Reinvented In Seattle

Ariel Gets Hitched

2012-03-16T07:27:00.000-07:00

After planning Snow White's wedding I couldn't leave out the other princesses out! Especially not my childhood favorite Ariel.

The Dress:

The Look:

Ariel was a rebel who did things here way, but there was a bit of traditional girl buried deep inside. When it comes to wedding attire why should she be any different? Of course she would pay homage to her roots with with pearls, but not don't expect her to wear her mother's pearl necklace.

The Wedding:

It's a beach wedding of course. Nothing over the top but with tons of flowers.

The Reception:

Does his at all remind you of a blue lagoon?

The Honeymoon:

Ever the collector where would the girl who has everything go for her honeymoon? She would go see the ultimate collection of all, the Smithsonian in D.C. A week of touring the Museum of Natural History, The Air and Space Museum, etc...

If you could plan any princesses wedding which one would it be?
Want to see more? Check out the rest of Ariel's wedding on my pinterest or take a peep at Snow White's Wedding.

Reader Appreciation Month: Increasing Traffic

2012-03-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

We all need a bit of blog loving in our lives. One of the best ways to increase traffic is through sponsorship, but ad space can get expensive. Thankfully some lovely blogs offer free ad swaps to help grow your reader base.
ABCDE
A Day In The Life Of An Average Girl
A Gypsy's Journal
Donda Lee's
From The Guest Room
It's The Journey
Keep Calm And Carry On
Larissa Bree
Mama Marchand's Nest
My Beautiful, Crazy Life
My Life As A Teacup
Oh...This Is Awkward
Olive Observer
Sew Beastly
The Enchanted Pixie
Vintage Wanna bee
Whispering Sweet Nothings
Do you know any blogs that offer ad swaps?
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Who Said It Isn't Easy Being Green?

2012-03-14T07:00:00.000-07:00

Between Pinterest, Etsy, and my Google Reader it's a wonder that I sleep. Seriously I love searching through everything to find the hidden gems. In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day this month's treasury features not only green colored items, but green in the eco friendly, recycled, upcycled, organic, or reused sort of way. Oh and if you are looking for any reused and upcycled bags check out my shop.

Karma 365

2012-03-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

A bit late with my kindness list this week, but better late than never. Usually each week I try to plan what I'm going to do, but this week went a bit differently tons of opportunities for compassion popped up everywhere.
March 5. Was really nice while complaining. Sounds strange to say that complaining is a nice thing to do, but I've worked in customer service a long time and let me say that when people complain they are usually out for blood. And even if you aren't involved they want yours. A bus left me stranded on the side of the road as it flew past me. There is much more to the story that I wont get to but just know that I was hopping mad. When I called to complain I could hear the contempt in the man's voice and could feel that he was ready for a fight. Instead of making his day harder I told him the story, thanked him, and wished him a great day. I could tell he was surprised.
March 6. Sent cards. First I would like to saw mailing cards randomly is difficult. I can't tell you when the last time I had a phone book in my hand and couldn't find one to get addresses. After searching online for some apartment listings I ended up sending three cards full of positive quotes to two random address and to one of my favorite online shops.
March 7. Adopted the neighbors fish. My neighbors are moving. There fish are not. They didn't know what to do with them and were considering flushing them. No part of it was able to hear this and the second Bug saw them she was head over heels in love. My kindness extends to fish.
March 8. Donated to Autism Awareness. A table has been set up outside my local grocery shop trying to get donations. I slipped a few bucks into the collection dish.
March 9. Gave food to a wounded Vet. He rides the bus all the time. I think that he is suffering from PSD. He talks to everyone. He talks about his family, the war, and how he washes windows for a living. Most people ignore him, but I usually listen. On the way home from Costco R and I had a hot dog that Bug wouldn't eat so we gave it to him. He was beyond grateful.

March10. Art bombed a bus stop. Last year I did some gorilla art that had an effect that I didn't expect. People ran over to get photos with it and people in the restaurant applauded my friend and I as we walked by. Didn't expect that at all, but it did bring joy. It wasn't much but I hung hearts prayer flag style at the bus stop. They sure made me happy if no one else.
March 11. Gave directions to the bank. Usually people pounding on ATM are not the kind of people that I wait in line behind. But when the woman turned around and said "I hit my withdrawal limit. Do you know of any other AMT around here? I really need that money." Luckily last week I happened to find a hidden one not to far away and directed here there.
Do you have any suggestion on act of kindness that I could do?

My Secret

2012-03-12T08:00:00.009-07:00

This is something that I never really thought that I would talk about. Last month I debated even writing about this, but since I decided to take part of Secret Week at After Nine To Five (one of my newest Blog Crushes) it was time to dish out one of my darkest secrets. Please know that this is something very personal to me. Although I respect everyones rights to say what they believe any negative posts will be deleted.

It's no secret that I started this blog when I was suffering from postpartum depression. When Bug was born in August 2009 I was in a bad place in my life and the baby blues just wouldn't go away. It was a very long time that I kept it to myself. My family knew that things weren't right and pretty much went by the theory if we ignore it the issue doesn't exist and when the subject came up there was a lot of screaming and telling me that I "just needed to get over it."

What the secret is is that February 15th of this year was the one year anniversary of the last time I tried to commit suicide. Sorry, I'm crying as I write this and hope that it come out somewhat coherent. If it wasn't for R stepping up and realizing that things needed to change and how things were handled in the past weren't working. It was making matters worse. It hit him what was happening to me wasn't a grab for attention or me being unhappy in my life and just acting out. He got it and sat with me all day and told me that this wasn't something that I needed to handle on my own anymore.

This blog came out of my depression and trying to find an outlet. I've met some amazing people here who became my support system. I began to focus on writing about being happy, what that takes and likes. Soon I began to believe what I was writing. This blog keep me going in my darkest moments.

Since then I've talked a bit about suicide and have become a support system to some of my friends who were struggling with depression and talked some other friends on how to be there for someone who was fighting there own battles.

That's my secret.

Do you have a secret that you are keeping?

Morning Meditation: Life

2012-03-11T00:30:00.000-08:00

There is a saying that when life gives you lemons make lemonade. Life is hard. It's hard for everyone. No one is spared from its hardships and horrible events that can occur. Falling into the the mentality of "just trying to get ahead" is an easy rut that to which we may fall prey. Instead of letting life happen stop and take survey of everything around you. This is what you have now what are you going to do with it?
Life isn't something that happens to you. It's something you create. When you get knocked down not only find a way to get back up, but figure out how to come back stronger than before.
As you go through today remind yourself that life is a series of choices. What choices are you going to make to improve your life today ?
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Happiness # 215 : Henna

2012-03-10T00:30:00.000-08:00

When I was younger I loved henna tattoos. That was before Gwen Stefani and Madonna made them fashionable. People would make fun of me, but I didn't care. There was something about the beautiful swirly, flower patterns and the deep brown coloring that would keep me happy all day.

Believe it or not henna isn't that hard to do. All you need is the actual henna which can be bought online. Before applying it wash the hand with lemon juice and wipe dry. Than apply. As long as you have a steady hand and an love to be creative you have nothing to fear. When I applied it if I wanted the patterns to look like the photos above I would look up some photos first to get an ideas for patterns.

Beware it takes hours for the henna to dry! No lie. The more extensive the pattern the less mobility you will have of your hands once it is applied so make sure that you have nothing to do for the rest of the day.

Have you ever had a henna tattoo?

The Tao of Blogging: The Perfect Post

2012-03-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

Writing a blog post is like cooking a small fish. Do not over do it.

The Tao of Blogging is based off of real quotes from the Te Tao Ching and quotes of Lao Tzu however since no one blogged in those days the quotes were changed to be suited for the blogger and include the blogger uniform.

Bloggy Love

2012-03-08T14:08:00.000-08:00

Hello friends! I'm both excited and nervous about this post today. As I mentioned about a million time on Twitter, Facebook, and all over this blog it's reader appreciation month (and I have an awesome Shabby Apple giveaway for later). So when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do for my readers since I can't show up at all of your doors with flowers and doughnuts (so would if I could) instead I'm going to try to help you get your blogs and shops out there. That's why I'm so excited because this post is for you to get some exposure for your blog and find some awesome new ones.

What I'm nervous about is that this is my first blog hop and I'm hoping that the duct tape and pixie dust that holds most of the things together on this blog together. Fingers crossed, here goes. Link up your blog, your friends blog, or any that you love below. Please visit at least one of the other blogs on the list and spread the bloggy love!

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6 Things To Stop Worrying About.

2012-03-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

When it comes to worrying my grandmother has turned it into an art form. An Olympic sport if you will. She is the Queen of finding a situation and rolling it over and over in her head for hours until she makes herself sick. Even when there is nothing to worry about she can find something to get her stomach in a knot about. There are some things in life that are okay to worry about but than there are other things they just keep us up all night. Right now I'm giving you permission to stop worrying about these 6 things.
What others think. What does it matter? Some people are going to just hate you for no reason and sometimes it is just them and not you. Don't waste your time trying to get those people to love you. Focus on those who really matter in your life. Show them just what an amazing person you are.
If you are good enough. Chances are if you are wondering if you are good enough to be with another person you need to find someone else to be with because there is no reason to feel inferior to anyone. Seriously, no one is better than anyone else. Regardless of what they may try to get other to think. If you are wondering if you are good enough for your job stop and ask for feedback from someone you respect and trust. The fact the matter is you are who you are and that is good enough.
About making a mistake. Here's the straight up deal. We all make mistakes. If you look at any of my posts they are littered with grammatical errors and what not, but I keep going. Mistakes are a part of the human existence. They are life's annoying little teachers. Don't hide from mistakes, embrace them, learn from them and move on.
Worrying about what will happen. It's those little voices that tell us if we break away from our routine something bad will happen. 'I want to quit my job but what if I don't find what I'm looking for?' 'I want to ask him out but what if he doesn't like me?' 'I want to travel long term but what about my job, money, house...' There are any number of things to worry about that can be used as road blocks to stop us from getting where we want to go. Sometimes the risks do out weight the rewards but how will you know until you try? If a situation is making you miserable it's time to face those what if's and take it on. If it is something that you want, but are afraid to ask for it do you really want to look back on your life and ask what if?
What to wear. Damit wear what you want. Wear what you want and not those 8" inch heels just because they are in fashion. What what makes you happy and you feel like a goddess in. And no, you don't look fat.
Things that are out of our control. You can't control if it will rain tomorrow or if someone will call you. There are some situations that are just out of our control and no amount of worrying will change it. What you can do is change how you look at a situation. Instead of getting sick with worry focus your mind on other things. When the situation arises focus on how to handle it instead of wallowing in worry.
Now it's your turn. What would you like to giver permission for others to stop worrying about?
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Just Call Me James Dean

2012-03-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

Did you know that I have a real dark side? A devil may care attitude of live? Friends I skipped out on a bill at a restaurant this week! Before I get the finger of shame wagging on me I got the waitresses permission to do so. There goes that rebel without a cause image you have of me.
Sadly I went to a restaurant that I wanted to go to for a few years now. R took me out for my birthday. We sat down in a nearly empty restaurant, ordered and waited. The appetizer came and went. The table next to us came and went and so did the table next to them. Bug was swinging from the rafters. We were told the pork chops were holding the service up. A hour later R suggested we leave and I asked for the check. Yeah, I know but I couldn't just leave. The waitress said sure and than mouthed for us to just walk out on the bill. Hmmm....
Now I'm feeling a bit like a thief and a bit like a bad ass college student.
Have you ever skipped out on a check? What do you do when you get bad service?
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Karma 365

2012-03-05T08:00:00.000-08:00

Friends I've decided incorporate my Karma 365 project into my weekly going ons around here, because the post I did for February came off a bit impersonal and way too long. Plus I felt that I needed to do some explaining about the motives behind these acts and reasonings why I did them had to be explained in greater detail for some. So here is the kindness I tried to spread this week.

March 1: Sent out a life line. A dear friend from college has hit a point that scares me a bit. Today I reached out to him and let him know that I was here to talk and gave him the info for a hotline if needed.

March 2: When I was a kid I was a Girl Scout. My time there taught me how to be a good friend, a leader, an honest person, and someone who would stand up for others. This year a smear campaign has gone around trying to persuade not to buy any of these cookies. It had an opposite effect on me and I have upped my purchases. These cookies teach girls life skills, goal setting, marketing, communication skills, and business ethics. All that from a cookie? Bring them on. Today I came home with a box from every girl who asked me to buy one and I'll continue to do so as long as I can. There goes my diet.

March 3: Made a care package for a friend. March hasn't turned out to be a great month for my friends. One had to move back to her parents home. She was torn up and didn't want to go. I made a care package for her on her drive to Los Angeles. At least it put a smile on her face.

Another friend had some issues with apartment moving and was in need of a place to stay and had no where to go. I offered my couch.

March 4: Took flowers to H.E. Dagmo Kusho. Two weeks ago I found out that my guru's wife loves flowers. That was sitting in my mind the last couple of weeks. Not too long ago I read her biography about her life in Tibet and her escape through the Himalayas with a 5 year old, a toddler, and a baby. I can barley get my toddler down the street, but through the Himalayas?! That gets my respect and then some. Since reading her book I wanted to give her something. This week I found a nice potted plant and took it to her. It also work out that it was her birthday so extra points for me!

What acts of kindness did you do this week?
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Morning Meditation: Freedom

2012-03-04T08:30:00.000-08:00

"Hi"

"Oh, you scared me!"

"Sorry, are you okay?"

"Yeah, just stuck in my own head."

Our mind is such a powerful thing. It has the ability to create things of great beauty, but it can also create a prison. It reminds us of our past failures, the fights we had, and the negativity that can enter of lives. The more we think about these things the more they grow and morph into something more. Our mind can create a prison that can keep us trapped in the bad memories. Only by breaking free from the cycle of negativity that we allow ourselves to fall into can we find freedom and peace.

As you go through your day allow focus on what you are doing. If a negative thought enters your mind tell it not today. Today I am happy. Today I am free and push it out of your mind.

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#210 -214 : Of 14,000 Things That Make Me Happy

2012-03-03T00:30:00.000-08:00

It's time to grow the Happiness list. It's by far one of my favorite things to do around here. Come on who doesn't want to think about things that make them happy? Ready to see what I have on the list this time?

Bento boxes. Amazing bento boxes. Delicious food compartmentalized on a plate in orderly fashion? yes please!

Glitter. Who doesn't need more happy sparkly things?

Pancakes, delicious pancakes.

Ladies who wear glues. So elegant.

Sprinkles, preferably colorful ones, but I will take chocolate ones just the same.

What makes you happy?

The Cherry On Top

2012-03-02T00:00:00.000-08:00

My daughter's birthday this year was crazy. We had three parties (one on her birthday for the three of us, one for family, and one for kids) next year it's one or nothing. I was running around in circles baking. For the kids birthday party I decided the I needed an easy cake to make and something that wasn't messy as cutting pieces of a cake and handing them out. Instead I went the route of these beauties: Cherry cupcakes.

What you'll need:

2 cups white sugar
1 (3 ounce) package cherry flavored jell-o mix
1 cup butter, softened
4 eggs
2 3/4 flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
cherries (1 for each cupcake)

Start by preheating the oven to 350.

Mix together the butter and sugar adding in the jell-o mix until well mixed.

Next beat in the eggs one at a time.

In a separate bowl combine the flour and baking soda. Than stir it into the butter sugar mix alternating with the milk.

Finally add in the vanilla.

Bake for 25 minutes or until you can stick a toothpick in and it comes out dry.

As for the icing mix together 2 cups confectioner's sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 3 tablespoons milk. If the icing is too thick for your taste add more milk to thin it out.

Add icing to the cupcake and add the cherry on top.

Reader Appreciation Month. I Love You Guys!

2012-03-01T06:30:00.000-08:00

Eeeeeekkkkkkkkk!!!!! I'm as giddy as a school girl with a new pair of glittery as shoes. Why? Oh well I'll get to the in a minute, but first let's talk about kindness. Yes, this blog has been overflowing with good deeds since the New Year, but just the other day I started thinking about what random acts of kindness should I do in March? That's when I also thought to myself "Samantha you have some totally awesome readers and I mean rocking readers so what can you do for them?" That's when a light bulb went off in my head. March is love to my readers month.
Check back each Thursday in March and I have some awesome things set up for you guys to promote your shops, blogs, twitter, and anything else that you want to get out there. Excited? I am. Boy I am.
Oh, but there is more. More you ask? Could there be more? Oh yes. When planning what I was going to do this month I opened my e-mail and found a message from Shabby Apple offering to host a give away! Yes, so at the end of this month I'll be giving away an amazing piece of jewelry courtesy of Shabby Apple. How do you like those apples?
If you are interested in getting in on some giveaway action please contact me. myreinventedlife (at) yahoo (dot) com.
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February Acts Of Kindness

2012-02-29T00:30:00.000-08:00

This month was a whirlwind of gooey do gooderness. After January's lack luster accomplishments in doing one random act of kindness I had some making up to do. Many times this month I questioned myself as to what was a act of kindness and what wasn't. Ultiminatly it boiled down to if it would make me smile than I would do it. So what brought a smile to me this month and hopefully a few others? 1. Gave someone really lost directions.2. Took doughnuts to some construction workers who got really confused.
3. Sent my best friend a gift just because.
4. Let someone on the bus use my phone.
5. Cheered up a three year old while at Zumba.
6. Paid it forward.
7. Left pennies at the play area at the for kids to find.

8. Put notes "You are loved" on cars.9. Donated books.
10. Made cookies for R's boss.
11. Picked up book stands at the monastery.
12. Baked cookies for R.
13. Made sure to remind my facebook friends that Valentine's day was coming and to get their loved one something.
14. Massaged R to help get past cigarette cravings.
15. Put coins in the pay phone that someone is always using.

16. Left flowers on cars.
17. Passed out Valentine's to kids in the apartment.
18. Left positive messages on the shelves in Jo Ann's Fabric.
19. Stuck coins in kids library books with the message "to feed your piggy bank."
20. Left a letter for my neighbor about the amazing smells that come from their apartment when they are cooking.
21. Dropped 160 items off at Goodwill
22. Helped set up the indoor play area.
23. Took doughnuts to the firehouse.
24. Left 35% tip for amazing waitress.
25. Wrote a letter to management about amazing waitress.
26. Cleaned up merchandise while standing in line at Molly Moon.
27. Paid for someone to get on the ferry.

28. Left coupons in Thriftway.
29. Sorted handouts at monastery.
30. Started offering free ad space. Check it out if you are looking to connect with some of my awesome readers.
31. Dropped food off at a food bank.
32. Handed sticker out at the playground.
33. Held door for a woman with arms full of small children.
34. Gave away a Starbucks gift card to a random person.
35. Did the dishes for R.
36. Let a car out ahead of me.
37. Spread some much needed love to sad friends on Facebook.
38. Hung up ads around town for free compliments.
39. Gave copies of lectures that I attended and taped to friends who couldn't show. (To any SOPA, FBI, homeland security, or just plain nosey agents reading this I had permission to do this. Please don't lock me up for spreading some love.)
40. Posted inspirational quotes on the bus.
41. Phew. Looking at that list is making me tired. 42. Poetry bombed around town.
Have you performed any acts of kindness this month? Oh and I'm still taking suggestions on what to do next month if anyone have any ideas.

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DIY: How To Not Be An Ass

2012-02-28T04:30:00.000-08:00

Where ever you go bring love and kindness with you. Don't make exceptions for it, but do anything that wouldn't promote it, and for no reason should you ever leave it at home. Everywhere we go these are the two things that we need to carry with us.
It can be difficult. We all have a terrible boss, an asshole relative, or wander past any number of miserable people during the day who want to knock you down a notch. So what's a person to do?
Don't be an ass. Really it can be that simple. Well, maybe for some that in itself will take an entire lifetime to change, but the fact of the matter is there are enough asses in this world that another doesn't need to be added to the mix. Need proof? Ride the bus sometime or drive down the road. No one needs to hear a snaky comment or get that jab asses seem to be so good at. No one needs someone to pop up out of the blue to tell them how ugly/fat/stupid/insert assey comment here they are. Try to be kind. Say the itch to be an ass pops up instead try saying something kind.
Get over the childhood issues. Cry. See a therapist. Have a break down. The sad fact is that even the most put together person has tons of suffering in their life. It's an unfortunate part of the human experience. The difference between the person who is an asshole and the one who has is "flawless" is how they handle themselves. It's okay to be broken that's part of healing. What's not okay is when the someone starts living in their pain, looking for every reason to relive their personal nightmare, and take it out on the world around them. So cry, scream, be broken, but don't take it out on all the others who are working through there own pain.
Bring only love and kindness where ever you go. If someone does something nice for you make sure that they know how appreciative you are. Tweet about it, send them flowers, write a letter to their boss. It would make anyone feel great. Do whatever you can to keep that feeling going around because eventually it will find its way back.
Bring only love and kindness where ever you go even if you are dealing with an ass. Once my boss decided that she needed to tear me a new one. She waited until the morning meeting and ripped me a new one in front of customers and my staff. Than she in front of everyone call corporate on me. What did I do? Nothing. It was actually something she messed up and I had the proof. The issue was that she was stuck in own drama and bullshit that she needed someone else to suffer too. I wanted to get back at her. A part of me wanted to scream back. I didn't, after all where would that get me? Seriously it would only make matters worse. Instead I stood there, did what I needed to do to defuse the situation, and wished that an ACME anvil would drop on her head Looney Tunes style . It didn't. Nope, I was left with a mess to clean up.
Showing kindness in a difficult situation isn't about being a push over. Nobody needs to put up with horrible behavior. I took the high road and handle the situation like an adult. I kept calm and went to the right people to clear my name since it meant possibly loosing my job. Since I didn't allow her to engage me in the type of reaction that she wanted from me my hands were clean. Oh she did cause me a few headaches in the future, but not once did she get the response that she wanted and ended up moving on to someone else to cause drama. Unfortunately the person she moved onto took the bait and they both got fired.
The moral is we are all human beings who have our own battles to fight. We all have our insecurities, our pasts, and fears that we have to deal with. That is reason enough that we all need to bring the kindness.
What do you do to be kind to asses?
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Samantha And The Chocolate Factory

2012-02-27T07:05:00.001-08:00

"Hi, I'm Charlie and welcome to the chocolate factory...tour." Yes that's what the tour guide said. He smiled about it as everyone caught on. This almost made up for the fact that I couldn't get my hand on a pink dress circa I Love Lucy.
Over the past three years I have walked by Theo chocolate factory and have sampled all of their chocolates...several times... On some evening the smell of chocolate was so strong that it fill the filled the streets but what was beyond the those doors that went into the factory was beyond me. Chocolate pools? Maybe. Umpaloompas? Possibly. Crazy TV stars stuffing chocolate into her mouth as if rolled down the conveyer belt at impossible speeds? I hope so.
Finally I made into the magical factory and wasn't disappointed. And yes I stuffed myself ridiculously full of chocolate.

Awesome things that I learned:
Theo's was the first chocolate maker to be certified organic and fair trade and they only made their first bar in 2006.
Their machines were purchased overseas so some of them aren't labeled in English and date back to the 30's.
Although the most cacao is grown in Africa it isn't native to the continent. The Spanish brought it there.
When the fruit is picked it goes through a fermentation process so that the beans used to make the chocolate can be pulled out.
The USDA only requires dark chocolate to have 35% cacao in it and milk chocolate to have 30% cacao.
Have you ever been on a tour of a candy factory? What's your favorite kind of chocolate? I'm a milk chocolate girl myself.

Happiness # 209: Giving Stuff Away

2012-02-25T00:30:00.000-08:00

My house is a den of hoarding insanity. Don't go call one of those hoarding shows on me, but I'm finding that there is a ton of things that I have and don't need. Time to downsize. Bye, bye books and textbooks. You will do well for students who need you. Adios baby clothing and toys. My pregnant friends will be happy to have you. Sayonara canned food and unused pastas. The food bank is in desperate need to donations. And for the rest of you get ready to go to Goodwill to make someone else happy.
As hard is it to part with some of my things I've finally come to realize that most items have an emotional attachment for me and nothing else. Other things I keep because I think that I will eventually need them/ will have time to fix it someday/ will use it in the future to make some awesome with. Ha. If only I could hoard time because it is one thing that I always need. As I come to realize that these are things that I fantasize for myself to do but never actually will they make their way into one of my piles to donate.
Clearing out my home brings me joy. Donating to those who need it or will love it better than I can brings me greater joy. Taking the pressure of one more project that's laying around off my shoulders brings a massive sense of relief. Who knew that letting go of things could bring so many kinds of happiness.
Do you find it hard to let go of your things?
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The Tao Of Blogging

2012-02-24T00:30:00.000-08:00

A blogger has no fixed plan and is not intent on settling.

How To Be Happy When You Have No Reason To Be

2012-02-23T00:00:00.000-08:00

As much as I try to stand on my soapbox and preach the good word (it's happiness if you are wondering ;) ) there are times when happiness isn't in the cards. Shit happens. Trust me when I found out that my grandmother was fighting cancer I didn't bounce for joy. When I got laid off I wasn't doing cartwheels. In those moments there wasn't much joy to be found, but with all the world's smallest violins playing the worlds saddest song for me I must say I figured out how to weather the storm and that it is possible to be happy even when there is no reason why you should be.

Be sad. Cry, talk it out, be mad, let it out so that it isn't bottled up inside. Have you ever noticed that when emotions are held in they seem to grow and when they come rolling out it like a volcano exploding and there is no putting a lid back on it. So if you are mad get it out there just make sure that you know what you are mad about. That we instead of getting mad about everything and taking it out on everyone you come in contact with you get to the root of the matter instead of being mad at the world.

Giving into your emotions is fine but it's also important to know the difference of being sad and wallowing in your own pity party. When mourning gets to the point of self pity everything starts to look like a personal attack. Nothing is right, no one cares, the world is out to get you, etc... These feelings have nothing to do with what originally happened. This outlook is a choice, a personal choice that was made to wallow in pity, hopelessness, and anger. Doesn't sound like much of a life.

Even in the darkest moments there is good all around us. It's seeing it that can be hard. Make a goal each day to find one good thing that happened. Make sure that it is meaningful and really brought you joy. Do it everyday until it becomes easy. Than look for two things each day. Soon the good will be everywhere and there will be no need to look for it because it will be apparent everywhere and in every movement.

Remember everyday is its own mini New Years. It's a clean slate, a fresh start. Set attainable each day that will not only push you, but also brings you joy. These mini goals will help to stop stressing out and worrying about why you haven't hit the big goals for your self while moving you closer to them.

How will you find happiness today?

Bags, Bags, Bags!

2012-02-22T08:01:00.000-08:00

Friends I'm stoked to show you some of the new items that are in my shop! Over the past month I've been working and reworking my bags and have a few new styles and surprises in store. Keep an eye out since I'll be updating the shop over the next few weeks and have bags on my desk still waiting to be photographed! Truly I would love to see what some people use these bags to accessorize.

Now Taking March Sponsorship for Free

2012-02-22T00:00:00.000-08:00

What you'll get:A 200x200 sponsor button placed near the top of the page.The option to write a quest post.Tweets about your blog or Etsy shop.

Please e-mail me at myreinventedlife (at) yahoo (dot) comIf you would like to got an ad trade feel free to take one of my buttons
Buttons will be added on the first of each month

A Case Of The What Ifs

2012-02-21T00:00:00.000-08:00

Fear is a really strange thing isn't it? I've been pushing myself this month to accomplish my goal of doing 1 random act of kindness a day. On a walk to the grocery shop I noticed that there were tons of work crews out fixing power lines and doing road work. A thought popped into my head, I would get them doughnuts! At the store I got the doughnuts and started thinking about who I was going to give the doughnuts to and what to say. That's when I started second guessing myself. What it they said no. What if they thought I was a crazy person who was trying to poison them? The what ifs were endless. They were driving me crazy.
I back out. Can you freaking believe it. When the woman with the stop sign came over to hold up traffic for me to cross the street the words came to my mouth and stayed there. With my daughter in tow I ran. Can you believe it? If I was concerned about what they would have thought when I gave them the doughnuts imagine what they though when I took off with a stroller trying to unsuccessfully balance a dozen doughnuts on top.
The next day I was determined to give those damn doughnuts away. They were sitting on my counter mocking me. Once again my daughter Bug and I went out the door with the doughnuts. There was no way that I was going to back down, again... Wouldn't you know it the closer I got those freaking 'what ifs' got louder.
Across the street I could see a construction worker getting out of his truck. I ran, traffic safety be damned, and yelled. He had to think I was crazy. I handed him the doughnuts, explained what I was doing when I saw the confused look on his face, smiled and left. Yes he was confused and I have no idea what he was thinking but I could care less. There was a smile on my face and I showed those 'what ifs' who was boss.
Sometimes the biggest challenges in life isn't the red tape that we need to get around, but the obstacles that we create for ourselves. The choice that we get to make is if we are going to crumble in front of them or push onwards.
What do you do when you second guess yourself to get past it?
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Tashi Delek and Auspicious Greeting

2012-02-20T00:30:00.000-08:00

It's been 10 years since I started pursuing Buddhism as my path and about a year since I found my home in Tibetan Buddhism particularly Vajrayana buddhism. During that time it seems that I've come very fond of various Tibetan beliefs, customs, and holidays. The idea of Losar, Tibetan New Year, has thrilled me.
The days before is a time to clear out, pass along things that aren't needed, and to make space for what it important to us now. It's pretty much a spring cleaning, but it goes far beyond clearing out clothing that we don't wear and items that we no longer need, but to clear out our minds. Letting go of the beliefs, ideas, and comments that don't serve us. It's a bit of a mental spring cleaning as well.
Getting rid of things has become a full time job for me so a whole holiday that revolves around letting go things might as well be named after me. In honor of Losar this weeks post will revolve around letting go, giving, and refocusing.
What can you do to celebrate this time of cleansing?
Clearing The Physical Clutter:

Clear out your house and give items to a local thrift shop.
Go through your cupboards and take canned goods and nonperishable items that your family doesn't need to a local food drive.
Donate textbooks and gently used books.
Find shelters in your area to donate bedding and other household items.
Hospitals are often in need of stuffed animals to give to there younger patients.

Clearing Out The Mental Clutter:

Let go of the things in your past that bring you pain.
Stop living in anger.
Purge your life of anything that brings drama.
Find happiness in where you are at instead of basing it on what you have.

The Important Things:

Take time to sit with yourself and think about what is and isn't important to you.
Revisit your New Year's Resolutions.
Take time to spend a day with your loved ones.
Make sure that you have time each day just for you.
Spend time in your spiritual home be it a church, temple, monastery, or the great outdoors.

What do you do when you need to clear you house or mind?

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Morning Meditation: Your Reality

2012-02-19T00:30:00.000-08:00

Your thoughts, feeling, and perceptions create the world around you. If you are absorbed in drama, anger, and war of words than that's all that will be in your life. However if you choose to see the world full of love, compassion, and kindness than that is the reality that you will create for yourself. The mind is a powerful tool. Be wise in how you use it.
What does your reality look like?
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Happiness # 208: Putting Your Feet Up

2012-02-18T01:00:00.000-08:00

My days are spent working, cleaning, and chasing a 2 year old who always seems to have a never ending sugar high. When everything is done and speed queen daughter is in bed there are few things better than sitting back and putting my feet up. Euphoria.

What makes you happy?

Snow White's Wedding

2012-02-17T01:00:00.000-08:00

Wedding planning has been filling my mind. So far I have been over mine about 300,072,592 times in my mind since I got engaged. Some days I want it planned and put together and feel like I could have it done by next Wednesday if given the proper amount of coffee. Than I came across the most brilliant concept since drive through coffee shops: Disney Princess wedding dress! Freak yeah! Since my own wedding is 2 years away I decided to plan a princess wedding.

Welcome to Snow White's Wedding
The Dress:

Simple, sweet, fashionable. Snow White was that pure, sweet girl that everyone loved. She was also complex. Who else could run with the royals and hang with the dwarves in the woods? Plus she had her own style. Seriously yellow and blue puff sleeves, seriously? That's the beauty of her. She rocked it her way.

The Look:

A vintage beauty rocking a retro style. Think 30's maybe 50's style hair with a simple, but dazzling diamond from the dwarves mine of course.

The Wedding:

The wedding would elegant. Maybe held at an estate like Rhodes Hall castle. Everyone in the kindgom would attend and all her princess friends would be falling over themselves to be part of her bridal party because let's face it Snow White is a doll.

The Reception:

The Honeymoon:

Prince Charming would sweep Snow away from the castle and off to a cozy cottage in the woods for a week of hiking, canoeing, and dancing with deer.

Want to see more? Of course you do. It's like wedding crack. Check out my pinterest board
What do you think Snow White's wedding would be like?

Pay It Forward

2012-02-16T01:30:00.000-08:00

Want to participate in some fun? How wonderful is this idea that I found on the lovely blog Blue Eyed Night Owl.

How it works:The first 3 people who comment on this post and follow my blog with receive a small gift made by me randomly throughout this year. However if you are one of the top three you have mad a commitment to pay it forward do the same thing for your blog readers and and send some handmade joy to three of your readers. Oh and don't forget to send something special to the person who sent you something.

Happiness #207: Milestone Birthdays

2012-02-15T00:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Nirvana day, Susan B. Anthony's Birthday, and my birthday! I must say that I'm in some freaking awesome company of those who share my day.
Yes, 30 years ago today in a hospital in New York I was born at 2:16pm. 30 years! Truly this is a landmark day for anyone. It's a turning point in my life. Part of me never thought that I would see the day when I turned the big 3-0, but when you are carefree and in 20's you tend not to see too far ahead.

It's hard not to look back and reflect on where I have been in the past 30 years:
Traveled to 16 countries and 26 states.
Had my amazing baby, Bug
Got engaged to my amazing R
Lived in 4 states and a ship.
Was most impacted by a job working at a camp with at risk children.
Most terrified working at a college seeing where money was being wasted.

Where I plan to go in the next 10 years:
Have my travel photos published.
Travel the world and show it through my daughters lives.
Finally write one of the books that I have floating around in my head.

Regardless of where I've been and my fantasies of the future I can say a few things for sure.
Where I'm going today:
Thrifting
Going to eat at 5 Spot
Photographing everything
Sampling everything at Molly Moons
Tour Theo's Chocolate Factory just need to find a pink dress like the one Lucy wore.
There will also be a playground stop for my lovely daughter.

Because I Didn't Wear Make-up

2012-02-14T00:00:00.000-08:00

I didn't and he still loves me.

He loves me:

for who I am,

because I'm not afraid to stand up for what I believe in,

for being their for him when he needs someone,

because I remember the small things that he can't like toothpaste,

for every time I was there to support him,

I love him because

he makes me want to be a better person,

he doesn't like to let me down,

he listens to what I have to say even when if it is not what he wants to hear,

he is hilarious,

he understands the importance of compromise.

Never once did it have to do with makeup, money, or anything superficial. If you want love to remain solid it needs to be built on a strong foundation not one that easily fades with time.

What is love to you?

30 Years Of Wisdom

2012-02-13T00:00:00.000-08:00

This week I'm coming upon my 30th birthday. The age of wisdom, well I'm not sure how true that is I like telling myself that. In the spirit of this new phase of my life I've put together a list of things that I've learned in my 30 years.

There are very few things in life that are worth getting angry over.
If you don't like it change it.
If you can't change it change yourself.
Travel.
When you are sad look up silly cats photos online.
Anger solves nothing. It just multiplies.
If you smile everyone smiles.
What others do is their karma how you react is your karma.
You only get what you want if you ask.
The world is suffering from lack of love and kindness. So where ever you go make sure you act out of love and kindness.
Eat more ice cream. It's delicious. The calories don't count on Sunday.
Listen to your body. It tells you everything that you need to know.
Save for the future. Live for today.
Surround yourself with good people. Friends are a reflection of who you are.
Learning to let go is the best tool you could have.
Spend less time planning and more time doing.
When you start looking for all the reason you have to be happy those reasons soon start appearing everywhere.
Life isn't all that serious. Laugh a bit.
Being on time shows respect.
Apologize when you are wrong and accept the consequences.
It's okay to be wrong. It is not okay to not learn from it.
The bad things that happen are just bumps on the road. Keep you on on the horizon and keep going.
Stay away from people who are offended by being politically correct. Why would you want to hang people who want to make racist or sexist remarks and belittle others beliefs? Trying not to intentionally insult others is what the cool kids do. It's called common curiosity.
If you spend your time trying to impress someone who can't see how amazing you are or judges you by your car or the name on the label of what you wear than you are spending too much time on that person.
Back up any file that you want to keep.
Don't wait around for other people to do something for you. Take charge and do it yourself.
Don't pass up the doctor check ups or the dentist cleanings. You will regret it in the future.
Listen to your gut more and your brain less.
Live your morals and beliefs. Don't just have them. Actions speak louder than words.
It's okay not to have it all figured out. Dreams change just as much as our underwear.

What wisdom has your years brought you?

Morning Meditation: Seeing Opportunity

2012-02-12T00:30:00.000-08:00

"We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us."
- Joseph Campbell
Everyone of us holds onto a dream that we have for ourselves, but what happens when that plan for our lives goes astray or if those plans don't happen as fast as we expect? Does life get put on hold? Misery is created from the unrealized dreams that we hold onto. It's those things that can never be that we wallow in so instead of moving forward we become trapped in what could have been.
There is a world of opportunity out there. The only thing that we need to do is open our eyes and see the opportunity that is waiting for us. A better life than what we could have even believed possible.
What does life have waiting for you?

Get Your Creativity On

2012-02-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

Last week the ideas for my blog didn't stop: a new layout, I started a Facebook page, brought back an old favorite, and created two new features that will be out later this month that I hope enjoy reading as much as I did writing them than I hit the wall. It wasn't just a wall in my face, but a cold that has knocked me on my butt and has seemed to take my brain off line. What is a blogger to do?
Thankfully as I do my normal blog rounds I find that I'm not the only one. There are tons of others out there who are in the same boat as me and have hit the creative wall. So what to do when this happens?
Try taking a break. When my brain calls it quits it is usually the Universes way of telling me to slow down and take a break. It's okay not to be on creatively 24/7. Don't push it. Take a break, recoup, and prepare to find some inspiration later.
Write more when you are on point. When the creative juices are flowing write, write, write! Write enough that when you hit a dry spell that you have some posts in your reserves that you can use to keep your readers happy until you start writing again.
Carry a book around with you and take notes. It seems that my most creative moments are never when I'm at the computer. It's when I'm on the bus, a thought that comes in the middle of the night, or when I'm chasing my daughter that my best ideas come to mind. Instead of just trying to remember them for a later date and forgetting them I keep a notebook with me all the time so that I can jot down my thoughts for later.
Try looking around for inspiration. Pull out your favorite magazines, check out your favorite blogs, or turn on the news. It's not about stealing something that another person wrote, but many times there is a spark for your own idea. Try looking at a topic from a different angle? How can you put a spin on it? Are there other areas that you can dive into?
Don't stress about no ideas. Enjoy writing and enjoy stepping away from time to time.
What do you do when you are out of things to blog about?
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Happiness #206: Stolen Moments

2012-02-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

Image from Found Shit

Sometimes I like to sneak away and read. How naughty, I know. However every once in a while between doing the laundry and vacuuming, when I know Bug is preoccupied by her blocks, I sneak off into my room and devour a page or two of a book. I sprawl out on my bed momentarily with no care and drift off into my book. Sooner than later I usually feel a little tug on my leg and her a squeaky voice yell "Momma" and I came back to the real world, but for that moment the idea of sneaking away from my to-do list and diving into a book means everything.

What do you do in your stolen moments?

Royal Icing

2012-02-09T14:35:00.000-08:00

This year instead of giving expensive gifts for Valentine's Day R and I have decided to go the route of cooking and baking each other gifts. My creative juices started flowing and out came the cookie cutters for some V-day fun!

Sugar cookies are by far my favorite cookie to make because there are so many fun shapes to cut them out as and even more fun ways to decorate them. In order to get some of the fun designs for these sugar cookies you are going to need something that us professionals use, royal icing.*

What you'll need:

3 cups of confectioner's sugar

2 egg whites

1/4 tatar powder

With a blender beat that egg yolks until they are light and fluffy. Than add in the sugar and tatar powder and whip on high.

As you whip the icing you will see it change color, texture, and thickness the longer you whip. The best way to tell if it is done pull the mixer out of the bowl and look at the icing that was pulled up with it. If the icing falls over like in the picture above than you have more mixing to do.

It will take about 10 or more minutes but eventually the icing will stand on its own like in the picture above.

Pipe the icing onto the the cookies and let sit until dry.

If there are any imperfections that you want to eliminate use a toothpick to smooth out icing before it dries. **

With any left over icing that you have thin it out with milk to the consistency that you like. Pour it onto the cookie letting it spread out. This is called flooding. Use a toothpick to pop any bubbles and fill in areas. And your done!

What are you giving your loved ones for Valentine's Day?

*Professionals meaning I've seen a you tube video on how it was made and just winged it from there. ** Holy mother of pancakes I need to redo my nails.

It Ain't Gonna Be No Shot Gun Wedding

2012-02-08T00:00:00.000-08:00

Friends, I've been sitting on this little gem for a couple of weeks but waited until we got back from Hawaii. I'm bursting to tell you. I'm engaged!!!!!!!! Yes, R finally got the nerve and his financial situation together enough to ask me. My response was a certain yes, well it was more like "you fucking dipshit. Are you fucking kidding me?" Yes that my way of saying "yes, my love. I have dreamed of this very moment."

It was actually very romantic. He asked his sister earlier that day for a ring (she is the keeper of family rings) and got his grandma's wedding ring. Her response when he talked to her "Fuck, no. Fuck you." Translation: "Oh my god. I love Samantha and so excited that you are going to ask her. Now I must go call everyone of my friends on the mainland because I'm going to burst if I don't tell someone."

That day we went to the Marriott in Waikoloa and had an amazing time at the pool. I have never laughed so much in my life. That evening we went for a walk on the beach to watch the sun set. I kept taking photos and asked if he was okay with me interrupting the walk every five feet. His response "take your time." Translation: "I'm freaking out here. Hurry up because I'm trying to find the perfect combination of sunset, waves, and location and you are messing this up. Put away the damn camera."

After walking down the beach and past a pool of sea turtles we ended up on a trail of lava rocks that we followed to a grove of trees. The waves were crashing on rocks and the sky was pink. He started talking about how much has changed in his life and he was ready for a another change and got down and asked me to marry him.

The next day his sister came to pick us up and was bursting at the seams. Since this was the place where she met her husband, her daughter met her biological father, and now where her brother got engaged she wanted to tell the story to everyone. When I told R's mother she was thrilled and said "thank god he didn't mess this up." Translation: "Thank god my son didn't mess this up."

So now I'm planning a wedding. Be prepared for a ton of wedding related posts over the next year and a half.

What advice do you have on getting married? Anything you wish you knew or done differently?

Capture Any Heart Valentine's Cake

2012-02-07T14:47:00.000-08:00

My family is truly amazing. They know my interest in creating things that surprise so when I opened one of my Christmas gifts and found this amazing contraption that would create checkered cake pattern. From the second I opened it my mind has been dancing around trying to decide what to make with it. So on the inaugural use of this amazing thing I decided to make a wonderful Valentine's day cake.

What you'll need for the cake:
1/3 cup shortening
1/3 cup butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 2/3 cups flour
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/3 cup skim milk
2 tsp vanilla
4 egg whites
food coloring

What to do:
Cream together the shortening, butter, and sugar until fluffy. Next sift together the flower, baking powder, and salt. Mix the milk, vanilla and dry ingredients with the sugar and mix together. Finally beat in the egg whites and beat together until well mixed.

Separate the batter into three cups and mix in the food coloring to get the color that you want the rings to be. Once you pour the batter into the pan bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Now for the icing on top!

What you'll need:
5 cups confectioner's sugar
1/3 cup butter
1/3 shortening
6 tbsp milk
3 tsp vanilla

What to do:
Making sure that the butter and shortening are soft mix together all the ingredients. When you add in the milk do it little by little to get the thickness and consistency of icing that you want. More milk will make the icing softer, but more runny. The icing is simple to make as well and turns out really light and fluffy if you beat it at high speeds.

As an option you can dye the icing a light pink. Around the sides of the cake add chocolate flakes. And for the top add raspberries and top of with a sprinkling of chocolate.

What you can expect is not only delicious to look at, but an incredibly moist cake to devour.

Do you have any special deserts that you are making for Valentine's Day?

The Burning Bowl

2012-02-06T00:00:00.000-08:00

It was a regular bowl, medium sized covered in tin foil. Just a bowl. There was a quiet excitement in the room. Everyones eyes danced around but always came back to the bowl on the folding chair. As the morning dedication came to an end someone finally asked "is that the burning bowl?"
"Yes," the Reverend replied. "It is."

The room erupted. What was this magical bowl that had people on the edge of their seats? More importantly were we going to make s'mores? I didn't need to wait long for my answer. Stripes of paper were being passed around the room. The Reverend began to talk.

We create the experiences we have in our life good or bad, concisely or unconsciously. We make choices about how we are perceive things and through our perceptions we find joy, love, and happiness, but we can also find anger, hate, and fear. How is it that two people go through the same exact experience and experience it differently. It is all through how we choose to see it.

Though out our lives we begin to build up negative baggage: the fights, bad experiences, negative comments that we can't let go of. The burning bowl was part of that process. It was the door we were to close on negative experiences of 2011 and start our clean slate on 2012.

I quickly began to write on the paper how I was letting go of the past fights with R that I was holding onto, trying to control my maternal family's issues and letting go of my mother and her addictions. I needed to accept that I can't force other to change themselves but be there when they are ready to change. It was the stuff that was easy to let of. The stuff that I was more than ready to put in the burning bowl.

Than there was the other stuff. The things that I was harder. It was time to put a friend on that list. The source of contestant drama who blames everyone for her life. She is a bad influence on my daughter and I need to take a big step back out of her life before I get in her drama. My pen was slow to right this, but I knew that I could no longer let her be a force in my life. This would be the start of the end of a 10 turbulent friendship.

There were other things on the list some easy to let go of and some terribly difficult. I watched the Reverend walk around the room collecting the papers in the bowl. Most people crumbled there paper with frustration and happily through it in the bowl. Silently we followed her outside and watched as she light the papers on fire and they turned to ash. No more would this be part of our life. It was over. The past was in the past.

How do you put the past in the past? What tricks do you use? You can use the comment section as your burning bowl. Post anonymously if you would like and let go.

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See the Good

2012-02-05T00:00:00.000-08:00

If all you can see is misery that is all you will ever see.

The world is what we make of it. If we go through life seeing all that is bad, focusing on the negative aspects of life, and dwelling on everything thing that goes wrong than that is all that our lives will amount to. However you are worth more than that. You deserve better. Start focusing on the good. Start small and work your way up. Each day take time to focus on the good things in your life. It becomes easier each day. Soon all you will see the good.

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Happiness # 205: Hearts

2012-02-03T00:30:00.000-08:00

It's that time of the year. Hearts are everywhere and frankly they are pretty heart warming to see.

What makes you happy?

Do You Feel The Love In The Air?

2012-02-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

It's time for another gift giving holiday! No clue what to get? That's okay let Etsy show you!

Wonderful Wednesday Hawaii Edition

2012-02-01T07:00:00.000-08:00

Usually I'm chomping at the bit to post travel photos. Earlier this month I came back from Hawaii and

so much has happened that I haven't had the chance to process any of the photos until now.

This is the amazing view that I got to wake up to each morning in Waikoloa Village.

This biggest news is that I was offered a job there an just may take it! We are preparing for the move that will happen at the end of this year. So much to do.

Have you ever made a big move? What would be the ideal sight would you like to wake up to see everyday?

A Karma Chameleon

2012-01-31T07:20:00.000-08:00

At the start of the month I mentioned that I wanted to do a project where through 2012 I did 365 days of random kindness. How hard could it be to spread some compassion? Harder than I thought. I went into this month with almost no plan and just hoped that situations would present themselves this. Some did, but I need to get better at this.
So what did I do this month?1. Helped a woman find a power cord in a store where I wasn't working and helped her make sure it was the right one for her printer. When it wasn't I got R who gave her some advice on where to find it.

2. Donated my dear Bug Betsy to PBS.

3. Folded an entire table of shirts at a busy store. The person by the register just stood their and watched me like I was crazy. Oh well, it looked great after.
4. Spent a whole day smiling at people, saying hi, and giving compliments. This was one of my favorite days. So many people walked away with a smile.
5. There is a crazy intersection at the Costco, Petco, and Home Depot parking lot near me. Most cars will sit there for 10 minutes before they can move. I held up traffic so that every car got out of the intersection.
6. We were hit by a crazy snow storm a few weeks ago. In the morning I went out and cleared all the snow off the cars.
7. During the storm the only thing that was open was the post office. The only cars on the roads most day were the buses and postal people. I left a note for our postman with a box of hot chocolate to keep him warm.
8. My best friend Katie is an amazing woman who doesn't get enough recognition for what she does to help people understand autism. I let her know just how much of a hero she was.

9. At the end of last year I chopped off my ponytail. It was devastating, my hair hasn't been this short since I was 5. This month I took that ponytail and donated it to Beautiful Lengths so that my hair can bring someone the same amount of joy as it brought me. 10. One morning I got to my monastery early enough that I could help set up the stands for our books and at the end I helped to put them away.
11. My beautiful sister-in-law runs herself in circles helping people in Hawaii. Often she wonders if what she is doing is really making an impact. When I came home and told people about what she was doing the response was the same "there is no better way to live the dharma." People were moved. I took all of what people told me and wrote a letter to her to let her know that she had support in Washington. 12. Paid for the bus pass for someone who didn't have enough money.
The hardest part for me was trying to determine if something was list worthy or not. Seriously does giving out smiles and compliments to people compare with donating a car? I need to rethink this. However going into February I'm going to put together a plan, but I need some ideas. Do you have some suggestions on random acts of kindness that I should do this month? Did you do any in January?

Morning Mediation On Karma

2012-01-29T00:30:00.000-08:00

According to most people karma is a bitch. It is a form of revenge that comes back and gets those who have wronged someone. I like to think of karma in the terms of physics: for every action there is a equal and opposite reaction. In other words what you put out into the world is what comes back to you. If you act out of love and kindness that is what will come back to you, but if you act out of revenge or anger that is what you will get back. Be mindful that what others do is their karma. How you react is yours.

As you go through today be mindful of what you do and how you react to others. You are the person who in control what you do. Don't let anger control your actions or reactions.

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Who Said The Best Things In Life Weren't Free? February Ad Space

2012-01-28T00:30:00.000-08:00

It's the end of the month and it's time for me to start a bit of a new thing on my blog:Advertising Space!
Best of all it's FREE!

The List That Will Make You Happy

2012-01-27T00:00:00.000-08:00

Get out two pieces of paper. On one write your name. On the second make a list of everything that would make you happy. Take your time. I'll wait.

Got your list? Great. Take a good look at it. Now tear it up. Yep, tear up your happiness. Take out the first piece of paper and read what is written on it. This is the only thing that can make you happy.

I hear you. Those thing on your list may bring you joy but they don't create happiness. Let me guess what was on your list. It may have started off with your family and friends, perhaps a relationship or a child. That's a lot of responsibility your giving someone here. If your happiness relies on the quality of a relationship that you have with your boyfriend or your mom what happens when you get in a fight or if you break up? Does your happiness disappear?

What's next on your list? Your dream job, the car you want or the perfect house? If you don't have these now does that mean your miserable? What happens to your happiness if you get your dream job but hate your boss?

Further down that list may appear things like material wealth. Possibly designer bags or a bigger bank account. No, I don't know anyone who would dislike getting something they want, but does it create long term joy? A computer maybe exciting for a while, but soon something for a while, but soon something newer and more exciting enters the market. Maybe your new computer is slower than you like or a key breaks. It sure is looking like you would be happier with a newer model. Is your happiness really that transient? Does it really depend on having what you want when you want it?

Now I have a secret: happiness is a choice. Seriously all you need to do is choose to be happy and you will be. Everyday we are faced with choices: what to wear, what to do, what to eat, but we also choose how to feel. Say you get into a fight over a comment that someone makes. When this happens many choices are made. We can choose to say something nasty back or instead approach that person with compassion. We choose if we want to carry that comment with us all day building up the anger inside of us or if we just let the comment go and focus on the things that make us feel good. It's a choice if we want to hold a grudge or if we forgive. If you wallow in the memory of the fight you are choosing anger and willing to invite it into your world. If you choose to get mad than let it go and forgive you are choosing happiness.

Everything we do is a choice about how happy we want to be. When we look past the "if onlys" and start to look internally and act with kindness, compassion, and love you set yourself up for happiness that will be with you forever and all the stuff on your 2nd list will just be the icing on the cake!

What brings you joy?
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Happiness # 204: Geeky Girls

2012-01-26T00:30:00.000-08:00

I am a geek. Seriously I'm a huge dork and today I'm saying it loud and proud for anyone who reads this. Don't call me a nerd and I'm not a dork because I wear my geekdom like a badge of honor.

No, I'm not afraid to admit:

That right now I'm watching Star Trek DS9 as I type.
I own a lightsaber and skipped school in 12th grade to see Star Wars in theathers on the opening day (not the original).
When I was 15 I taught myself how to build website and would stay up all night geeking out.
My high school class ring has the answer of life instead of my name engraved on it. In case you wonder what that answer is it's 42.
On more than I few conversations I have worked "these are not the droids you are looking for" into on Star Wars related conversations. Unfortunately I have yet to master Jedi mind tricks.
I more than freaked out when I got an Android (haha a droid!) phone and named it R2-D2.
If you want I can tell you the pros of cans of Ruby on Rails, Couch DB, and lisp.
It still hurts that Firefly was canceled.
Nerd glasses are a turn on.

Girls who embrace their inner geek because, well I will mine...

Do you have an inner dork?

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Testing

2012-01-25T08:00:00.001-08:00

Testing new feature. Sorry for the inconvenience, but you can now pin my post, hopefully...

Wonderful Wednesday

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-08:00

Last week Seattle was covered in snow. The power went out and there are still people a week later who are without. We lucked out and got back powder the next day and took every moment to frolic in the snow. We built her first snowman. What did she do? She ran around with it and demanded photos. Her first snowman and directing her first photo shoot in the same day. My little awesome daughter!

What fun thing did you do this week?

How To Take Down The Queen Be-otch

2012-01-23T13:22:00.000-08:00

Oooh I love me some baby mama drama when it is confined to a select group of reality star housewives. When it comes to real life no thank you. Give me some beige walls and warm milk because that is about as much drama as I can take. Unfortunately life being the prankster that it is usually has other plans.

Being forever the optimist I like to believe that I can keep that from entering my life, but when it does how do you eliminate it? How do you get yourself out of a bad situation that you never wanted to be in? It may not be easy but there are a few rules that I go by when I'm trying to bring down the Alpha Bitch.

1. Taking Out The Drama Queen Acquaintance: As fun as it is to gossip and complain at times some carry it way to far. The beauty of having a drama queen as an acquaintance it that you don't need to bring them into your life. Don't gossip with them and don't let them get a rise out of you. When they see that you wont be part of their mess they will move on to the next victim. Taking the high road may get annoying, but get a Voo-doo doll and some stick pins and wait it out.

2. Bring Down The Noisy Family or Co-workers: We all have an a bit mouth relative co-worker who is a Debbie-downer. You know that person who is always stirring the pot, needs to be the center of attention, or have problems that only the Justice League could take on. And yet somehow they are so up to date on your business that they appear almost physic. Yeah, you know that person and yet there is no escape. They are at every reunion and office party, so what to do?

Try setting boundaries. When they start to go on and on about the thing that is on their neck that they have diagnosed as a life threatening illness acknowledge briefly it and change the subject. You don't need to set aside your life every time that their life is collapsing. Be firm and move on.
If that doesn't work than try telling them. A bit of brutal honesty may be what this person needs. You don't need to be mean and say that you don't care when your co-worker says that HR has teamed up with evil forces to bring him down, but you could point out the you don't need to hear this negativity and maybe if they spent less time worrying about the Evil Galactic HR Overlords and more time on their work that they wouldn't be in this mess. You may paraphrase that anyway you like, but Evil Galactic Overlord sure dose have a ring to it.

3. Overcoming The Insane Boss: His is its own personal brand of hell. Not only are they bringing the drams, but they also hold power. There are a few things that you can do. First remember that this person thrives in hostile environments so they go out of their way to create it. Try to stand your ground and not be bothered by them, but no means be passive. Just recognize that joining in the battle will get you nowhere. Instead try talking to them. Tell them that their behavior is inappropriate. Also start keeping track of what your boss does. Whenever they throw a fit or do something inappropriate write it down and go to HR to file a complaint. Unfortunately there is no easy way to handle this situation, but it may be a good time to update the resume and start to look for a new job.

4. Eliminating The Debbie Downer Friend: This can go two ways. If you can't set appropriate boundaries here than it may be time to go a second route: breaking up. I'm forever the optimist and try not to give up on anyone, but the sad fact is that it many be time to walk away. It is easy to think that their may be another way to handle this. That you have been friends so long that you couldn't possibly shut this person out... But put your relationship in perspective. Drama queens live for trouble, for gossip, and chaos and if there isn't any around is she causing it? How many times have you been dragged in and how has it impacted your life?

No ones perfect and everyone has a bad day now and than, but if your conversation is always about her own drama and you walk away constantly feeling drained and constantly disrespect the boundaries that you try to put up you owe it to yourself to find what makes you happy. That may just come from walking away.

In everyones life there will be some drama and what's life without some juicy gossip, but there is more to life than that. You deserve a life free of unnecessary insanity brought around by others.

What have you done to deal with a drama queen?

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15 Second Dodge Ball

2012-01-22T08:23:00.000-08:00

What is more fun than dodge ball? Not much unless it is trampoline dodge ball. Yes, you read that right. Dodge ball while bouncing on a trampoline. Unfortunately there isn't much to say about it other than than this poorly put together haiku I wrote for you?

Heart beating fast
I bounce onto the court.
Excitement fills me.

Now the game is on
Balls begin to fly by
One lands new me.

Yes. I pick it up.
Fast I throw it at someone.
It's caught. Damn. Out.

Have you done any fun actives with a twist? More cool points if you write it in poetry format.

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Cutting The Puppet Strings

2012-01-21T00:30:00.000-08:00

The show Toddlers and Tiaras is like eating a whole birthday cake by yourself. It seems like a good idea at first but than you get get sick and never want to see one again. In my case it is a bit more like a hostage realizing that they suffered from Stockholm syndrome. See I was a pageant queen. Not only did I compete in costumes that made me look like a cross between a cupcake and prostitute (well in my day anyway. I did have some "scandalous" outfits for my time) but I defended every second of it. From the stage moms living out their dreams to the tearing down of other contestants it was my life and I was damn proud of it.

It wasn't until I sat down and watched 3 year olds with fake Dolly Parton boobs dressed like hookers did I realize how it impacted my life. It's not uncommon to justify pageant outcomes. The judges were idiots, they knew the girls who won, or had no credentials. The other contestants where never as good as me and I was unjustly not given my dues. This wasn't a thought process I was alone in. It became apparent after one competition where a group of moms from a company that I had once been associated with for years stormed the stage during crowning to air their complaints in a manner that would make any warlord proud. The consequences of this was debilitating. Over the years I came to see every situation that didn't have the desired outcome to be wrong. It was never due to my actions or just the natural progression of life. No, it was an insult. I became a victim of life and would let anyone who would listen know it.

It's really easy to fall pray to this thinking. So how do you take control of your life instead of letting it take control of you?

Stop living in the anger. This will get you nowhere. It solves nothing and only prevents you from moving forward.

Realize that you are the only one that has control of your life.

Make lemonade. Yes it is such a cliché, but when life doesn't happen the way you want or throws you a curve ball you have two choices: to wallow in the loss or figure out how to make the situation better for you. They may mean making some big changes or just changing yourself and your perceptions.

Control what you can and let go of the people, things, and situations that you can.

Focus on what you can do and not what you can't.

Take responsibly. It's the most important step for being able to control your life.

Do you have anything to add to this list or advice on how to take control of your life?

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A Blog Lost To Silence

2012-01-18T15:29:00.000-08:00

This post stands in silence in protest of SOPA.
A violation of the first amendment right of free speech.
A threat to all bloggers.

Because of this I could go to jail for telling you about the Betsy Johnson dress I found at the Thrift shop.
I could be sued for uploading a video of my daughter dancing to Moves Like Jagger.
My life could be destroyed for showing vacation photos that had any logo in the background.

But I would be in good company with every blogger who ever posted video from their favorite show, movie, or music video. Or posted an image that wasn't theirs even though credit was given. Or talked about their Vera Wang wedding dress.

Happiness # 203: Seahorses

2012-01-18T14:02:00.000-08:00

As a child my grandparents had a saltwater tank. I beged and begged them for a seahorse until one day they bought a beautiful yellow one. I would sit for hours and watch as he floated around carelessly finally deciding to stop and curl his tail around a plant and sway in the water. These creature amaze me.

What makes you happy?
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Snow

2012-01-17T21:02:00.000-08:00

Us Seattliettes live a pretty privileged life. While the rest of the country has been through its fair share of snow we have been spared. The secret? We are surrounded by mountains: the Cascades to the north, west, and south and the Olympic Mountains to the east. That's why when we get hit it's a bit like the people in Hell getting ice water. It rarely happens.

This week Hell is getting a break and Seattle is getting hit hard. As much as I hate the cold there is a certain beauty to the winter snow. It covers all the snow and imperfections, it's extremely satisfying to be the first to walk on it, people slow down, and it's just plain fun to watch people drive. But it's the light dusting of snow on the trees that send my heart into a tizzy. As a young child I use to think that it was ferries that use to decorate the trees with snow as their Christmas decorations. Today I still do.

Despite the cold I sat bundled in a down jacket, gloves, boots, and two hats waiting for the bus. The chilly air didn't bother me. I sat watching the city wake up. There was a bit of magic in it all.

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Baby's Got Buttons

2012-01-16T00:00:00.000-08:00

Buttons! Who wants some buttons? So your love and take a button please.

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Taking Control

2012-01-15T00:30:00.000-08:00

While flipping through my copy of The Way Of THe Peaceful Warrior I can across this story:
On a construction site in the Mid-West, when the lunch bell blew, all the workers would sit down and eat. And with singular regularity Sam would open his lunch pail and start to complain.
"Son of a gun!" he'd cry, "not peanut butter and jelly sandwich again. I hate peanut butter and jelly!"
Sam moaned about his peanut butter and jelly sandwiches day after day. Weeks passed, and the other workers were getting irritated with his behavior. Finally, another man on the work crew said, why don't you just tell yer ol' lady to make you something different?"
"What do you mean my ol' lady?" Sam replied. "I'm not married. I make my own sandwiches."

There are so many things that we can blame our circumstances in life on. However when we start to look at the root cause, the real root cause of everything we start to see the we are the people who are largely the cause of our health, happiness, our circumstances. Regardless of if we make it happen consciously or subconsciously.

As you go through today realize that you and only you have control over your life. Everything that you say or do will determine how happy we are. What can you do today to take back your life?

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Karma 365

2012-01-14T01:00:00.000-08:00

Karma can be a bitch, but it can also be a blessing that's why this year I'm taking the personal challenge of taking control of my life, my happiness, and trying to spread around some joy of my own through random acts of kindness.

Welcome to the Karma 365 project.

This year I'm going to do 365 random acts of kindness, which means at least every day I need to do something nice for one of my friends, family, or random strangers and blog about it.

Wish me luck. Here I go.

What random acts of kindness have you committed? I need suggestions as to what to do.

Coming Up

2012-01-13T13:47:00.000-08:00

Friends my sewing scissors have been working over time. I'm back from my trip and working hard on my next round of bags for my shop. Check out the lovely new prints and fabrics.

Stay tuned for some sketches of the new designs coming up!

Happiness # 202: Lovies

2012-01-11T01:00:00.000-08:00

When I was young I had a monkey. It was the love of my life and the bane of my families existence because I left it everywhere. The grocery store, the plant nursery, my neighbors house everyone came to recognize the monkey in the blue overalls and would wait for my grandmother to call about it.

My daughter has Foxy, a pink fox that one of my closest friends got for her at the Philly Zoo. Foxy goes everywhere with us: on the bus, to bed, and even to the potty. Yes, Bug has taken it upon herself to potty train Foxy. Sometimes when she doesn't know I'm looking I catch her squeezing Foxy tight and cooing "I love you Foxy." Ah, young love.

Did you have a lovie when you where little?

Curses

2012-01-10T02:00:00.000-08:00

When I was in 3rd grade I had a teacher on the verge of retirement. She believed in perfect hand writing and that computers would never catch on. True story. It was 1988 and I couldn't have cared less. I would tear though my writing assignments so that I could go to the writing lab early and play Oregon trail. Now that I'm older I wish that I actually paid attention and remember my cursive, well that and that my pen had spell check.

Thankfully computers weren't a passing fad and I can google my cursive letters as a refresher. Last month I gave myself a crash course and became the cursive queen. My to do lists are much more fun when they are done in carefully written cursive. There was a even a point where I though I might start writing some old fashion snail mail letters and seal them with wax. Yeah, I went a little crazy. Bet my 3rd grade teacher would be proud.

Do you have anything that you wish you paid more attention to in school?

100 Paths

2012-01-09T07:34:00.000-08:00

There are hundreds of paths up the mountain, all leading to the same place, so it doesn’t matter which path you take. The only person wasting time is the one who runs around the mountain, telling everyone that his or her path is wrong.

Hindu proverb

As in life there are many paths that can get us to where we want to go, but in the journey to getting there we can get lost. Often we set our sites on a particular way of doing things. It may be that it is ingrained in us or that we hold it to the ideal of who we should be. During life we can go merrily along this path thinking that our way is the right way; our path is the only path. It's easy to begin to tell others how they should live, what they should do, and try to control their journey. Although we can advise others when needed we must remember that everyone has their own path in life that they must follow for better or worse and that their is no right and wrong way. Trying to dominate someone else's journey will help neither of you.

Holding on to the ideal of how one should live, do things, and what the outcome should be is no way to live. We all hit impasses in our life. On our path we will come to forks in the road, find detours, and hit dead ends. A well balanced person doesn't cling to the idea what what his or her life should be like. Instead they learn how to be flexible and revision their life and dreams creating a new path to the mountain top.

As you go through your day try to focus on you and your path and not the journey of others.

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The Big One : Another 101 Goal Down

2012-01-07T07:31:00.000-08:00

We were rebels.

My dear Betsey is gone. We got the news that she was going to go to the big highway in the sky a few months ago and needed to decide what to do. Fist Betsy is my VW Bug and second, as lame as it may sound loosing her was hard. Betsy accompanied on a road trip to Maine where she taught me to value a good auto repair shop because there were only two places in the state that could fix her. We drove Route 66 together, drove from California to Washington, and she brought my daughter home from the hospital. In my almost 10 years of living like a nomad this Bug was the only constant. Now she is going to feed my daughters love of Curious George and Super Why. Instead of trading her in or breaking her down for parts we donated her to our local PBS station. They collect old cars and sell them at auction and 70% of the proceeds go to supporting the station. I can get behind that since they actually show wholesome, commercial free, educational shows that my toddler loves.

So good bye Betsey. You were good to me.

Are you looking to get do something with an old car? Check out these really great places:

Cars for Breast Cancer
Vehicles for Vets
Cars for St. Vincent De Paul
Kars4Kids

Or check out Donatecar.com for a list of places to donate by state and info on the organization.

Have you ever had to give up something that held lots of memories?

Another One On The List: Donate Hair

2012-01-06T02:00:00.000-08:00

Why is it that some of the hardest things to do in reality should be the easiest? Sometimes it takes a bomb to realize this. My bomb was my grandmother's cancer. It came out of nowhere. One day she had some pain in her side, she went to the doctor assistant who told her it was nothing, two weeks later she saw her doctor who sent her for tests, and two weeks after that she got her first round of chemo. Four rounds later she is weak (physically, but not mentally) and has lost her hair. If you know anything about little old ladies they love there hair and she is no exception.
While waiting for her wig to come we started to joke about the upside of being bald was that she no longer needed to get mad at the hairdresser for doing her hair wrong. It kept her positive, but being bald is just the slap in the face for having cancer. That was my slap in the face. There were so many organizations out there for my grandmother and so many amazing people out there helping those organizations it was my call to arms.
During the chemo I got in contact with Beautiful lengths, an amazing organization that helps women get real hair wigs for free. I may not have a lot of money to donate, but I have hair. Oh boy, do I have hair to spare. 16" to be exact. It was hard. This is the shortest my hair has been in 20 years, but it was for a worthy cause. Knowing that someone out there will benefit from my locks is more to me than looking like I could be a stand in for Rapunzel.

A Look Back at 2011 Part 2

2012-01-05T00:30:00.000-08:00

Round 2 of my look back extravaganza!

July:
4th of July was spent in quarantine and life was put into perspective. It was also a month of pinching pennies and seeing the beauty in tragedy.

How am I doing with my 101 list? I donated to a hospital, danced for ghosts, and dodged Naked Cyclists.

August:
August in Seattle is amazing. Seafair is coming to an end and in my opinion is when all the great events happen. It was a time of parades and pow wows and baking some amazing cakes. When that got boring I got creative with chalk and turned to my wise Facebook friends. The one thing that came from this month was realizing who could change your life.

That 101 list: I showed my pride and told a secret.

September:
If you are an American and are old enough to remember September 11th than you would agree this was an intense month. To counteract the sadness of this month and remembering my friends who died I focused on other things like the art of nothingness and not worrying and living like lotus. Moving away from the intense things in life I made amazingly easy sun dried tomatoes, indulged in the new fall shows (Pan Am!!!), photographed the fall, and found myself in real life Sex and the City. Oh, and I did my first guest post!

And that 101 list: Made some progress with knocking one thing off my Bucket list and opened my Etsy shop!!!

October:
My favorite time of the year! Time for ghost tours of Pike Place Market and baking candy corn cakes. Possible joining in on a 99% protest or just photographing it. With such happy thoughts my mind turned towards the effect of compliments, ways to be happy, and how the grass is greener on the other side.

Sadly only one thing made it onto the 101 things list this month: Milk Carton derbies.

November:
Ahh getting closer to the end of the year, but fear not there is so much more to read about like the Chocolate Festival, how to make those delicious pumpkin scones that Starbucks has, how to work smarter not harder, or what to use when you an ingredient while baking. This month was also I wrote what I consider my most important post yet on suicide prevention.

This month I got my butt in gear for the 101 Things list and checked off eating at the Pink Door, I became a Buddhist officially (only took 12 years) and became a localvore.

December:
Rounding out the year and saying good bye to 2011 with 100 inventive New Year's Resolutions. During this stressful time found a lot of joy in reminding my awesome readers about how beautiful you all are, don't compare yourself to others, and to let it all go and just be. This blogger was full of the holiday cheer and busy whipping up delicious biscotti and candy cane cake in the kitchen.

So I have so far I've knocked 34 things off my 101 things list. Seems like I have a ways to go since I only knocked one thing off in December.

Your turn to share. What was your most popular post of 2011? Was it your the one you thought that it would be?

A Look Back At 2011 Part 1

2012-01-04T00:30:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again to stroll down memory lane and take a look back on how 2011 was reinvented around here.

January:
There is something about a new year that brings on the sense of a new start and for me that new start was in pratcing kindness and seeing an end to my series on goal setting. That month also taught me about the Big 4 and how to be a mental minimalist. Also there is something else that you need to know.

How did I do on my 101 Things list? I wrote my bucket list and got acupuncture. Not bad.

February:
February started with 12 steps to a better life. If that wasn't enough I began to see how to love someone I hated, learned a thing or two about criticism, realized that it is okay to slow down and was reminded that time destroys everything all while celebrating an alternative Valentines day.

My 101 Things list? I took up African dance, went to Hawaii, did some yoga from hell, and created some guerilla art. Four out of 101, hmmm....

March:
Ohh was this an exciting month. First I meditated like the Dali Lama than went onto writing a Universal Permission Slip and than wanted to give a reminder of who you where. All the while learning how to face a fear, and started in on the business of making a list of 14,000 things that made me happy.

The 101 Things list: I rode a ferry boat and ate me some BBQ. A lot of it in fact.

April:
It's Easter and my daughter decided to color some eggs meanwhile I read about the solution to feeding world hunger while habituating in love. It was a month of learning to see the positive and praying for a sugar daddy. Oh and check out the Holga photos of Seattle.

My 101 Things list: I found an amazing place to donate my books to and got certified in CPR. Next step become a doctor and show those people on Grey's Anatomy what's what.

May:
This month was about winning in all situations, what to do when there is no light at the end of the tunnel, celebrating love, and declaring who I was (who are you?) Oh, and I get a lesson or two from a Zen master who pees her pants.

How is the 101 list going? Only 2 things this month. I took a trip to Pennsylvania and made an effort to find happiness each day of the month.

June:
What a slow month, but I did ponder the meaning of life and learned to make avocado pasta. Not bad.

However on the 101 things front I did go green, eat at Palisade, and walked in a cemetery with a princess and Bruce Lee.

So friends do you have a favorite post that you read or wrote this year? Please share.

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Happiness #201 In Comes In A Cup

2012-01-03T12:34:00.000-08:00

It's the time of the year when I disconnect my coffee IV and hook up a bag of hot chocolate instead. There is just something about feeling warm chocolate slid down your throat and fill your belly that you can't replicate with other hot drinks. Usually I'm cursing if I take a sip of hot coffee as I feel a layer of my throat burn away, but with hot chocolate.

My cabinets have slowly been stocked with hot chocolate of every flavor, but my stand out favorite this year has been a peppermint hot chocolate with real bits of candy cane. She the candy cane all sinks to the bottom, but part of the fun is fishing out the bits.

Do you have a favorite treat this time of the year?

Bad Dreams

2012-01-02T00:00:00.000-08:00

Dream, when it comes to them I'm a huge supporter. But sometimes I must admit holding onto a dream can be the worst mistake we made. It's often hard to recognize in ourselves, but can recognize it in others. We can see them going down the wrong road chasing a dream that is out of reach or using a goal as a crutch so if goals are so good to have when can a dream go bad?

When they are used to enable: Usually I hear about people whose dreams are more like rainbows: they are beautiful, but don't plan on trying to ever catch one. However there is a whole other end of the spectrum with dreams that are created in order to enable. Sounds crazy, but let me let me tell you a story about someone I know. Her dream in life was to have a three bedroom condo with three parking spaces that had a beautiful view. She was just out of college and ended up living with her parents until she was 30 because she didn't have enough money to even put a down payment on her dream home. There was no reason that she couldn't have had her dream, but in this case she was using it to enable her, preventing her from starting her life.

When we hold on: There is nothing worst than a dream that goes unfulfilled, but sometimes even our best laid things go wrong. Plans change, we change but holding on to an unrealistic isn't going to make anything better. When we hold onto missed chances and unfulfilled dreams we see the world with anger and sadness and start to measure what is against what it could have been. We loose the ability see the good in today. We loose the ability to be flexible and realize how to reevaluate our goals and mold them to who we are now.

When you depend on a dream to bring total happiness: There are tons of great dreams that can bring happiness: getting the dream job, getting married, having a baby, traveling... They are great dreams, but you are only setting yourself up for failure if you think "if only I had this in my life could I be happy." Here's the deal nothing is perfect. Dream jobs are not fun and games on all the time, relationships have stressful points, babies cry a lot, and shit can happen when you travel. If you are seeking happiness that needs to come internally not externally. If you can't find happiness within yourself you'll never be able to find it in your goals.

Have you ever had a dream go wrong
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My New Year's Resolution: Growth

2012-01-01T01:00:00.000-08:00

Last year I wanted to live. The year before I reinvented my life. This year the word that I want to embody is growth. Over the past two years I have been lucky and blessed in ways that I can't even comprehend. This year I want to continue that and grow more as a person, a mother, and Buddhist, and a budding business woman and blogger. I want to grow in all these areas.

When it comes to goals and resolution I go crazy. I make tons of them and by the end of January they are forgotten and remembered somewhere in May where they make a brief guest appearance and then go back info the closet with the old pair of shoes that don't quit fit, but can't bear to part with. So girls how to we keep from breaking our resolutions?

1. Keep them simple: Big goals are great, but overcomplicated goals can become depressing fast when results aren't what are expected. Make sure that the goal pushes you, but is achievable

2. Get a buddy: Do you have a friend who has the same goal? Why not join forces? Two is better than one when it comes to goals. Having a support group talk you out of the pint of ice cream that you want to eat or encourage you when things are going down hill will help you get on track faster than if you are going at it alone. You not only will have built in support so that you don't have to pat yourself on the back, but also it is another person to bounce ideas off of when you hit a wall.

3. Keep them visible: I take vitamins everyday. They sit on a shelf where I can see them otherwise I forget about them completely. The same goes for goals. Write them down and stick them to your fridge. Create a mantra that will remind you of what you want to accomplish. Cut out photos of your resolutions and create inspiration boards and put them up around your apartment. Find a way to make your goals part of your life. The more that you see them and are reminded of them the more likely you will make them real.

4. Overcome: We have all written resolutions in the past on December 31st and forgot them by January 1st, but if your goal is something that you really want to achieve think about what has gotten in your way in the past. Was it lack of motivation or support? Maybe it wasn't something that you were ready to commit to or there were just to many goals? Whatever the reason look at what your roadblocks that were in your way in the past and figure out how to remove them.

Do you make resolutions and actually keep them?

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Real Changes For The New Year

2011-12-31T01:00:00.000-08:00

We all have tendencies to dwell on the negative experiences. A sore tooth keeps us thinking about the pain just as much as an insult from a friend or painful experiences. It grows in our mind bringing our thoughts back these dark places. When we come to dwell in these miseries. These thoughts come to eat away at us. They are time consuming and rob us all the wonderful things that are in our lives.

Turning our minds away from these things can be difficult but we can only find happiness where we are at. Nothing in life will bring us joy unless we know how to create it, recognize it and let it in. Objects and people can bring temporary joy but if you want true happiness you need to look within.

As you go through the day remind yourself that you have the choice to create how you are going to feel and see the world regardless of what happens.

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Going From Woodstock To 5th Avenue

2011-12-29T07:13:00.000-08:00

Some people have rational fears like heights, clowns (what are their deals anyway?), or pink goo coming out of their bathtub that is alive and trying to get them. I however fear the salon. Yeah, I know.

See when I was younger I had this fantasy about my hair. I was going to grow it so long that I could wrap it around me like a blanket when I got cold. Truly I loved my hair and than I would go to a salon and they would mess it up. My trips usually would go like this: "Take 3 inches off please. Oops? What do you mean oops? Um that's a lot more than what I asked for."
Or...
"WTF! Does this look like the picture I showed you? Ha. Ha. Yes I do look like I could be an extra on for the original Charlie Angels, but how did you get that from this picture of Gwen Stefani?"
Or...
"Can I please sit down while you cut my hair? I think I'm going to pass out."

My time at the salon didn't leave me with the best taste, but after two years with no hair cut my dreams of Repunzel length hair nearly came true. It was longer than I needed. So I sucked it up and got myself an appointment. You know what? It wasn't bad. They offered me tea and cut it just how I asked them. Better yet I'm going to donate my hair!

So what do you think? Do you like it? Do you have any salon horror stories?

The Groupon Challenge

2011-12-28T01:00:00.000-08:00

When it comes to social media couponing, wait is that even a term, I'm a it of a geek. Living Social, Save More, Amazon, and the big daddy of them all Groupon are my crack. And the things that pop on the sites are sometimes too good to be true. That got me thinking with everything that these sites have to offer how much can I cross off my bucket list and 101 list? So I decided to do a bit of a twist on my New Year's resolutions and challenge myself to push myself to try new things and see how many of my dreams I can accomplish.

The break down of the "Groupon Challenge"

The Goals: Accomplish the following goals within one year:
Do 12 new things
Cross 5 things off my 101 Things to do in 1001 days
Do something that terrifies me
Cross one thing off my bucket list
Plan a trip with Groupon
Get a head to toe outfit
Loose 10 pounds (workouts from Groupon)
All salon treatments (massage, haircuts, mani pedi, etc..)

How it will work:
The goals need to coupons full filled by using social couponing sites Living Social, Save More, Amazon, Nomorerack or Groupon within one year (December 31st 2012 unless the world comes to an end than who cares ;)).

Sounds fun? Are you setting up any challenges for yourself this year?

Happiness 196-200 : Flowers

2011-12-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

Every flower is beautiful, but there are a few that make me really happy.

Peonies

Sunflowers

Cabbage Rose

Lotus

Dahlia

What is your favorite flower?

100 Resolutions That Will Rock Your World

2011-12-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

It's resolution time!!! This year why not do something out of the ordinary? Maybe push your limits. Need a few ideas? Something fresh, exciting? Try one of these:

Health:

Take a class in:
Belly dancing
Tap dancing
Hula hooping
African dance
Zumba
Clogging
Water aerobics.
Hot yoga
Afro Brazilian dance

Stop eating fast food.
Swtch your cleaning supplies to something more green or make your own.
Run a half marathon.
Get acupuncture.
Try to do yoga on a surfboard.
Sit down and eat a decent breakfast each morning.
Stop eating anything with corn syrup.
Find new fruits and vegetables that are so foreign to you that you have to google how to eat them.
Walk to work.
Turn your office into a stress free zone.

Creative:

Create some guerilla art.
Yarn bomb.
Write an outline for the book you always wanted to publish.
Tell your life story in 10 photos.
Host a murder mystery.
Put together a portfolio.
Create the ultimate workspace for yourself.
Take a few of your pieces and go to a store or gallery and ask to see the manager.
Compose your own theme song.
Turn your cooking into an art form and create an artistic presentation on your plate.
Sew an entire outfit. Maybe even make your own accessories.
Set up a puppet theater in your house. Make your own puppets.
Make a Day of the Dead skeleton doll in your likeness.
Create a mural in your house. If you aren't allowed to paint the walls find creative ways around it.

For fun:

Create your own holiday and celebrate it.
Throw a tea party with big hats and all.
Plant and grow your own herbs.
Explore your inner Ghostbuster and go on a ghost hunt.
Buy several types of loose leaf tea and enjoy it every morning.
Splurge on a an expensive pair of jeans that fits perfectly in all the right places.
Ride the bus to somewhere you never been and get off.
Float in an inner tube down a river.
Spend one day dressed up from a particular time period. Make food that was popular than, read a book published in that decade, and use their slang.
Take to a stranger about his or her life story.
Buy a raspberry beret and walk in through the out door if that doesn't float your boat get a little red corvette.
Speak with an accent all day.
Dance down the street like you are on an iPod commercial.
Reorganize your house so that you have a table next to a window that gets morning light and is great for people watching.

Educational:

Take a class at a local college.
Create an online class to teach something that you love.
Make a list of books to read and complete it by the end of the year.
Contact a person of another religion and ask to go to a service with them.
Research the history of your town.

Just to say you have done:

Break a world record (if you live near a city keep an eye out for world's largest gatherings. If you can cook bake the world's largest cupcake and invite me please).
Try out for a reality show.
Roast your own coffee.
Cook your way through an entire cookbook from start to finish.
Go skinny dipping.
Sign up for a trapeze class.
Become someone's fairy godmother and help them achieve one of their dreams.
Try out for roller derby.
Climb a mountain.
Write you memoirs. Make up the second half.
Take a sword fighting class.
Whitewater raft.

How to help:

Start your own charity.
Donate a blanket to the Linus Project.
Get CPR certified. You never know when you could save a life.
Help someone get an education.
Babysit your friends kid so they can have a night out.
Help build a house with Habitat for Humanity.
Pick up litter on the street.
Do one thing a day that makes someone smile.
Donate your hair to Beautiful Lengths or Locks Love.
Organize a bake sale, garage sale, or some awesome sale and give the proceeds to charity.
Rescue an animal from the shelter.

Travel:

Visit a new city.
Visit a new country.
Travel somewhere via train.
Plan a road trip down a historic route (Try Route 66).
Visit one of the 7 Wonders of the New World.
Visit a national monument.
Visit a natural wonder (The Grand Canyon).
Plan a vacation where you couch hop.
Search for the perfect secluded beach.
Bike around an island.
Plan a trip based on a location in your favorite book.

For you:

Have your jeans or tailored to fit your body.
Save up for a spa day.
Turn your phone off, don't go online, and drop out of existence for a day.
Go on a trip solo.
Buy an expensive bottle of wine.
Take a long walk in the morning before the streets get busy.
Change your light blubs to natural lights.
Figure out how to do your hair like you were at a photo shoot.
Redo your makeup bag.
Go on a retreat.
Dress up and treat yourself to a decadent diner.
Upgrade to first glass.
Visit the 3rd World.
Find the perfect red lipstick.

What things can you think of to add to this list?

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Happy Holidays

2011-12-24T01:00:00.000-08:00

To all of my friends out there who are celebrating Christmas or Hanukkah today or Kwanzaa tomorrow and to those who have already celebrated Yule my gift to you are the beautiful words of Shantideva

May the fearful become fearless;

May those oppressed by grief find joy;

May those who are anxious

Be rid of their anxiety and find secure.

May health come to the sick;

May they be free from every bondage;

May those who are weak find strength,

Their minds tender towards each other.

As long as space remains,

As long as sentient beings remain,

Until then, may I too remain

And help dispel the miseries of the world.

-Bodhicaryavatra, Chapter X

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Making Winter Skin Fabulous.

2011-12-23T00:30:00.000-08:00

Do you have any part of your body that you are particularly embarrassed about? I do. No it's not my belly pooch or that flabby part under my arms it's a dry patch of skin on my leg. Trust me when I say you don't want to hear about it, but it was scary, and itchy, and an issue. Finally I got some courage and insurance and had it taken care of.

Winter time is when my skin gets the worst. It is dry, flaky, and my eczema goes crazy. So I made a little list on how to take care of your skin this winter.

1. Moisturizers: I have my favorite moisturizes that are wonderful, but when winter comes around they are about effective as telling my skin to stop flaking. Try using any oil based moisturizers during the winter months. Try to find ointments that include avocado oil, mineral oil, or almond oil because they don't clog the pores on your face.
I like Johnson and Johnson baby lotion for my face. It is made for sensitive skin that is easily irritated, goes on smoothly, and isn't greasy. Plus it really works for me and comes in a huge bottle for cheap.

2. Sun screen: It isn't just for the beach. Damaging sun rays are still alive and well in the winter and to make matters worse the sun light can reflect off the snow and cause you to burn even faster. Treat any winter outing like you would in the summer and slather on the sunscreen.

3. Eliminate exposure: When I take my daughter out for walks in the winter I gush over how cute her bright nose and cheeks look once we get back. Cute yes, but it isn't good for your skin. Exposure to the harsh weather help to dry out your skin. The best way to protect your skin is to put on your gloves, throw on your hat, and pull out the cute scarf that you got at the thriftshop.

4. See a specialist: Okay when things get bad and it doesn't matter how much lotion or specials products that you use it is time to get help. This was the route that I took and really glad I did. A doctor can prescribe a lotion that will help dry, cracked, or bleeding skin that can work in as little as a week. I also went a step further and got acupuncture. After getting poked with a few needles the scaring went away. How it works I don't know, but it worked extremely well for me.

What do you do in the winter to keep your skin looking good?

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The Joy of Gingerbread. Happiness #195

2011-12-22T01:00:00.000-08:00

It isn't when the tree goes up or the holiday lights. It isn't after Thanksgiving or one the first official shopping day of the season. The first day of the holidays is when the smell of gingerbread fills the house. It brings back memories of elaborate gingerbread house making. Churches, old school house complete with swings made out of pretzels, you name it my grandmother could make it. Someday I hope to do that with my own daughter, but for now we settle just for the cookies. Seriously with the 3 foot cookie monster that steals the cookie dough I'm just happy if I can get one batch in the oven.

What you'll need for the cookies:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 tablespoon orange zest.

Get that oven preheated to 350.

Start by creaming together the butter and sugar until it is fluffy. Than beat in the egg, water, zest, and molasses.

In a separate bowl shift together flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Gradually mix that into a butter and sugar mix.

Roll out the doug. Make sure that the surface and rolling pin is really covered in flour because this dough is sticky. Cut out the shapes that you want and bake for 6-10 minutes.

What you'll need for the icing:

1 cup confectioner's sugar

1 tablespoon of milk

Mix the milk and sugar together. If it is too stiff add a bit more milk. You can also you can flavor up the icing a bit by adding cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and a bit of cloves. The other thing that I do is put the icing in the fridge for a bit to get it really stiff so I can get a nice line on the cookies.

What do you look forward to this time of year?

Candy Cane Cupcakes

2011-12-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

It's kind of strange, I was the girl that always railed against cooking or baking of any kind. Somehow I got hooked and just can't seem to stop. This morning I turned up some holiday music and put my Christmas hat one on decided and see what I could come up with and this was it, the peppermint cupcake.

What you'll need:

1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
red food dye

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Start by creaming together the sugar and butter. Then beat in the eggs. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Next mix in the milk and than add the peppermint extract.

Split the batter into two bowls and dye one red.

Spoon the batter into the cups alternating between the red and white batter causing a candy cane looking effect.

Bake for 20-25 minutes

The icing

What you'll need:

2 cup confectioner's sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 candy cane

What to do:

Mix together the confectioner's sugar and milk. Top off the cupcake with smashed up pieces of candy cane.

What are you making for the holiday?

Last Minute Gift Ideas: Candy Apples

2011-12-20T01:00:00.000-08:00

Do you need something for a holiday party? Maybe you need a bunch of gifts to take to work, but don't have a lot to spend? Or possibly you are just in need of a stocking stuffer. How about candy apple?
Candy apples are one of my favorite treats, they are great for the holiday parties, and are surprisingly easy to make.

What you'll need:
Apples
Popsicle sticks
Chocolate
Carmel

Possible toppings:
Mini-marshmallows
White chocolate
Almonds
Peanuts

How to make the chocolate and carmel mix:
Making the apples is simple. In a small pan pour in enough milk to cover the bottom of the pan. Add in the baking chocolate or carmel and turn the stove onto medium heat. Stir the chocolate or carmel as it melts. If the milk starts boiling turn the heat down and stir continuously. Once everything is melted take off the heat and let it cool for a minute.

While the mix is cooling wash the apples, peel off the stickers, remove the stems, and insert the sticks.

The easiest way to get the mix onto the apple is to slightly turn the pan on the side and turn the apple in the pan.

When adding the topping roll the apple in crushed nuts or add on the marshmallow before the chocolate cools.

If you want to add white chocolate microwave the white chocolate in the microwave for a few seconds and drizzle the chocolate onto the apple with a spoon. Sit in the fridge to cool.

When are a done making the apples I highly suggest putting them onto parchment paper. The carmel is extremely sticky and bad things happen they don't sit on a non-stick surface. Really bad things.

What do you give as last minute gifts?

Happiness #194: Seeing My Breath

2011-12-19T02:00:00.000-08:00

Snow is something that I only like to see in postcards. Wait, let me say that again. Snow is fun to look at but it's the cold that turns me away. The other day it snowed. None of it stayed long enough to cover the ground, but it seems that the cold has settled in for an extended vacation. This morning as I was waiting for the bus with my arch nemesis, the cold when I see my breath rise into the air. Suddenly a child like thrill washed over my body and I was taken back to my school days when I waited for the bus. All the kids would try to do tricks with their breath.
I puckered my lips and tried to blow smoke rings. Failure. That didn't stop me while I was young so why should it now?

Did you ever try to blow smoke rings?

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The Thing About Comparing

2011-12-18T01:00:00.000-08:00

There's that little voice in all of us that loves to compare. It tells us what we are not good enough. It compares others looks to our own and measures up every aspect of our lives to someone else's. When we fall short it hardens us. I hardens us against others for having what we want and they have. I hardens us against ourselves but tricking us into believing we aren't good enough. And it hardens us against the world. That voice prevents us from seeing the good.

On the other side there is praise which softens. A small compliment to someone else opens them and boosts them up. A small praise for yourself helps you to realize your true worth. A little bit of praise makes the world seem a bit better.

As you go through your day today friends make sure you praise others as you well as praise yourself.

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Last Minute Gift Ideas: DIY Jar Of Awesomess

2011-12-17T01:00:00.000-08:00

Do you got all your gifts ready for the holidays? I don't know about you, but it always seems to me that no matter how together I have it I always forget someone or get an unexpected from someone who I didn't get anything for. Seriously last minute gift shopping sucks and always seems to come off as impersonal and sometimes thoughtless. So here is a really quick and easy way to make a last minute seem thoughtful and it includes jars because I know how much everyone on the internet likes pretty jars. Am I right?

What You'll Need:

A jar of something. I used tomato sauce I canned, but if you have jam, pickles, or anything else that you canned use it. Heck get a can and add in some Prego. I wont tell.
Get a small piece of fabric. I used a left over piece of burlap and the string was stands of burlap that I pulled from a bigger piece of fabric. Again you can use any fabric, string, or ribbon that you like.
A rubber band
Cards with a recipe. You can get the ones that I used here and here.

Place the rubber band around the top of the jar to hold down the burlap.

Use the burlap string to cover the rubber band.

Finally print out the card, punch a hole in the corner and attach it to the jar with another burlap string.

Your done! A fast, cute gift!

Do you have a go to gift to give when you need a last minute gift?

The Buddhist And The Christmas Tree

2011-12-16T01:30:00.000-08:00

My Jewish roommate decorated for Christmas and Easter. She told me that her family celebrated every holiday that you could decorate your house. They had the best decorated house for St. Patrick's Day I ever seen. However I understood I'm a Buddhist with a Christmas tree. Give me some lights and garland and I'm in heaven. This year my tree came out early since we will be away for the hoildays and it hurts not to have a tree.

My great grandma use to have a table top tree. It was the perfect size for her house and whenever I see one it brings back great memories of her.

Not the typical color scheme for a tree but I love the simplicity of it.

This is cute, but my feelings on the modern trees wavier. I just can't picture Santa putting gifts under this tree.

What does your tree look like?