Cooking

Tomato, basil, onion
oregano
entangled noodles
cheese confessions
salty insinuations
grated carrot
sweetness

plate of myself
set before
you

will you dine?

I know it's completely unfair to compare the new guy to the old, but it is very difficult not to.

Test message from phone

Spring

The first, official, day of Spring will not arrive until next week. However, there have been several days recently which have been longer, warmer and filled with the song of birds and the green scent of new growth in the trees and on the lawn. The bulbs are beginning to push through their stems through the soil and it feels as if spring is already here.

I feel a thawing in my heart, as well, and it comes as a surprise.

I've been going on dates for some time now. (More on that soon) Matter of fact, I've had a large number of first dates, and only a rare few second dates. Even rarer, the man who was able to get beyond that point. I've had a couple of false starts, though none of them truly let into my life or my heart.

It took me by surprise, then, when something began to take root in my heart. Where the soil was dark, firm and packed tightly, a seed has taken hold and found sustenance, warmth and welcome.

I am in like with a dear man who I am beginning to get to know further. I'm not sure one of us is any braver than the other, for we are both proceeding cautiously but with mutual agreement that we are attempting to move forward together, to walk the same path for a while and see where it leads us.

It is this time of year, so full of new beginnings, that I finally feel ready, truly ready to try again to let someone into this heart of mine. I don't know how it will turn out and for now I'm okay with that. The planner in me wishes for a crystal ball, magic mirror or book where it is written....but the lover of surprises, holder of hope knows the the only way is by faith.

Spring forward.

An Introduction.

This is my story. The words and feelings expressed here are mine and mine alone, though at times I will speak for my children as well, knowing it is because they cannot speak for themselves. Yet.

On March 30, 2009, I stopped trying to save my marriage and decided to save myself and my children. With the help of a friend, I loaded the kids and a few possessions into my car and drove away from the cycle of abuse that had become my life.

This blog may chronicle some of the events leading up to that day, but my focus will be on the aftermath....the life after I started over. Reinventing my life as a single mother, my return to school, dating and the world as I know it after leaving my marriage behind are likely to be the biggest topics here. Some days I will muck through the ugly stuff. Others I will talk about motherhood, or the freedom that has come with my new beginning.

Some of this stuff might make us cry. Some is guaranteed to make you laugh...but it's all going to be honest. The real dirt on this new life of mine is here to be add. Judge cautiously, comment freely (but preferably kindly).

Call me Rose.