Box of Sunshine

A good friend of ours was going through a down time and so we sent her a box of sunshine. I got the idea off of Pinterest. It came from this website: KatherineMarie.com   I like how they did it with the little tags, candy and such, but we weren't wanting to send bunches of candy although I love the idea of taking candy and just pulling out the yellow to give in the box.

So I took that idea and we did a box full of yellow bright sunny cheerful things for our friend.  In the polka dot tin was some gum,  little stickers, and a half circle notepad that had a lemon on the front.  In the little yellow and white cosmetic bag was a little white and yellow brush, goldish-yellow nail files and that bottle of lotion in the photos.  We found a little poem book with a cup of cheer on the front of it in the form of a teacup. The little book was all done in yellows.  It is under the dragonfly journal that is yellow with hot pink dragonflies on it. Also included were notecards and notepad with a bee, yellow duck scrubbie, the Love stone, yellow and white candle that smelled of summer time and sunshine,  little yellow bucket had face and feet masks, and more manicure set. We added yellow tissue, shredded crinkly paper, fabric ribbon, curly ribbon and bows.

It was really fun looking for yellow items. Most things we found in the dollar section at Michael's Arts and Crafts, Target and the Dollar Tree.

The Box of Sunshine did exactly what we intended - cheer up our friend and remind her how much we care about her.

Foster the People

Birthday Wishes

Wishing my Mom a very Happy Birthday! I know she is spending the weekend with her grandkids so I am sure she is having a good weekend.

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. migraine cycle is gone
2. Carlson's Cherry Wine Lemonade
3. Harry Potter marathon with Michael
4. inspiration all around me
5. having fun trying to see the Ring of Fire (solar eclipse) with Michael

Summer is Here....

Already tired of the 80's temps ... and we're no where close to June yet.

But the trees are in full bloom, the flowers, the bugs and other things.  It's nice to have this cycle in the universe and sometimes we forget to take a gander at it as we drive by.

So take a moment - in your next travels and look for something beautiful on your trek.  Flowers, trees, fruit stands, kids playing, butterflies, sun drenched skies.

Life is going by quick again ... gotta slow it down when you can.

Enjoy!

Inspiring Women - Gabrielle Bernstein

You know I was going to sit down here and say that I am into reading or watching/listening too all these amazing women on the web who inspire me.  I am trying to apply some of what I read/hear into my life so that I can achieve my goals.  But what stopped me for a moment is because they are often labeled as self-help or in the self-help field.  Many are in the marketing field, business and life coaches - helping women become who they want to be. They are business and life coaches.  But really the word self-help is what stopped me for a moment because it can be a turn off.  I wish it wasn't that way. But often it makes people wonder why you need help. These women though want you to be able to discover and go after all you dream about and will help you take find a path to achieving everything you want.  Going after dreams is very healing and hopeful.  So I guess  in those terms - they are in the self-help field but it isn't a bad word to me because these women inspire me even when I am having a hard time with my chronic migraines getting in the way.  The remind me to be hopeful and keep moving forward in my dreams.

I thought I would highlight a few of these wonderful women the next few weeks.

My first pick and these aren't in order of favorites or anything. I just happened to watch Gabby's Monday Vlog and thought I want to share this...and share all the inspiring things I read from these amazing women. 

So today I am sharing Gabrielle Bernstein - The Spirit Junkie.  I watch her vlogs (video-blogs). I love her attitude and well...spirit. She is a bright light.  In this video she talks about taking your passion to the next level. She quotes Dr. Wayne Dryer who is very inspiring also. She uses his quote about being inspired means you are inspirit. She also says when we are inspired we are inspirit and when we are inspirit we know that the universe has our back.  I really like that and feel it is true.

Ring of Fire

Sunday it was the Ring of Fire (annular solar eclipse) and we decided we would try to see it. Not exactly see it as you can't look at it. But Michael brought out the child within and made pinhole box.  It was a long cube box kind of like the one pictured here. I wish we would have gotten a picture of the one he made but we didn't.

I packed a picnic dinner and we drove out to this remote desert area that is a perfect place to watch the sun set. Which is what we ended up doing as the Ring of Fire was too bright in our location to really see it.  But it was cool to at least try and it was a wonderful evening spent with Michael. We sat and talked and eat dinner and just enjoyed the view and quality time with each other.

We live in such a beautiful state and enjoying the scenery together is one of my favorite times with Michael. We just have so much fun exploring Colorado and being in awe of its beauty.

Very thankful for the wonderful evening. Good memory created.

The Avengers

This is Live to Rise from Soundgarden.  It is from the soundtrack of The Avengers.  Michael and I have went to see it 2 times in the movie theater.  We don't even go see movies in the theater that often so to see something  two times in the theater means yes we really enjoyed it.  I am a huge Joss Whedon fan - he is the creator of several tv shows - Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Dollhouse and Firefly. Last Monday I posted a song that is from Buffy the Vampire Slayer - the musical episode.

Joss Whedon's works have great lines in them and The Avengers was no exception.  It had some clearly Joss Whedon lines in them.  I would see it again and again in the movie theater and I am sure Michael will be in line when it is released on DVD because we just enjoyed it that much.

If you go to see it make sure you sit through ALL the credits. It has 2 little clips - one right after the main ending and then one after ALL that credits. And I mean ALL - as there were SO MANY special effect people in on this that the credits go on and on and on and on. You might be the last people in the theater.  We were the last people the 2nd time but were the 2 of about 8 people the first time watching it.  So not many people know about the clip on the very end.

Tomato Salad

We had a BBQ to go to a couple weeks ago.  It was a lot of fun socializing with this group of people.  We are so thankful that we were invited and made it back from Denver in time to go.

Of course about a week before the party, I started thinking about what to bring but was really not coming up with anything that was sounding very good to me. I wanted something easy to do as we would be just back from Denver so didn't want to spend hours in the kitchen.  I was flipping through an old Food & Wine magazine and came across a recipe that I adapted because it wasn't exactly what sounded good to me - as I don't like blue cheese and I didn't like the sound of dijon vinaigrette at that moment - but I am sure it would be good with it too.

Tomato Salad
3 lbs tomatoes at least 3 different kinds chopped- I did 4 kinds
1/2 lb cooked bacon - crumbled
1 small container feta cheese
balsamic vinaigrette - to taste - start with 1/2 cup and keep moving up

Toss all ingredients to mix.

Refrigerate any leftovers - if there are any.  We came home with less than 1/2 cup.

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. my 5 day migraine cycle finally fading
2. homemade hoagie rolls
3. time with friends
4. emails from friends
5. ice packs

Daydreaming

We would love to move into a new house but it just isn't in the cards right now. But it doesn't stop me from daydreaming. Here are some things I would like in our next house....and some things that I might do here.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Darby on Pinterest

I would really like to have a new backsplash. Although I don't think chalkboard would be easy to clean as a backsplash. I think I want tin.

Source: bhg.com via Darby on Pinterest

I love the wide orange section on the wall. I also love the green and orange together.

Source: dreamgreendiy.com via Darby on Pinterest

Gray wall with letter on it. Just like the style of this room - the painted round table, the dark chairs, pendant lamp, letter and wall.  Even the ceiling showing....really like it.

Source: designsponge.com via Darby on Pinterest

I love all the wall art in a small space like a bathroom. I also love the charcoal gray painted walls.

Once More with Feeling

This is from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  It is from the episode Once More with Feeling from Season 6.  The whole episode is basically a musical.  It is one of my favorite episodes.  I have been watching Buffy again and just watched this episode recently so thought I would share a song from it.

Meditation

Don't from susan piver on Vimeo.


Susan Piver's has very helpful 10-minute meditation videos.  To see more of them go here.  I use meditation to help center myself when things seem out of control and just to help me keep focus day to day. Sometimes of course it doesn't go well or easily but most of the time is it a helpful practice.

Tonight Tonight

Good We Can Give

From Lori Deschene of Tiny Buddha: "If we want something from people, we come to them from a place of lack, unbalance, and maybe even neediness. If we want something for people, we come to them from a place of wholeness, presence, and maybe even love. And it’s not just about self-confidence or altruism. It’s also about taking responsibility for creating positive energy around us, which inevitably multiples.  When we give good thoughts, good vibes, and a smile, we generally get it back."

Brene Brown

Brene Brown on Listening to Shame.  I think she is the best - always amazing.