After coming back from vacation I expected to feel re-energized and renewed.
Instead the last two weeks have been a struggle. Let’s just say it feels like I’m off track, like I’ve forever lost my “mojo.”
This left me questioning: How do I make each day the best day, and the best of times? Especially, when things in the world seem so hard and so many are hurting.
Read MoreEspecially when your husband puts on his podcast for everyone’s listening enjoyment.
I audibly exhaled as he put it on.
I then proceeded to roll my eyes. This road trip seemed to get longer. Not shortly after however, I’ll admit, I pulled out my pen and notebook and I started taking notes.
Read MoreI’m a planner by nature and a bit of a type A personality if I’m being honest. In addition to Life and Whim, I own a marketing business with Jay and another partner, my job is to design and plan out projects from start to finish. And as a mom of three girls, I am always planning their activities and our families’ day to day so that I can maximize and be as efficient as possible with my time.
Each day I get up early. I write my journal pages, plan out my day with my to do list and the breakdown of what I’m working on for that day. Everything is planned. While this makes me efficient and allows me to have time for painting and other things I enjoy, it also creates an illusion. The illusion that I have some sort of control in the world.
Read MoreSpring is in the air where I live in northern Michigan. The temperatures are warmer, the snow is melting, birds are happily singing and everyone seems to have a “spring” in their step and a smile on their face on the recent warm sunny days.
Read MoreImpromptu snowball fight!
However, by the time the sun sets, things typically start unraveling. By the time the kids get to bed, I’m usually exhausted and default to beer and Netflix. Often I complete the gluttonous trifecta with a salty snack. It’s pretty obvious: My evening routine, if you want to call it that, is lacking.
When she’s outside, she’s light and carefree—still determined and competitive but playful. When I say outside, I don’t mean in the backyard or at the local playground. She’s at her best in forests, on sand dunes, and in other wide open spaces.
It’s like she’s breathing in contentment, and breathing out frustration, as she navigates trails, races down the ski hill or ambles along the beach hunting rocks at the edge of the surf. This brings Heather and I great pleasure. It’s exactly the sort of transformation we sought when we made the decision to uproot everything in search of a slower, meaningful, purposeful and intentional life.
Read MoreWhen I was a young girl, my mom tucked my arms under the covers when she tucked me in for the night. It was an act of love to make sure I was warm and secure but I hated it. I immediately pulled my arms out accidentally hitting her in the face in the process - I didn’t like to be confined. This memory stuck with me.
These days, I have my own daughters to raise and I’m seeing the early signs of rebellion coming from my almost eleven year old daughter. I have to admit, it was causing me strife the last few weeks. I initially pushed back but it only made me more worried, frustrated, upset and feeling like I was starting to lose my daughter to the teen years. This got me thinking back to my earlier years and my desire to be free and less confined.
Read MoreWe have a child who, to put it mildly, can be difficult at times. She’s intense, opinionated, stubborn, and argumentative. I love her for it. Her spunk will serve her well in life, but it can be a challenge. Fortunately, she’s not always this way. She has an alter ego when she’s in the great outdoors.
When she’s outside, she’s light and carefree—still determined and competitive but playful. When I say outside, I don’t mean in the backyard or at the local playground. She’s at her best in forests, on sand dunes, and in other wide open spaces.
It’s like she’s breathing in contentment, and breathing out frustration, as she navigates trails, races down the ski hill or ambles along the beach hunting rocks at the edge of the surf. This brings Heather and I great pleasure. It’s exactly the sort of transformation we sought when we made the decision to uproot everything in search of a slower, meaningful, purposeful and intentional life.
Read MoreWe are all cats.
You know what I mean?
Perhaps not, if you were quarantined from social media last week and missed the video of the lawyer in Texas who joined a virtual court hearing via Zoom using a kitten filter. The lawyer couldn’t figure out how to turn off the filter, the judge tried to help, and hilarity ensued. The lasting punchline was the lawyer trying to reassure everyone by saying, “I am not a cat.”
Here’s a link to the video in case you missed it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGOofzZOyl8
Read MoreWhat little thing brings you happiness?
For me, one of my little loves is flowers. They make me happy from their beautiful colorful blooms to their lovely scents. I really admire people that have a green thumb and can grow and put together amazing floral arrangements. I have to admit so far that has not been me! Every year the little slugs, pesky rabbits and overly friendly deer (just to name a few) seem to find a way to eat away at mine!
Since February is the month of love, I’ve decided to take this month to focus on something that brings me happiness. Therefore, I’m setting out to take some time to plan and learn about creating a “simple” flower garden. On these winter days, I’m envisioning gazing out at my colorful new Zinnia flower garden with fresh bouquets filling my house this summer.
Someone that inspires me with her beautiful garden designs and flower arrangements is Alissa Thompson of IndieGrow Flowers, a local gardner and floral designer in my home town of Traverse City. I love her work so much that I’ve reached out to Alissa to see if she would be willing to talk with us about planning a garden and the secret to creating perfect arrangements. We’ll be sharing our conversation with Alissa later this month. In addition, I will be working on a painting a series of flowers featuring some of her beautiful bouquets.
This mini painting (above) is called “Flower Power.” It captures the beauty and color of one of Alissa’s beautiful bouquets. I hope the painting brings you as much happiness as it did for me to paint and that you find yourself doing something this month that you love too!
Read MoreIn screenplay and novel writing, the inciting incident is the event that gets the story rolling. It’s the action or decision that introduces the problem that the story’s main character must overcome.
In Jerry Maguire, it’s the moment that Jerry writes his manifesto about the need to put people first in the sports agency business. It leads to hisfiring and he walks away from his power job to start over.
Read MoreWe open doors countless times per day, often with no thought whatsoever. It’s just an instinctive step in the process of getting us to where we want to go or inviting someone into our home.
But those are physical doors. What about metaphorical ones? Those that lead to our hopes and dreams. Why do those doors seem so hard to open, let alone step through?
For years, I held close my hopes and dreams—not sharing them and certainly not acting on them. I held them so close that I shut out all the light and almost smothered them altogether. Then one day, I cracked the door, not wide, but just enough to let some light in and let some of me out.
Little by little, it became easier to widen the door to show what was within. And as I did, I became happier. And as I became happier, I shared it with others and on it went.
This painting (above) is called “Within.” It shows how beautiful our “messy” can be when we are brave enough to open the door to it. I hope you enjoy the bright, happy colors, and maybe even get inspired to crack a door to something that you are holding close.
Read MoreIf you’re anything like me, it’s probably more than you’d like to admit. I have a did-not-do regret list a mile long. Some things are relatively trivial, others quite significant.
Read MoreIf Benjamin Franklin was alive today, he'd definitely be the subject of a "5 Daily Habits of Highly Successful People" article in Inc. magazine.
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