Glory be! It's my day off! A "comp day" for working the weekend. A weekday off. A day that my husband also has off. Glory glory glory!!
And it was a glorious day. A neighborhood run. A couples trip to Walmart (we went for $25 worth of stuff and left with $70 worth of stuff). Disney movie time -- Daniel chose Frozen, which basically turned into a sing along. Gardening -- we finally got the perennials planted that I bought a week ago off the Lowe's Last Chance Sale Rack, and found a few ant colonies in the process. We washed my car. I finished a no sew quilting art board project and hung it in my sewing room (first piece of "art" hung in the whole house!). And now, I'm enjoying some quiet time on the couch as it rains outside. My heart is so full -- having spent my day productively, doing things that I love and that are meaningful to me. I just know those new plants are drinking this rain up and my back yard paradise is just going to continue growing and becoming more and more my haven in times of trouble and stress.
I have so many other projects I want to accomplish today. I have grades I need to report. I have multiple quilt projects to begin and one important one to finish (the wedding quilt). I have a book that I've been neglecting for too long. I have Bible Study that needs to get done. I have prep work for class. I have laundry to do. I have laundry detergent to make (seriously -- I've fallen in love with the homemade laundry detergent! So cheap and so much more effective!). I have a shower to scrub. Vacuuming to do.
But for now, I am completely content to just let my heart overflow with gratitude for this day and all that was able to be accomplished.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Friday, August 14, 2015
The Yard
Yesterday when I got home from work, the hubster had already headed off to his job and I found myself at home alone. My normal Thursday night workout with some girlfriends got cancelled, and suddenly I had a lot of free time and no plans for that time (very rare for this busy body who always has to be doing, planning, or working on something). It was a beautiful, warm, low humidity summer day in Eastern NC (even more rare than me not having plans!), so I dropped my purse in the house, changed into comfy clothes, grabbed a hat, and headed out to the back yard to my mini portable hammock (this is what you use until you can save up the money for the real deal).
I spent 45 minutes in that hammock yesterday. I'd taken some magazines to read, but found myself uninterested in them so I set them aside. Instead, I spent that time sitting, swinging, breathing deep breaths of fresh air. I spent that time detoxing from the past few weeks, that have worked my heart and my emotions up into knots of frustration, stress, irritation, and a total sense of being overwhelmed. I took in my back yard. Which yesterday, was a paradise. Green grass. So many beautiful plants and flowers (thank you previous owners for having a positive sense of landscaping in the back yard -- I'll forgive you for totally screwing up the front flower beds as a result). Birds chirping -- so many birds! I took in a hummingbird in the back yard feeding off some flowers (time to buy a hummingbird feeder!!! Love those little birds). I took in even the loud buzzing of bees -- a glorious sound in the days of reduced bee population. I took in the gentle breeze. And slowly, the knots around my heart started melting away.
For the first time in weeks, I felt relaxed and normal. And not just normal, I felt inspired! Inspired to work on the lawn and tackle that front flower bed that the previous owners jacked up so badly. So off I went to Lowe's, where I raided the last chance rack (seriously! How did I not know this existed before?! AMAZING!) and nabbed a 50% off rose bush. I grabbed my gardening gloves and all my gardening tools once home and went to work on that flower bed. I pulled up weeds. I pulled up ground cover plants -- seriously. Juniper is TERRIBLE. I pulled up clover. And then, I pulled up a wolf spider. A large wolf spider. "Nope! I'm done!" was my reaction and I went inside. Shiver. I hate big spiders. And I hate fuzzy ones even worse.
I spent 45 minutes in that hammock yesterday. I'd taken some magazines to read, but found myself uninterested in them so I set them aside. Instead, I spent that time sitting, swinging, breathing deep breaths of fresh air. I spent that time detoxing from the past few weeks, that have worked my heart and my emotions up into knots of frustration, stress, irritation, and a total sense of being overwhelmed. I took in my back yard. Which yesterday, was a paradise. Green grass. So many beautiful plants and flowers (thank you previous owners for having a positive sense of landscaping in the back yard -- I'll forgive you for totally screwing up the front flower beds as a result). Birds chirping -- so many birds! I took in a hummingbird in the back yard feeding off some flowers (time to buy a hummingbird feeder!!! Love those little birds). I took in even the loud buzzing of bees -- a glorious sound in the days of reduced bee population. I took in the gentle breeze. And slowly, the knots around my heart started melting away.
For the first time in weeks, I felt relaxed and normal. And not just normal, I felt inspired! Inspired to work on the lawn and tackle that front flower bed that the previous owners jacked up so badly. So off I went to Lowe's, where I raided the last chance rack (seriously! How did I not know this existed before?! AMAZING!) and nabbed a 50% off rose bush. I grabbed my gardening gloves and all my gardening tools once home and went to work on that flower bed. I pulled up weeds. I pulled up ground cover plants -- seriously. Juniper is TERRIBLE. I pulled up clover. And then, I pulled up a wolf spider. A large wolf spider. "Nope! I'm done!" was my reaction and I went inside. Shiver. I hate big spiders. And I hate fuzzy ones even worse.
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