the time to patiently listen to someone you care about. In order to fully be present in life, we need to slow down.

And sometimes, life doesn't ask us to slow down. So, you may have to carefully research, plan, and curate the projects, opportunities, and adventures you have in your life at the moment. In the end, we can only control our personal choices - all the other things that happen are beyond our control. It's been a pretty humbling lesson for me lately, and I'm sure this lesson is still unfolding.

November Lovelies
1. French: super awkward lately due to lack of time (vacation, holiday and work schedule); listened to French music and Coffee Break French; attended French mass and practiced my conversation skills with church goers. Ugh... if you want to learn a new language, you can not be shy or embarrassed about your skill level. Would like to work on my French poems more.

2. Art: been going well - 42 pages of sketches and mixed media in my journal; Artist date at the Menil; Carved out time to do my art journal exercises; I was very motivated by the trip to SFO and Gala Darling. I will try to incorporate my French into my art. Also hosted a craft party at 13 Celsius.


3. Training: pretty good - PR'd on the Rockets 5K with bonus of meeting members of the Dream Team and going to a game; 4-6 sprint sessions; 2-4 swimming and weight training sessions; more doses of yoga; and a sprinkling of zumba and walks; Ran a very slow and sweaty Turkey Trot 10K- but nevertheless, I showed up. :)


4. Travel: Booked the Shiner, Texas trip for December.


5. Work projects: BKO + MMM - done and done

6. Books: Halfway done with Tony Hseih's book and just started Anna K


7. Spiritual: examining what gratitude really means, thanksgiving with my family; mass at St. Basil's and artist dates (menil, kuhl-linscomb, path of tea, black hole)

8. Volunteer work/ Community: Casa de Esperanza Birthday party and holiday HAWC event raising money for the client store

9. Slowing Down: Indulging in self-care; Napping; Hot baths and even more napping

December Delightful Dreams
1. French: Complete fall classes. Start researching Paris & invest in my 2013 travel savings account.

2.  Art: Continue with the musings of Gala Darling and online art class. Carve in more time for art journal sessions and begin to ponder about 2013 intentions.

3. Training: Half Marathon

4. Travel: Exploring Shiner and the environs. Looking forward to a long weekend.

5. Work projects: Close out 2012 (hooray!)

6. Books: Finish Tony's book and continue Anna K

7. Spiritual: Advent; Christmas; more time with family and loved ones; More artist's dates the menil and perhaps the sculture garden.

8. Volunteer work/ Community: Open to any new opportunities

9. Slowing Down: I am looking forward to some days off; Hanging out with Remy and Nelie and my siblings