Friday Faves...4.30.21

Whew!  It's been a hard week around here. Anyone else glad to see it end?  Gran decided to not sleep a few nights ago and I pulled my first all-nighter in a long time.  I was pretty cranky the next day--even though Brian let me take a several hour nap.  If you have ever had newborns in your house, you will understand my cranky-ness.  That feeling of being so overwhelmedly tired is something you never forget.  

BUT, she slept last night so I got more than 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep making the world look MUCH brighter today.  

Do you get enough sleep?  Any tricks you have when you have a lack of it (btw--I don't do any kind of caffeine--the horror!)?  Help a sister out with your tips.  

Something I'm learning here at the farm is that there is ALWAYS good around us.  Sometimes we have to look a little harder, but beauty is definitely there.  While taking pics of the same things in the yard every day, I have found myself thinking, "If I could just get over to the other side of the farm, I would have so many more photo-worthy sights." (I guess "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" is still alive and well here in OK).  But then I stop and REALLY look around me and amazingly enough, I usually find more than one thing of beauty.  Kinda like life, huh?  

So, here are the things that have brought me joy in the midst of the chaos here this week:

I have a Logo!

A few months ago, I got the idea in my head that I needed a logo.  Now, mind you, I don't have a business or even thoughts on what kind of business I would want, but I still wanted a logo.  So I commissioned Emma at Jackson Studios.

Y'all!  She was sooooo patient with me.  I thought I was a lot more low maintenance than I turned out to be, but she continued to work and perfect it, changing colors, adding pics, etc.  It turned out totally different than I first thought I wanted, but I am in love.  If you are thinking of re-branding or need a facelift on your current graphic design, contact Emma.  I think she's the best!!! (btw--if you are in the Phoenix area, she also takes amazing photos)

So, now I gotta figure out what to use it for...got any ideas for me?  

Subscription Boxes

I have gotten hooked on trying all these subscription boxes.  And Y'ALL!  It's not just beauty products anymore--there is a box for EVERYTHING!!!  Like to fish?  There's a box with different lures each month.  Interested in social justice?  There are several free trade boxes out there.  Want barn wood to create crafts?  There's even a box for that!  For Christmas, I got each of the girls one for their animals.  Hope gets the Stable Box every month and Caroline receives Kitnip.  

My recent favorites are the Chicken Bawk--which comes with a t-shirt each month--and Creative Indulgence--a brand new one this month.  Look at how beautifully she packaged everything!  (And you can admire Granny's lovely lace cafe curtains in the background)

I usually subscribe for a few months and then cancel and find another.  Subscription boxes are for me what LOL Surprise Dolls are for an 8 year old.  I love the anticipation of opening them up and seeing what's in them--and I'm not usually a fan of surprises.

I keep thinking I want to start a subscription box business.  

But I have no product to put in it.  

And no creativity to come up with something new that hasn't already been done. 

So for now, I'll just enjoy the creativity of others.  *SIGH* 

What boxes do you subscribe to?  Do you have a fave?

Sitting outside with the Chickens

I know it doesn't sound peaceful, but sitting outside at night, watching the chickens hunt for bugs is my current happy place.  It's not loud, except for the occasional rustle of leaves when a few are fighting over the same space.  There's no stress--it's just sitting and BEING instead of doing.  Sometimes I read.  Sometimes I Marco Polo my friends.  Sometimes I take pics.  But I always walk back in the house with a weight lifted off my shoulders.  I never considered myself an outdoorsy kind of girl--I like my AC and ceiling fans a little too much--but I really love getting outside for a half hour or more every evening--no matter the weather.  

What do you do to unwind?  How do you work it into your day?

We've had a ton of rain lately, so the farm is looking very green--another of my faves!  Here are a few #farmcharm pics from around here this week:

your token peaceful farm scene--complete with barn and #maynameiswillow

beautiful sunrise this morning

the sun going down last night

look how artsy I am

Hunter is always in motion (this was right before he jumped on me to give me kisses)

I obviously don't think there is a such thing as too many sunsets

the sky was on fire

yummy strawberry cheesecake cookies (I'm not a fan of cheesecake, but I sure do love these cookies!)

caught Flynn spying on me as I pulled the trash bin back in

one of these days I'm going to invest in a camera that shoots long distances so I can capture these sweet cardinals better before they fly off

 

Royal Reads 4.28.21...Dream Big by Bob Goff

If you've heard of Bob Goff, you probably think "Love Does"--his first book that is just plain delightful.  His second book "Everybody Always" is very similar in scope to the first.  They are books you could read over and over again because the chapters are short and they leave you feeling inspired and just plain happy.  

Last summer, I picked up his newest book "Dream Big."  I knew it was time for me to get out of the  complacent, yet unfulfilling place I was in and needed a boost.  What's ironic is that when I was not quite halfway through the book, I lost my job.  Talk about perfect timing!

This book is a bit different than Bob's others.  At the end of every chapter, there are questions to ask yourself.  My recommendation is to grab a notebook and write down your answers.  As I was thinking about posting "Dream Big" this week, I pulled my spiral out and started reading my answers.  It was amazing to see some of my dreams which have already come to life!  Of course, there are things I wrote that are no longer my dreams and others that are still there, untouched, but it was encouraging to see it all on paper.

I'm a sucker for a good "Who did God create you to be" kind of book.  The subtitle to this one says, "Know what you want, why you want it and what you're going to do about it."  And it's not just a tag line on the cover--it really did deliver the questions that inspired me to evaluate my current reality vs. my dreams.  

Here are a couple of my favorite lines:

"You'll know you are moving toward beautiful ambitions in your live if you find yourself wanting beautiful things for the people around you.  Your greatest sense of fulfillment will come in the service of others, not yourself...You don't need to choose between ambitions that help others or inspire you.  Find things that do both at the same time."

"Just because it's an opportunity doesn't mean it's the right one.  Just because it's a job you've had in the past doesn't mean it's the job for your future."

"Don't be who you were; be who you're becoming."

"The bad jobs can get us ready for the better ones and the better ones can prepare us for the best ones.  Don't lament your bad ones; just don't stay in them.  Our legacy will be the amount of love and hope and engagement we release in the world, our self-awareness and other-awareness, and our willingness to adopt and adapt new approaches as we evolve."

Typically I read these types of books and find myself discontent and a bit self-depreciating afterward.  That was not the case this time.  In a time when I should have felt really down on myself (being let go from my job was a huge blow to my ego), I actually felt the opposite when I finished "Dream Big."  I could see the gifts I have and bring to the table every day--not only in my work, but in my friendships and family.  I was able to embrace the truth about what makes me unique in a way I had never done before.  

Needless to say, I loved this book and may make it one I read every year or so--just to help me evaluate where I am and where I want to be in life.  

Have you read it?  If so, what stuck out to YOU in it?  Have you made any course corrections as a result of it?  

 

Friday Faves 4.23.21

I've been really tired this week and can't figure out why.  I have slept SO much, but can't seem to get more than a little bit at a time.  I don't know if it's the crazy weather, getting my 2nd Covid vaccine or just laziness.  We are gearing up for a pretty big storm here tonight so at least the weather will be conducive to my current state!

Here are some of my faves from this week:

Mustard Seed Journals

Y'all!  I just love these journals.  A friend told me about them last year and I have since ordered several for friends.  Not only are they fun to customize for people I love, but the quality is great AND she ships them fast. If you are looking to be more consistent in your prayer life, a journal is a fun way to do it.  She also has sermon note journals and a few journey through the Bible ones.  It brings me joy to support small businesses like this.  Y'all go give Lisa some love at Mustard Seed Journals.

Fresh Eggs

I can't tell you how happy it makes me to look at this basket full of eggs.  I missed them when the Royal Chicks were in Texas.  Brian would occasionally bring some up, but now, I can literally walk outside and collect my breakfast.  Since moving to the farm--or maybe since Covid started--I have been craving fresh. Fresh veggies, fresh fruit, fresh eggs, fresh meat.  I have found myself making things more from scratch than buying a box or mix.  While it's true I'm home all day and have more time to do things like that, I also know that I feel better when I know where my food comes from.  Also, it goes back to supporting the small business.  Local farms are fewer and farther between.  If I had any shade of a green thumb, I would totally be a farmer, but I have to rely on Brian and Granny because my thumbs are pretty black.  I'm kinda like hospice for plants--I care for them before they meet Jesus.  

Anyway, do you shop local for your eggs and produce?  Where's your favorite place to get your food? Do you have a favorite Farmer's Market or store you shop?

Cookies in a Cake dish

It's silly, and just dirties up another dish, but I love putting baked goods onto Gran's cake plate.  It's just so much more inviting than a Tupperware container or pan with foil over it.  I have been on a baking kick lately (as the scale will tell you) and am always dreaming up something pretty to make and put in the dish.   This weekend it's going to be some strawberry cookies I found a recipe for.  Hope was here last weekend, so I made a double batch of her favorite oatmeal cookies (my mother in law's recipe) so there was plenty of dough for her to munch on too (I mean, let's face it...part of the joy of cookies is eating the dough).  Do you have a pretty dish for your cookies?  Show me a pic!

Firepits

I am a sucker for a good campfire.  I love everything about it--the warmth, the colored flames, and most of all--the smell.  We have been known to rust our out portable fire pits from the amount of use they get.  A few years ago, Brian just bought a ring from Tractor Supply and it works great here at the farm.  The other night, Brian decided to burn a bunch of brush and bark and it was heavenly.  He was listening to an audio book and I had my kindle.  It was peaceful (did I mention Caroline was in the house with Granny so it was just me and Brian?) I grabbed the makings for a smore and had a great time.  Have you ever substituted Peeps for marshmallows?  My friends Karen and Cindy let me in on the secret several years ago on one of our camping trips and Y'all!  I can't go back.  I buy extra peeps at Easter and freeze them so I have them any time of year on my smores!  If you haven't tried it, you gotta do it and let me know what you think.  Just thinking about the carmelized sugar is making me crave one right now!

I got Published!

I know I have posted about this a few times and I am sincerely not doing it to brag.  I'm just so dang proud.  I have said for years I want to write a book, but just haven't taken the steps to do it.  I blog sporadically on an outdated site because technology is hard for me and I don't want to start over.  Since moving here to the farm, I have had a thought about writing a book about the seasons of life and including life with someone suffering with dementia.  But I'm not an expert and really don't want to be.  It's such a hard thing to even describe because it changes from day to day and sometimes even hour to hour.  

So I've dragged my feet.  Thankfully, I have this writing group that allows me to join in 2xs a month with them.  I'm not consistent--things get crazy sometimes with Granny and I miss it--but every time I zoom with them, I leave encouraged.  These people are crazy talented and you never know what they will bring to the table.  

I shared this poem with them a few months ago and they suggested I get it published.  Someone mentioned The Perennial Gen--an online magazine for people in midlife.  I emailed the poem to my family to make sure they were ok with me sharing it and other things like it with the world.  They were all encouraging, but I still sat on it until last week.  I wrote a silly bio and sent it in, fully expecting not to hear back from them anytime soon.  Just a few days later, the editor emailed me to say they were including it--that it took her breath away and even though they don't really publish poetry, they would do it for this piece.  You won't be surprised that I cried.  

Since then, I have had more thoughts on a children's series I want to do--have even written rough drafts to 2 of the stories.  I feel like one of those home cooks on Chopped or Food network Star.  I've never had any formal training to write anything--let alone kids books.  Who am I to throw myself in the ring with people who have studied it and actually know what they are doing?  But, y'all.  This is how Lovepacs started.  With just an idea and a fast-beating heart.  

So here I go again.  We'll see how it goes!  

If you haven't read my poem (which, btw, I did not mean to be a poem--it just flowed out that way), here is the link: When She Sleeps She Forgets

I'll leave you with some of my favorite pics from around the farm this week:

I'm a sucker for an orange sky

Granny and I ventured out to the doctor this week (I think she looks like a cute little bird in her mask)

YAY for strawberries!

This cat, y'all!  I swear I'm not a cat person!

Storm and Breeze are still in Texas, but I love this pic of them!

I had no clue this bush would have such pretty blooms (I think there might be a blog post in that)

The Gruesome Twosome.  They are only sitting still because I have treats in my hand.

The irises started opening up this week.

Some see a weed; some see a wish.  Which do you see?

New life springing up from the ground around the dead bushes.

Hope came for the weekend and helped haul brush

Royal Reads--The Two Lives of Lydia Bird 4.21.21

One thing you will learn about me is that I love a book that makes me feel.  The Two Lives of Lydia Bird surely did that!  If you have ever lost a loved one, you will relate to Lydia in a big way.  You will cheer for her when she makes progress and cry with her when she grieves.  

One thing that struck me about this book is the support system Lydia had in place--without intentionally planting it.  She had co-workers, family and friends who did not allow her to mourn on her own and truly cared for her.  This touched me as much as Lydia's journey.  

Here's the gist:

Lydia has been with Freddie forever and when he dies, she makes up a world where he is still alive.  While it sounds like this would be heartbreaking, there is a lot of hope mixed in as well.  I won't give away the ending, but I hope you end up loving Lydia as much as I did!

Have you read it?  What did you think?

PS Congrats to Becky Canode who won a copy of "The Language of Flowers" last week.  Stay tuned for more giveaways!  

All Things New

Back in October, we had a terrible ice storm.  In fact, there are many homes around us who are still cleaning up the debris left by it.  Because it happened in the fall, the trees still had their leaves and many ended up dying--they couldn't withstand the weight of the ice.

As I was walking around the front yard this morning, I noticed that the azaleas and hydrangeas were starting to bud and bloom again.  Looking at the bushes a few weeks ago, we thought they were dead and we would have to start from scratch again.  My mother in law chopped away on Easter weekend and found some green at the bottom.  Brian worked a on them later in the week and found more.  The new growth is a huge contrast to the old.  Most of it is next to the old and not in it the current bushes.  So, sadly, we are going to have to cut out most of the old.  

I say sadly because those bushes were tall and full...the new is short and sparse.  

We could continue to leave the old because it's bigger and it's what has been there for years.  But if we do, we will lose the new growth and just have tall, brown bushes. If we cut out the old, the house will look bare for the next few years until the new growth expands and fills in the gaps left by the old.  I wish this were an overnight process, but it's not (*SIGH*).  It will take several seasons and a lot of hard work before the flower bed looks lush and inviting. 

I can't help but think of how that same concept translates to us.  We weather some pretty bad storms and seldom do we come out unchanged.  In fact, parts of us die and never grow again.  We can continue to water and care for those dead parts, hoping they will miraculously come back to life. We can wallow in the fact they are not blooming.  We can mourn the flowers we used to have.

Or we can cultivate the new parts--the fresh things that God is teaching us and doing in us and bringing forward for the world to enjoy-the parts that bring a new beauty and joy--different than the old and maybe even more beautiful. in their time.

It doesn't mean we can't still grieve the old.  If we didn't grieve that part, then it probably didn't matter much.  There's something cathartic about a good cry over what we used to have.  But in the lamenting, we can also smile at the bittersweet shoots popping out of us and reaching toward the Son.  The new blooms God is bringing forth.

"See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you know perceive it?  I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."

Isaiah 43:19

  

These are a Few of My Favorite Things...April 16, 2021

It has rained a lot this week.  We needed it, but it has also made the days pretty dreary.  And the ground very muddy.  And all the animals (and people) stir crazy.  

But, even though I didn't get to snap as many outdoor pics, I've still managed to find some good things.  Here are a few of my faves from this week:

Ranch to Table

I discovered a new show last Saturday and I am here for all of it!  It's called Ranch to Table and follows the life of a rancher--similar to The Pioneer Woman.  The difference is this lady--Elizabeth Poett--makes her meals from the fresh produce they cultivate on her ranch which has been in her family for 7 generations--since 1837!  I am all about that these days--growing what we need to sustain us.  While I could never have lived back in the Little House on the Prairie days (I like air conditioning and flip flops way too much) I do love the idea of being self-sustaining as much as possible.   The show will be on the Magnolia Network--leave it to Chip and Jo to find this gem.  Looks like I will have to subscribe to Discovery Plus so I can watch more. Here's the link to her website: Ranch To Table

New Swing

Last fall I participated in a secret sister gift exchange.  I've heard all the lectures about how this doesn't work or is illegal, yada, yada, yada.  BUT, it was SUCH a life-giving thing to me!  I received some of the best gifts--one of which was a macrame swing.  Brian finally had time to hang it this week for me and I don't want to ever get out of it!  Thankfully, I had a few days to enjoy it before the rain. This is one of the things I've been missing here on the farm.  Hammocks are great, but I would prefer to sit up and read.  I can't wait for the rain to stop so I can get back to swingin.

Key Lime Pie

The hint of warmer weather makes me crave all things fruit.  I tried my hand this week at some mini key lime pies and they did not disappoint.  I used Joanna Gaines' recipe in her Magnolia Table cookbook.  I didn't have access to key limes, so I zested twice as much of them to go into the recipe (I mean, come on, is there really such a thing as too much lime?).  I also cheated and used store bought graham cracker crusts.  I've never made a pie shell from scratch and these sufficed.  Jo's recipe calls for cinnamon graham crackers for the crust--which intrigues me--so I have no doubt I will try my hand at it at some point.  Mine are topped with Caroline's homemade whipped cream (don't ask me how she makes it--I just beg her to do it until she gets tired of me) and more lime zest.  YUM!  This will definitely go into my back pocket as a go-to for entertaining in the future.

Prom

I know I spammed you with a bunch of pics on my social media feed already, but seriously, I am still SO happy Caroline got to go to prom.  Yes, it's only her junior year, but who knows what next year will hold.  One of the things this pandemic and living with someone with dementia has taught me is to grab hold of every moment and squeeze the joy out of it right now.  We have no idea what tomorrow brings so I choose to celebrate where I can, when I can, how I can.  

Anyway, prom dress shopping went much better than I thought it would.  I am not the most patient clothing shopper (understatement of the year).  Caroline found the most gorgeous dress and get this--it was the very first one she tried on!  Yes, we still had to try a few others to make sure it was "The One," but  there was no doubt.  She reminded me of Cinderella.  And her date!  He matched her perfectly and the corsage was gorgeous (and had some sparkle that she approved)!  They looked like a dream together! (Cue "Once Upon a Dream" from Cinderella)

Since we are still in the midst of Covid, they were required to wear a mask.  I would have found the glitteriest, most sequined one available, but Caroline is a little more subtle and wanted something simple.  I threw it out on social media and my friend Melanie who owns Common Roots Mercantile texted me and said they would do it.  She never saw the dress in person, but created a mask that could not have matched more perfectly!  CRM does all kinds of custom and personalized things--gift baskets, grazing boxes and all the fun things for weddings and events--check them out and support their amazing small business!  You can even follow them on Facebook and Instagram to see all their latest creations!

What favorite things have you discovered lately?  Inquiring minds want to know!

Despite the rain, I was able to capture a few #farmcharm pics this week:

They just can't stop digging

Hauling limbs to the brush pile--don't I look like a professional?

I planted some lavender in Granny's old washtub.  

Granny loves tending to her strawberry patch

Chicken love

The view from my swing

 

Another prom pic, because, why not?

How often do you get to pose with your 102 yr old Granny in your prom dress?

Yoga Flynn