Thursday, July 29, 2010

Cleaning and scrubbing


I realized last night that I had been away from the blog for most of the week! I have been so busy with my daughter coming home from Rawanda and my son heading off to Hawaii that I've lost track of the time. I've also been busy the last two weeks with cleaning, decluttering, painting their bedrooms while they are gone. By Friday evening I'll be done! Wanted to get everything done before school started in September.
As for Zucchini! I did end up grilling a bunch of it on the BBQ and then using it in salads and sandwiches. However, I did find some great suggestions over on one of my favorite blogs
Tea and Cookies! She gives some great links for recipes.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

A Bounty


Friday evening's pick up at the CSA was big! We have just started getting some real nice weather here in the PNW right after July 5th so things are starting to pop in the gardens!
However, I came home with all this zucchini? What to do with it all? It looked so beautiful this morning on the counter with the morning sun. I think I need to go for a long bike ride this morning before I tackle this job!
Have a good weekend!

Thursday, July 22, 2010

FEAR


"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presenceautomatically liberates others."


by Marianne Williamson.


It comes from her book, "A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles."


Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Prosperity Law # 62

Prosperity Law #62

" I mentally release what I no longer want"

You must let go of what you do not want in order to make room for what you do want. Removing your mental grip on circumstances releases the energy necessary for change. Declare silently or out loud that you now willingly release old beliefs, situations and relationships that no longer serve you.

- HarMoney Cards,

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Simplicity TWO

" It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.”
- Laura Ingalls Wilder

Both of my kids are gone next week to camps and trips so I've been planning how I'm going to go thru our home each evening getting rid of things that don't make our lives simpler. Just one project each evening and we'll be done.

One way of making your life simpler is to get rid of all the clutter. Slowly but surely it's working.


Friday, July 16, 2010

Rawanda

On Wednesday evening 7/14 Makaela left for her mission trip to Rawanda! She was very excited and the group has now arrived! I'm sure they were exhausted after such a long flight. If you are interested in following their mission work at the Center for Champions, please visit the following blog site.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Simplicity


Simplicity
"Our life is frittered away by detail... Simplify, simplify, simplify."
-Henry David Thoreau, Walden
I think I'll leave it at that. Have a good day!

Monday, July 12, 2010

Kayaking Weekend


All I can say about this last weekend was WOW! What an amazing experience. The kayak trip in the Canadian gulf islands was awesome! Our guides were fantastic and the food incredible. I took 133 pictures and these were just a sampling. The salad above was just lunch on a pit stop at Pirates Cove before hitting our final destination! Smoked Tuna on a bed of greens with grilled asparagus and lots of other goodies.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Gourmet Kayak Trip

Today I am heading up to Vancouver Island to join up with my group Friday for the Gourmet Kayak Tour! I have perfect weather today for the ferry ride 90 degrees here in Seattle and I have my dry packs all ready to go and the camera battery charged. Really looking forward to a new experience. If you are interested in these gourmet kayak trips you can find more information at Edible British Columbia. Will have pictures for you next week!

Monday, July 5, 2010

The New Good Life by John Robbins


The New Good Life

by

John Robbins

Over the holiday weekend I read the book, The New Good Life by John Robbins. The book was a very quick read and was interesting in that I had not read his previous books and was not familiar with his history.

John Robbins is a man who decided to live his life by his own drummer. He is the son of founder Baskin Robbins and yet decided to walk away from his "good life" in order to create his own by his standards.

The book is very timely and a lot of the references he gives in the book are very recent events in our nations economy. What we've known in the past as "normal" in our economy is gone and we need to create our own sense of normalcy.

From John's book:

" The year 2010 began with nearly one in three U.S. homeowners owing more on their mortgages than their homes were worth, and that figure was soon expected to soon reach one in two. Today, foreclosures are filed in the United States every seven and a half seconds"

" The level of affluence may Americans had come to take for granted is becoming out of reach for rapidly growing numbers of people"

So... given this... how do we create our own sense of independence from money and see it not as a necessary evil but a way to help provide and enhance our lives and the lives of those less fortunate?

Through out the book the author wants to convey:

" However much money you have or don't have, your relationship to the money in your life can be transformational. It can be a doorway into greater consciousness, into greater integrity and into greater freedom. "

The book then goes into the following:

1. Getting to know your money type

2. Four steps to financial freedom

Living the Good Life

a. Your life is your temple - if you treat it like one

b. Life is too short for traffic

c. Eating better, spending less

d. Kids, the biggest financial decision of your life

e. Safe, Clean and Natural

f. The economics of happiness

I felt that the author did a very good job awakening us to the above aspects to consider when you are living your good life every day. He gives you some things to consider and ponder when deciding to change your lifestyle.

His story is inspiring and I'd strongly recommend this book if you are looking ways to cope within this new economy.

John Robbins also has a web site where he is posting articles and more information on his book. You can get to the site by clicking here.

Friday, July 2, 2010

4th of July


Happy 4th of July weekend!
A weekend to rest and relax!
Maybe a book ... or two, parade, BBQ, and trying some new recipes.
Here's hoping you have a safe and restful weekend.