desert directive

Posted in advantageous adventures, Travels by ElaineMarie

^^^^ i don’t even know where to begin ^^^

i guess i will start where this photo essay starts. the picture of ladies flowing from one space to another in brightly colored kaftans is what symbolizes this year’s Life(dot)next retreat for me. the locals thought we were a dance troupe.

i am longing to be back in that desert suspended in a space of self-improvement and introspection. there i was able to be california elaine. i was able to be desert elaine. i was able to be the elaine of my past and, hopefully, the elaine of my future. i was able to be warm. it’s cold here in ohio. reentry is not easy.

i’m finding it hard to write about this experience. there is so much i want to share with you, friends, but i am also feeling this deep, sacred bond and want to hold those events secret in my memory. in catchwords the weekend was filled with:

sun, warmth, laughter, windmills, torched smores, crafts, talismans, blanket forts, disco balls, kaftans, goddesses, vinho verde, connection, skill share, tutus, laugh-crying, hot tub confessions, origami fortune tellers, headbands, glow sticks, visualization meditation, exploration, walks, newness, cousins, MOUNTAINS & TACOS!!!

seriously, 75% of the meals i had while in palm springs were tacos.

for all of you fellow attendees- i fell head-over-heels in adoration of all of you. i’m forever thankful for all that you gave of yourself. that’s all we can ever give anyone.

already looking forward to the next one, whenever that may be, with much enthusiasm.

“if you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your life. there are no limits. there are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.” – bruce lee

5Feb2013

senses

Posted in advantageous adventures, Momma Needs a minute..., Travels by ElaineMarie

i’m catching up on the senses photo essay. my senses were extremely happy last week while attending the Life(dot)next Desert Directive. I have lots more to gush about but here’s just a little bit of my sensory stimulation last friday:

^^^mountains. i want to see mountains, gandalf^^^

^^^the sounds of women’s laughter & beautiful, intelligent conversations everywhere^^^

^^^the feel of a kaftan from abu dabi is divine^^^

^^^the taste of some vinho verde while crafting our goddesses project^^^

^^^this had to make it in there. small smores fire. NBD^^^

1Feb2013

Palmy

Posted in advantageous adventures, Momma Needs a minute..., Travels by ElaineMarie

I’m having coffee and conversation with the mountains this morning. Life(dot)next Desert Directive kicked off yesterday and the weekend is going to be stellar. I mean, we’ve all been gifted kaftans from Abu Dabi already. Even if nothing else fruitful happens the retreat has already been a success.

BUT a lot more will happen.

22Jan2013

pregnauguration

Posted in advantageous adventures, Momma Needs a minute... by ElaineMarie

i meant to share yesterday when this was more culturally relevant but i’m slow. you will have to accept it at a less culturally relevant level.

i am pictured above with 2 of my favorite people in the world. the one standing next to me is my cosmic cousin friend. the one in my belly is my baby girl. i was a weepy mess yesterday watching the inauguration footage, thinking about hauling my pregnant self down to the mall to watch president obama sworn in the first time. i can’t believe it was 4 years ago…AND i still can’t believe i braved that choas a week before she was born. i will forever be thankful to those friends that helped me accomplish such a feat. i will also forever be thankful to those friends who got me into a pizza joint immediately following. momma was hungry!

i know this trip down memory lane will occur for me with each inauguration. it’s part of the reason i was set on braving the elements and the crowds 4 hence. i wanted to be a part of something historical for my own selfish reasons and for darla. and don’t think i wasn’t secretly trying to will myself into labor because then darla could have been a historical birth. like a woodstock baby! only colder temps and a smaller population of people in attendance on drugs.

at any rate, i just wanted to reminisce. there’s going to be a lot of that in the next few days to come.

thanks for taking this trip with me.

16Jan2013

life (dot) next

Posted in advantageous adventures, Momma Needs a minute..., Travels by ElaineMarie

guess what, friends…sharing time!

hmmm, well let’s start with what has been on my mind pretty much 24/7 since we had that nice little warm-up that snapped us back into cold weather: upcoming Life(dot)next retreat in Palm Springs in 15 days!

i can feel the sunbeams upon my face already. and i just received a nice little packing list today:

did you see what was on that? swimsuit, flip-flops, sunglasses…i might not return. it’s going to be really, really hard to come home to grey…..ugh scarlet and grey. sorry osu fans. just had to put it out there that i think the school’s colors are derived from all the slit wrists the grey winter ohio skies provoke.

but my wrists are going to see sunny skies in 15 days!!!

but i’ll progess with this post because this retreat is not death(dot)next…it’s LIFE(dot)next.

Life(dot)next is the creative baby birthed by my friend Meg Buzzi. I credit her retreats for the following: the majority of my personal and professional growth in the last two years, the inspiration to start this blog, quite a few hangovers, the evaporation of excuses surrounding my hesitance to start birthwork, an empty jar of pickles by my face in the morning, some of my best all-time karaoke performances, and a slew of new, inspiring, kick-ass ladyfriends. {they’re all really pretty and ride unicorns too!} i don’t want to get ahead of myself but i’m pretty sure we’re going to discover the cure for cancer at this next one…or just give palm springs some of the best karaoke they’ve ever seen.

either way, i’m stoked.

i hope to come back with more inspiring, words o’ wisdom bullshit that will make you first want to throw up, then go and conquer your world.

in all seriousness, i think these retreats have accelerated all attendees on their life path. the retreats are just that right mix of strength and vulnerability that spark long-lasting change. well…there’s something about them because a lot of us keep coming back. Or, it might just be the copious amounts of boxed wine and signature cocktails. at any rate, i hope to bring more friends and readers to the life(dot)next table.

do you know any lady-loving organizations? or organizations that believe in empowering humans to make healthy strides and impacting changes in their lives? life(dot)next would be a great avenue for sponsorship. send some sponsorship support and ensure the occurrence of a future retreat. this one’s all full up, lass.

11Jan2013

weeksie

Posted in advantageous adventures, familyness, let me let me update ya, yum yum eat good by ElaineMarie

i felt kinda like getting back to posting some weekly familyness shots. i really miss so many of you friends and i’m sorry i don’t get my correspondence on as often as i’d like. just view our lives broadcasted on the interwebs instead of getting a call form me like normal. right? sarcasm but sadly true. sorry. here’s a bit of our week:

1. mountain instrument concert 2. someone can’t take a bath unless it has food coloring in it. blue bath. 3. two-headed dimple monster 4. mike made some really rad puppets. #hidden talents 5 & 6. a gifted Grumpy Doodle Book saved us at lunchtime. 7. I figure that since the placement of this sign was in an alley { an alley that transports you to a whole different city, beeteedubs } it’s actually referring to heroin instead of refuse. tax dollars well spent.

wishing you a splendid weekend. go get a little funky.

26Dec2012

Blizzard

Posted in advantageous adventures by ElaineMarie

We made it to my parents’ house and hearth just in time to settle in for the snow.

Snow outside, fire and coffee inside. Winter is my favorite season.

Greetings from our blizzard.

26Nov2012

creekside

Posted in advantageous adventures, it's cool to school by ElaineMarie

we spent some time with the rivers and the creeks this past week. darla enjoyed throwing things into said bodies of water. it was very nice of mother nature to give us those temperature spikes that allowed for some outdoor exploration. this is pretty fantastic time of year for getting a last little communion with nature.

although, i am hoping for some winter hikes this year :)

duck whisperer

i think you all should know that she was trying to teach the ducks to fetch in that second photo. she’s special.

16Nov2012

weeksie

Posted in advantageous adventures, familyness, let me let me update ya, love and happiness, yum yum eat good by ElaineMarie

i’m writing this as a pretty tired momma on this afternoon. i know to be this tired means i have a lot to be thankful for…

or…

it could mean that burgers are really not a good lunch choice and my decision to attempt going meat and gluten free next year is valid.

anyways, snaps from a week in which there was a lot to be thankful:

thankful for delicious, delicious soft pretzel snacks at north market. equally thankful to have spotted the elusive, unenthusiastic unicorn while we were there.
ps. she did not get any jeni’s while we were there. shame really.

thankful for games and hot chocolate at luck bros to make up for the missed jeni’s opportunity.

thankful for one more week of play opportunity outside

and lastly, i’m thankful to be the one to plait these beautiful braids. even if the subject is quite squirmy and they come out crooked. i’m glad to be the one to do it.

5Nov2012

wawwy

Posted in advantageous adventures, familyness, i dig music, it's cool to school, parenting apparently? by ElaineMarie

no matter what happens tomorrow i’m glad i was there for this.

and i’m glad i was with these two line buddies. darla was a real trooper. i mean it. we were there from 11 in the morning until 5 and she was great. she got a little bored during the boss’s slower songs so she started playing games on my phone. as soon as jay z started she just handed my phone back to me without even so much as breaking gaze of the stage and stared transfixed. so maybe she’s into hip hop. she a fly girl. she a j-lo.

just now during bedtime routine, i asked her what she thought of the rally and she said “oh it was great. it smelled like popcorn and the nerds you brought were yummy.” soooo maybe she didn’t really get that much out of it…but she told me she really liked the parts where she got to yell with everyone. that’s enough for me.

happy voting tomorrow, everyone!

ps. here was my main reference point for the day to darla. i may rely on an american tail as a teaching source just a little too much: