Introducing

I was talking to my friend Tiffany on the phone the other day and there was a lot of silent pauses and the words "I'm sorry." She said she knew that didn't cover it and she wished she could find the right words to express what she really felt. I told her I understood--don't we all find moments where we want to say a whole lot but all we can come up with is that we're sorry? Hardly anything can suffice for a heart wanting to express what it brims with and so we make do with that universal phrase. It's really a one size fits all phrase isn't it. That may be the hardest time to come up with new words--no matter how badly we want to say something different and new we revert to the timeless "I'm sorry." It's not a bad thing, to me it's just an interesting notion--sometimes words aren't enough. The kids and I went to Iowa City on Sunday to visit Tiffany, her husband Kent, and their 3 adorable kids Estelle, Hazel, and Gabe. We spent to whole day with them--hanging out at their house that's right by the reservoir, checking out rocks at fossil gorge, swimming, and doing a whole lot of talking. Not too long ago Tiffany and a friend of hers started a company, made community, where they create jewelry out of upcycled, repurposed, vintage, organic, local or sustainable materials. They give back 9% of their profits to local non-profit groups that provide opportunities for women in need. They don't sell their jewelry on their website, but you can find a link to their etsy shop and learn more about them HERE.  Beautiful aren't they?

 Phoenix all lit up with ornery joy at fossil gorge.

 All 5 kids wanting me to hurry the hell up and take the picture because they were freezing.

 Me and Tiff.

 I took a little hike alone and was struck with this--when we are busy only looking up we might miss what lies at our feet.

Driving back to Des Moines trying to catch up to that sunset.