Life

My cousin had posted a pictures of her daughter laying on the driveway surrounded by beautiful butterfly wings in chalk a couple weeks ago.  And the thought struck me, why not do that here?  This particular Sunday morning was sunny and warm and seemed like the perfect time!  We grabbed the bin of sidewalk chalk and got started.

Rainbow seemed like the logical colour for a springy drive way butterfly.  Because, well, who doesn’t want to use all the colours available to them, right?

So, it all seems great in theory until you have to lay there, squinting up at the sun….and the photographer can’t get high enough to shoot down so the angles and expressions are not what I would hope for but here we are anyway.  And then you get up and have a back that is completely covered in chalk dust!!  Oops!!!   Oh well, we had fun, made some memories and had some laughs!

See? So much fun!!  The dust and sun-in-the-eyes is worth it!!  These faces seems to radiant joy, no?

Oh this kid – so expressive!!!  She really didn’t like the sun shine in her eye balls!!  😉

Then the bunnies came out to join us!  Everyone deserves their chance to be photographed, right?

That’s Lucy and now here’s Lacey…much like her owner, she didn’t love it quite as much…

Who knew bunnies could express annoyance so well!

Is more sidewalk chalk considered essential?

Warmly,

Lori

Spring, according to the calendar, is here.  It may not feel that way outside – snow, frost and cool, grey days – makes Spring feel like it is just a figment of our imaginations.  I’m not sure just how delayed it actually is, it feels as if we are weeks behind.  But the grass is turning greener and the buds are on the trees.  Some flowers have made their appearance and for that I am so thankful.

Spring is always so filled with hope.  Of warmer days, of lush scenery, of things coming to life, of baby lambs.  And I feel like this year, more than any other year in my life, we NEED Spring.  We need sunny skies and colourful treasures popping from the earth to show that life does go on, even in the middle of a global pandemic.

Everyone is experiencing this in different ways.  Each experience is different, based on work, life, family, finances, current emotional state and it can change every 5 minutes how well we deal or don’t deal with everything thrown our way these days.  And that’s ok.  No one is expecting us to handle this without the roller coaster of emotion that this level of uncertainty brings.  We will have good days, we will have bad days – sheesh – it can change a multitude of times throughout one day!  And it is ok.

I’m sitting at my desk, watching the the sun rise and a duck swim across the pond.  Nature is blissfully unaware that we have suffered huge loses in this province, across this country and around the world.  It runs on it’s own clock, the hand of God silently working behind the scenes to tell the hummingbirds when to come, the daffodils when to bloom and the sap when to run.  The sun comes up, the tides run on their schedule and the earth continues to spin.  I take this to heart, as a sign that, cliche as it sounds, this too shall pass.  Does it means it’s easy in the here and now? No.  I have days that it’s all too much.  I’ve cried, stressed, and had melt downs.  But I’ve also been filled with hope, joy and peace.

I have no real point here other than to say you aren’t alone on the roller coaster ride.  These are crazy, unprecedented times – never have we seen anything like this.   Our world will be forever impacted.  So, feel your feelings, reach out to someone to check in, offer to help a neighbour, buy the flowers, bake the sourdough bread, run the bath, go for a walk in the sunshine { or rain } and give yourself a hug – we are doing the best we know how to.

Warmly,

Lori

I’m going to try to not fixate too much on the current state of our world.  But it does feel all consuming these days and I’m trying to create some healthy ways of coping with weird work schedules, kids home from school, not seeing my friends and family and avoiding like crazy anything other than staying home!  And of course, to avoid the ‘plague’ with a 6′ foot pole.  Literally.

One of the things I’m trying to do is get physically active.  It helps boost my spirits, rid my body of some stress and tension.  Like even right now, I feel the ache of tense back muscles from the weight of it all.  One of the ways I’m trying to move more is through yoga.  Back in the day, I did yoga weekly in our local hall with a great circle of friends and neighbours.  But I haven’t done it much { at all } since then.  But I know that my body and mind would benefit greatly.  So, I pulled out my yoga mat, shook the dust off it and laid it out on the floor. And I remembered a few poses and sequences from our classes with Shauna.  But alas, not much.

So, full circle story here for a minute.  Do you remember way back when I did THIS post about Nicole and her Oh Mother Care Kits?  Well, back then, we hadn’t met in person, she was still living in the city.  Fast forward to now and she lives in my community, joined our book club and I feel very fortunate to call her a friend!

Nicole is very thoughtful and community-minded and so she offered a few of us in our amazing book club her Oh Yoga Cards to try out.  So, one day doing some doorstep drop-offs of group orders, she popped a little muslin bag of the cards along with my freshly fermented kombucha.

Guys, these cards are the best.  Not only are the illustrations the adorable { models complete with tattoos! } but they have lots of information about each pose and offer the option to follow the cards in sequence, too, to create a flow.  I love that she created them with a few other east coasters so women can feel comfort doing yoga in their own homes….perfect for these days, no?

You can order a set for yourself or a special mother in your life HERE.

Stay safe!

Lori

PS I received these cards as a gift from a friend, but my take on them is just that 😉

By Lena Byrne

Here are some helpful tips to help you get stuff done well we are safe at home.

1. Get up early. Get up as early as you can because, then by 8 you will have gotten so much done already. The night before do not stay up late because being up late will make it so much harder to get up.

2. Get up as soon as you get up. Don’t lay in bed on your phone, get up and commit to getting things done.

3. Brush your teeth and do your hair. If you look your best, you’ll feel your best.

4. Have a shower. It will get the blood pumping, and will help you wake up. To get extra awake it helps if you use colder water.

5. Get dressed. Pyjamas will make you want to crawl back to bed. But still dress in comfy clothes you feel confident in.

6. Eat breakfast. You won’t get anything done on a empty stomach. Eating healthy food will make you feel better. No snacking on junk food.

7. Make your bed so you won’t crawl back in.

8. Drink lots of water. { 1 litre or more } It will help you think better.

9. Make a list. List making will keep you much more organized. You can also number your list in the order you need to get it done in.

10. Do laundry. Because every so often you will have to get up and switch the laundry, and fold it!! That will keep you from getting to comfy!

11. Open the curtains. Let lots of natural light in which will help you wake up, and it’s better the having lights on all the time.

12. Open the windows { If it’s warm enough out } There is nothing better than fresh air, and it helps to get the air moving in your home.

13. Put upbeat music on! Dance around and sing at the top of your lungs. It will just put you in a good mood.

14. Go outside. { If you have time } Exercise will get the blood pumping and clear your head.

15. No devices. It is so easy to get distracted. Just put the devices aside and get stuff done.

Once you are ready for the day, you are ready to be productive!

Productively yours,

Lena