Dreaming of France -- Something Beautiful on the Horizon

Thank you for joining this weekly meme. Grab a copy of the photo above and link back to An Accidental Blog. Share with the rest of us your passion for France. Did you read a good book set in France? See a movie? Take a photo in France? Have an adventure? Eat a fabulous meal or even just a pastry? Or if you're in France now, go ahead and lord it over the rest of us. We can take it.

You all know that I have had quite a week, but that doesn't mean I'm not still dreaming of France. 

It's getting closer, our dreams, and pieces are still falling into place. I'll fill you in when I can, but for now, here's a sunset out of our B&B window in Mireval, France, close to Montepellier. 

And here's a sunrise from our B&B in Quillan.

The days keep passing; the sun rises and the sun sets, and as each day passes, we get closer to making our dreams come true.
Thanks for joining me on this journey.
Thanks so much for playing along with Dreaming of France. Please leave your link below and visit each other's blogs to share your love for France.

Saturday Snapshots -- Early Spring

Join West Metro Mommy for this weekly meme of photos people have taken and share on their blogs.
My morning excursions are some of my favorite times of the day, of the week.
Earlier this week, the sky glowed a beautiful pink as the sun rose.

And then the pink segued into a lovely golden sky. 

I feel fortunate that I can get outside and experience it. 

This morning, I ran with my friends on a bike trail in the country and we stopped along a vernal pool, yes, one of those spring pools that doesn't appear the rest of the  year, and listened to the spring peepers along with some bird song. There isn't much to see, but the sounds are inspiring.

Hope everyone else finds some joy in their weekend. 

Saturday Snapshot -- Sunrise

Join West Metro Mommy for this weekly meme of photos people have taken and share on their blogs.

Friday evening, I went to the first same-sex marriage that I've attended. The Supreme Court ruling in June made same-sex marriage legal in Ohio.

This morning on my run, I spotted a lovely sunrise. 

How many times a year will it peek through at this exact spot? 

Of course, the picture is never as good as the real thing. You'll have to take my word for it. 

Maybe I'll get a picture of the full moon tonight so I can juxtapose them. 

Florida Sunrise

I'm on a short visit to my parents' house in Florida, and one of my favorite things is my first run. The scenery is so strikingly different from the my usual runs in Ohio.
When I woke up, late for me, at 6:41 a.m., I was surprised that the sun wasn't up yet. But I had to remind myself that during the summer, the sun is positioned in the north. I had time to get up and get dressed for a run as the sun rose.
I could hear the Sandhill Cranes calling out a warning and I looked around nervously for the big loud birds that travel in packs, but I didn't see any.
It's the time of  year in Florida when thunderstorms strike every day, usually in the afternoon, but the way the clouds were building up this morning, I wouldn't have been surprised to see a thunder storm brewing in the morning.

As I ran on around the lake, I saw that some fishermen had gotten a jump on me that morning as they were already casting while the sun rose behind the clouds.

I followed my run with a dip in the pool, which is again, something that I don't get at home.

Lovely to spend time with my parents and to soak in the beautiful scenery.

Saturday Snapshot -- Sunrise

Join West Metro Mommy for this weekly meme of photos people have taken and share on their blogs. Here's mine:
Visiting my parents in Florida, one of my favorite things is going on morning runs and seeing the sunrise.
Of course, this time of year, the best thing about my morning runs is the weather compared to the weather at home.
Today the thermometer is supposed to climb to 79.
So here are a few sunrise shots from my first run in Florida

This is the scene that greeted me. It always looks a little prehistoric to me with the trees and the mist. The moon was just a sliver. 

This picturesque scene with the palm trees and the moon reminded me of my painter friend Leah. So I stopped my run again and took a photo. 

Hope everyone has a lovely holiday, whichever one you celebrate. 

Saturday Snapshot -- Sunrise

Today I'm sharing a sunrise picture that I took during an early morning run.

We've been enjoying gorgeous weather here in Columbus. I could live like this all summer. Hope it continues as I go  to my last round of graduation parties this weekend.

Saturday Snapshot -- Sunrise

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme, post a photo that you (or a friend of family member) have taken. Then leave a direct link to your post on West Metro Mommy. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
I get up early to run, and when I visited my parents in Florida, I had to make sure I ran before the sun got very high or it would be too hot to run. (It really was too hot to run even before the sun came up even.)
But I did get a chance to snap a picture of the sun rising over the lake near my parents' house.

Hope it is sunny where you are.

Saturday Snapshot -- Sunrise

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post on Alyce's blog At Home With Books. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.
The color in the sky this month has been lovely. Here's a sunrise over the Columbus skyline taken from my front porch.

Saturday Snapshot -- Mild January Day

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post on Alyce's blog At Home With Books. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.

My friends and I met to run as we do every Saturday morning, beginning in the dark. When we returned, the sun was rising and sending pretty pink colors across the sky.


I love the way the colors reflect in the lake. This looks like it could be an impressionist painting.
In the other direction, the colors were still pretty but not as stark, and looked lovely reflected in the lake.

Our Darkest Hour

Well, it's our darkest hour, not in the sense of doom and gloom, just in the sense of how much light we have.
Today is officially the winter solstice -- the day we have the fewest hours of daylight in the northern hemisphere. Good thing all those Christmas lights are turned on.
Some people dread the coming months of winter as the holiday season ends and the long, shrill month of January begins. Then February, the shortest month of all, seems to last forever as gray days drag on.
Both those things are true about January and February, but what is also true is that each morning, the sun peeks above the horizon a little earlier, and each evening it lingers in the western sky a few minutes longer -- starting now!
This is the shortest day of the year.
Okay, it's a small hope to hold onto, but if it helps me survive the winter while rejoicing in each extra moment of daylight then so be it.
Enjoy your winter solstice and the coming extra minutes of daylight.