Everyday Magic.

I think there's magic in every single day. There has to be, right?

Beautiful sun rises, delicious food, great mascara, big laughs, perfect weather, everything. Life might be a little sunnier if we began believing there was real magic all over the dang place.

Happy Friday! Where will you find magic today?

Pin-SpirationaL: Week One.

Alas, my first week of my self-inflicted Pinterest challenge!

The pin.

This was actually a bit of a cheat since I've made this recipe before. A couple years ago I was super dedicated to making all of my own cleaning supplies. After a bout of laziness, I stopped BUT I am starting again after researching more about animal testing and the hazards of everyday chemicals.

Verdict: I love this recipe. It's relatively quick to make (grating that dang Fels Naptha takes for-ev-er) and cleans our clothes really well. My only tip? Grate that soap as small as humanly possible or else it doesn't fully disolve.

What great pins have you tried lately?

Focus on Health.

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Sunny Love.

So this glorious thing happened the other day while I was driving: I found myself needing sunglasses.

The sun. I know. The sun is back.

I am a hoarder of shades. I have at least 35 pairs and can't bear to donate the ones that I don't like (maybe someday they'll look really great to me or something). Heart shaped, gold-rimmed, way farer...I love them all! At any time I have three pairs in my car, two in my purse, and a few strewn about the house. Getting dressed in warmer months means that I have to try on at least three pairs before finding the "one." 

Some sunglasses I'm lusting after for the upcoming sunny seasons?

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ModCloth had a pair of gold-rimmed heart shaped sunnies a few years ago and I've since regretted not snatching them up immediately. The above pair aren't the exact shades but they'll do. 

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 Also, do you shop at the amazing Hello Holiday? In browsing their accessories I found they do a Sunglasses of the Month Club. Um, hello lover!

What is your accessory "vice"?

Acts of Kindness & Good Things.

The last week has been a whirlwind of sorts. Dealing with a family issue and a terrifying emergency room trip for myself on Saturday night...life is just rough sometimes.

In a cranky mood the other day and upset about a myriad of things, I found myself fuming about the people who know things that I am going through and don't bother to reach out--you can call it selfish if you like. Friends who don't ask how things are going or if there's anything they can do though I would and have done the same for them. I wound up telling Rhyno that once life was settled again I was, "taking an axe to the people who don't give a shit and cutting them out of my life."

I am incredibly level-headed like that, especially when I'm Incredible Hulk-ing out.

It's easy, especially in times of high stress, to focus on the people that DON'T reach out. The people that DON'T ask how things are going. The people who, whether they realize it or not, show that they just don't care. I get that your life is busy, so is mine, but a text takes like ten seconds. Believe me, I wallowed in these muddy thoughts for a few hours before my mom told me to focus on the other half. For every asshole, there is someone amazing. There is my best friend who make vegan freezer meals for my family, my coworkers who text and IM to ask how things are, my bosses who are constantly supportive and understanding, the friends who reach out just to make me laugh, my family who is just the all-around best. In learning to better focus on the good in life, I also have to focus on the good people. 

How do you handle negative influences in your life or absentee friends?

Oh, and Happy St. Patrick's Day! I hope you get hammered or eat cabbage or whatever it is you like to do to celebrate. :)

Currently.

 I love when my morning tea comes with a sweet message.

I am currently...

 

....eating honey crisp apples all day long! I saw them while grocery shopping and even though they were a bit more expensive, I couldn't resist. They are one of my very favorite foods and I'd eat them with every single meal if I could.

 

...making outfit choices for a trade show this weekend! I actually don't mind working trade shows and find that days typically fly by.

 

...listening to Robyn's Dancing on My Own. UGH, I love it so much. I played it on loop last year and have rediscovered it recently, much to Rhyno's chagrin. It is my favorite dance-around-the-kitchen-while-cooking-dinner jam.

 

...reading all the Susan J. Gilman books I can. Well, re-reading is the proper term. Gilman is one of my favorite writers and I LOVE everything she's written. During a stressful week I've been revisiting her last book Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven. Also, HI, her next book comes out in June. I am counting down the days. Her words make me so happy.

 

...watching everything on Netflix. We bough a TV early last year and just now learned it is capable of being connected to Hulu and Netflix. Duh doy. We finally watching Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23 and now I am sad it was cancelled. Only the good get cancelled young...

 

...loving dreams of Spring! I've been dusting off my sunglasses and dresses and ballet flats. I've been itching to open the windows in our house and my car (dang, I love fresh air). Also, give me all the fruit. Let's get to the season where I can hop to the farmer's market and load up on every fruit possible.

 

...wishing one of my very best friends and one of the most darling, rock n' roll, smart, hilarious women in the world a happy birthday! Happy birthday, Katie! I love your guts so much I could cry happy tears and barf happy barfs...even though you love math.

 

  Have a fantastic weekend!

 

If you also partake in Currently posts, please link up in the comments!

Pin-spirational Challenge.

I love Pinterest--I know you, me, and your mother's second cousin all love Pinning our brains out. Pinterest makes me feel like I'm capable of more, my house can always be cuter, my wardrobe more beautiful, and there is a ton of great food I haven't been eating. I've read that Pinterest can make you feel accomplished without actually doing anything, but I feel quite the opposite. It makes me want to do more and gets my creative wheels turning fast (plus the app makes for happy fun times no matter where I go).

Fun/sad story: I am such an obsessive clean freak that when I had the flu and was bed-ridden last year I went through all of my boards and cleared them of pins I no longer was interested in. I feel sad about myself right now...So anyway, I was perusing the old Pinterest the other day and realized it had been a while since I actually made/baked/wore/did any of these things, or even tried to. So my challenge was born!

I'm challenging myself to complete at least one pin a week from any of my boards--maybe I'll bake Nutter Butter pie or make funfetti candles or pull together a professional and colorful office outfit. 

It's just one pin a week and I'll blog about my attempt (even if it's a total failure). 

What do you say? Want to take part in my Pin-spirational Pinterest Challenge?

The Rhyno Files.

Last week my darling hubba had yet another surgery on his right arm (he hurt himself at work in 2012, had shoulder surgery in 2013, and now had surgery to correct all the problems he had from last year's operation SHEESH). 

Before: pre-op, post-drugs, feelin' fly

After a loooong wait to actually get on the table (hey, that wasn't nerve-shredding at all!), I'm happy to report Rhyno's surgery went off without a hitch! He took for-ev-er to wake up after and has been in quite a bit of pain but he seems to be recovering nicely. 

After: Post-op, more drugs, actin' weird

The thing about your husband and lovebug of nearly 8 years undergoing  routine shoulder surgery? You will imagine everything terrible ever while waiting to hear he's okay (thank gosh for WiFi so I could distract myself with work). 

Healing: R + his nurse/snuggle bunny

 Nurse Violet and I have been tending to our little bird and his broken wing even though he's a bit grumpy (pain will do that), very bored (still won't play Monopoly with me though HA-RUMPH), and can't move around much (he's not allowed to move his bicep, it's harder than you'd think). Bring on April, I'm ready to get the broken bird out of his sling!

My Kind of Sort of Vegan Life (don't hold me to that).

It's no secret that I am basically obsessed with animals and I am an aspiring, but too lazy, vegan wanna be. I'm a longtime vegetarian but still trying to transition to fully vegan living. I've realized that the 80% vegan is probably where I fall--it's easy for me to stay on track during the week but harder on weekends or when we go out. Real vegans, please don't hurt me.

Instead of jumping in with both feet and throwing away every animal product I have on hand, I've slowed the transition. I've started doing one totally vegan day a week and last year started phasing out animal-tested (ew) cleaning and beauty products in our house. That's still tricky since I'm still researching which companies are evil...um...I mean...which companies still undergo animal lab tests and which don't. 

Anyway, the book above (from the lovely Angela at Oh She Glows). One thing I've come across with some vegan products and cookbooks...the chemicals. Oh, chemical warfare up in my mouth! I want to eat animal-free AND clean so I pre-ordered the OSG cook book and have been drooling over the beautiful, delicious-looking, whole foods recipes. I'm planning to cook some up this week and report back. I've been on the hunt for products that aren't loaded with chemicals (things like Larabars and almond cheeses) because this bod is a temple and I have no business fuming up my temple.

What are your favorite whole foods cook books or products?

The Week Ahead.

My flowers a.k.a. my weekly love letter to myself/reminder that life is kind of gorgeous.

The week ahead promises to be a rough one, some big personal things going on that I'm very nervous about and leaving home for a few days to take care of some things (which means leaving my Rhyno with his broken wing to fend for himself).

I don't enjoy being vague, mostly because it really butters my toast when other people are, but the stories aren't really mine to tell. Just please oh please send me and my family a quick air hug--I promise I'll send one back. 

Life throws you curve balls and it's easy to begin believing there is a black cloud following you around (I succumbed to that thinking for most of 2013) but my outlook is changing, albeit with a lot of effort, and I'm trying to glue those rose-colored glasses to my face, see the flower in the vase not the dust on the table, all that. Even in the midst of a storm or worrisome times there is joy to be had and life to be loved. Last year I would have let this week send me into a pit of french fries, tears, wine, and self-pity. This year I've printed out simple stress-reducing yoga moves to do anywhere, upped my water intake (I swear hydration makes me a happier person), and am carrying around my very old copy of Taxi Driver Wisdom because it makes me smile. 

Have a good week!

Calm within the Chaos.

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Because I'm a total creature of habit and consistency, I hate when I don't post 5 posts a week but dudes/dudettes I am choosing not to stuff the empty days with filler and just leave 'em empty. 

I know. I am the only one who cares about this. 

In an effort to keep calm in stressful times (and keep my blog clear of unneeded clutter because who cares if I don't write something for a couple days), I've been allowing myself a break from things that aren't totally necessary. I have a lot going on (yeah, vague, oh well) so sometimes the house can be a little dusty, the blog a little blank, or the dishwasher a little full. Usually I push myself to the brink of insanity by over-committing to things even when I have too much going on but let's break some patterns, shall we? I'm happy, I'm grateful, I'm willing to let go of certain things.

How do you keep calm in chaos?

Be Kind.

 

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I've been thinking about this quote a lot lately with my own situations going on. A few days ago a journalist I was working with was really rude to me and I thought, "If you knew what I have going on, you wouldn't be such an a-hole." I hope not, at least.

This whole situation, of course, made me realize that I'm guilty of being a little bit of a beast when I'm in a cranky mood--maybe I'm short with a coworker or I don't engage in polite conversation with the grocery bagger or I rip my husband a new one for something petty. I try to make an effort to be kind to people in general but I recognize that I need to try harder. Since I'm most comfortable with Rhyno I feel like he really gets the brunt of my jerkiness (I feel like that's usually the case though) so I'm trying not to vent quite so passionately to him and remember that when someone is being a real bonehead they might have a lot going on.

Oh, hey, Happy March (a couple days late)!