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Mental sunshine will cause the flowers of peace, happiness, and prosperity to grow upon the face of the Earth. Be a creator of mental sunshine.
-Graffiti on a wall in Berkeley, California
Looking forward to some mental sunshine around here this weekend and hope you all are too! Enjoy-
I'm looking up at the sky and loving the big puffy clouds.
My lilacs bushes are beginning to flower.
My favorite tv show is on ("The Middle" is hilarious!)
I'm excited to be learning all about light.
I received happy mail full of stamps from Pink Persimmon!
There is a bird family nesting under my deck.
I can smell the roast and veggies cooking in the crock pot.
I'm really craving chocolate.
None of the beds are made.
I have more energy than usual.
I ate tuna and avocado for lunch.
I need to take my puppy for a long walk.
I'm remembering to open my eyes and count my blessings.
Since my birthday boy was going to spend his day away from home at his first boy scout camping trip, he requested a cupcake to have after his dinner. Little did he know, that I got a hold of one of the super huge cupcake pans and totally surprised him with a colossal cupcake! I completely forgot to take photos of it before I packed it up, but was so glad that Kevin took the camera with him for the weekend and caught this shot as the boys are about to dive in! Apparently everyone asked if it came from Costco because it was so big...too funny!! Such a fun (and tasty) surprise.
Have a wonderful Monday!
Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can fly.
-Author Unknown
Although I've been away from my blog the last few days, I've had an incredibly productive and playful week so far and it is truly making me happy.
1. Yesterday, I went out on a photo shoot to practice my photography skills and came home with this little treasure! My very first bird photo...she makes me smile BIG! And..I just mailed off my first photo project to NYI and that felt so good!
2. I am loving May's blog and seem to always find inspiration when I visit her. She's real and fun and totally creative and...I just found out that she's having a summer camp via Big Picture! How fun and happy is that?! I can't wait!!
3. I've been making plans for Christmas, believe it or not! I'm super excited to be directing our community youth theater in the fall. We're performing my all time favorite Christmas story..."A Christmas Carol." My script has been approved, the administrative stuff is in order, and now I can start playing with my creative vision. It's going to be so much fun!
4. I recently came across this very cool site called Pink Persimmon. It's full of super fun, versatile, unique, and inspiring stamps! I love so many of them that it's hard to choose so I have a wish list. Below are two of my favorites..that vintage cupcake reminds me so much of my childhood birthday parties and I've got tons of ideas for that banner stamp! I can't wait to create with them!
5. I recently went on a solo picnic with my lunch, journal, and camera in my backpack. I hiked about 2 miles listening to good songs on my ipod before I stopped to just take it all in next to the lake. It was pure joy. Don't get me wrong, I love being with my family and going on such adventures with them but there was something really therapeutic about spending that afternoon on my own. I honestly came back refreshed and happy and feeling like I did something very good for myself...and that made everyone else happy too! :)
6. Have you seen the Hello Sunshine collection from Lily Bee? Oh my. That's all I can say...the colors and designs make me want to jump up and down. OK..so maybe that's slightly dramatic but seriously, I need this collection of papers because they make me happy!!
7. Last weekend, we celebrated my young guy's 11th birthday and had a blast! We took 5 of his favorite friends out for a day of geocaching and swimming and then followed it up with an ice cream/candy buffet and an overnight in the big 12-man tent! At 11pm my husband and I were putting up the tent in the basement and the boys were so excited. It was young boy bliss over here and we enjoyed every minute (although I think I ate a few too many gummy worms)!
8. I'm enjoying doing something that I haven't done in so so long. I'm the kind of reader that usually reads feverishly for information so it's mostly non fiction that fills my bookshelf. Rarely do I take the time to just sit and read a story just for fun. So, I'm currently reading this book and it's making me happy...and laugh too.
9. Wild flowers are blooming all over the place and I just want to stop, appreciate,and photograph each and every one of them..and catching a bug in mid flight is a pure happiness bonus! :)
10. I just looked at the calendar and there are only 35 school days until summer vacation. 35 days!! Yay!
What about you...what's on your happy list right now? Share the joy! :)
Today it's going to be a warm and happy 83 degrees so I'm celebrating with my hiking boots on, my camera and journal in my backpack, and I'm headed out to explore.
My plans for today reminded me of a recent adventure that I took...
and found this beautiful treasure along the way!
Hope your Thursday is filled with wonderful adventures and happy surprises!
Over the break, I took some time to play around with paint. Originally inspired by Donna Downey, I've been so interested in keeping an art journal for some time now and finally just took the plunge. It really is as much fun as it looks!! Right now, I'm just working on making textured backgrounds with gesso and love the process. After playing around in my book, I got hooked on painting and decided to pull out a 12 x 12 canvas that I've had for a loooong time! I bought these beautiful Prima flowers a few weeks ago and was excited to give them a home on my canvas.
I love the way it turned out and so did my daughter! She saw it and immediately snagged it for her room! We're both so very grateful that it's finally spring!
We enjoyed a wonderful week full of spring break goodness. There was plenty of chocolate, lots of extra sleep, fun times spent with family, and a good dose of play. It was heavenly to slow down and step away from a busy routine for a bit. Now I'm back feeling refreshed and ready to move happily into this new season with a fresh and inspired perspective.
Happy Monday!
There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
-Albert Einstein
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I'll be away from my computer for the next week while I take a break and enjoy some focused and unplugged time with my family. Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday full of miracles!
