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do you read gala darling? if you don't, you should. she's a fashion blogger cut from a totally different cloth. she is also one of the most unique and positive writers i've read in a long while. today she posted 100 ways to be a love letter to the universe. it's a fun list to read through and think about.
when camping on lost lake, oliver fashioned a fishing pole from a stick, a long blade of grass, and a leaf. he didn't catch any fish but he did pull out a lovely flower petal just for me.
amy
to make room for new goodies i've put lots of things on sale in my etsy shop. check it out!
amy
wrap your troubles in dreams by emily martin
i have a lot to say about happiness but first i'm going to start with middle school science. way back in (i think) eighth grade, my teacher began a lesson on energy. he explained to us that there was no "cold", only a lack of heat. he further explained the concept using refrigerators and air conditioning as examples. for some reason, it blew my mind. it really stuck with me. this is very similar to how i look at happiness.
i really, truly believe we are all happy. it's kind of like the start of the school year when the teacher tells everyone that they have an a+ but just have to work to keep it. life really sucks someimes, things happen, we get frustrated, overwhelmed, angry...but those are all feelings that cloud our happiness. an example i always think of is this: if my kids do something really awful or hurtful, it doesn't make me unhappy. i could never look at them that way. it may hurt my feelings and make me frustrated. those behaviors are just standing in the way of my awareness of being happy.
i am not a polyanna nor am i a very touchy-feely person. i am, however, acutely aware of the things that start sending me off in a direction i don't care to go and equally aware of what i can do to clear my head. i don't need to be laughing and elated to realize and appreciate my happiness. satisfaction, pride, comfort, love, clarity, presence...those are just being. that's happiness.
here are a few of my rules...
i do not compare myself or my family with another. ever. this is a hard one to stick to. i just always remind myself that what other people are doing or saying holds absolutely no bearing on my family or life.
if i am slipping into a nasty state of being, i assess my basic needs. am i tired? have i been drinking too much wine? have i been getting enough activity? should i just scarlet o'hara these thoughts and save them for the morning?
if you think you can, you can (and vice versa). i always assume i can get it done- if i can get it started.
a lot of people are asking me if i'm sad about both kids starting school (i.e., my babies growing up). i'm not going to lie, i get pretty nostalgic looking at old pictures but i love having kids i can joke with and travel with and bike with. we are having more fun now than ever. so that's how i'd like to look at everything. "yeah, that was great, but this has the potential to be the best!"
appreciate where i'm at in my life. it may not be exactly where i planned, but come to think of it, i don't think i even made a plan! so that may just be my key. realizing that i really can't plan anything with any certainty and that's just fine.
obvious? sure they are and that's the best part. it really is all the little things that make us aware and appreciative of our every day. what are all your little things? what are your triggers? what brings you back into awareness? if you figure those out, you'll be that much better off.
thanks for listening. i'm done for now,
i consider myself a pretty creative and crafty person. though sometimes "crafty" carries with it an outdated or undesirable connotation. i really shy away from making things just for the sake of making something. i like adding my own touch to plain, store-bought items, or creating functional but meaningful objects.
i was so excited when my lovely friend sent out a message inviting me to a brand-new "club". it'll be a little like a book club or a knitting bee but will also include some great gossip and cocktails. sounds perfect, huh? her desire is to give handmade gifts at the holidays without stressing herself out right before christmas. and so a brilliant plan was hatched.
i plan to bring along plenty of embroidery, some bookmaking, and maybe some light sewing. i can't wait for our inaugural meeting!
the dapper, albeit unfinished fox, is from sublime stitching. the shelves are holding my newly organized vintage ephemera. the book (and molly wizenberg's blog, orangette) is totally unrelated but incredibly readable. check it out.
amy
no, make that slow pictures. when i went to girl scout camp, i brought along my parents' 110 camera and snapped some pretty great pictures. it took a while to see them though. actually, until right before my little darling was born, we usually had to wait for our pictures.
it's a little bit sad that these days either you have instant (digital) images or ones that cost an absolute fortune per photo. if you're a parent, you know that the first thing out of your child's mouth after a particularly funny shoot is, "can i see the pictures?"
so it made me smile when i saw how much satisfaction taking "slow" pictures was for sophia. she knows that film and developing is expensive and she took great interest and care in finding the most beautiful or inspiring shots.
we haven't had any of the film developed, but it really doesn't matter. don't get me wrong, it will be fun to see what we caught, but the real treat was in the hunt.
amy
there were several instances today when i thought to myself, "seriously, is anyone looking at this? who is this lady? i am awesome!" so what did i do that sent me seeking high fives? here's what a superhuman, invincible woman does...
1. i cleaned the bathroom. oh yeah. i did that!
2. my kids actually bathed in said bathroom. yep, i'm a good mom.
3. i fed them three solid meals and each contained a fresh fruit or vegetable (pizza sauce counts as a vegetable, right?).
4. we spent lots of time at the park. hooray fresh air!
5. i made it to yoga.
6. we set up a living room movie theatre and enjoyed popcorn and diary of a wimpy kid in the comfort of our jammies and sleeping bags.
hear me roar!
and you know what? i'm really not being facetious. it was a very satisfying day. how about yours?
amy
i have a love/hate relationship with school lunches. i go through phases. i get a jolt of inspiration, i enjoy the process, then it quickly becomes tedious. now i will be packing two luches everyday. don't get me wrong, i'm thrilled that my kids have no interest in school fare, but i am definitely looking forward to streamlining our lunching. i am also going to try to cut out waste both in food and packaging.
i've tried bentos like these...
but either they're handwash only, or too spacious, or the tabs break off under the pressure of little hands...not to mention they're pricey. so i broke down and ordered a couple of goodbyn bentos for the kids.
they are small and dishwasher safe and there's only one lid (smiles) to deal with. they are not quite as inexpensive as i would like but hopefully they'll hold up.
there are so many blogs and resources out there devoted to bento lunches so i shouldn't suffer from a lack of inspiration (leading to my kids' suffering through boring lunches).
laptop lunches has tons of menu ideas for all seasons.
lunch in a box is another amazing resource and really gets down to the basics (like how to fill your empty gaps so the food doesn't slop around).
i also love to scroll through the images on flickr for ideas, though i've never ventured anything as creative or artistic as most out there.
i plan to put a little lunch kit together for easy prep. i'll follow up and share what's in my toolbox. until then, sayonara.
amy
yesterday was farm aid! it was our first and it was fantastic.
keith and i would be perfectly happy living in a conversion van, following our favorite bands across the country. but, you know...kids. i loved the atmosphere, the message, the artists, the crowd.
when was the last time you purchased an apple at a concert consession stand?! i also indulged in a yummy veggie burger and organic fries.
i swooned! neil young was another standout. his set was beautiful.
and this gentleman? lukas nelson? he was dynamite! i told keith he's definitely my new music crush.
buy local,
amy
after an incredibly long absence and a wonderful, nature-filled, whirlwind vacation, i think i'm ready to come back. with a million and a half blogs out there packed full of gorgeous young ladies and brilliant ideas, i struggled with an obvious question: what do i have to offer that stands out or is useful and unique? the answer i came up with is "who cares?". blogging is a way for me to reflect and it keeps me tuned into the finer details of my everyday. it makes me aware of how few pictures i take of my family and projects and kicks me in the butt creatively. so i'm ready to come back and hopefully, a couple readers out there are ready for a regular lady to share her perfectly regular, little bit crazy, increasingly creative, sometimes wild life.
so i'm back!
nice to meet you,
amy
