Solitary time for long looks at the art in the Norton Simon Museum (Pasadena, CA), strolling in the garden, and and journaling at a table overlooking the ethereal water lilies. Statues that show the beauty of a woman's curves, drawings by Matisse (which accompany 16th century French love poems - see more here: http://www.nortonsimon.org/exhibitions.aspx?id=6#1206) which take my breath away with the power and beauty of his seemingly relaxed but definitive strokes.
I spent the most time looking at the special Matisse exhibit and also staring with awe at this still life by Louise Moillon (she painted this at the age of 20!):
As a mommy of two wonderful and very active young children, every now and then a little break is incredibly restorative. Not only did I get time with my family this weekend, I also got to have two hours at the Norton Simon, three hours to celebrate a girlfriend's birthday with several other women I know (we went to http://www.barcelonapasadena.com/), an adventure driving alone through downtown Los Angeles late at night (directed by phone by my very knowledgable Dad so I could get around the completely halted traffic on the 110) while listening to the kind of party music I never play for my kids (!), and the satisfaction of completing my first half marathon. Oh, yeah. You read that right!!! Woo-hoo!!!
I ran 13.1 miles in just under 3 hours, and I had expected to run it in at least 4 hours! It was wonderful how surprised my parents were how well I was able to run, and my dad gave me some great feedback. He even sang the "Rocky" theme for me as I came closer to the homemade finish line, and my mom provided Gatorade and orange slices at several points along the route. Dave, Adam, and Norah were all there to cheer me on at the finish, and despite cheering me on wildly at first, as soon as I crossed the finish line, Adam began to cry. I asked him later why, and he said, "I just wanted you to hug me." (I'm so glad I did!!) Norah and Adam really don't like it when I'm away, even if it's just for a half day and night, but sometimes I do need to recoop a bit, and I didn't want them waiting around for hours while I ran. Dave, Adam, my Dad and I went out for a delicious breakfast at The Kettle in Manhattan Beach (apparently a pretty famous place), and I think somewhere in between sharing our pancakes, bacon, and orange juice and lots of "I love you's," Adam felt a lot better.
After I had a nap, the kids and I went down to the sand and dug lots of holes, watched the seagulls ("Touch it, hold it, peeese!" said Norah), and then had a wonderful dinner with Dave and my parents. We were also celebrating my Dad's birthday and my mom and Norah had assembled a delicious strawberry trifle (layers of angel food cake, vanilla pudding, whipped cream, and strawberries). Aah.
Yesterday, I admit, was a bit of a blah day for me - I think, a little bit anticlimactic after such a great weekend. I felt really complainy - the house was a mess, I had to go back to work, the usual Monday yada yada yada. I finally kicked myself out of this mood after work when I came home and Dave was bathing the kids, so I had time to make dinner. On the menu, homemade pesto from our very own basil plant...and I can't tell you how good it makes me feel that Norah gobbled up helping after helping since Adam is such a particular eater (like his momma was, so justice, I suppose!)! I had also made some bread in our breadmaker earlier which was great alongside some freshly steamed asparagus, too. The leftover bread was made into french toast this morning. Funny how making the time to cook good, healthy food completely changes my attitude and makes me feel great. I also caught up on recorded "So You Think You Can Dance" auditions and stayed up way to late last night. Geez, I love that show!! :)
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