Along with a few others, I'm embarking on a ten on ten project. Basically, it involves documenting a day in ten (or more) images and posting them all on the tenth of each month. I like the idea of taking the time to document a whole day with my camera. My life seems brutally ordinary and routine at times--in all honesty, when I look back at my old posts on here, I am stunned by how perfect my life looks. My life? Perfection? Hah! Despite its beauty at times, let me clarify once again that's a very false statement. I was talking with a few friends the last week about this very subject--how wonderful everything looks while blogging. If only it were true.

Here are some images from yesterday, in chronological order...













My Wednesday starts with classes from 8:30-10am and again from 11:30-1pm--in the middle of the two I take a little break to workout, have a mid-morning snack (in my case apple pie), do a little gardening, and play piano. Once my second class is over at one, it's lunch time and a break until my piano class at three. Following piano is a little more school/work, then relaxing (which involves eating nutella with a spoon and reading to kill a mockingbird, or my favorite book of all time) until dinner around seven. And after dinner comes family time out on the lawn until it's dark.
(Obviously I didn't take photographs of each part of my day, but it's the effort that counts, right?)

My life may not be the most glamorous or exciting or adventurous, but it involves the people I love the most, and really, that's all that matters.

Go check out Hannah's photos--and be sure to click around and look at everyone else's shots!

In the midst of crazy end-of-year activities (which include--but are not limited to--exams), I took a morning last week to bake. Measuring out the flour, pouring in the sugar, and mixing together eggs and sour cream in a quiet, serene kitchen replenished my dangerously low measure of calm. There's something decisively soothing about baking. While I'd love to say that I bake every day, the truth is it happens more like once a month and usually ends with flour in my hair, fingers swiping dough from the bowl, and various ingredients dusting the floor. Regardless, taking time to create something to satisfy the sweet tooth and to put a smile on someone else's face is a ritual I take pleasure in.




This cinnamon coffee cake is light and airy, broken up with a crunchy layer of cinnamon and sugar. The sour cream is the secret in the recipe, keeping it moist and delivering a slight tang. As its name suggests, it's a perfect treat to go along with coffee on a spring afternoon.

cinnamon coffee cake

ingredients

- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature (plus more for pan)

- 2 cups all purpose flour (plus more for pan)

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- a pinch of salt

- 1/2 cup sugar, plus 1/3 for topping

- 2 large eggs

- 1 cup sour cream

directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. To make the topping, combine 1/3 cup sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla in a small bowl. Set aside.
To make the cake, butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan and set aside. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, sugar, and eggs until smooth. Add the flour mixture alternating with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
Spread half of the batter into the prepared baking pan, and sprinkle with half of the topping. Repeat with remaining batter and topping.
Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes, then remove sides of pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Serve topping side up.

Enjoy!

"I love you." He said it in a voice soft with tenderness as he watched me. We were sitting together at the kitchen table, he sipping on coffee and perusing the newspaper, me perched precariously on the table, arranging flowers for a photograph until they were just so. I looked down at my silly position and couldn't help but let out giggle. Then he smiled that special smile, reserved for moments such as these. Crinkling up in the corners, his brown eyes winked lovingly at me once, twice. His coffee--a swirl of a scant half teaspoon of sugar and a liberal splash of cream, no more, no less--was a warm chestnut color and his eyes grew hazy and soft in the steam rising from his coffee cup. It was just an ordinary Friday afternoon, and it wasn't the first time he'd given me that smile, but it all seemed extra special right then. I imagined myself ten, fifteen, twenty years in the future, with memories just like these being the only tether to the tender, young years of my former youth. It was one of those remember me moments, piercingly sweet and fragile in all its fleeting glory. "I'm going to miss this," I think. "One morning I'm going to wake up and wish I could have this moment back." So I turned and smiled back, with a whispered "I love you too."
--
Short (true) story I wrote awhile back. Happy Friday. x

(music: cats and dogs by the head and the heart)
The farmer's market opened back up a few weeks ago and Saturdays are extra special now--strolling from stand to stand, people watching (because that's my area of expertise), and basking in the morning sun. It leaves me feeling alive, inspired, and excited to live life. It's one of my favorite parts of the spring. And speaking of spring, I'm so happy it's May. I'm wrapping up school (two more weeks!), starting new projects, and I'm just generally excited for summer. And as of yesterday, I've embarked on a challenge for all of this month, which involves working out (which I've already been doing for over a week, yay!), drinking my prescribed amount of water, and keeping my room tidy. Every day. I'm two days in so far and it's looking good.

What are your plans for May?