Sunday, April 27, 2008

Meerkat?

Our cat, Patches, has taken to standing up on her back legs, paws off the ground, looking much more like a Meerkat than a housecat. Everyone who sees her marvels about her stance. Don't know why she started doing it, but it is kind of cute. . . .and weird! : )

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Simply Me

Today I want to tell you about my favorite new blog. It's by a woman who is an scrapbooking artist, and she is very inspiring. And, she's like someone who I could picture being great friends with if she lived near me. She seems really down to earth and fun. The way I get this feeling is she often puts video clips of herself on her blog and she comes across that way. And, she's been trying to lose weight --- actually, not only trying but succeeding! I think she's down 34 pounds! So it's nice to hear about someone else's struggles with weight, and to celebrate her successes! Okay, the new scrapbooking artist inspiration for me
(second only to my absolute fav, Ali Edwards), is
DONNA DOWNEY.
You can get to her blog by clicking here on its title: Simply Me. (Or click on her name to go to her website, which is also great, but mainly I just read her blog.) She just did this huge event in her hometown 0f Concord, North Carolina, called Inspired, so there's lots of information about that posted over the last week or so. Check her out, and be
I N S P I R E D !

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

"Who I Am Makes a Difference"

Okay, this one's a tear-jerker, for sure! But you've gotta love YouTube for putting this kind of inspiration on there for us to access! To my teacher friends, remember this lesson:
And friends, THANK YOU for making a difference in MY life!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Friday, April 11, 2008

A beautiful day

What a beautiful day today was in Poway! I think the temperature was in the mid-80's with just a slight breeze. I was sitting out back reading my book (A New Earth) and enjoying the beauty of the day! One of the plants we have on our back yard hill is called Mexican Feather Grass (Nassella tenuissima) that is so gorgeous when even the slightest wind blows. I love to watch the half-dozen plants just sway with the breeze, like a little dance. It is so soothing.

I hope you enjoyed your day too ----- even if you didn't get to enjoy the same beautiful weather that I had today!

What I'm reading

Yep, I've jumped on the bandwagon, and am one of the zillions of people reading A New Earth. No, not because of Oprah. (Although I do love Oprah and most of her book suggestions). No, I had been thinking about reading it because a couple of people told me they thought I'd like it, and then my friend Sarah got me my very own copy to read (and highlight and take notes in and dog-ear the pages). So far I'm only on chapter 3 ---- but already I see myself in it. (And that's what people told me. . . .you'd see places to make changes in your life early on in the book. . . .so it is definitely making me think about things. Now, with just a couple of days left of my 'spring break' I hope to get most of it read before Monday (back to school and back to Master's classes starting on 4/14!)

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Perspective

A little perspective --- what we all need from time to time.
Click here to get it.

Teddy bear gymnast ---caught on digital!



One of my little teddy bears did a nosedive the other day. . . . and I thought it looked so cute. . . . so I went to grab my camera to take a picture of it. He looks so much like he's doing a somersault, don't you think? : )

I had no qualms taking a picture of this (okay, three pictures) because I now have a digital camera. (A really nice one, thanks to my husband and my mom & dad---a wonderful Christmas gift!) It took me a long time to actually go 'completely digital.' I clung onto my 'regular' camera for a long time. When Dave & I went to Greece last year, he brought his digital, but I insisted that I bring my camera with 'real' film. While both took great pictures, it was Dave's digital camera pictures that gave me the most options; I could print the pictures I wanted, send ones I wanted enlarged to a local store and have them sent back to me, etc.

And since this year is my year of being 'creative' I am finding that having my digital camera allows me to take pictures of many more things than I would have with my 'real' camera. The digital one allows me to look at the pictures, delete them, keep them, play with them, send them to others, post on this blog, etc. I am having the most fun with it! So, now I feel like I'm catching up to the times. : )

However, I haven't done digital scrapbooking. . . . .I don't think I will, at least not anytime in the foreseeable future! I still love picking the layers that go on a page, from the paper to the embellishments. It makes my creative juices flow, and I find it so enjoyable. But, never say never. . . . . . after all, I 'never' thought I'd go 100% digital, either! : )

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

La Vie Claire --- the clear life ---
celebrating lives lived with passion,
places that inspire,
experiences that expand,
homes and setting that fulfill a vision.

What an awesome mission statement for a magazine! That would be an awesome 'life statement' as well! A life filled with passion and experiences that expand. . . . .how great!
Thanks, friend!