Oh, moving slowly again. I think Cal left a trace of his cold behind. I can only hope his leftovers are a bit weaker and I'm less under the weather than he has been. I've cheered myself considerably with a little project that was inspired by all of the compelling images Petra has been taking in London recently. What photos were my "left behinds?"

My Facebook feed is full of London right now. A friend just got back. Another friend considering going. Makes me wistful. (And Rooth seems to be there every other week, practically.) It's truly one of my favorite cities in the world. There's something that London just does so well as it juxtaposes its old (really old) with its new that I find so compelling. It feels big and exciting and different and also completely approachable. After I tapped out some tips for the friend who's headed there this summer (she has a kid Cal's age), I looked at Neel and said, "Hey, I'm thrilled about our trip this summer, but I really want to go back to London and see Annie again."

My left behinds, the photos of things that caught my eye, are still very different from the stunning images Petra brings us of her time in London. There's no denying it, we were tourists (much as Cal and I may have daydreamed otherwise!), and my pictures reflect that. But it's so lovely to look back here and remember the things that stood out to me, big and small.

1. ditch your gear! | 2. storm clouds over richmond (metaphor?) | 3. sugarplums | 4. cozy corner thanks to plumed! | 5. lauren's happy place, sun on my face, sand in my shoes

Erin commented last week asking if my migraines were like that commercial where the woman was on the park bench where her family and kids played around here, and generally they're not. I have what I refer to as "functional migraines," where I can pretty much do what needs to be done to manage my life only in a less fun way. Except yesterday. Yesterday knocked me on my ass. Yesterday I did end up on the sofa with heavy meds to sleep it off. Didn't last all day, but most of it, and that's all I'm going to say about that, except that's why we're running a bit behind here at SPL today.

Other than that, it was a weekend, you know? Our first class of Ditch Your Gear (DYG) was great fun, and we're already seeing some awesome photos show up in our Instagram feeds! I love teaching, and working with my friend Kim is just the best. We're having our inevitable "first go at this" bumps, but we're only going to get smoother over time until it's just the best class ever, SO HA. (Cal used to say that phrase so much, and it's really useful, I've found.)

For totally boring reasons, Neel and I had to dash to grab Cal in Richmond this week, and we ran smack into some fierce thunderstorms. Sky purple. Then sky green. Then sky swirling. Then branches falling. Then rain so hard you couldn't see. Then hail and more branches and more wind. Cars were pulled off on either side of the road, and Neel crept along. It seriously felt like we were in a storm chaser video, and Neel said he was a heartbeat away from pulling over and saying, "RUN!" Still, I think we both thought that the only way out was through. After a long few minutes the wind let up and the whole mood lightened. We learned later that there were 74MPH gusts in the area that we were. Un-fun.

After that dramatic beginning, all was quiet. Poor Cal is sick, but what a trooper! He slept and slurped and coughed his way through the weekend, but he's back at it now. Two more weeks until he's home for good. Neel and I cleaned out kitchen drawers. It's clear that his role in our marriage is to organize things and mine is to make them pretty. That's pretty equal right? Both important? Please say yes. And I finally got a pillow for the pretty case Christine made us and Neel and I stirred ourselves enough for a little field trip that ended with our toes in the sand on a gloriously beautiful warm and sunny Sunday afternoon. It's all good.

noticed london {still + life}

weekend recap, february 24