New name & hello again

Posted on | February 28, 2015 | 2 Comments

I hope some of you are forgiving, as I'm a tad embarrassed of my few month blogging hiatus.  This move to a family of four, as wonderful as it is, can be a bit time consuming leaving me with little left for my mind to jot down.  I've found sharing my life through pictures on Instagram is a wonderful way to record my life (and print out!), and it doesn't take nearly as long.  However the one thing I forgot is my love of writing.  I had an amazing creative writing teacher once tell me, "never stop writing - it will kill you" & that has forever stuck with me.  Writing is there for me on the good days and the bad, comforting or applauding me through this walk of life.  So here I am, back in the blog world, with the new name 'Lovely Little Trees' instead of the 8 year old 'Pleasure in the Pathless Woods.'  The new name is symbolic of my sweet Hazel and Juniper, our saplings that inspire me on a daily basis to be a good, kind, compassionate person.  You should be seeing us on here a bit more often these days.  

My excuses for lousy blogging:

Posted on | March 26, 2013 | 2 Comments

I officially started working 'per diem' this week at the hospital - meaning I pick up shifts when & how much I want.  It's great to have the flexibility but also a bit nerve wracking when there isn't particular shifts available!  But if it leads to us having dinner more than twice a month as a family together (Hazel's entire first year), I'm IN!


I start training at the nurse midwifery birth center this week.  I'm especially excited about this since it is the birth center where Hazel was born!  I absolutely love the whole approach birth centers take regarding maternity and labor care, and I feel like this journey is absolutely right for me.  It's going to be a lot of call (24 hour stretches) so that makes me a bit nervous but the excitement overpowers that.

Hazel is walking - no, running - all over the place!  She's finally pretty steady but I still have to watch her every move to avoid constant head bonks.  Hardwood floors and stairs aren't very baby friendly, duh.  Why don't we think of these things when buying/remodeling a house?



We have baby chicks - well, pullets now - they are 5 weeks old this week.  Our remaining four girls are  going to be in for a surprise very soon!  H loves to check on the chicks each day, calling them "ducks" and laughing when they get spooked by her.

I'm planning a trip back home to Michigan in July, with just H and myself.  It's my high school reunion and despite never planning on attending I think it would be nice to see my core group of friends and obviously see my family as well.  I'm already trying to plan the logistics of traveling alone with an 16 month old, however...

I keep wanting to get my raised beds weeded & start planning for gardening but I am slightly apprehensive.  Last year my gardens were embarrassing. I simply didn't put the time into them being a new mom, and we don't get very much sunlight here so what I do get is always lackluster.  Hoping to get more excited about them this year!  Anyone have any good veggies/herbs they recommend for partial sun areas?

We've been getting out to some local hikes here & there, and we've also started geocaching.  We read about the Eugene Cascades & Cost Geotour in our local paper & it's been fantastic getting out to some backdoor hikes & learning the art of geocaching.  Have you tried it?

Beautify!

Posted on | March 7, 2010 | 5 Comments

I had all these ideas for blog posts about decorating my new house... err, I mean the house we want and are currently in escrow for. You see, this house is thirty years old and absolutely begging for cosmetic work, all in time of course ($$$!). However admist my day dreaming I realized that this house could very well not go through for lord knows what reason. And here I am, planning my life away like I always do. Let's focus on the present, April.

So ladies and gents, I present you with my new blog layout. I made about five other collages for the header that I may take a vote on, or ask the hubs since my friends on here are quite lacking. Yes yes, I know I just renovated this place not too long ago, but I needed something to take my mind off of possibility. I am in control of this layout, you see, and it just feels right.

Thoughts?

Inspiration

Posted on | February 24, 2010 | 1 Comment

Hello, dear blog, you must be feeling lonely.  I have been in this place between working like a dog and worrying like my mother.  It's a very uncomfortable place, leaving little room for words or tranquil thoughts.   Working has been good in a sense - people are having babies again, which directly correlates with my paycheck.  And worrying has been related to our accepted offer on a house.  It's a good thing, really.  Right?  Oh the unanswered questions.

But I have had other thoughts admist the work and worry.  I've had a few very hippy, grass-roots, patients that I spent hours conversing with over the last few days.  My patient last night talked with me about life without television or news, just novels and music, and how empowering it is.  My coworkers of course laughed at her - but I was secretely inspired.  I love to read, and lord knows I would read and write more if there wasn't a tv constantly blaring.  Oh how I miss writing.  I used to write like my life depended on it.  I remember being eighteen years old & the incredibly close relationship I had with my creative writing & poetry teacher - she enscribed 'Never stop writing - it will kill you' on my notebook the last day of class.  And I do feel a bit empty in a sense.  I started this blog to write, yet the inspiration wasn't there. 

So, a big thank you to my patient, Tori Amos (my current nostalgic as ever playlist), and miss Emily B.  I have been reminded of inspiration.  I will take the time to read more novels and turn off that idiot box of mine (baby steps, of course).  I will remember what is real and important, and I will write.

Tabula Rasa

Posted on | January 27, 2010 | 3 Comments

The title of this post is latin for 'blank slate.'  I want to run down the streets bellowing this phrase while people lift an eyebrow in my direction, silently wondering where the crazy girl came from.  I'm starting a new chapter in my life and as you most definitely have noticed already, the new template only seemed fitting.  I may change the header photo (I've gone through half a dozen already) so tell me what you think.  C'mon, puuuhlease?  The current header was taken on the Oregon Coast at sunset in January.  The trees are peculiar & beautiful. 

Okay, back to my tabula rasa.  Lately I've been feeling this innate peace.  Through fall and early winter my mind was pure chaos, I was struggling beyond belief.  I think it was a conscious decision, this change of pace.  I've turned to mountain biking, jogging, and eating wiser; and my body is screaming "yes!"  I opened my eyes and saw what I have; this small but theoretical potential in life to change things, to help others. 

Here are things that have led to this self exploration:

• 'Food, Inc' - need I say more? It changed my life.
• The devastation in Haiti
• On that note, a possible trip to volunteer in Haiti with fellow nurses and midwives
• A  husband who writes love notes in my lunches
• Hiking, pure and simple
• Live music at a local hippy pub
• The realization that I will get pregnant when my child is ready to be conceived (crazy as it sounds)

I realize that I am this incessantly glass half empty person; that I will stumble back into the shadows on occasion.  But I will hope.  That's all people can do sometimes.

My Theme

Posted on | January 5, 2010 | 4 Comments

Sometimes I think about my blog and it just seems mundane. I lurk daily in blogs; tales about labor & delivery nurses, folks that have undergone fertility treatments (both successful and not), artists, foodies, & photographers. They all have a theme, something such a part of their life that they write about it every single day. I can't help but think of 'Julie and Julia' and her love for food & the blog that resulted.

And here is my blog. Perhaps the title refers to my love of nature, the key to my inner self. But it is my story; a collection ideas with no real direction. Looking back I notice that I often combine my love of writing with my passion for photography, linking a small moment of my life with my photos. & I am left feeling rather warm inside to know that it was not lost. Too much of life is forgotten.

Maybe someday I will find that one extravagent thing in my life that a blog can revolve around. But I like to think that I love too many things to pick just one. My mind is a mess of metaphors and yearning, & I know she will not settle.  Perhaps that is the story of my life; not settling, always longing, and nostalgic beyond belief.

So here's to writing about my lovely cats, lost loves, exasperating coworkers, astounding yet very mars-like husband, the simplicity of nature, and the maddening journey of infertility. And maybe I'll even throw a few photos in the mix, and you can ask the story.