First thing that came to mind when I snapped this….
…. alternatively titled "What you get when they are so done with smiling for Mom's camera."
Visit Lisa at The Long Road to China for more.
Barns
This week's theme at Snapshots Around the World is 'Barn'. Sue was saying the German barn looked too nice for animals. The barns in this part of Germany DO look similar to the homes. In fact, many of them are connected to the farmhouses and form one long unit. I dug through my phone and files to see how many I had pictures of and came up with a few.
In the picture above the farmhouse actually is just offscreen to the left coming out at a 90 degree angle from the barn section.
The older barns are made of crude bricks like the ones above and below.
They are usually covered over in stucco and whitewashed or painted to match the house. (the house is off left of this pic below as well)
Many are used as garages today though others still house livestock. In fact the place two doors down from us has a little herd of goats in the paddock right now mowing their lawn. : )
This farm below has a separate barn (shown) which was huge but the same brick/stucco construction as the others. Unlike the others it is in the country. Darned if I wasn't happy to see those Oberhasli's that day. : )
Just over the border in France the farms look entirely different. Whereas here the farmhouses and barns are right in the villages and the farmers commute to the cropland and pastures, in eastern France little farmsteads dot the countryside much like rural communities in the states. They also have pole sheds there which are largely absent from this area. It is fascinating how different the world is.
Check out the other barns around the world linked at the Snapshots blog and leave us a link to one in your part of the world.
The Coast of Kerry
So windy, so blue, so green, so wild.
Oh, for one of those hours of gladness
Gone, alas, like our youth, too soon!
- The Kerry Dance
The 3 Amigo’s this week
They have been moving at top speed this week. Lots of giggling, running laps in the yard (and the upstairs and the living room and…), funny voices, loud singing to 15 renditions of Old MacDonald played on the piano by Brendan.
I looked at the three of them in mid-flight today – hair all wild, faces erupting with smiles. You just have to smile back. Happy like that is contagious.
We did settle down for some stories today.
Some with Mom. (pic by Brendan ; ))
Some they read to each other.
And sometimes you just close your eyes and soak it all in. Summer is good.
happy dance
Wildflowers
That is what we are looking for this week at Snapshots Around the World. Tucked into little hands, creeping out between rocks, climbing fences, gracing sketchbook pages, gathered into old soda bottles. Wherever you find them in your world.
I Heart Faces – Bright and Vivid
This week's theme at I Heart Faces is Bright and Vivid. There is nothing as bright in my stash of pictures as those from the Fasching Parade this year. Since I never got around to posting the rest of them I will share another here. This was my absolute favorite.
The Streets of Kerry
No time to chatter today so am taking you on a stroll for some window shopping in Ireland instead.
County Kerry, Ireland
My husband and I had a brief but extraordinary trip to Ireland this past week. It was a rare, early anniversary getaway alone – so rare we can't quite remember having gotten away completely alone before since usually alone means we only have one or two children with us. : )
We first checked into the historic Lake Hotel in Killarney, which was a sight to behold all by itself. (view from balcony)
What followed was a whirlwind journey through a couple hundred miles of coastal Western Ireland.
We trekked up mountainsides dotted with farmhouses surrounded by a patchwork of pastures separated by ancient stone walls.
We ventured down into hidden bays.
and colorful streets of local fishing villages.
We wrapped up with a drive through Killarney National Park just before dark.
Far too soon we were winging our way back to Germany. It is almost surreal to think of where we were. We are already plotting our return. If there was any way to stay forever, I would find it. Even taking into consideration my lifelong devotion to our Irish heritage this is an amazing place, full of warm, smiling faces. We talked to more people we didn't know in those few days than perhaps in all the months we have been in Germany. I felt so incredibly relaxed and at home.
I will resize and upload a few more pics before the wknd is over.
the only way out is through
Becca: Does it ever go away?
Nat: No, I don't think it does. Not for me, it hasn't – has gone on for eleven years. But it changes though.
Becca: How?
Nat: I don't know… the weight of it, I guess. At some point, it becomes bearable. It turns into something that you can crawl out from under and… carry around like a brick in your pocket. And you… you even forget it, for a while. But then you reach in for whatever reason and – there it is. Oh right, that. Which could be awful – not all the time. It's kinda…
Nat: …not that you'd like it exactly, but it's what you've got instead of your son. So, you carry it around. And uh… it doesn't go away. Which is…
Becca: Which is what?
Nat: Fine, actually.
Some thoughts about grief from the movie Rabbit Hole, applicable to many traumas.
