Mindy Tsonas Choi

 Well, that was an unexpected little hiatus.  I think the end of summer kicked my ass.  All the merriment is just so exhausting ;)  Truthfully, It's taken me a bit to wrap my head around the transition and I have been a bit reluctant to shift into the higher gear that is required to get ready for the coming school year.  This has been one of the best summers I can remember, not really because of what we did (though we seriously jam packed it in!), but more because of how it was - chock full of happiness.  Seriously. For the most part, this family of four hummed along the summerland trail without any need for a detour.  That is highly irregular for us as we are the masters of Plan B, but all in all we made some plans, we executed said plans, and we all had a blast!  After coming home from our road trip, I hit a bit of a personal roadblock and I needed the quiet time to gently come back to center. So here I am.  I think.  Right now I'm working on a special homework assig

We soothed the beast of transitioning back home with an afternoon by our local beach.  The plovers were making way for the tree swallows in the sanctuary, and the garnet sand and shell-strewn shore felt like an offering from Mother Nature herself.  A strange swath of clay was revealed right near the jetty and the kids happily dug and played in the sticky muck and made little beach sculptures and tide pools for their crabs and periwinkles.  The air was cool and delicious, almost as sweet as the rhythmic tide swirling and lapping at our feet.  It was just what this weary family of four needed to downshift out of vacation mode.  We stayed for hours there wandering, exploring and collecting, soothed and contented by the perfect mix of water and sand.  Mostly, we were wading back in to our life here at home as well as the end of summer and the hint of a new school year about to begin, stepping quietly into these last bittersweet days in between.

 {the Kissing Tower ride} ... i was reminded by my son after a near miss on the BIG roller coaster, that people (even small ones) simply want to be understood and seen. ... i saw that 90 ninety candles burn brightly with a beautiful life well lived, and 9 candles hold just as much magic and wonder just from different perspectives. ... i learned what happens 150 feet below ground, over millions of years and realized how little we really have hold of this earth. ... i witnessed the utter joy of simple things, swimming pools, cotton candy, twirling rides, hugs from family, digging for treasure, new places, familiar smiles, feeding ducks, and scenic drives. ... i felt the kinesthetic shift of simply being in another place, and how rejuvenating that can be (for us all). ... i realized how good I really feel drinking plenty of water and eating something green every day while eating on the go and not from my own refrigerator. ... i experienced the bitter sweet complexity of

Dear Nana and Grandpa, Ohio is not the same without you both.  We miss hanging out in your room and having snacks at night, and eating whole wheat glazed donuts together (because without you there are none).  Mom misses the daily dish and debriefing and having you down the hall from us.  It has been fun though.  The first night at Grandma's we had pizza for dinner and she gave us each a mini Ben & Jerry's ice cream and Coke and Dr. Pepper too - such a treat.  She wouldn't let Alex wash the dishes.  Logan still loves hugging Athen, and Aunt Judy got Athen two new monster trucks to play with and take home.  We even played a fun beanbag tossing game in the yard until we all got eaten by bugs.  The trampoline was still there but we didn't jump on it (yet!).  It looks very tempting over there. The next day we went to lunch with everyone (Chuck, Vicki and Aunt Judy too!), and Grandma surprised us at Ruby Tuesdays by stopping in to treat us on her way to visit Howar

{upstate New York} {rest stop over I-90} {Howes Cavern vista} {underground River Styx in Howes Cavern} {panning for gems and fossils} {yummy Korean food on the road} {hello Ohio}

I recently heard an interview where the guest said that you know you're truly an entrepreneur at heart when the thought of working at a regular 9 to 5 job is just simply inconceivable, and the alternative, to create a way to generate an income and be self employed feels like the only sane, realistic option (as I nodded my head vigorously). My thoughts exactly. As long as I can remember I have had the entrepreneurial spirit.  I'm not sure if it comes from a desire to run my own business necessarily, the money is always icing on the cake to me (which is probably part of the problem), but there is a passion that runs deep for creating something from scratch.  It's the innovation, the ingenuity, the creative process, and problem solving of making something people need and want, that really lights my fire.  It's the autonomy too.  The creative freedom and the freedom to work within my own time frame and schedule are essential values mine.  I don't know if I would su

{colorful views} {little surprises} {simple beauty} {sweet temptations} {inspiration in bloom} {thank you, Newport - photo by owen}