Random Sunshine

I'm trying to get my kids to love the outside as much as me. I feel like it is such a part of who I am- of who I want to be. I make them ride their bikes, or walk and play outdoors whenever possible. I feel like its those connections to the natural world that opens their eyes to so much possibility.
I've been obsessed with home improvement lately. I go in phases I guess and it has been a while since I've tackled one. I just got done hanging all the pictures and frames that have been sitting on the floor gathering dust waiting for Joe to come help hang. He just doesn't have the time. I know this but still wait for him. I love the improvements though. We are getting ready to have a backsplash installed that isn't going to be cheap and the buyers remorse and just plain guilt for being so "worldly" are eating away at me. Yet instead of trying to make myself feel better by doing things for others, I am trying so hard to suppress the urge to go buy this adorable yellow bench I saw at Target yesterday. It says in the church written handbook about managing money that you should upgrade and improve your house so I don't know why it's making me nervous. I guess cause I feel happy, content, and incredible blessed that I feel guilty and bad for all those who are not feeling this. All those who struggle, and skimp and save and still will never have even close to all I do.
I saw this girl that used to be in my ward yesterday. She was the primary president when I first moved in and I never felt like she liked me very much, for whatever reason. I'm sure she doesn't feel that way but I just never thought she was very friendly. Well I was really excited to see her yesterday because I thought now that I am President, we would have this unspoken bond and I might not feel that dislike from her. However, after the polite, and slightly forced small talk from her, she couldn't have walked away fast enough. I felt bad. I hope I never give anyone that impression. I love Joe's mantra this year which is that every interaction I have with someone else should only leave them feeing good about themselves. I should only uplift and make others feel better than they did before interacting with me. I am recommitting to this mentality no matter how the other person is being.

My Monday Mazes- (as in a'mazing')

I love Mondays! For many, when Monday rolls around there is an overwhelming sense of dread by all that must be accomplished  in the next 6 days until that blessed day of rest comes again. But for me it is a day of renewal. I have not only recommitted to all that I didn't accomplish last week, I like to idealize the potential of what new things will be open and possible to me in the days to come. So Mondays I am going to start posting 3 things that are amazing to me as I kick off what is sure to be an incredible week.

1. Bright Orange Pumpkins! I love seeing them everywhere- scattered across porches, and crates filled to the brim with pumpkins at store fronts. It's like an official welcome to fall and all the memories and activities that lie ahead in the coming months.
2. Homemade food. I love making food from scratch. I don't know if store bought foods' and many restaurants food quality has gone done so much, or if my taste buds have become incredible finicky but there is such a vast difference in the way things taste to me and I have found that often I only like what I make. I really enjoy cooking. I love looking at recipes and high quality ingredients.
3. A good morning run. With the morning heat gone for the year and the return of the crisp, dark mornings - my early morning runs have been awesome- essential to my well being. I am back to a solid 10 minute mile and the clarity that happens inside my brain has been priceless. My body and breathing are working in complete unison... combine that with some great music and a constant flow of thoughts and it has been a perfect way to start my day.

Fall in the Desert

October 4th, and it actually feels like it today, there is a bite in the breeze. It doesn't quite live up to the standards of a traditional fall - that earthly smell, the one comprised of damp, freshly fallen leaves is absent. However, I know this is a fleeting moment that I don't come to expect from October in the Mojave and I am taking full advantage and dressed in a hoodie and boots to celebrate. I may even spend an hour reading on the couch, tangled up in my cozy, perfectly aqua afghan. If that doesn't fulfill me, I might completely rebel against the desert and drink hot herbal tea tonight- or if the thermostat tips 80, at least imagine I am. Fuzzy peach goodness in a bright yellow tea cup.

New Beginning

I haven't blogged in years.  I had a spare minute tonight and found myself reading a friends blog...another thing I haven't done in way too long. It took only a few minutes of her random musings to ignite that desire inside me, one that has been building the past few months. Sometimes I feel like my heart is going to burst right out of my chest with all the buried thoughts and feelings compacted in that little space. If I was going to play the, "what do you want to be when you grow up game" the wistful, dream big idea that would emerge from this would be, a writer. I want to write bold, beautiful words with big ideas and even bigger feelings. I want to write in a way that leaves my words lingering through your thoughts days later. So this is a new beginning in my pursuit of this dream, another place to keep my words.