Week In The Life™ 2019 | Tuesday Words + Photos

Tuesday was all about observing.

Observing others and myself as I went about my day.

Observing is the art of paying attention. It's the practice of looking for stories - for those that are happening around you as well as those that are happening to you.

I love capturing images of people as they are going about doing what they are doing. I encourage the kids not to look at the camera (most of the time) and instead ask them to engage in whatever it is that they are doing.

I also love the idea of observing myself and how I'm living my own life right now. Sometimes getting out of our heads enough to "see" ourselves in a given situation gives us a different point of view. This is one of the reason I continue to advocate for literally getting yourself out from behind the camera and in your photos/stories. Seeing myself do the stuff I do is one of the ways I make sense of my life.

Here's a look at my Tuesday.

One of the things I felt keenly aware of today was the passage of time.

I remember when I had a lot more kid responsibilities in the morning. These days they do pretty much all of it themselves: getting up, showering, feeding themselves, getting all their stuff together, etc.

We allow devices in the morning as long as everyone is getting the things done they need to do.

I love looking for lines and for color.

I handed the phone back to Anna this morning on the way to school and she took this shot and the selfie of herself below.

Simon has his permit now so sometimes he drives in the morning. Today he didn't ask and I came out to the car and he was already in the passenger seat.

Today I want to remember Simon blasting Queen songs all the way to school, including a couple I'd never heard before. He was totally into it and I was totally into it and it so reminded me of my high school years working at a local pool where music was so much a part of our days.

Might heart + mighty mind.

I love that in this shot she is observing herself. She is seeing herself through the lens of the camera.

I also heard a song on the radio today called Good Old Days by Macklemore that I was loving.

I texted Katie to see if she knew it already and, yep, she did:

Yep, that's how we roll.

Between drop off and my hair appointment I stopped at Target for window washer fluid, LaCroix, deodorant, cereal and a couple other things that jumped into my cart as things tend to do at Target. I showed restraint in the outdoor home and fake plant sections today.

Color and trim and fantastic conversation with the person who has been doing my hair for years now.

I came home to find Aaron in his music room/office working on work stuff and our sprinkler guy was here repairing some sprinkler heads and getting us all set up for the gloriously warm weather we are experiencing.

Lunch was leftovers and a couple sweet potato crackers and Kite Hill dip (awesome non-dairy dip made from cashews).

As soon as I saw this image I immediately went downstairs and cleaned under the cupboards.

This is real life. And to be honest I don't spend a lot of time on the floor in my kitchen but yeah, that's gross.

And then I settled in for some working hours. Today included designing an upcoming Story Kit and taking care of other odds and ends.

I took a break to go do some observing out in the yard. Cut a few stems off a giant lilac because I love how they look. These ones can't come inside because they really make my allergies angry. I put them in a vase on the table outside.

Aaron is worried that you will think all he does is puzzles all day long. He was eating lunch.

He's basically done this whole puzzle on his own this time.

On my table. I worked on a 2018 Project Life® spread and will be sharing it later next week.

Simon came home from school wiped out so he took a nap. Kramer watched over him.

The letter on his bed is an acceptance into his high school's National Honor Society.

I found Ernie napping in the sun on the floor in my bedroom.

Love it when I can get BOTH books + cats in the same shot.

Aaron did most of the driving around this afternoon so I prepped dinner while he picked up + dropped off Elliott and Isaac and then turned around and drove back across town to get the girls from their separate soccer practices.

After I got dinner prepped I cracked open an advance copy of Lindsay Teague Moreno's new book Boss Up: This Ain't Your Mama's Business Book (available for preorder).

This morning Simon and Anna and I left before Isaac was up and moving around and it was hilarious when these two were both back at home and realized they had on the exact same t-shirt (it's a Harry Potter Deathly Hallows shirt from Target).

After eating dinner with the boys (girls were still at soccer - we eat in waves) I headed out to my monthly book club.

Can't imagine not having these ladies in my life. We really do read - all of us pretty obsessively - and love to talk about the books. Tonight we were talking about Daisy Jones & The Six.

The view from book club tonight.

When I got back home Simon was practicing guitar, the girls were in bed fast asleep, and Aaron and Elliott and Issac were watching the Blazer game on TV.

I loved keeping the idea of observation top of mind as I went about my day today. It encouraged me to pause, to take in my surroundings, and to capture what I saw with my camera.

Tomorrow my theme is "working on." Looking forward to seeing what it's like to look through that lens.

You are invited to share a link to your Tuesday words + photos in the comments below.