30 Day Mindfulness Challenge

Beginning tomorrow (June 1 - because I'm the kinda person who can't start a 30 day challenge in the middle of the month), I'm embarking on my own 30 day mindfulness challenge. And since I'm making it up as I go along, I'm using this time as a re-awakening of sorts. I've been feeling a change coming, a metamorphosis of sorts, for awhile now.  I was just having a hard time concentrating on what was to be.  So I decided to use the first 30 days of summer to focus on me. 

Of course, I still have my mom, wife, and work responsibilities, so I don't expect it to be a perfect month. However, I am going to try my best to focus on these areas of my life.

I will be mindful of my health - by eating clean as much as I can, exercising every day, and resting when I feel the need. I will get more sleep.

I will be mindful of my time - I find myself consumed with things that ultimately really don't matter. Like worrying about a particular situation. Or laying on the couch, mindlessly surfing FB for the umpteenth time a night.  When I'm at work, I need to focus on work. When I am at home, I need to focus on home. And when I am alone - those rare, peaceful times - I will focus on ME.  And with that, I need to step back from all the time I spend with the different forms of social media.

I will be mindful of my spiritual side - I talk to God daily. But I feel a call to nature, to the life outside my window. I will spend more time outside with the beauty God has made.

I will be mindful of others - I will put myself in your shoes before I form an opinion of you. I will not judge. I will not give harsh advice. I will be open to listening to you.

And I will write. I will journal and blog and write the story that keeps filling my head and my dreams. I will write a poem a day, like I did for years in grade school and high school and college.

I will be mindful of me.

The Annual Summer Bucket List

“Summer afternoon – 

summer afternoon; 

to me those have always been 

the two most beautiful words in the English language.” 

~ Henry James

Yesterday I asked the kids to draw some pictures of what they want to do this summer.

Ideas included: go to Disney World, fly in a rocket, and eat donuts.

Sadly, only one of those options are feasible. ;)

After taking their ideas into consideration, I've come up with a few other options:

The Family List:

The library summer reading program

Paint rocks for our (MY) fairy garden

Training wheels off Connor's bike

Movie night with Lexi and Reid 

Tumbling for the twinkles
Visit the Field Museum 

Baseball camp for Boy

 Learn to tie our shoes

Make handprint flags

  Make sidewalk paint

Go on a nature hike

Make popsicles

Overnight trip 

 Make s'mores

Visit the zoo
Splash pad

My List:

Scrapbook
Write a story 

Read 10 books

Keep up with my flower gardens

Paint the tiny house for my (our) fairy garden

And just so someone doesn't feel left out...

Keith's List

Swim

Bike

Run

Race

The day that I made rhubarb jam...

We have a crop of rhubarb that grows really well each year. Up until last year when my grandma died, I did nothing with it but eat a couple of celebratory stalks each spring. Last year, with the passing of Gigi, I got out her rhubarb crisp recipe for the first time.

This year, I went beyond a rhubarb crisp. I decided to make JAM!

That's right, me - the non-cooker, non-baker, really only use the kitchen to pour a bowl of cereal kind of gal - decided to make rhubarb jam.

I found the pectin-free recipe on the internet. Now I had no idea what pectin was until Keith bought some when he got the canning jars at Meijer. However, as I looked for the recipe I wanted to use, I couldn't really tell if it was good or bad (although it's been used for years as a thickening agent in jams!) So I decided not to use it; rather I found a recipe that called for orange zest and orange juice.  The jam is has the consistency of apple butter (or if you ask Keith, it's like orange marmalade).

Either way, my adventure in making jam was a complete and total success! (Why yes, I will toot my own horn because that jam is DELISH!)

The ingredients.
That's the orange after it's been "zested".
And yes, orange juice in the eye hurts.
A lot.

Cooking on the stove

The finished product,
ready to be canned.

A rhubarb lover's delight!!!

Giveaway winners!

That's right... WinnerS!

I decided to pick a winner from each area - those who commented (here or on FB), a bloglovin follower, and a GFC follower. 

So congrats to Dana C, Nicole S, and Jody A! 

A surprise will be coming to your mailbox in the next couple of weeks! 

Thanks to all who participated. :)

Happiness is Jewelry, of course

I have developed a wonderful habit of collecting
jewelry when I travel.
Or when I go to quaint little shops.
Or on days of the week that end with "Y".


This special piece was bought at a story
called Fairy Tales in San Francisco.

The entire store was filled with fairy-related items.
I was in heaven.

I wanted to buy everything, but I held back.
And thank goodness they do not have an online store,
or we'd have no money to pay the mortgage. ;)

The item I did buy was
a silver and gemstone chakra necklace.

I love it and wear it almost all the time.
It makes me so happy for a variety of reasons:

• It balances my energy
• It's colorful
• It's silver
• It goes with everything
• It reminds me of San Francisco! 

What makes you happy this week? 

A Day of Me

Now, some might say that I had the best Mother's Day because my husband had the best day before Mother's Day, riding his bike to B.F.E. and snapping pictures of himself next to Yogi Bear. Did he just want to make it up to me for being gone most of the day???

Well.... I'll take it. ;)

Connor's idea was to bring me breakfast in bed.
He had given me the options of an omelette, toast or cereal.
I asked if we could substitute a StarBucks
breakfast sandwich.
From left to right:
The bracelet Keira made me (Colin's needed some tape),
My sandwich, flowers from Keith,
a glass of milk (they left the vanilla latte downstairs),
and the newspaper and cards from Keith and Connor.

My sister and I treated my mom to
a kid-free brunch at a century-old farmhouse
(complete with gift shop and tea room)

 

Lunch

  

We sampled all the desserts

The view by the barn

Just us girls

I like to treat myself to things.
I saw this box and thought,
What a great reminder!

My new chair for the deck!
And Keira holding my new bird feeder as well.

Dinner was picked up from my favorite Mexican place,
then after baths and bed time
(and 8 more times of putting Boy back to bed),
I relaxed by finishing my book that I had only
just started earlier in the day.
(That alone made it the best day ever!)

 

 

I am truly blessed.

Happy Mother's Day

 

I will blog about my day tomorrow, but this is what the grandmas and my great-aunt got from the grand kids.

High Five for Friday

It's Friday! Yay! Here's my weekly recap:

Love this book! Review coming next week.
Charley Davidson is my favorite person ever!

We had a mishap at Nana's.
Just one stitch, thankfully.
The odd thing - two days later, my cousin's 4 year old
also fell and required stitches in the exact same spot!

First run in months.
Not a great one, but just went around the block.
5K in 6 weeks!

Happy mornings,
OH how I love thee!

Beautiful tulips from my gardens.
♥

Happiness Project - Week 1

Sometimes you just need a little pick-me-up.

Don't forget, I have a jewelry giveaway 

in honor of the new blog!

Check it out:

 The First Post

 

The First Post - Giveaway Included!

Welcome to my new blog! First things first - the giveaway! As I stated at my previous blog, I love to create jewelry. I've also been saying for about a year now that I was going to start an etsy shop to sell somethings. However, I have 2,000 things on my to do list, and that one keeps getting pushed down.  So instead, as a welcome to the blog, I'm giving away a custom piece of jewelry. Below are some actual pieces I've created. Once a winner has been chosen, I will create a piece just for them!

Entry is easy!

Leave a comment below answering this question:

What is your favorite color?

See, pretty easy.

For an extra entry, like Under A Gypsy Moon at bloglovin.
(Just click the blinking Eiffel Tower located to the right please.)

Again, pretty darn easy.

And thank you for stopping by!