happy summer morning...

i just love this photo.  happy almost weekend.

after you have done all you can do... accept it

i think that's just how we have to approach every day. some days we have the capacity, physically, emotionally, chronologically, to achieve so much more than other days....some days doing our best just means getting out of bed, getting dressed and keeping a smile on our faces...right? we all have those kinds of days, and we should just pat ourselves on the back for doing our best.....
my dad always told me it's not so much about the end result as it is to know that you did your very
best.  in spite of what we sometimes think most of the time we are all doing the best we can.

"doing your best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment."

                                                                                                                        oprah winfrey
        

one friend at a time...

each day, because of my job i get to meet at least one new person.  through these meetings i always
learn something about myself.  they give me the chance to grow and learn how to  better relate to others. i get so much inspiration from meeting people and developing relationships. it makes me see that community, conversations and loving people are the only things that really matter.  they are the foundation of everything else.   there are  a thousand stories behind everyones eyes, you can learn something fascinating and life-changing from every single person you meet...

last night i fell asleep to rain...

actually i think i fell asleep to rain the night before,  and the night before that too.  sometimes when your head is filled with so many thoughts and you feel heavy in your bones it's nice to escape.  my bedside nightstand looks like a "book cake" towers of magazines, cook books, text books, novels. all haphazardly displayed and on the verge of collapse. in the evening i love to pour through them.  i voraciously read through cook books and magazines for ideas.   i just need more time to experiment.  it seems somehow in the winter months i cook a lot more, but i suppose in the summer you spend more time outside. i really  enjoy my time  in the late evening when i can bury myself in all the books i have at an arms length and dream all the dreams i want.  a few recent favorites are     #1 a cook book titled  "stir"  the first few pages will pull you right in. it's a great story and great recipes.   # 2 barefoot, by elin hilderbrand,   a great beach read, a touching story of three women struggling with three different  life altering events.  #3 flea market magazine, my new passion. #4 my life in france, julia child, i love it, i can  taste the food she describes, i want to make my way back to france.  i need to walk on the cobblestone streets and eat croissants at small tables on the corner of tiny streets and wash it down with strong coffee.   #5 the sharper your knife, the less you cry,  by kathleen flinn, i haven't started this yet but the title intrigued me.

happy friday and happy reading!!

love sent, xo

record speed...

i feel like that is how my life is moving.  every time i turn around it's almost friday.
i guess i keep busy and it makes the time go quickly.  but... somedays i just want to
slow everything down.  earlier this week i promised someone i would get better at
blogging more often.  the blog was going to be a daily documentation of the thoughts
i am thinking,  but i can't always capture them all.  or shall i say i can't always share them
all either.  but it's good writting practice and it's never a waste of time, with every sentence

you write you learn something.   i learn something every  day here and it makes me more
aware of how the pages of my life are unfolding.  sometimes even insignificant entries hold
the best gems.  being here inspires me to be better, to make my home better, to appreciate things
more.  with the click of a mouse i can be transported to just about anywhere, find something out
about any subject,  half of my meals are from googling an ingredient.  so i won't beat myself
up for not being here more often, i'll just remind myself that i am more mindful when i am here,
more mindful of the positive impact it has on me.  like they say it's all about the journey. 

love sent, xo

love...

weekend rewind...

bruins at fenway park... doesn't get much better than that... oh and a win for the red sox. 

happy happy father's day!!  xo

on this father's day...

                       share your gratitude with someone who has supported your life journey.


    god touched him and then he slept...

the above photograph is of my dad doing what he loved to do. cross words puzzles.
it's one of my favorite photos of him.  he was such a quiet, family man.  he didn't need much. 
his family was all he ever needed. on our first father's day without him i am reminded how very
lucky we were to be blessed with such a wonderful dad.
you are greatly missed by us all -  but you will live forever in our hearts♥

i love you dad.

he was always teaching us something...

happy weekend...

my ongoing goal in life is to be able to spot the extraordinary in the ordinary.
inspiration is everywhere - if you look.
i try to conquer a few creative projects each week, it balances my time spent working in an office under fluorescent lights. i never want to feel like i am just a corporate drone. it's so boring.
although i have to say boring would not be the word i would describe my office job as.  there are other words but i'll leave that to your imagination.  a few weeks ago i found some old windows that i was sure i  could find some decorative use for..  m has an artistic hand so she found this quote and voila a new piece of art work for the kitchen...

for this weekend i wish you a ton of creative possibilities. they are all in front of you, okay here's my little list of suggestions:

try cooking a new dish. it's a practical and easy way to get creative and it's fun. i love to cook.
just look under food network, tv you could be there all day finding all sorts of great things to whip up.

need to clean the house?  it's sort of a necessary evil. usually happens on saturday.
why not try an eco friendly technique, lemons and vinegar are serious, then add a couple drops of bergamot essential oil to your water takes cleaning to a whole new level. your house will be relaxed and happy.
bergamot is an excellent cleaner and the house will smell like southern italy!
not that i have been to southern italy...  i am just saying.

learn something! you don't need to take an expensive class (although if you have the means, please go ahead), google something you have been meaning to learn and you'll be surprised how much free information, tutorials, etc. may be on your subject.

sell some excess 'stuff',  have a yard sale.  everyone always has excess stuff.
then you can buy more stuff.

these ideas are easy and don't really cost anything. i am heading out to an antique market this morning
in wilton nh.  it's open once a month with a theme. this month's theme  is dreamy whites...
i have been redoing everything around here lately... dreamy whites...  i am sure it will give me more
ideas to dream about....

here is a picture of my new "summer" mantle...

love sent, xo

last night the bruins won the stanley cup...

for the first time in 39 years.  i remember vividly the win 39 years ago.  last night brought back so many memories.  i am sure with father's day this weekend i was already feeling meloncoly.  my dad was a huge bruins fan,  a never give up fan. even during their worse years he always watched and cheered them on.  he would have loved last night, he would have been so happy.  i know tho that he was happy,  and he was watching that game  - just from another place in the universe.  i stayed on the phone with my mom
as they played the last part of the game,  she wanted to share the moment with someone who knew
exactly how my dad would have felt.  during our conversation she said there was terrible lightning
down in florida outside her window.  mr. n  told her it was just dad snapping pictures of the victory.
honestly,  that made her so happy.  it made me happy too.  the feelings and tears have a way of
sneaking up on you sometimes.  grief is like that,  it can tap you on the shoulder and remind you
it's still there.  it reminds us to live in the moment, for this moment is all that we are guaranteed.

love sent, xo

wish upon a raindrop...

have you ever had the feeling that you are trapped in a time warp where the days literally resemble one another and you are in a state of suspended motion where someone has hit the pause button on the change of seasons? where the picture outside your window never changes and that picture is grey and drizzly and, admittedly, a lush green but little else in the way of color?  i need sun.  i am tired of trying to make my way around garden centers stepping over puddles with water dripping on my head.  while we are fortunate that our weather complaints are mild (especially in light of others who have been faced with forceful and dangerous weather events), those of us who have endured a long, snowy winter are feeling the lack of energy and mood-lifting sun and vitamin D that normally comes with this time of year. it has been over a month of cool/cold, dreary, uninspiring weather. i am literally craving the warmth of the sun and all the happy things that come with it.

and I will keep on wishing. you could visit this farm and it will definitely bring some sunshine into your day i can guarantee it.   they have the sweetest little country store where you will, without a doubt, find something that you need to bring home, even if it's just foccacia bread and farm milk. 
how cute is this idea?  i am really into chippy paint these days.

and when it's rainy and dreary and you can't stay outside all day -  go inside and eat and drink  - which is always top on my list of most fun things to do.

honestly, sometimes i think my point and shoot camera takes better pictures than my slr.

love sent, xoxo

promise of summer...

this week has shown the first taste of real sunshine, lighter evenings, and bright mornings.  despite a few rain clouds and downpours i have faith that the future holds warm sunny days filled with happy hearts and lemonade.   summer is here and that means more picnics.  to me there is nothing more fun than to grab

a big soft blanket, a good summer read, some specially packaged food and your beverage of choice - that could be homemade lemonade or a nice bottle of wine.  easy peasy if you plan ahead. (planning ahead is always a challenge for me)  then at the end of the day go home grab your ready made basket and head to a calm spot -  a big grassy field, a nearby lake, a beach,  whichever place you feel  the best at.  because i am fussy i don't like plastic i stick to smaller glass dishes and real cutlery, with of course wine glasses or mason jars to drink from.  don't forget the potted candles.   after you enjoy your food you can devour pages from your latest summer read, then wrap yourself up in the big blanket and check out the stars. these little moments they are life, enjoy every one.

love sent, xo

never give up your dreams....

wishing you an amazing and adventurous kind of day...

thought...

dreamy weekend...

happy happy anniversary...

we've learned to take the laughter with the tears...

seasons we have learned to share apart...

somehow in my heart i always kept you near...

you sacrificed believed in me and you stood strong...

thank yo xo

thanks for a fantastic weekend...

i needed something reassuring today...

"nothing passes, everything stays with you. everything makes it's mark"  shelagh delaney

love sent, xxoo

this says it all today...

love sent, xo

office redo...

so a while ago i mentioned redoing the office...  :)   i have been looking

for the right desk/table for a while.  and last weekend i found it at an antique store and i love it.  it's now in the room but with that addition i had to  readjust everything else in the room.  so now i am on a mission to reorganize it all.  this will take another year.  but i love this idea for extra storage.....

Source: crazydomestic.com via Dee on Pinterest

then... i found some great locker type storage at pottery barn for $1600.  however $1600 is not
in my budget for storage...but when i want something there has to be another alternative right? 
so i thought up a possible plan to make doors on the already arranged storage that is in there.
i can think up these ideas i just can't implement them on my own.  so, my handyman came up with
an amazing duplicate which is so much like the pottery barn ones i can't believe it and it cost about

$30....  + the already owned storage. score !   they came out really well!

and of course an old shutter to clip inspiration on.

love sent, xo