lucky me, lucky you

It's a stormy day here, today.

Big dark clouds tumbled in and settled above our house, or so it seems.

I had the local noon news on while I vacuumed ants off the kitchen floor. Again. Ew.

Anyway, so much of the news was dedicated to the Mega Million lottery.

Do you play? I've bought just one ticket about 2 years ago and didn't even know how many numbers to choose.

One of my favorite memories of my grandma was whenever my grandpa would come home with a lotto ticket she would have him read the numbers aloud and she would always say, "oh those are GOOD numbers". And then would always be surprised when they did not win. I love that spirit.

Of course, the thought of winning so much money has to get a person wondering how would life change with that kind of windfall. Would your life change drastically? Or would it change just a little? Would it mean more security in your life or less? Would you purchase more or give more? Could you make those changes without winning great deals of money? What is holding you back?

Honestly, I believe my life wouldn't change dramatically. That alone makes me feel like I've won a great prize already.

Tell me what you think. I'd love to know.


love and light
Deborah

the post that seems like I am writing about trees and flowers....

Sure enough, last week's pear tree looks different today. In full bloom.

But, those blooms won't last. They aren't meant to. By design the flowers will wilt and drop. New green leaves will grow in their place. There is something next. There is always something next. We need not worry about it. It will happen on it's own. With or without our worry. Changes will happen. Growing things will continue to grow. And when we lean into it, even we will grow and stretch and bloom again.

Am I even thinking about trees anymore? ;)


love and light
Deborah

present beauty

The unseasonably warm and sunshiny weather has coaxed the flowers and trees to behave like it is later in the season.

Shocks of yellow daffodils are popping up, as if to say, "look at me, it is Spring time".

I had to get this picture today. Tomorrow, I think, it will look entirely different. The pear trees are just ready to burst into bloom.

I'm feeling similarly. Have you felt that? That feeling like you are just ready to bloom? To make a big change? To transform?

Have you or are you feeling like something wonderful is just around the corner? That you are preparing for a beautiful tomorrow?

What if you recognized the beauty right there in the bud? What if....?


love and light
Deborah

for good measure

What a beautiful morning. How are you? I'm good.
I am also working toward a new health goal. Eating well and moving everyday in March, as well as a measurable goal of a 6 pound weight loss. That's the goal. It is do-able,

If you've read along for the past year and a half or so you know I lost a significant amount of weight in late 2009 and 2010 (about 30 pounds).
The second part of my story is, I gained most of that weight back. But, February was a positive month--I reached my monthly goal of losing 8 pounds.

I am going back to what worked well for me before and changing what didn't work. I don't need to reinvent the wheel, right?

What does that mean? That means that I have scrutinized my every moment of the day.

Getting up near the same time each morning works for me. It is not like sleeping in on the weekends happen easily, anyway. Somehow, most mornings I wake just before the alarm goes off. That makes me think that I am aligned with my body clock, waking naturally instead of a
startle? I'll take it.

So what else is working for me? Starting the day without sugar or sweeteners. For me, that means I have given up morning coffee. I know. I just cannot stomach it without cream and sugar or the equivalent. So, I'm steeping green tea each morning. Sometimes, it is with lemon, other times with nectarine and ginger or even blueberry and pomegranate. I am liking it.

Seems easy enough. What part of your morning routine is working really well for you, I wonder? What could be better?

light and love
Deborah

Cupcakes and Pie

We celebrated Big Red's birthday this week, in fact we are still celebrating.
Yesterday, Red had meetings all over town and I found myself alone with both a half dozen gourmet cupcakes AND a Michigan blueberry crumb pie. Took all the willpower I had to avoid the kitchen. But, I did it.
I am definitely a sugar-chaser. If I have a little sugar in the morning, I will chase it all the live long day.

Last night, I had just half a cupcake. A Just Baked Snowball cupcake. I am still thinking about it. A rich devil's food cake topped with a marshmallowy creamy frosting and shaved coconut. Oh my. I ate every last crumb on the plate. I could have stuck that plate back in the cabinets without anyone the wiser. (I didn't)

This weekend we'll celebrate some more with my big family--with a dinner out, a homemade dessert and a ping-pong tournament.

How do you celebrate with the important people in your life?

love and light and cupcakes
Deborah

pssst....is anyone here?

pssst....anyone?

I am returning to this blog after many many months.
Perhaps, it is a diary now. A very personal diary.

My last post was about struggling with Blogger. This post could be about leaving Blogger only to come back be be even more stumped. That's life, huh?

Summer came and went--with vacations near and far. School started in September and the boys are doing well. Winter has be sunny and unseasonably warm and pretty sn*w free. Blah blah blah.

If you happen to be reading along, thanks. It is nice to have your company.


light and love
deborah

i swear i have stuff to tell you

i have all kinds of stuff to tell you and pictures to show you....but blogger is giving me attitude.

no editing. no copying and pasting. all photos exactly where i don't want them.

i'm in no mood for it. i have other stuff to think (read worry) about. b is driving with an instructor--right this moment.

i'm thinking about buying a driver's ed car--so that i can have a passenger brake and steering option. i'm mostly kidding. mostly.

or can i just pimp my ride? my 10 year old mini-van? that would be sweet, no? :)

alright, that's all i have until i arm-wrestle blogger into submission. i'll try again later. i have a story about baseball and poorly behaved adults. i have a story about what i'm reading, i have a story about setting boundaries and i have a story about snakes. oh, and i am sharing recipes for summer salads.


love and light and attitude
deborah