Bits and Pieces

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Kim

Living on a farm in Wisconsin, during the tail end of winter I might add, is quite different from the Florida house and tiny backyard from which we came from three short weeks ago. I’m up to my ears in mud (so is the dog), and I’ve never gone through so many socks in a one-week timeframe. But when life hands you mud, you get taller galoshes.

Despite the minor adjustments, we’re pretty settled and overjoyed to be home. And it just so happens that our current, temporary home is a pretty historical one. We’re living on my great grandparent’s farm, which became my grandparent’s home that my father grew up on as well. And that lead to my brother and I spending a great deal of time on the farm every summer as kids. People ask me what it’s like living here, and it’s hard to explain the feeling in just one word.

I will say my husband and I are nothing but grateful that we can stay here while we search for our permanent address, and I often wonder how coincidental it is that we ended up here. A lot of people say my grandmother would be proud, and I’d have to say I agree.

I thought about how I would share this place of so many great memories, and I decided to share the small bits and pieces that made this house so full of character instead of showing you room by room with the furniture we’ve recently inserted and the boxes we still haven’t unpacked.

You might see old, but I see memories at every turn…

Continue viewing photos…

Leaving a Mark

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Kim

As I watched the sun come up the other morning, I couldn’t help but wonder who else might enjoy this very view in this very spot down the road. And, when would be the last time I’d watch this Florida sunrise come up? Could be sooner than I think as we prepare to make our journey back up north towards the land of four seasons, fresh water, snowy holidays and familiar faces.

It’s strange to think I’ll be moving once again across the country, because it seems only days ago I packed up my diploma and moved south in search of love and a new career. That also meant sandy beaches, palm trees, 12 months of sun and city nightlife. And ever since then it’s been one great memory after another with lessons learned along the way. Sometimes you wonder if you’ll miss a place with all the excitement of moving onto something new, but I’m not going to kid myself. There’s a lot of favorite places, past times and people who will soon be over a thousand miles away. But friendships have been made, and those won’t disappear.

As I was driving home today I heard the song, “Tattoos on this Town,” and thought about how fitting it was in the wake of such a big change. Sure, you can think of one part of your life as being “over” or “in the past,” but I can’t help but recognize that impressions have been made on the lives we touch, and not only have we made our mark, but the last few years have made their mark on me, shaping who I am now.

I think about all of the photographs I’ve taken over the last five years and can’t deny I’ll have to explain to my kids one day as they click through them, “why, oh why, did I leave Florida?” I guess I’ll have to think of a good answer when the time comes that they’ll understand, but I know one thing for sure, is that I made the most of my time here and I wouldn’t change a thing. I also think I got a little closer to knowing what I really want out of this life, although, I realize I probably really won’t know what I want until I’m 40.

One thing I do know is that the point is not always to get to where you need to be, but to enjoy the “getting there.” If I can remember that over the next year, I think I’ll be in pretty good shape.

What To Do With All This Stuff

Posted on May 15, 2011 by Kim

I’m slowly developing a new habit that will hopefully save me some space and help organize the mass amounts of…memories I’ve collected. You may have seen my post about our home office as well, and yes, THAT is what I’m organizing. All of the things that went on to those shelves the last few years have come off and man did I save a lot. (Wanna see some of those things? Click here) Maybe some of you can relate. But I’ve taken on a new habit to help save the items I want to save, but don’t physically want to hang on to. Because trust me, I really don’t want to become the 80-year-old woman who hung on to a receipt from the time I went to a fancy restaurant in a city I’d never been to, on the anniversary of….well you get it.

I’m photographing the physical things I want to remember intermixed with photos of whatever and placing them in a photo book. That way I don’t have to actually hang on to concert ticket stubs, foreign coins or long-stem roses for ages in a dusty old box no one will ever look at. And some of you are saying…just throw it away – who cares! And for those that understand, you get it.

This works well for me because I’ve got a lot of crap I’ve saved, but luckily I’m no hoarder. I can hardly stand more than three post-its on my work desk before I start feeling like my life is getting cluttered, so when I started thinking about how to keep all the items I saved from our New York trip last fall, I discovered how perfect this alternative was. Just try it!

Here are a few items that will make an appearance in my next book: