Project house to home

As many of you know I take a zillion pictures.

I actually haven't taken as many of me and Chris

as I usually would and that makes me kind of sad.

So I am making a valiant effort to make sure I

carry my camera around like I used to. In my

last house we hardly had any pictures up of us.

I think pictures on the wall are a very important

step of making your house a home. I'm unsure

of the arrangement I want to do, but I am thinking

I am going to hang this on the wall by the stairs.

I bought the cute wood plaques on the top and

sides from Walmart. And then one of my favorite

sayings on the bottom....Life is not measured by

the number of breaths we take, but the moments

that take our breath away. <3

These sweaters had a good run, but it

is time to retire them and make them into

something new. Leg warmers you shall be :)

Chris and I found this gem at the DI.

I love it! My idea is to paint it and

find a lamp stand that we can wire

it with and make it sit on top like a

yard light. I'm thinking around 4 ft

tall.

I am thinking of painting this mirror black

and putting it in the entry way above a medium

sized table.

I have some canvas's left over from Xmas

and I have some fun ideas for them!

Thanks to Pinterst.

A lot of the scrapbook paper below is going

to be used on the canvas's.

This one in the library.

This one in the living room downstairs.

I'm thinking two of these with a shelf in the middle.

In the library

In the library

I love this one!

We are thinking of doing our upstairs bathroom

in brown and turqoise so I am trying to get

some ideas.

In the library

In the downstairs bathroom.

I heart words.

I think I like this one better for the

bathroom upstairs, although I need

more dark tones to accent with.

Maybe I will rough up the edges

with some brown paint.

I absolutely love these paintings we got

on Black Friday. The best part is that you

switch their direction to facing each other

or facing away from each other at the bar.

I told Chris that when he comes home and

see's it facing away from each other he'll

know he's in the doghouse. lol

This is our living room downstairs.

I want to paint the wall the clock is leaning

up against an accent color. I'm thinking sage

green. Then I will hang the clock in the middle

of the wall. I'm trying to think of what to put

on the sides of the clock or somewhere else on

the wall so it's not so bare. Any ideas???

Loving me some DI purchases.

The cast iron mirror and the brown

vase are both from the DI.

Chris has known how much I have

wanted a book case. We picked one up

a few weeks ago and Chris put it together.

I love it! I still haven't moved my books

from my other shelves, but I'm liking

having something to display our pictures

on. :)

Chris's Grandma made the sign on top for us.

She's so cute. I don't think I am going to leave it

there. I'll probably find a place on the wall for it.

Maybe above the window.

I bought this little diddy while I was in

Seattle. As you can see it is currently

working as my bookcase. I don't mind

it either. I still haven't figured out when I

am going to put in the little baskets. What

do you have in yours? Probably kid's stuff

for most of you.

Chris happened to have this recliner sitting at

his brothers, which ended up working out

perfectly in the library. I wanted it by the window

because I love to come in here and read with the

window open when it is sunny outside.

We weren't sure about our this kitchen

table because it looked so red in the store

and it even looks red in this picture, but

it actually blends pretty well with all the

tones in the kitchen. Now I just need to fin

a good centerpiece. I also want to find

some fun things to put above the cupboards.

No greenery or anything that will collect

spiders or dust, just some simple things.

 So many projects to do! I better get to it.

Love,

Remarkable, crafy ME

Happiness Skill #4

Today is all about recognizing people who provide service to us on a regular basis. We run into them all the time…at the grocery store checking our items out, at the restaurants we eat at, the bank, the police, our mail carrier and garbage collectors. There are so many people who provide services for us, which we pay for, but rarely take the time to thank them or do something to acknowledge them and the services they provide. I know that my time working in retail really opened my eyes to the amount of crap the store associates have to deal with, and how rarely they get any gratitude for their services. I make it a point now to let them know I appreciate them and if an issue comes up I am quick to forgive them because I know it's not their fault. I have been in their shoes. I have been on the other side of the counter. I think that's something that all of us should do more often.
Challenge of the day. Put yourself on the other side of the counter, metaphorically, and give all the people the gratitude you wished you could have gotten from all the customers, patients, or clients you have assisted.

Love,
Remarkable, thankful ME

From steam to lean

As you all have seen in the previous cleanse posts, I got a steamer/fryer. Obviously, I am not using the frying capabilities right now but, I am LOVING the steaming! I have made asparagus and carrots in it so far, both very scrumptious. I still have an artichoke I need to try.

My daily food has consisted of:

Breakfast-
egg whites with a dollop of salsa
fruit bowl (if I don't have any berries I do a banana)

Snack-
apple and peanut butter (my appetite has shrunk a little so sometimes I don't need this snack, but it's still good to have to keep your metabolism going)

Lunch-
spinach salad with sugar free, low cal, raspberry vinaigrette dressing
on top of salad I add carrots, avocado, cucumbers and sometimes red peppers (the red peppers give a little sweetness to the salad)
5 ounce piece of chicken
steamed asparagus or carrots

Snack-
greek yogurt (has a great source of protein so it actually makes me less hungry for dinner)

Dinner-
5 ounce chicken, fish (we use cod or tilapia), or turkey burgers (we use 100 cal thin bun slices, whole wheat)
brown rice
veggie of some sort

The cleanse recommends drinking green tea before bed. This is supposed to help as a appetite suppressant. I did this one of the nights and it seemed to help.

I've decided what makes this diet/cleanse easier to do is making sure you are mixing things up. If you have a salad mix up what you put on top. For lunch one day bring fish with a, cholesterol free, 30 calorie corn tortilla for a taco. If things get too repetitive you are more likely to give up on all together.

Love,
Remarkable, healthy Me

Happiness Skill #3

I really like this one and I like the way he worded it so I will copy and paste from Todd's email (referencing www.daymaker.com).

Day 3 is all about moving. Everyone of us have heard over the years about how important exercise is and depending on who we have spoken with we can get some pretty varying ideas on what we need to do to be physically fit. Well, today’s exercise is not about becoming physically fit, it is about doing some type of physical activity that we are not currently doing. It doesn’t matter what activity we choose to do.

 The healthier we are the better we feel and the more happiness we can have. Exercise releases endorphins into our blood stream, which with vigorous continued exercise, can give us a ‘runners high’ and makes us feel great. I am not suggesting we all add a new exercise into our lives that will give us this so called ‘runners high’ but we can all add some sort of physical movement which will make us feel better.

 When I began running several years ago a friend of mine commented on how proud she was that I had been so consistent at running and she wished she could do the same thing. I suggested to her that she do something less strenuous than running ‘Even if you just walk up and down the stairs ten times a day that would be a great start’. My friend took that comment to heart and she began walking up and down her stairs ten times a day. After a while, she moved to walking outside and invited her daughter to join her. In a short period of time she and her daughter were walking several miles a day and having the time of their lives talking with one another about life, their dreams and just every day stuff. Their commitment to walking inspired her husband to get into better shape as well. Now, three members of their family are feeling better about themselves, have more energy throughout the day AND, are happier because of their accomplishments.

 No matter what you set as your long-term fitness goals do this assignment and see if it helps launch you toward achieving them.

 Here is today’s activity –

 Beginning today, select ONE type of physical activity you will add into your daily routine. It does not matter how easy or difficult the activity is. For some of us, going for a walk every day will do the trick. For others, who may already go to the gym three days a week, an additional activity should be added to their routine. You can determine the fitness level of the activity you would like to add. It can be anything from stretching in a chair, walking up and down stairs to running several miles a day. What you decide to do doesn’t matter as much as actually doing it. Continue this added physical movement for the remainder of the ’21 Day’ workshop and then into the rest of you life if you like. After this workshop is over, you may want to increase your exercise. Who knows? You may increase it after the first week of this activity.

           ‘Just Do It’

I used to do pilates every morning. Not only was the waking up without a rush to get ready nice to experience, but the physical activity in the morning gave me more energy throughout my day. And as a bonus I was toning up and sliming down. I am going to use this as my activity for my happiness skill #3. I will do it for the remainder of the days and who knows, maybe by the end I will be willing to keep it up. :)

Go get physical!

You can share your experiences by emailing them to todd@daymaker.org or by posting a comment on my blog.

Happiness skill #2

A pocket full of gratitude

With your family or friends, go for a walk at a park or canyon and take turns sharing things you are grateful for including your family, home, job, car, food, clothing, etc. As you walk and share your thoughts, look on the ground for small rocks that each of you can pick up. Just ONE rock per person and make sure it is small enough to fit into your pocket…but big enough that you wont lose it.

Once you have each found a rock you like…put your rock in your pant pocket and keep it there. Every time you reach into your pocket and touch that little rock, take a few minutes and quietly express gratitude for the things you are grateful for. Just to be clear, you do not need to list EVERYTHING you are grateful for but think of 3 or 4 things as you continue doing what you were doing.

I am grateful for my family, my friends and Chris. Without the people in my life I wouldn't be who I am and without them I wouldn't know the true meaning of happiness.

Happiness :)

Salon Obsession

I have been getting my hair done from my dad's, now fiance', Audrey for about three years now. I don't only go to her because she is my dad's significant other, but because she is so very talented. I love her color line, her product line and her creativitiy. Not only is she awesome, but so are the stylists she works with. Go check them out at Salon Obsession! Also at Salon Obsession, you can check out some scarves from It's a Scarf Thing!