Day 10 - Loud

It took me a couple of years to talk myself into getting it, but my Sirius satellite radio is one purchase that I have never regretted making.

For the past 15 months, the Sirius in our kitchen has been responsible for the background noise in our house and, thanks to First Wave (channel 33), has made an 80s music aficionado of the mascot. I can't even tell you how happy it made me when he asked me to buy him a Ramones CD.

Yup. Jacob is a punk.

Day 9 - Red

If questioned, I will not admit to ever saying this, but with the recent purchase of my big, fluffy red heart, I may have reached the limit of how many pillows will fit on my bed. 

I'll admit it, the heart is just this side of twee, but it is so, so soft and the perfect shade of red and I found it for only $4 on a post-Valentine's Day clearance table. The 15 year old girl inside me had to, had to, HAD TO have it and, as anyone who has ever dealt with a 15 year old girl knows, there was just no saying "no".

The other pillows on the bed are a very *ahem* sensible mix of pillows-for-sleeping, pillows-for-propping, pillows-for-tossing and one long body pillow (in a sturdy Ralph Lauren vintage-inspired floral print) that keeps me from falling through the bars of my iron headboard. 

And exactly how many pillows are there on my bed? 15. Don't judge.

Day 8 - Window

I love the slightly creepy feel that this photo has. I was simply going to push aside the curtains to take a quick snap of this morning's sudden snowstorm, but then I saw this guy across the street and my photo took on a decidedly "neighbourhood peeper" tone. I wonder what he is up to...?

Truth be told, I would make the worst neighbourhood busy-body. With my schedule, I am either leaving the house before the rest of the people on my street are up, or I am making a mad dash from car to house or from house to car, usually laden-down with grocery bags or my gym bag. If I see my neighbours at all, there is only enough time for a wave or an over-the-shoulder greeting.

Who knows... there could be all sorts of intrigue and scandal going on right under my nose.

Day 7 - Something I Wore

If I didn't love you, I wouldn't show you a picture of my sweaty tank top from today's yoga class. Really. This is how my people express affection.

I have been doing Moksha (hot yoga) for only a couple of months, but I feel like I have been doing it forever. As soon as my body hits my mat to soak up a few precious minutes of pre-class savasana, I feel calm and grounded. Once I'm on my feet, however, I take on a level of focus that surprises even me. It's amazing how quickly an hour passes when my mind is cleared of all thoughts... other than guiding my body through the movements and being mindful of the day's "intention". 

The intentions are set at the beginning of the class by the instructor and then it is up to the rest of us to apply them to our practice. Last Saturday, the intention was to simply "smile" during the class. At first I thought that it was a bit of a non-intention, but once we were well into our flows, I realized that I had been missing some of the joy that is supposed to come hand-in-hand with all of the hard work. Busting out a smile at the peak of a posture let me take it even further. My tree grew higher and my dancer danced like never before. Could it be that I have been taking myself too seriously in there?

Namaste.

Day 6 - 5:00 p.m.

5:00 pm arrived without warning and found me folding laundry. Exciting, right? 

Had I actually remembered that I would need to take a picture at 5 o'clock, I would have staged some fantastic event, or had the mascot do something exciting. As it was, I was on load 2/2 of workout clothes - aka the "brights" (as opposed to load #1, which was, not surprisingly, all black). 

Day 5 - Smile

The only way that I could get the mascot to be in this photo was to tell him that his face wouldn't be in it. I had to tell that tiny fib because there is no other smile in the world like that one right there; it was practically made for today's challenge topic.

When the mascot was a baby, his pediatrician told me that he was  "profoundly happy" and now that he is 14, and should be a surly teenager, really, little has changed. He's still quick with a smile or a laugh, and no matter what is going on out in the big, bad world, I know that I can always count on coming home to one of those contagious smiles. 

Day 4 - Bedside

My bedside table currently holds a lamp, two magazines, a pair of glasses, four hair elastics, a necklace, a fork, a stuffed reindeer, and a coffee cup. Or, to be more accurate, a stuffed reindeer *in* a coffee cup.

This is "the other" side of the bed; the side that would, in theory, belong to someone else, should I have a sleeping partner.

Seeing as I get both sides, though, it holds even more of my stuff: another lamp, a favourite picture of me and my fella (taken on the beach at Matlock), an enormous stack of books (all read), a Jesus candle from my collection, my dad's watch, vanilla body butter, and my princess wand (a gift from the mascot).

Day 3 - My Neighbourhood

After months of having almost no snow to speak of, we received several centimeters of lovely, fluffy white stuff in the first two days of March.

No one really seems to mind, though; It's crazy-pretty, it's only going to be around for a short time, and temps are so mild right now that shoveling is almost, gasp, fun*.

This is our neighborhood, under its pristine blanket of fresh snow. It won't be long before the trees form a shady canopy, the yards are carpeted in green, and the sidewalks are covered in chalky hopscotch games and doodles.

*and by "fun" I mean almost-tolerable. Especially when someone is clearing your walk for you.

Day 2 - Fruit

Swear to god, there's fruit in there. At least, that is what the sign would have us believe.

For the record, I don't play into the whole muffin thing. For the same number of calories, I would rather have 2 bowls of oatmeal and a basket of blueberries. Or a piece of cake.

Day 1 - Up

Cheer up, Buttercup. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.