Morning habits

Goodmorning!

Those few days by the sea were good for me, it seems. Starting Tuesday I have been waking up a little bit earlier and go out walking. I was hesitant at first. People here do not have the habit of walking for the pleasure of it. I thought they'd think I am mad. Wrong. The first day, J accompanied me, willing to forego of the last days of late mornings. So, we went out hand in hand. We chatted along about everything. I so cherish these moments with my babies.

J took this picture of my favorite neighborhood car. "For your blog".
FIY, my baby had his first front tooth taken out last night. D called us at the shop stating an absolute emergency: J's tooth was hanging, waiting for the final pull. C drove home asap and completed the manly task. My boy is the only one of my children to believe in the Tooth Fairy. Ooops! I haven't thought of a gift yet!

Back to morning walking. There are lots of pros about walking. My homeopath had suggested walking to ease depression. My physiotherapist suggested it before Easter. We walked everywhere in Florence and Munich during our trip, and my back felt really better. But sedentary lifestyle took its toll again. So I thought it best to begin incorporating walking into my daily life, not waiting for an excursion or hoping for anyone to join me. I did get some funny looks but I didn't really mind.

Yesterday and today J didn't come with me, as he was too sleepy, but so unlike me, I decided to get on by myself. To cut a long story short, today I walked to the shop. What I found is that walking to work in the morning, when the streets are still not that busy, gives me time to adapt. When we leave on car I always find it difficult to settle. My mind wanders. I think of home and the kids I left sleeping, the housework that hasn't been done. Oh, and the guilt of the Working Mother: I am not there to make breakfast for them, I am not there to see them into the day, I could be hanging laundey, playing with them, summer passes by and we didn't dine al fresco yet...you get the idea.

Walking puts me at some kind of peace. I look at the neighbouring yards, the trees, the little surprising details that would otherwise escape me, I feel the morning air...I arrive at work with my head cleared and (almost) ready to tackle the daily tasks.

I can spot a fig tree.
This lady herds sheep. She changes into clean clothes, washes and hangs the laundry from the trea.
An old farm building.
Simply green...

This one is fun. As of this past July, there is a law forbiding smoking in public places. That includes one's own shop. Poor smoking fellows! However, cunny Odysseus found a way around the law. You can't smoke inside. Fine. But nowhere does it say you cannot smoke outside your shop! All you need is a couple of chairs, a table or stool, coffee, cigarettes, and good company.

Today I served C's coffee with Fanouropita. I made a point of taking pictures while I was preparing it, last night, so expect to find my detailed cooking session on-line by Monday. It turned out really nice, thank God.

I hope you are all doing well. Love and blessings to all.