Walkin on Sunshine.....

“You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.”
― George Lorimer

 
Have a great weekend... Get out and play!
 

My version of "the Secret".

I am sure some of you are getting bored by my personal stories, but they are not just written to keep my fingers in shape typing, I am trying to make a subtle point in each. I hope you take away that little tidbit each time you read one. I have taken to reading all kinds of self help type articles, thinking someone must have the easy answer.  From the ridiculous to the simple I have read a lot of them.  How to be organized, how to eat right, the secret, how to lose 5 pounds in a week, how to find happiness in 5 easy steps..... my mind is numb from them all. By now I should have the skin of a 30 year old, body of a 20 year old, whitest teeth,  the best behaved kids, the cleanest house on the block, the happiest husband, more money than I know what to do with and happier than a pig in shit.   Not so!

One important thread I found in all of the articles is that you make your own happiness which, of course, leads to improvement in all aspects of your life. Each improvement you make is like a domino effect and in the end you should be content and happy with your life. Sounds simple, and I think maybe it is,  sometimes it’s already right there and you just have to recognize it. You know that "Ah ha" moment we have all heard about. Not that I am not happy, just in a strange place in my life. AC- after children? My purpose???? Motherhood defines you forever, but mothering by email and texting is a different animal.  I know they can read, so it eliminates going in one ear and out the other, tuning me out, so I think.

I find contentment in the things I already know make me happy and try to incorporate them into my day. Like a trip that fills my head with the memories of the things that I like, and trying to bring those memories to my life every day, if it is as simple as stringing lights over my head, it’s done. Or a song that reminds me of something that brought me great joy. I remember the Clash song, Rock to Casbah, I sang it to Jaime every time I changed his diaper. I know- weird, but that was just something silly I did. To this day, when the song comes on, I think back to when my all grown up first born was dependent on me for his simple everyday existence. Change me, feed me, love me. How things have changed….I am only responsible for " Love me” now.  Wonder what he will sing to me when he changes my Depends? Maybe I will give him a free pass on the change me, feed me, but not the love me!  I was way too busy the last 20 something years to wonder about the next 20 something….. Is that what a mid life crisis is?  Home alone, what do I do now…. Redefine life? Chase a new happiness? Hmmmm - interesting!
I think I need a convertible! :)

A picture that makes me smile!

My perfect family portrait.

(except Marcy needs a husband! and I need to lose 20 pounds!)

Can't explain?

Just a footnote to the blog I wrote today.  Sometimes you just can't explain things :)  I went to the high school to walk on the track and on my way back,  listening to the radio the following song came on-
"I want to ride my bicycle" by Queen.  I have not heard that song in a good 30 years, and forgot all about it.  .... weird timing. Click on the song and enjoy a flash back.  Soak up the sunshine, it's a beautiful day.

Life is too short to ride an ugly bike

Tomorrow holds great promise for a little bike riding. My poor bike is so lonesome. Needs a little peddle power. It's time, it's almost May and I want to get out and go. Remember when you were young and you went from a trike to a bike with training wheels. It took a little time to get up the nerve to remove the wheels. What a thrill to finally get the balance down and you just went... hard to explain but it just worked one time and you were off. No helmet, no pads just peddling as fast as you could to keep going. Then came the big Schwinn. You could barely touch the peddles, but no sense it getting a bike you would grow out of after one summer, you had to trade up to the big girl bike. Then when you entered Jr. High you had to have a ten speed. I couldn't decide which color, green, blue, orange, yellow???? Final decision-baby blue. Those wheels took us to Macomb street daily. No bike path, but chuckhole USA was gone and the new roads were great. Then came the drivers license and we had no need for that fancy 10 speed we begged for. As a matter of fact, we wouldn't be caught dead on a bike. There is sat rusting away in the back of the garage for many years.

More years, than I wish to share, later I yearned for a new bike. We had just been to Venice Beach and the beach bikes were right up my alley.  Pretty colors, baskets, fun stuff.  I wanted to get some exercise and thought the bike would do the trick. After all we had bike paths and if we had bike paths we needed a bike. I wanted a pink one, searched for the one I wanted and couldn't find it. My sister hit the mother lode when she wandered into the bike shop on the corner by her house and found me just what I was looking for. Pricey, in my book, but I knew I had to have it. After dragging Les up there to look at them something happened!  He was dead set against me spending the money on something as foolish as a bike he thought I would never ride. I sold a house and was going to take some of my commission and buy it. As I wandered around the shop looking at all the awesome bikes, Les walked up to me and said, I found a bike, I will ride with you if you want! What???? Of course, I wanted him to ride with me, but all the reasons why he was opposed to me getting one, seemed to disappear when he found the "Ghostrider"  So there went my whole commission check :)

For several summers the Ghostrider and the pink bike with hearts all over it have ridden up and down the bike path, enjoying every minute of it. Just like when I was a kid, back and forth to Macomb street. If you don't have a bike- get one! Get an awesome bike, it makes it a lot more fun. Check these out Electra bikes.

Change is not always good.....

One of my visions for my yard is to string clear round shaped lights across my deck like stars in the sky. Crisscrossing back and forth between my house and the outdoor kitchen. A very Mediterranean market look. At night I think it would lend just the ambience I am looking for. It also reminds me of one of my favorite places to take a stroll after a dinner on Ocean Drive in South Beach. It became a ritual…. Walk up and down Ocean Drive (several times) to pick out just the right spot to enjoy a Mojito and a meal among the hustle bustle of SOBE. I could live there in a minute the action intrigues me. On the way back to the car it was a must to make it to Espanola Way. A street that was only a block long, but in that block were all the things I loved. The lights overhead, the outdoor restaurants, the cobblestone street, the balconies on the second floor with the french doors open, curtains blowing in the wind and enough room for one chair to enjoy the view,  the pet shop with the cutest puppies on earth. You had to go in and say hello to all of them. Wagging tails like you have never seen before. I knew I couldn’t take them home on the plane, but I always wanted to. The boutiques and specialty shops that had the unusual and gotta have items that you would only buy when you were on vacation. At the end of the street was my dream! LaChocolate. We would have espresso and a decadent out of this world chocolate dessert. The perfect ending to a great meal. They had little seating arrangements on the sidewalks divided by plantings that made you think you were in your own world. Comfy couches, coffee tables, paradise on a warm evening! I remember stopping by one evening and when the hostess got ready to seat us, she thought she was going to put us at a table! Oh no, I come here for the couches! Sorry the only one not taken was for important people. Excuse me! I let her know I was important and I didn’t come all the way from Michigan to sit at a table. She reluctantly sat us down, but I think she knew she had to, because I wasn’t taking no for an answer. This was my vacation ritual and I wasn’t going to let anyone else take away that pleasure from me. Well, all things change and the next time we stopped the sofa’s were gone, new city ordinance. It just wasn’t the same. The next trip back and our last, the puppy shop was gone and so was LaChocolate. All the things I loved so much about this little block were gone. I looked up-the lights were still strung across the sky, all was not lost. I am feathering my nest with the things I love, I am going to recreate that feeling… with a couple of strands of lights from the Christmas Tree Shop- mission accomplished.

Monday morning daydreaming

Nothing more depressing then waking up to a Monday morning rain. The weekend was pretty much a wash out for doing fun things so extending it into Monday is like pouring salt in the wound. I have ideas, darn it, there has been a drought in creativity lately. Finally, my little brain has conjured up how I want my yard to look, and I am ready to roll up my sleeves and attempt to attain the vision. The weather is stopping me and I fear I will lose my new found energy. A visit last week to Somerset (which I have only been to probably 4 times in my life, poor deprived child) was very inspirational. Strolling through Pottery Barn made me think about summer dinner parties soaking up the evening sun and relaxing under the canopy of the tent that has become my outdoor living room. Checking out Restoration Hardware too and seeing items that resembled things I have admired at the Christmas Tree Shop. For my Champagne taste, the CTS can accommodated my beer budget! I wondered through Anthropologie, which is one of my favorite stores that I visit on my trips to Florida. I always find just the perfect gift there. Something so wonderful but so overpriced. I can justify buying a gift there, but nothing for myself. I have a wedding shower coming up so the budget was blown on a charming gift that you wouldn't ordinary spend half as much money on. But that is the joy of a gift! Anyway, after strolling through the mall my mind began to work overtime. All the things that would whip my yard into shape and make it an oasis to enjoy all summer long. Well, the ride home took a detour and I ended up on the corner of Eureka and Telegraph! There I bought all the things I had thought about over the past couple of months but passed up because I didn’t need them. Well now I do! I spent almost 2 hours carefully creating the vision in my mind and filling my cart. I had decided that I needed this stuff! I walked out spending about $70.00 but in the end, as my mind would rationalize, I saved hundreds of dollars if I would have picked these items up at Somerset. This is where I get my high. I brought each item home and unpacked them with great joy. I hung the lanterns in my “outdoor living room” just waiting for the sun to go down so I could light the candles and see if it was just as I pictured it in my mind. I am realizing that as much as I try to hate my house and all the issues it has, I love it for its special little quirks and charming features. It took Somerset to make me realize that there is" no place like home"  So I have to embrace the peeling paint and worn look and rephrase that into taking much care and time to create a look called Shabby Chic. I have a list of items I want to hunt for at garage sales to complete the look and the hunt as they say, is the real fun. I’m making a my list….of things I can’t live without.  So put on your Ruby slippers and be thankful for the roof over your head, leaking or not.

Why?

I have stumbled upon this more than once in the last couple of days, so I am inclined to think that I must watch it. I don't want to, because these things disturb me, but I think in order for me to change for good I am going to have to.  Ignorance sometimes is bliss. 


Since my daughter became a vegetarian, I began to think about the whole idea a lot more. I had other experiences that have also made me think very hard about eating meat. It is very easy to dismiss the whole idea of where it comes from when you purchase it from a grocery store. Neatly packaged without much resemblance to what it once was. But over the years I have questioned why? Traveling down the expressway and seeing a semi truck full of pigs on their way to market, just leaves me with a pit in my stomach. How did man start eating animals and why??? The earth had produced vegetables and fruits so why? It seems wrong to me and I have said many times it would not take much for me to become a vegetarian. A couple of years ago while in Florida we stumbled across a Vegan restaurant and it was fabulous. We make it a point to eat their at least once when we are vacationing. My Easter dinner this year was Vegetarian and everyone enjoyed it.  So why not?

When we brought animals into the corn maze I really began to question it as well as cut back on eating meat. Every day I would play with the chickens, goats, sheep and Holston the cow. Looking into their eyes I saw creatures that needed love and affection. Believe it or not, Lucy my favorite red hen, loved to be held and her head scratched.  Denise promised me they lived happily ever after on her friends farm and I believe her! :O  These were creatures with a soul and life, how does man get to that point that he wants to kill and eat them?  I don't know how kids raise animals for 4H...thank goodness I didn't grow up a farm girl, I would have never made it.

I had an interesting conversation just this past weekend while at a friend’s house for dinner, I asked why we had to eat meat? Can't we just take supplements?   Enjoying a meal with people in the medical profession they stated our bodies needed protein from the animals to function properly. I felt our bodies have evolved into needing this, and if way back when, if we would have concentrated on eating plant life we may have not been dependant on that aspect of nourishing our bodies. Can we change and move toward fruits, nuts and vegetables that don't have feelings and eyes that can look back at you? I don't belong to PETA nor do I plan to, but I think it's just a human emotion to care about other living breathing feeling things. Except spiders!

Well, a documentary called Food, Inc. has been out and is now being shown on PBS. I need to see it so it will make me change my ways, but just like a horror movie, I can't watch with my hands covering my eyes and terror in my heart. Have we gotten so lazy that we cannot get back to good wholesome food. Makes you think! I think we all need to see this movie. Someone once told me that the Bible states we can do what we want with animals ("the rest of physical creation") I question that....

Girl of 100 Lists

Realizing we are closing in on the end of April, I started to think that 1/3 of 2010 is almost over. Where has it gone? I am not feeling too fabulous yet so I am starting to worry that I might not achieve greatness by December. ha-ha  I do feel I am a little more focused, being ADD that is a struggle. So I am pleased. I thought I could get more things crossed off my list than I am, but I am still plugging away so I am not defeated yet. I decided I would go back and look at my "List" to see just how I am doing.

Getting a few things checked off, but I can see I have to have a little better weather to accomplish most of them. Bring on the Sunshine!

Truth be told the next 4 months are my favorite, so maybe by the time 2/3rds of the year is over I will feel better about what is getting done. How is your list coming? Like the Go- Gos song "Girl of 100 lists" I have them everywhere for everything. But that is how I get things done and how I don't forget! Now where did I put my list for today?

Spring makes everything look filthy

With Les away this week, I am trying to get crackin on the Spring cleaning. There are a few areas, no let me rephrase that, my whole house needs to be attended to. I tried to do a little inventory on what needs to be done in each room and was overwhelmed. So, I just need to look at one room at a time and see if I can get that accomplished. Of course, I want to do the max in each room, but really I only need to do a few things to get it under control. I have a few idea's that have helped me in the past and a few that are going to help me get things orderly.
I am going to change over my shoes, digging the summer shoes out of the back of the closet and cleaning up the boots and rotating them for hibernation. Good riddance Winter. I hang a shoe organizer on the door. In the winter it holds gloves, scarves, hats etc. for easy access. I used to hate digging through a box looking those items. In the summer I fill them full of my flip flops, and other casual summer shoes. They all live with their mates in a neat clear plastic pocket. Makes my life easier.....


My silverware drawer has always been a mess. Too many forks to fit in those silverware organizers. I found if you put those plastic baskets in the drawer they will hold the abundance of forks, knives and spoons. Three of them fitted nicely accomplishes that.

With all the fun jewelry out there, I am finding it's easy to lose the earrings from the missing bracelet so I have organized my jewelry by buying those boxes that are reserved for cross stitching thread. I bought the configurations that would fit into my drawer, you can double up for 2 layers, just make sure the top layer has one less so you can slide them around to view the bottom. I took the lids off and layed them in the drawer. You can fill them up with earrings and put the matching necklace and bracelets next to them and their they all are, no digging around tangling everything up. One box can hold your silver stuff for mixing and matching and another for gold. That is if you haven't turned it all in for cash yet -ha-ha. I find I wear more of it because I can see what I have.

I am using the old cardboard cases that the wine comes in for my glasses. Since I have a addiction to tableware, I was having a hard time storing my glassware. Wine glasses fit perfectly in the slots and I can stack them without fear of breaking them and they are easy to transport with the handles. I also found I could store my plates in milk crates with cheap paper plates between them to protect them. With the literally hundreds of plates I have, this has come in really handy. I can see the one I want without opening a box to find out what is in it.

I also use clear plastic shoe boxes for my napkins and table cloths. They stack well and you can see them, again without opening.

Happy Spring.



Fun Stuff-

If you have not been into Zara's in Wyandotte, take the time to check out the wonderful things they have. They have a line of jewelry, I think it is called Pickup Sticks. Very cool. And the original artwork by Diana is awesome. Lots of talented people have their wares for sale.



Key West! If you have not been to Key West on the corner of Northline and Telegraph, pick a beautiful evening, preferably one when they have entertainment, and sit outside and enjoy the music and food. One of my favorite places to eat outside. We just don't have that many in Michigan.



Mississippi Bayou is another great place to go. The atmosphere is lacking but the bargains are unbelievable. Check out Thursday's special (join email to get all the specials) you can get a 1/4 slab of ribs, cheesy potatoes and Cole slaw for only $3.95. Their rolls right out of the oven are awesome! Taco night is another too good to be true bargain!

My least favorite time of the year

It's been a tough week.... Taxes always Tax me. Just the process of doing them is like putting your brain in a blender and pushing pulse. Every couple of minutes are just excruciating. Only twice in the thirty some years I have been doing my taxes did I get professional help. I know you think I need professional help, but this is the CPA type of professional help not the PhD. Both times I found errors and had to re do them, so what the heck, I might as well save money and do them myself. Well, decades later, here I am still taking on that household task. I do ours along with the kids and my sister, who calls around April 10th to see what I am doing? About a handful of times, the IRS has sent me letters telling me I made a mistake and sometimes I benefit from their correction, and sometimes I don't. They haven’t sent me to jail yet so I’m good. I had to write a check this year, since all my little deductions have left the nest. I could almost get my income down to zero when all the kids lived under our roof. :) Giving birth always felt so rewarding on April 15th! And like so many, every year I vowed to get them done on February 1st of the following year, but like so many, I drive up to the post office on 4/15 to deposit my return in the mailbox. Then I have “post tax syndrome” for a couple of days as I vent my frustrations on whom ever will listen. Always trying to find a better mouse trap for taxes and the process, but never quite come up with anything that will solve all the issues so I pack up all my receipts, documents and copies of the returns in a neat little box and with my sharpie write the year on it and tuck it away and declare another year done! Then I can live the next 50 weeks before it starts all over again. A ritual I would rather not have to take part in, but as Benny Franklin said, the only certain thing is death and taxes, so until my time is up, I will be putting my brain in the blender for the week of April 15th and hope for the best! Today, I am going to hang a Tea Bag on my rear view mirror, I think I may have had enough.

The Animals came two by two.......

Just a quick one today. Finished my taxes, so that is off my plate. My brain is still mush, but I am hoping the weekend will fix that!


Les went over to the girls to let their dogs out on his lunch hour. He texted me....” She has pigeons!”

Marcy, Marcy, Marcy, what are we going to do with you????
Can't wait for the story on this one.  ...They found out where she lived!

Have a great weekend

KARMA :)

I am soooooo happy Phil won!  Gotta love Karma.  There is a profound lesson here... spray tan your forehead!  Just kidding!  The true lesson is LOVE!


I found my dream home   http://www.boattrader.com/listing/1982-hargrave-paddlewheeler---sternwheeler-riverboat---riverboat-charte-95086052    I think this would be such a fun place to hang my hat.  Dream a little Dream :)

I have to finish my taxes.....but what else is new :)  Have a great week. Might not hear too much from me this week, my brain will be jumbled up with numbers and math was not my favorite subject.

Random things that make me smile, make me think, make me happy

"A girl should be two things: Classy and fabulous."

-Coco Chanel-


Aint that the truth!  Always try to tell my girls to act like a lady.  They get tired of hearing it, but I hope it sticks!
 
 
 
 
 
 

This is one of my favorite pictures of Laycee.  This was her first Christmas and the first child of ours who was afraid of Santa.  Hard for me to think anyone big or small could be afraid of Santa.   I get a kick out of it because today she loves Santa!  Don't we all.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

This one makes me smile and think.  Yes an Estate sale is just a kind word for Dead peoples stuff.  I wonder what will happen when I die.  All those things I spent so much time collecting...will they mean anything to anyone else?  Or will they just be an extra .25 to add to the days total?  Gosh, maybe I should be explaining things that are meaninful to me.  I would be crushed if some of my treasures were so hastily discarded.
 
 
 
 
 
   

Halloween is one of my all time favorite holidays.  These people had to win the costume contest with this one!  It's a great Holiday- I can dress up, make kids cry, and celebrate Les birthday all in one. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

...And there there is the Wizard of OZ.  Such a great story!  Everyone wants a pair of Ruby slippers.   Really, there is no place like home!
One day it's a pretty safe bet that your kids will realize it and maybe they may even thank you for making it a special place. 
 
 
 
 


I love Lucy!  How much fun can one person have?  Never a dull moment, and always a laugh....isn't that what life should be?  So bring out your inner Lucy and have some fun!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Don't you just hate it when someone pisses you off and you can't let it go.  SEND THE GOAT HOME.  Life is too short to let someone else make it miserable. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

I keep telling my kids, mom knows best!  There are just certain things you need to warn them about like.... Don't drink hot chocolate from a straw, you will burn your esophagus. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Can't you just feel the tickle in your tummy when you look at this picture?  Ahhh, a little fun never hurt anyone! 
 
 
 
 
 
 

When you have a bad day at work, just think someone elses day is worse.  Somedays are just better than others...... TGIF.

How simple can it be?  A terrific day would be with a McDonalds French Fry!
Have a Great Day.... Do me a favor, make someone smile today!

Which way to Marcy's house?

I took 7124 steps yesterday. I was surprised that it was that many. I did a whole lot of nothin' yesterday. Several hours on the couch..... lazy, depressing day. I counted 25 steps from the refrigerator to the couch- 50 round trip! 20 from the bathroom to the couch, and 20 from the computer to the couch. You see the couch is the common denominator here. Some days, I just can't seem to get off of it. True couch potato. A dud spud!!!! I think I am going to try to hit 20,000 steps, 10,000 doesn't seem to be enough to do any good.

I have had the girls in and out all week. An adjustment, to say the least, but I know it is temporary. You get out of the groove of having someone else living in your space and it does become another dynamic. Marcy showed up last night with another addition to the Zoo. We started calling her Dr. Doolittle, because the animals just seem to flock to her. This winter she was walking into a pet store and a rat walked up to her in the parking lot. Ok, how many times has that happened to you? Poor thing was cold and hungry, so she scooped it up, took it home and nursed it back to health from a cold and found it a new home. In the last 2 weeks she added the following to her brood.
Karlee found a snake in the basement, a corn snake, not something that lives in your yard, but a pet. Marcy tried to save it but it was too dehydrated and didn't make it. Last week she called and found 3 chicken hatchlings roaming around her back yard. One escaped under the fence and she went to the neighbors trying to find out who they belonged to. No one claimed them so now 2  live in a kiddy pool in her basement.  She is still worried about the 3rd one, it has not been back.  Last night she came in with a rabbit that she found out was living on someone’s front porch in a cardboard box with no food or water. Again, Marcy to the rescue. She brought it over and it was the tamest little rabbit and even played well with the dogs. A cute little white lop eared. Bless her heart she can't seem to turn anything away. The “up for adoption” list is now getting out of hand, but I just can't seem to make her understand that she can't save every animal she comes across. She needs several acres and a barn! Maybe someday. Anyway, here is what is available, if anyone knows of a good home, please pass it on.

1 large Iguana-

2 Birds- They are friends and it would be nice if they could stay together.

1 hamster

2 chicks

1 rabbit

I think that is it for now....until the next stray finds out where she lives.

Have a great day~

Happy Feet

I know I gave up on the diet thing, but I need to move around a little more. I am so sluggish that I am getting worried. They say exercise releases the endorphins and I need some bad. I read somewhere that you should walk at least ten thousand steps a day. That sounds like a lot! No wonder our feet hurt. So I strapped on my pedometer and I am going to see how many steps I take on an average day. I am not going to do to much out of the ordinary today,  so I can gage what a "normal" day is. So far, it is 11am, and I have traveled over 2500 steps. If I don't make it to 10,000 I am going to have to make an effort daily to exceed that amount and see if it helps me. It's a goal.... let's see if I can keep this one going.
I think if I can, I will need a pedicure more often :)  I like that idea.

Why do we need stuff?

I came across this article in the paper and thought it was something I have thought about recently, as have a lot of other people.  She put it into words so well and I wanted to share it with you.


http://www.freep.com/article/20100406/FEATURES01/4060364/1322/Author-part-of-a-growing-chorus-touting-a-less-materialistic-life

Have a great day!

Yummy in the Tummy

I am eating up these last few days and I am really looking forward to the 80 degree weather today. I feel like a squirrel scurrying around setting up the lawn furniture, bringing out my garden decorations, spring cleaning the yard. I guess I am trying to get it done because I know the weather won't last but I want to try to enjoy it while it’s here, it might be awhile before it comes back.  I sat on the deck yesterday, relaxed for a few minutes under the gazebo, went and picked up my motorcycle, rode my bicycle down to Sharkeys for dinner on the patio and had a glass of wine. WOW, I packed into one day some of my favorite things. Today I am going to add to that list... Bob Jo's opens for the season!!!! Maybe I will see you in line!