this grey. this light. this place.

after our backcountry days in the north cascades we spent a nice day with the kids and grandma--
i love these pictures of my mom with her "cane" found by the grandkids. she reminds me
of strega nona with her hood on. what a perfect day for a hot, comforting meal.

we walked slowly along the coast as the kids, grandma, and ceej hunted for creatures
left behind by the tide--they were most interested in dead crabs. ceej found a good-sized
dead crab, and the kids took turns examining it while trying to hide away their fear
that perhaps the crab wasn't dead, and could pinch them at any moment.

as we walked away from the ocean we noticed dolphins swimming and diving nearby.
loved watching their fins arch above the water. pretty amazing ocean.

exploring "america's alps" : the north cascades

let's be honest. i was disappointed when mt saint helen's was engulfed in a storm and we decided to go explore elsewhere. and on day one in the north cascades i cried. nerves. bleh.
lesson learned: keep up my backcountry skills (or skiing skills period) before venturing out to the backcountry.

despite my nerves and a bout of crying, the north cascades turned out to be quite spectacular,
and a fantastic experience overall. i was grateful to be with ceej, my brother, and his wife.
a good crew always makes for a good trip. especially when they're just as excited about
ice cream at the end of the day as you are (though my licorice-flavored ice cream turned out to
taste more like cough syrup, and, in a very rare situation, ended up in the trash. what a tragedy!).

another surprise: i was worried about my "mountain lungs" as i thought i may have lost them
while spending ten days in england with voyage magazine...
but my lungs and heart pulled through, and i felt really strong overall. up is easy. down isn't my fave all the time.

this little two-day trip was a nice taste of the north cascades. can't wait to visit this place in summer,
and again in the winter. motivated.


{photos by ceej, my brother (dan), and me}

from one adventure to the next : mt saint helen's this weekend

{images by dan peck}

three days after returning from the uk, i'm off on a plane with ceej to meet up with
my older brother and his wife to ski mount saint helen's in the northwest. feeling pretty positive
despite the fact that i recently spent ten days at sea level--my heart is feeling good.

these photos were taken by my brother, dan, when he and some friends recently
climbed and skied traverse mountain. pretty incredible...and we may find ourselves
in the same weather conditions as there is rain and snow in the forecast.

looking forward to this adventure!

introducing : project mt saint helens

after climbing the grand teton last year...and a couple months later,

i decided i wanted to try another peak.

so, come may i'll be skiing/climbing mount saint helens with ceej

and my older brother. 

i've definitely ramped up my running routine, and have actually

started doing some weight training--yikes. i thought i'd never say that.

i'm mostly excited about it. every now and then a little doubt creeps up,

but i've decided if i bring enough chocolate everything will work out fine.

may is going to be an adventurous month for sure.

Photograph by Diane Cook and Len Jenshel

paris : watching the sun go down while sitting on the siene

the last night of our european adventure was spent on the siene watching the sun go down.
it was nice to have no real plan other than sitting idly by this iconic lover's river.
and that's all we did. we just sat and watched the sun go down--
and did a little people watching too. we watched the other lovers and the other groups of friends
enjoy a night of pure idle nothingness. just lots of deep breaths, coy smiles, and leaning heads on shoulders.

in love.

ten years ago ceej and i kissed for the first time. what kids we were. what bliss.

it's a good spring day to be thinking about love.

happy weekend everyone!

paris : notre dame's magnificent interior

lucky for us, notre dame was just a short walk from our paris apartment--
which meant we walked by this incredible cathedral often.
since we were on "mosey-tourist" mode we were repeatedly detered
from entering by the long, long line to enter...

but one afternoon we decided to risk the wait.
to our surprise, the line moved rather quickly, and we
were soon under her vaulted ceilings.

twelve years ago i sat in my high school art history class
dreaming of the day i would see these monumental vaults
and the flying buttresses outside. it lived up to all the hype.


{see exterior photos here}

{see more paris photos here}

{see more france photos here}