Do it scared

The best piece of advice someone has ever given me was ‘do it scared.”  An no matter if you’re scared, just go ahead and do it anyway because you might as well do it scared, so it will get done and you feel so much better if you step out of your comfort zone. – Sherri Shepherd

As we approach the end of our daughter's high school years.  We will be watching her and her classmates prepare for their new beginnings.  The quote above strikes me as appropriate.  It's been many years since I had to do what they are doing.  For us as a parents, my husband and I find it common too to be scared of what will happen when our children move off to school.  We all will grow out of the experience.  That is always a good thing.

Do you find "doing it scared" helps you?  What do you do to prepare yourself when you're scared?

Thanks for stopping by!  Happy Friday!  Enjoy your moments of doing it scared!

If see too much going on and you're afraid

Look up, there is light at the end of the tunnel -
don't be afraid to "do it scared"

Nothing more satisfying than stretching your comfort zone

When you go out of your comfort zone and it works there’s nothing more satisfying. – Kristen Wiig

Whenever I wonder if I can go on stretching my comfort zone, I like to look back at another time in my life where I thought I couldn't do it, but did.  I especially like to look at times where I remember growing as a result of it.  Doing so, doesn't necessarily take away the fatigue felt during the stretching of your comfort zone, but it does provide some reassurance that you can grow.

Last year at this time, I was assigned the task of closing a department and merging with another one.  The bulk of my teammates had already exited to the new department and I was charged with emptying the room. While I love a challenge, that one was different because it was an ending of something I truly enjoyed being part of.  I wasn't sure I wanted the new beginning, it was something I didn't know if I would enjoy, it was out of my comfort zone.

I did make it through and now when I look at the pictures, I am grateful that it helped me grow, learn new things and appreciate a new opportunity.  As I get older, the jumping into new challenges takes a bit longer.  Maybe it is the been-there-done-that thinking that is an obstacle?  Maybe it is just pure energy?  Who knows?  I guess I'll have to be a bit more diligent in reminding myself I can stretch out of my comfort zone and it is very satisfying!  How about you?  What do you do when your comfort zone is stretched?

Happy Tuesday - Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your comfort zone stretching moments!

One look back at my office - many happy moments here!

I made the final walk out the door!

I said goodbye to the old, and headed out to
stretch and grow with the new.  It can happen if you let it!
Happy Stretching!

A walk around the yard

I’m an introvert…I love being by myself, love being outdoors, love taking a long walk with my dogs and looking at the trees, flowers, the sky. – Audrey Hepburn

I think I would have liked spending time with Audrey Hepburn.  I appreciate the same things she did.  Taking a break out of life to do simple things, enjoy nature and simply be...now that's worth doing.  On being an introvert.  She was a public figure, but yet an introvert?  That fact I find interesting.   I'm not a public figure, but don't mind sharing thoughts in public.  Guess that makes me an introvert too?!

Enough on me...I spent some time observing on my brief walk with my dog outside this weekend.  The flowers are coming up from the ground, the trees are blooming, and the grass is growing.  I wonder if Audrey enjoyed the outside for the same reason I do.  There is so much potential in all the growth.  It is encouraging and refreshing to see.  A daily dose of it is a must!

Every year at this time our flowering crab trees start to bloom too.  They are predictable.  Generally around Mother's Day, but sometimes as late as Memorial Day.  Oh, by the way Happy Memorial Day - thank you to all the soldiers who have served and those serving.

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy taking time to enjoy nature!

Price of life

The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it. – Henry David Thoreau

How often do you sit back and reflect on how far you've come in your life?  Do you ever reflect on what you gave up or took on in order to grow?  There is a price you pay either way.  The price you pay results in the lifestyle you create for yourself.  When you give minimal effort to how you're doing something, your results will be much lost time and potential burn out.  Always ask yourself "is there an easier way to do this?"  If you give concentrated effort in a smaller chunk of time with easier steps, it is possible not to have to exchange your life for it.  Well...at least that's the way I'd like to think it works.  Are you buying it??

Happy Saturday - thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy the life you're paying yourself to create!

Don't shrivel up before you're done
blooming!  Keep nourishing your
life by spending your energy wisely!

Run your day

Either you run the day or the day runs you. – Jim Rohn

Well, doesn't that sound logical?  How about motivational at the least?  What do you do to take charge of your day instead of the day taking charge of you?  I think it does have to do with attitude.  There are those days where my to-do list is longer than humanly possible to complete.  Then there are those days with opportunities to investigate and play around with new things.  I love the days that just fly by - you know the ones where you wonder where did the day go?  I heard somewhere that those are the days where you are spending time in your "using your gifts/talent" zone.  The days where you feel tired, exhausted and not motivated, you're doing something you aren't gifted at.  I wonder...if you choose to use your gifts the majority of the day, you're probably running your day!

Happy Friday - thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy the day you're running!!

Time to take control of the to-do list!!

On connecting

"The Law of Connection - Effective leaders know that you first have to touch people's hearts before you ask them for a hand.  In other words, "You can't move people to action unless you first move them with emotion.  The heart comes before the head."" - John C. Maxwell

Last night marked yet another milestone in our lives.  We spent about 3 1/2 hours watching our last high schooler's award ceremony.  In all frankness, we weren't excited about going because of the length of the ceremony, especially after a long day.  In retrospect, it was a very nice evening and I am glad we went.

What I saw in the young adults, who are about to graduate, was a desire to continue learning.  For them to be recognized for their accomplishments by the teachers who were obviously very proud of them was an example of the Law of Connection.  The teachers and students who embrace connections with each other are the people movers of the present and the future.  The teachers who reach out to their students to connect with them are the ones who make a difference.  It isn't a one sided deal though.  The students who connect with their own inner strengths/desires to learn, along with applying their natural gifts, excel when they connect with the teacher who has reached out to connect with them as they share the curriculum.  What an awesome combination.

Happy Thursday - Kudos to the kids and teachers who connect!  Thanks for stopping by ~ enjoy the moments in life when you connect with your heart first!

Wishing the students and
teachers a bright future!

Take time

Acknowledge nature – take a walk or look out the window.  Write something every day.  Have a sensory experience of touching a flower, tree bark or a leaf.  Put aside some pampering time each day to do something special for yourself.  Smile at everyone you meet. – Lady of Light

Sunday, before the big storm that took out our power for 10 hours, I noticed a little bit of red in the green of the back yard.  Last fall I transplanted all of my mom's memory garden flowers to a different location.  I was hopeful that I transplanted at the right time so I would still have the flowers come this spring.  If you remember last year, I was so excited when I saw the first bloom on the bleeding heart plant.  (Oh dear Jackie, I hope I called it the right name this blog entry!)  The bloom came last year at the time I was beginning my camera discovery.  I tried desperately to get a good picture of the adorable little flower, with not a lot of luck.  

Well...it appears that the transplanting was a success and the flower survived.  I'm glad I took a walk around the yard to enjoy nature.  I look forward to sharing a smile or two today too!  Nature never ceases to amaze me.

Thanks for stopping by - Happy Tuesday!  Enjoy the moments in nature today!

An imperfectionism scarf

Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring. – Marilyn Monroe

Can you really tell if someone is a perfectionist or not?  If you ask my kids, they'd say I am.  If you ask me, I'd never admit to it...well, on second thought I would.  But...I'm far from it when you see me in real life.  I guess I would have a hard time being totally ridiculous, but there have been moments when I've been brave enough to do ridiculous things.  Like bid on a wine barrel and win it for my husband.  I'm sure that had nothing to do with the wine tasting before the bidding.  That's a whole different blog topic for another day!

Ah, yes, back to imperfectionism.  Today, I begin my quest for embracing imperfectionisms in life.  Look the word up, it isn't even a word.  I couldn't find a definition online.  So let's make one up and enjoy discovering moments of imperfections.  

Imperfectionism is the practice of or theory on embracing imperfections in life; the practice of being okay with not being perfect.

First moment - An imperfect scarf I made.  I've been brave enough to wear it a few times.  When I first made it and showed it to my daughter Sarah, she wasn't overly excited about it.  She said it was "too boring" and maybe tie dying it would help.  The perfectionist in me put it away for awhile because it wasn't perfect enough to wear.  Every time I would see it hanging perfectly in my closet next to the really perfect scarves, I would ponder wearing it with just the right outfit.  I wore it the last two weekends with jeans and a t-shirt, just because I didn't care if any one liked it or not.  It just seemed like it was the right scarf for a casual outfit.  Not perfect, but doable.  Since I made it, I could defend it and have a laugh or two at my own expense if anyone commented on it.  You know, to break out from being perfect.  Being a little ridiculous.

Yesterday, I was brave enough to wear it with my dear friends.  Thinking of course, they would love it, after all, that's what friends are for.  I had momentarily forgotten that I have two seamstresses as friends.  They would definitely notice the imperfections in my sewing techniques.  I think after seeing it "work" with my casual outfit and the practicality of it keeping me warm, they've come to see the imperfect scarf's benefits.

So how do you make an imperfect scarf?  Normally a person would use used t-shirts.  The t-shirt fabric rolls when cut better than a ribbed fabric.  The rolled effect gives a cool looking texture to the scarf if done right.  But I didn't have perfect enough t-shirts to use.  So I thought, why not just use tank tops instead?  Oh...by the way, my instructions below are not perfect, so hopefully pictures help give you the gist of how you make one.  Remember it is an imperfect scarf, so just have fun with it and be brave.  The shirts you're using are tossers anyhow!

Items needed:  3 used ribbed tank tops (you know the ones, they've shrunk in length, the underarm regions are no longer perfect (don't worry...you cut that part off anyhow, plus they are what you'd categorize as replaceable in your wearable section of the closet).  1 pair of scissors.  Pins to pin the scarf together before sewing.  A sewing machine.  Thread to compliment or match the color of tank tops you have.  I went very simple with white all around.  Sarah thought that maybe black thread would have been more fun and would have provided some interest to the scarf.  When I made it, I didn't want to show off the imperfect sewing, so white was a safe choice (dang...an imperfectionism moment missed!).

Step 1:  Determine the length you want.  3 shirts was good enough for me, plus that's all I had of the same color.  My finished scarf has three shirt sides on each 1/2 of the scarf when folded.
Step 2.  Cut the sections out of the shirts.  You'll trim off below the tank top arm pits, straight across leaving the shoulder tops, trim off all of the shirt sides, and 4 hems as throwaways.  Remember to leave 2 hems for the ends of the scarf.  They are perfectly sewn already, making the scarf partially perfect in the end.
Step 3.  Pick one of the shirts as your ends of the scarf.  The easiest way is to determine which shirt you like best, that will be your two ends.  Then you'll have the other two shirts separated the front one on each 1/2 of the scarf and the back of the shirt, one on each 1/2 of the scarf.  For each piece, you'll trim the sides off, the other 4 pieces you'll cut off the hems.  Leaving the hems on is too bulky and you want the rough edges for texture in the scarf after sewing the pieces together.  Plus it makes it easier to lay out the scarf during pinning.
Step 4.  Pin the pieces together.  This is the trickiest part of the project.  You have to think ahead so that when the scarf is sewn together, you'll get the effect you're looking for and the scarf will lay "semi-perfectly" when worn.  When you lay out the pieces, lay it out as though you're looking at it from the front of the scarf.
Step 5.  Sew the pieces together.  The ribbed fabric wasn't as easy as I thought it would be for sewing, but with some patience it worked.  It also didn't roll as much as I thought it would, i.e., not perfect.
Step 6.  Wear it.

Thanks for stopping by!

The pieces you cut off

The planning and pinning

Take time to pin perfectly

Lining up sides so it lays right
when worn.  Pin "backs" of fabric together.
I found laying out each half on the
table and working my way to the middle
worked for a pinning technique.

Sew pieces together

Wear it for fun, or warmth as I was doing!

Share your imperfections with those you love

Enjoy everyday moments of
imperfectionisms!

Making yourself bigger than your challenges

You don’t overcome challenges by making them smaller but by making yourself bigger. – John C. Maxwell

As I walked to the mailbox yesterday, I noticed the persistent little "Johnny Jump-Ups" popping up in the rocks along the driveway.  Every year, I spend time moving them to where I think they should be and every year, they pop up where I don't think they should be.  They seem to overcome great challenges and even grow larger than the plants that don't have the obstacles.  How is that?  I'm not sure.  They can't change the size of the rocks they are growing up through.  Nature seems to give them just the right amount of tenacity to overcome the obstacle.

I wonder what it would look like if I had no rocks there, no obstacles for them to grow through.  Would it be full of flowers or would they seed themselves somewhere else?  Maybe they like the challenges.  Maybe the heat of the rocks helps them grow?   What do you do when challenges come about in your life?  Do you wait for someone to replant you or do you make yourself bigger and face the challenges at hand?

Happy Saturday - thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy the challenging moments in life!

They grow as fast as the weeds...I think I
remember hearing that they really are weeds themselves?

Look how strong and healthy this one
is right next to the concrete, very little dirt.

Right in the middle of big rocks, still blooming.

Here's the safe zone, along with the hostas.

Oh boy...have I got work to do to move all of
these tenacious little "weeds".  

Remember the moments

We do not remember days, we remember moments. – Cesare Pavese

My moments at the computer lately have been limited and non-productive.  The days can pass by quickly.  Thankfully they are mixed with fun moments in life.  Like this past Mother's day.  Looking back at the pictures remind me of how much fun the moments were that day.  That's what life is all about!

Happy Thursday - thanks for stopping by!  May you treasure all your moments!

Love this picture!

I love my daughters!

I love my mother-in-law too!

Thinking outside of fixed patterns

All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability.  The truth is outside of all fixed patterns. – Bruce Lee

If you're feeling stuck or in need of a change, the answer is outside of your fixed patterns.  Yesterday, I felt stuck.  My previous way of handling data simply wouldn't work.  After losing all the data due to the crashed hard drive, I've come to realize that might not be the best way to manage data afterall.  Now I have to think differently.  For 11 years, that's how I managed the data.  It worked for me, I always knew everything was right where I put it...now it's not there.  Enough of the "anxiety" attacks, time to move on and find a new pattern for dealing with the situation.

Happy Tuesday - thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy the sunshine and warmth today.  Mother Nature sure knows how to shake up the fixed patterns in weather.  Yesterday I needed a coat.  Today, I'll need a fan to stay cool!  Adaptability and pliability is the answer!

Try again tomorrow

Courage doesn’t always roar.  Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” – Mary Anne Radmacher

I don't know about you, but today was a MONDAY!  I definitely like the quote above.  I will try again tomorrow.  Hopefully it will be a better day.  My day started with a hard drive crash, topped with a very unfriendly "customer service" person at the computer store.  It felt like a day of uphill battles.

Courage...courage...courage is needed at the end of this day.  Thankfully, there is always tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you had a great day!  Enjoy the moments where you give yourself permission to regroup and try again tomorrow!

On motherhood

I love my mother as the trees love water and sunshine – she helps me grow, prosper, and reach great heights. – Adabella Radici

Today is Mother's Day.   I'm happy to say I'm a mother.  I have two beautiful and brave young ladies in my life.  I'm proud to call them my daughters.  They make being a mom "easy" and rewarding beyond words.  Watching them grow has been a daily reward for me.  Their drive to always do their best is who they are.  Their sense of adventure and exploration has always been there.

A little bit of water, in the form of puddles to splash in, dish soap water  as they "helped" in the kitchen and running through sprinklers in the yard.  All that water, mixed with lots of sunshine in the yard when they were little must have paid off!  I think for any mom who sits back and watches their kids as they pass on to each new stage in life, there isn't a greater reward than seeing them grow, prosper and reach new heights.

Happy Mother's Day - thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your the moments of the day!  I love you Rachel & Sarah!  Thanks for blessing my life!

Creativity was never lacking!

A desire to cook on their own, and
of course, their own choices
in fashion statements!

Always smiling!  

I'm so thankful for the moments watching them
grow and reach new heights!

The sky

The sky is the daily bread of the eyes. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

The sky is always fascinating to me.  I love how it changes and evolves.  I love how it stays the same too.  How often do you just look up and the sky and watch it?  Does your mind wander or relax?  Are you too busy to take the time?  Today's sky has gone from blue, to white with clouds, to snow, and now sleet and rain.  The blue is by far my favorite.  But...the cloudy, gloomy, makes me sleepy which isn't too bad...I don't feel guilty taking a nap.

Take time to enjoy the view.  Happy Saturday!  Thanks for stopping by!

Simple photography practice

What’s really important is to simplify.  The work of most photographers would be improved immensely if they could do one thing; get rid of the extraneous.  If you strive for simplicity, you are more likely to reach the viewer. – William Albert Allard

Looking around at my desk this morning, one would think that I'm not a fan of simplicity.  More like a fan of chaos!  I know it will just take a bit of focused time on my desk and it will be back to a simple pile.  The chaos wouldn't be something fun to photograph unless I was going for a before and after shot.

I do enjoy taking pictures of simple things though.  I like trying to focus and simplify the subject in the picture.  Last night I was enjoying looking out at the rain while waiting for Copper to finish his business outside.  Taking pictures of a dog doing their business would be the simple thing to do, but not really interesting to me.  On second thought...he does do this cute little tripod stance which might be interesting to capture on film some day.

Instead, I looked down at the yard ornaments placed about since the turn of spring.  I liked the lighting of the afternoon rain and the subtle shadows. The green of the grass, the water splashing about, and the clouds in the sky.  All added to the beauty and complexity of the scene.   Focus, focus, focus.  So I chose one, and took a few pictures from different perspectives.  Nothing earth shattering, just a simple topic to take pictures of and practice different techniques.  It's all about the practice for me...

Happy Friday!  Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your moments of simplicity today.