Finding Old Photos to Print

I just realized that I need to find some old photos to get print sized files. I do hope that this is not one of those times that I went wild to save space and dismissed ever wanting prints. I should know better. I am much better at guessing now but I used to be fairly brutal. Storage costs have dropped so drastically in such a short time.

We are talking about putting together a photo book for some special holiday gifts. I think that we could make something very nice. Does that sound like something people would like? I think there is a good service that we can print them and have them delivered to different continents. We have people around the world to send to!

What has been your experience with photo books? Yes or no?

Been Playing Around

Time for a new look again here at Beneath Our Feet!

Now back to the real work. Sunny again so outside we go. After more coffee. And some tea after that. Procrastinate much? Who, me?

Working On Many Things - Pictures Included

I started working on the pictures I have promised from the rest of our holiday. The weather may have been warmer this weekend than it was on the continent, but it was rainy at the same time much of it. We still found ourselves crazy busy with pub night, barbecue here with family and at the farm with friends and spur of the moment with other friends at their home on Monday. They had planned on taking advantage of the predicted temperatures, but as were so many people, they too were disappointed about the eventual weather. Warm(ish) partly sunny at times with showers and the occasional thunder. Not so nice. Today it has just gone to rainy and cold. Which means pictures and other projects can be worked on while the garden and the allotment get a nice watering à la mother nature.

In addition to working on the pictures, I have somehow managed to get myself into making this for Anja. I know that I can do a decent job on it, and I will do. Yet I am feeling quite intimidated by it. The night before we went to France I frantically sewed a self drafted set of matching pajamas for Anja and myself. Why of all things I chose pajamas to make, I don't know. (perhaps because there is no pressure to make them suitable for public viewing) I did them well, and vowed to sew more. Of course I have not sewn since we got back. I have such lovely fabric that needs to be made into something. Naturally that would lead to making a kirtle for my 8 year old daughter, right? It does if you are me, apparently! With picture processing breaks at regular intervals, of course.

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

I promise. It will be worth the wait to see the pictures from the rest of our trip to France. My plan was to get them sorted and uploaded last week, but as it usually happens, as soon as I commit to something at a certain time, my body decides to go into a flare of pain and fatigue. I wrote a little bit about that here at my other blog.

The good news is that this week I seem to be feeling decidedly better so I am back to work and catching up on things. Today I am having a special tutorial with my French teacher who so kindly gave me an unexpected gift of the chance to catch up in my studies and turn in work that I had not done when I was feeling so poorly. Something I had not asked for and absolutely never expected. One of life's little miracles that we so often fail to acknowledge. In preparation for it I have been feverishly studying this week and will spend the rest of the afternoon resting so that my brain is at it's best for the tutorial. If the sun is out tomorrow I am hoping to get out to the allotment to plant transplant some beans and sow some flower seeds along the borders. If it is rainy then I will get the pictures done, otherwise they will have to wait until Saturday or later depending on how much I get done in the allotment. The pictures will wait, but I need to get things done outside when I can and when the moon cycles are right (that is part of the biodynamic approach to agriculture - using the moon and planetary cycles to guide you to optimum times to do each task. Sounds wacky - but it works!). As far as I know there isn't a moon time that is best for editing digital photos. There probably is, but I'll just let that remain a mystery for now!

So - patience is a virtue, good things come to those who wait, hold onto your britches - I'll get to it as soon as I can!!! I promise.

Paris in Springtime

I've heard tale told of the beauty of Paris in Springtime. And now I have witnessed it for myself.


The Eiffel Tower viewed from The Trocadero Gardens. The epitome of Springtime in Paris.


Viewing Paris from the Eiffel Tower


At the Louvre - another place that was very accommodating to wheelchair users.


I couldn't go to Paris and not go to my own personal Disney - The Fabric District!


They were probably imported from The Netherlands, but who cares. They were pretty and I saw them in Paris!


Notre Dame viewed from the Seine at dusk. That intense blue sky is how the picture came straight out of the camera. No back end enhancements. The sky at dusk is amazing for taking pictures.


Anja begged and begged for a beret and when she finally got it she was so happy!


More pictures in the flickr of course. Stay tuned for week 2 of our France holiday when we are went down Southeast of Lyon in the Rhone Alps region. If you think Paris is beautiful - you haven't seen anything yet!

Disney Surrpise

We have been back from our holiday in France for nearly 3 weeks now (is that possible??) and finally I am getting some of the pictures uploaded. Digital photography is great for freedom to take all the snaps you want to, but it does pose the problem of sorting and uploading when it's all done. Gone are the days when you took only a few shots for souvenirs of your travels. Instead it is a daily ritual of uploading hundreds of pictures from your memory card to your computer (of course you are traveling with your laptop) to make room for the next days onslaught. This cycle repeats through the length of your trip. No more dropping a couple roles off to be developed and picked up in a week. Anxious friends and family all over the world begin to email, send messages and tweets asking "When are the pictures going to be up?" Talk about pressure!

At last my traditional post holiday collapse seems to be winding down and I am getting some of the pictures ready to share. I will start off with our first few days of the 1st week -Disneyland Paris.

We had told Anja that we were absolutely not visiting Disneyland this trip to Paris. She thought it was going to be a full week of visiting monuments and museums in Paris. She was looking forward to the Eiffel Tower or course, but besides that it seemed like a pretty raw deal to go to Paris and not Disney when it was your birthday. On Monday morning bright and early we got in the car on the pretense that we were going to the Eiffel Tower. (DRIVE? to the Eiffel Tower? From the south end of Paris? Only an 8 year old would believe that one!) A couple dozen "are we there yet's" later we arrived at our surprise destination.



SURPRISE!!!!!!!!



She soon realized why I was so insistent that she wear the new polka dot dress that I bought for the trip. Minnie Mouse is a fashion icon!



First stop was the driving track. Be very thankful that this girl is not allowed to drive yet! My neck is still not quite recovered from riding along with her. ouch.



We were really lucky to have what we dubbed "The golden ticket" which was my pass that they gave me to board rides at the exits, thus in effect jumping all the queues. Since I am in the wheelchair and have the proper proof that I didn't just borrow it for the occasion they gave me the 'easy pass' which means that we didn't have to wait in long lines. I also got in for a reduced admission and Axel got in for free as my "attendant/caregiver". (We had this courtesy many of the places we went on our trip actually. Most places do their best to accommodate people with disabilities. ) I tell you, it sucks being mobility challenged, and I'd wait in a million queues if I had my health back, but this made it a bit more palatable.

We took Anja on Space Mountain without really giving her fair warning what it was all about. This resulted in many tears and her not believing us when we promised that Snow White wouldn't be scary. If she didn't need therapy before she will now. She decided that her idea of a good thrill ride was the teacups. Good old teacups. You can't go wrong with them.



It was a long 3 days full of crowds, the weather was not at it's best for much of it, and oh lordy was it expensive. But when you see this face smiling back at you,there is no doubt that it was worth all of it.




There are many more pictures on our flickr page. Disney is such a visual experience so looking at the whole set should tell a good story of our visit. ** 3 days in Disney left us just 2 days to do some quick sight seeing (and fabric shopping of course!) in Paris. Look for my next post within the next few days of our Parisian ramblings. For me and Axel, that is when the holiday really began!

Amsterdam Weekend

IMGP5105, originally uploaded by BeneathOurFeet.

Axel and I took a long weekend to Amsterdam. We had gorgeous sunny weather on Saturday and Sunday, though when the wind picked up and the sun went down it was quite cold. Spring might be here, but summer most certainly is not!

It is hard to remember to take pictures when I am just soaking in the scenes, sounds, and smells of a new place, but while we were having a cup of cappuccino these window decorations caught my eye. I particularly liked the red because I saw much red, especially at night. Sadly my nigh photography needs serious improvement.

It was a fun time, and very nice to get away without worry of Children. (though we did get a call whilst in the Van Gogh Museum that Anja had chipped a tooth. All was fine in the end,but shows you are never truly away from it when you are a parent.) I am exhausted after 3 days of going non-stop and very nervous about our trip to France in 10 days. I am feeling a bit better this afternoon than I was yesterday, but still feeling the punishment of daring to be active. This morning I was really angry about how I need to either accept that I will be hurting and tired if I choose to get up and experience life. I spend so much time as I sit and take it easy day in and day out, thinking of all the things I want to do. I think back to when Tina and I went to Amsterdam just 2 years ago on my 40th birthday and how I not only managed to get around on my own, but didn't have to collapse for days when I got back.

I can scarcely think how France will be. I have to admit I am a bit scared and daunted by the prospect of it. I suppose that I will find a way to make it work, but I wonder how far off from how I want it to be that will turn out.

Fancy Pants Stick

I am so excited to have just ordered a new cane! I like my stand by wooden crook neck can just fine, but it aside from lacking in flair, it is also not very portable. If I want to have it with me when I am out in my scooter or my wheelchair it is a real pain in the behind to have to deal with. I need to have it often when out because many shops in older building don't have access for wheelchairs or if on my scooter it is too big to bring in. Axel and I are going for a weekend getaway to Amsterdam this weekend and I am sure I will need it to go into many places that simply cannot be altered to accommodate access. It is an irritating, but understandable concern, though it does leave me feeling a bit miffed knowing that my friends who are not so lucky as to have the option to get out of their chair can't get into such places.

In my search for a portable/foldable cane I found that they all seemed to scream OLD LADY. Well, I may look like an old lady and may even act like one at times, but I am not one. Not yet. I was thrilled to find SwitchSticks whilst googling "funky cane". Today I ordered this little beauty



How cool is that? Definitely not your grandma's cane! It should arrive in a couple days, just in time for our trip. We leave on Friday evening. I will try and get another post or two in before we leave!

The Birds Are Back!

Since Anja was a wee baby, one of my most treasured parts of the day is that part of the morning when the birds are out and chirping wildly. Having been out on their hunt for food when the sun rose, they are ready to get busy with the days nest building chores. Busy noisy birds flit around the garden. It used to be the time of day when I was trying my best to keep Anja in bed for a few more precious minutes. We would hide under the covers and be really quiet so that we could hear the birdies. The key part being quiet, for too soon it would be time for us to get on with our busy day. Now that Anja is in school by this time it is just me listening.

Each spring I wait for the return of the birds. It seems that in years past it has come sooner than this year, but that might be my impatience for a change in the weather making it appear that way. The past couple weeks I have been listening with a hopeful ear to see if they were back. Each morning I listened, but sadly heard nothing. This morning however, I was delighted by a full chorus of little peeps and chirps! Spring is on it's way! The smile on my face and the peace in my heart at that moment is a feeling I want to remember.

Yesterday I awoke to the news that I had become an Aunt again as my brother and sister in law welcomed their baby girl to the world. And then today the birds are back. New life, new beginnings, and love all around. I love the spring!

Apples and Peanut Butter

I can't get enough. Seriously. If I thought that I could live on a diet of just apples and peanut butter I might try it. In the past few weeks there has been several days that my calorie intake would have been better if I had only eaten them. (Because it was the other things I ate, like veggies and some lean meat that upped the total, right?)

I don't understand this craving. I have never been a big fan of the ol' PB. It was one of those take it or leave it sort of foods. Then one day I read a comment from a friend who said that she was indulging in too many apples with peanut butter and a switch flipped in my head. What a delicious sounding combination! So I gave it a try. What began as curiosity has now blossomed into a full fledged obsession. There is a program on the BBC about weird eaters. They have had people who only eat pasta, people who only eat cheese, people who only eat baked beans. If I don't cool it, pretty soon they will be ringing me up to offer me a spot on the show for eating only apples and peanut butter. I didn't have any peanut butter in the house for a few days and made it through them with only slight withdrawl. So I figured I was safe to have Axel pick up some on the way home today. Of course this was the addiction talking, and since the time he came home 5 hours ago I have had 3 apples with the better part of 4-5 tablespoons of peanut butter. I am tracking my calories on Sparkpeople and have cheated by only entering 3 tablespoons. Clearly an act of a guilty addict. As if not entering the overflow of the tablespoons nullified their calorie content.

I will go to bed tonight dreaming of my breakfast tomorrow. Apple with peanut butter. It is nuts! Nuts I tell you!

Spring Thaw and Coming Out Of Hibernation

It's been a rough winter. A very rough winter.

I have kept discussion of my illness, fibromyagia, off this blog. My thinking was that this was a blog about my family. About the things that we do together and a record of growth and change, not about my illness. The result of this though has been extended periods of inactivity on the blog because my illness took a starring role in life for everyone. It is a part of my family no matter how much I want it not to be. It is the reason why we don't do many things that I would otherwise find "blog worthy". Days meld into weeks and weeks into months sometimes when I am feeling very bad. It is hard to be upbeat and positive when feeling so beaten down. By keeping my illness off of this blog I have forced myself into a false pretense of everything being wonderful, and short changing myself on the opportunity to write about life, which does go on even in the midst of my struggle.

This winter saw the one year mark of my acceptance of the extent of my illness. A milestone that I would rather not to have reached. When I accepted how my illness had come to be in my life, I did so with reservation. I accepted it, but refused to believe that it was unbeatable. If you would have asked me at that time if in a year I would still be in the same place, possibly even worse, I would have said that there was no way. Yet, a year came and went and I found myself in just that place. In that year I went from great hope and optimism that I had found the answer to my illness, to despair that what looked like a way out was an entrance to another labyrinth. Not all was wasted on my efforts (and the vast amount of money I spent) but the naiveté that I approached it with is gone. I have learned many great things about how to live a better life with my illness, but with that comes the real acceptance of how things are. I am no longer looking for life without being sick, but instead looking for how to live my life to it's fullest with being sick. Something that is easier said that done.

So, with this 'outing' of myself and my limitations (I know I am greatly dissapointing those of you who were believing my act of being constantly fabulous... ;) ) I enter yet another new chapter in my blogging life. That of life as it really is - the ups and the downs. The glamorous with the yucky.

Watch this space. It might get interesting.