Abundance of gratitude

for Friday
To keep me grounded is to remind myself of what is truly important; gratitude for the simple things.

Today I am immensely grateful for another year of milestones
...another blessed year of five...that cancer did not return
...a year in which I was so very blessed to to see my youngest daughter turn 21 and my first born turn 30

Abundance of gratitude

for Thursday
To keep me grounded is to remind myself of what is truly important; gratitude for the simple things.

Today I am grateful for
...the son who had the internet hooked up. For even though he lives far...far...away; I will now be able to see my precious grandchildren...every time he uploads a new picture.

You melted my heart...

the first time you called me Grandma beautiful.

Kaden...I will always and forever love you up to the sky and back down;...even when you stop calling me Grandma beautiful.

The apple of my eye

Though I have never held you nor kissed those sweet little girl cheeks.

I will always love you up to the sky and back down... for I am so very blessed to be your grandma.

Be still my refrigerator magnet heart...

for I have stumbled across these.

My childhood Barbies are long gone

These bring back warm memories.

Lovely reproductions that brings out the little girl in me.

My heartfelt thank you Mattel.

Abundance of gratitude

To keep me grounded is to myself of what is truly important; gratitude for the simple things.

Today I am grateful for
...the blessings that a rather substantial bonus from work brings

A lovely soon to be unexpected blessing

I have been buying cage free eggs from the market.


What could be even better...cage free eggs, not from the market but from one who raises chickens.

Disneyland Ticket Books

My first trip to Disneyland...1961; just a few years after it first opened. I was 4 and I went with my dad and grandmother. My mom stayed home as she was pregnant with my sister.

Of course I don't remember my first trip...but the memory is forever etched in picture slides. Growing up in So. California...a trip to Disneyland was not just for vacations and so 1961 was just the first year of many more to come.

My fondest memory is not the rides nor the food nor even Mickey Mouse...but the ticket books. Tickets with either A, B, C, D or E on it. Different tickets for different rides...E ticket being the best.

Marineland

A vintage long forgotten childhood memory.

I am not a avid reader...

never the less my favorite kind of books are those



that bring the beauty of the past back;

even if it is only

on my bookshelf.

Yet there are times when a certain photo on a page

brings back a distant memory.

A treasure of primary colors

Growing up my mother had a set of Pyrex mixing bowls just like these ones...minus the small blue one.

I do believe my fondness for mixing bowls was born from my mothers kitchen... some 45 years ago.

Abundance of gratitude...

for Tuesday

To keep me grounded is to remind myself of what is truly important; gratitude for the simple things.

Today I am immensly grateful (more than words can express) for
...the new health care bill and the daughter who is now covered under my health insurance from work until she is 26

My heart felt thank you...President Obama

Note to self

A little over 3 years ago I made this journal enty. Today it is a gentle reminder.

To be truly blessed is to live life with no regrets. Who knew it would be cancer, that would bestow this upon me. How truly blessed I am. There is certainly, no amount of time, that is guaranteed for any of us, on this earth. For me the odds that tomorrow, may never come, has such clarity. I am at high risk for cancer to return.

Living with no regrets is saying no, and knowing that is okay. It is no longer pushing down my emotions; as I now freely speak my mind. It is living life, where I put myself first, and knowing that, that is okay. It is surrounding my being, with the beauty, that I may never see. It is about embracing my soul with a abundance of humor, every chance I get.

Living with no regrets is hugging my precious daughter, every day and ...having many, many Rory and Lorelai moments.

Jadeite Rolling Pin

How better to keep chilled pie dough cold while rolling...

than by putting ice in the rolling pin.

I adore jadeite,...

pink and green depression glass. The Vermont Country Store is my new found treasure... for it sells this vintage loveliness.

New favorite words of mine...yellow Vaseline Glass

and Mosser Glassware; the company behind it all.

A vintage whisper of yesteryear...

brings with it this grown woman's faint...

yet fond little girl memory.

Search long enough and you will find...

a plethora of vintage fridge magnets

Zazzle

I have a fondness

for retro


and vintage looking

refrigerator magnets

Retro Planet

So when I come across some that I do not have...I smile. The little things in life that make my day... inexpensive magnets of my delight.

Those who are so precious to me...

have become

two amazing young women

and I am so very blessed to be their mama.

Abundance of gratitude...

for Saturday

To keep me grounded, is to remind myself, of what is truly important; gratitude for the simple things.

Today I am grateful for
...the clarity to see
...the wisdom to accept
...and the grace to evolve

The gentle pebbles of change...

in the form of baby steps; born from one life altering documentary...Food Inc. has brought such awareness... in my journey for antibiotic free, hormone free, pesticide free, HFCS free, locally grown and a humanely raised food source of

organic milk



organic vegetables especially the dirty dozen

Nectarines – 97.3% of nectarines sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Celery – 94.5% of celery sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Pears – 94.4% of pears sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Peaches – 93.7% of peaches sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Apples – 91% of apples sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Cherries – 91% of cherries sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Strawberries – 90% of strawberries sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Imported Grapes – 86% of imported grapes (i.e. Chile) sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Spinach – 83.4% of spinach sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Potatoes – 79.3% of potatoes sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Bell Peppers – 68% of bell peppers sampled were found to contain pesticides.
Red Raspberries – 59% of red raspberries sampled were found to contain pesticides












cage free eggs



free range chicken and grass fed beef

The process is slow, the awareness is there and oh how I look forward to that next new path, that lies just ahead of me.

One of those moments that takes your breath away

Around 6 months ago I watched a documentary on Netflix...The Wild Parrots Of Telegraph Hill. I lived in the bay area many moons ago when I was 19 and fell in love with Northern CA. The mere mention of the bay area drew me to this documentary; those amazing creatures kept me captivated.

Fast forward to 6 weeks ago. My daughter tells me she has seen green parrots flying around and immediately I remember. Have they migrated south...was my first thought; or could they be our very own southern CA wild parrots.
You know when they are close to being overhead, as there is this loud choir of screeching; before getting close. The sound has become music to my ears. For if I step outside, I can catch a glimpse of my very own flock of wild parrots.

Just plain loveliness...

and oh...the plethora of possibilities.

Victorian Trading Company

Vintage reproductions

Since I posted this yesterday, I have decided to purchase these. They are only 4 inches tall. Just the right size for my spearmint and chamomile tea bags.

Victorian Trading Company

Who knew a dish drain...could be so lovely

Victorian Trading Company

There is nothing lovelier than a splash of vintage green

Note to self...

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."
-- Dr. Maya Angelou

There are times when I am left alone in my own head for too long... so thank you Cathy, for this lovely bit of clarity.

I have never had a great fondness for shoes or purses...

like a lot of women do. Recently though, I have come across something that is my equivalent to other women's fondness for purses and shoes.

goatsmilkstuff

Soap, my new found little treasure; organic goats milk and olive oil soap to be exact. The only ingredients in this lovely bit of soap. It feels as though I am washing my skin with silk. I wash my face and shave my legs with it. Something that would never cross my mind; with that other bar of soap and all the dry skin that comes with it.

With every order, three sample of different soaps are sent. With each sample I find a new favorite. My next order; goats milk, oatmeal and honey scrub. Now I know I will never touch a bar of that other soap again. If only I could convince my daughter other wise. After this soap arrived I immediately banished, the opened bar of that other soap, that was in the shower. The next day a new bar of that other soap, "poof"..... reappeared. She won't even try it.

Oh well, she does not know what she is missing... and did I say, more for me.