Category Archives: Photos

Heron

While baking cookies, I turned just in time to glimpse a huge dark something fall into the backyard. When I walked over to the window, I saw this slowly strolling on the grass. I reached for my phone, too late. It had perched on the fence.

It hung out there for a few minutes. Carefully strolled from one side to the other. I hurried to get the camera for a decent shot, but I was too late. Again.

So these are as good as they get. From my brief research, I am speculating that this is a heron.

Dark, dusty-looking feathers. Dusty or steely blue. Solitary. Likes to roost in trees. Dark stripe above the eye. Flies with neck curved like an “s”.

Is it a Heron, and Egret or a Crane?

Hope your holiday preparations and plans are pleasantly proceeding!

Loving You

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The Declaration of You will be published by North Light Craft Books this summer, with readers getting all the permission they’ve craved to step passionately into their lives, discover how they and their gifts are unique and uncover what they are meant to do! This post is part of The Declaration of You’s BlogLovin’ Tour, which I’m thrilled to participate in alongside over 100 other creative bloggers. Learn more and join us!

The Declaration of You website has all the information on how you can share your own posts, join Facebook parties and so much more! Declare yourself! This Friday, June 28th, you can join us in the Facebook comment party at 12-12:30 pm EST. I’ll be there!

Loving You

When we look at a newborn, we can’t help but be in awe of a fresh, new being. You don’t have to be a parent to feel the wonder that holding an infant brings. So often we hear “What a miracle!” in reference to birth. A newborn child IS a MIRACLE. Created in love, nurtured with love, welcomed with loving arms.

Stop a moment, and do this for me. Take a look at your hands. Think about what a miracle they are. I am pretty sure you don’t know this, (I didn’t until I looked it up) but one of your hands has roughly:

29 bones
29 major joints
123 named ligaments
34 muscles
48 nerves
30 arteries, and about as many smaller arterial branches

Isn’t that amazing? OK, seriously, I probably won’t remember all of those numbers much past editing this post. But I took a look at my hands, and I am sitting here thinking, “How can all that stuff fit?” My hands are small, child sized. And I have arthritis. I was diagnosed with Lupus in 2008, and the pain in my joints was one of the first symptoms. When I told the doctor what I did for a living, (worked on a computer all day long) she could not believe I was still able to function. She was in awe.

I am not tooting my horn here, there is a point to this. But yeah, I have to say, that is one of the things I can take pride in. My perseverance.

Wow, that made me tear up a little. Why was that so hard to … put to paper. Maybe I am remembering what a struggle each day was for me. Maybe it is because… I am pretty sure that is the first time I have ever used that word to describe myself. Or maybe it is hard for me to say I am proud of myself. Hmm…

There are quite a few things about myself I can be proud of. But I don’t usually tell other people about them. How ‘bout you? When was the last time you told someone you were proud of yourself for…anything? When was the last time you told YOU? How long has it been since you were kind to yourself?

Ok so back to the hand thing. Did you stop for a minute, really, and look at your amazing, miraculous hands? That’s OK, go ahead, I’ll wait.

When do we stop thinking of ourselves as the TRUE MIRACLE we are? And why?

When a child is born, we make sure that he has every need met. We protect him. We make sure he has nutritious food. We play with him so he can learn to use his fingers and toes, learn to walk, and grow strong. We talk to him and read him stories, so he can learn language. We make sure he gets enough rest. We make sure he sees the dentist, and the doctor regularly. We care for him, in every way we can.

As adults, we have so many responsibilities. So many to take care of. Wife, husband, children, parents, sister, brother, grandmother, dog, cat… gerbil. The house, the job, the BOSS, the car, the laundry. The bills. We can hardly find room on the list to add “go for a walk, read a book, ” much less find time to actually do it.

Honestly, right now, I am sort of failing at this. I am doing for others. And I WANT to do for others. But what I could really use is some quiet time. And by quiet I mean not thinking about the fifty bazillion things I need to get done. Quiet in my head. So I am declaring now, that I am going to shut off the computer tonight. I am NOT going to stay up late to work. No TV. I am going to put on some mellow music, maybe give myself a pedi and a foot rub, or read a magazine. And I am going to go to bed early. I may fail again tomorrow, in the self-care category, but I am going to try for an A+ tonight. And my hope for you, is that sometime today, or this weekend, YOU will remember to carve a little chunk of time out for YOURSELF.

What’s your personal declaration around self-care? How often do you make time for self-care? I would love to hear how you incorporate self-care into your busy life!

Most people do not know what Lupus is. If you are interested in learning more you can check these out. What Women Need to Know about Lupus. Lupus symptoms.

The Declaration of You – Uniquity

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Get your copy here

Michelle Ward and Jessica Swift invite you to join in the fun!

The Declaration of You website has all the information on how you can share your own posts, join Facebook parties and so much more! Declare yourself!

This Friday, June 14th, you can join us in the Facebook comment party at 12-12:30 pm EST. I’ll be there!

This post is part of The Declaration of You’s BlogLovin’ Tour, and I am so excited to take part along with over 100 other fantastic, creative bloggers. You can meet them here.

I have always been a night owl. I LOATHE getting up early. Not just capital L. Capital L-O-A-T-H-E. This preference has always been a source of friction with the morning people in my life. Most of all, my early bird mother. I was so happy when I read that our biological clock is responsible for this predisposition. And that it is determined even before birth. I was born at 2:40 am, so maybe that explains it, huh? OK, maybe not. I am at my most creative from mid morning to late at night. I just am.

I’ll gladly admit that early morning is the best time of day for capturing the light in photographs and for artists in general. Breakfast is my favorite meal. I like it so much, I sometimes have it for dinner. And everyone knows about early bird specials. So yes, I will get up early to watch the sunrise in the canyon. I will get up early (and I might even enjoy it) if bribed with an omelet, or green chili with eggs and potatoes.

But right here, right now, I am making my declaration – I AM A NIGHT OWL. There. I said it. This makes me unique in comparison with just about everyone I know. My brother is the only other night owl I can think of. But you know, I am a great person to have along on road trips, because I can take the night shift, and everyone else can sleep. That is just one of the traits that makes me different from all the other Cheerios in the box. (For more you can check out my About page.) Part of creating the life I want, is the opportunity to get creative when I am at my best.

I want you to make a list of some of the traits or talents that make you different from other people. Your family, your friends, the people you work with. Have you ever been teased for being… too tidy? Too sweet? Too ambitious? Too Tom-boy? Too girlie? Too assertive? Too bold? Too Friendly?

We have all, at one time or another, been made to feel less than, simply because we possess a trait that others do not share. We were dorks because we could diagram a sentence, or solve complex equations. Or play the flute. I would love to be able to play the flute! I can live without the complex equations, but I am sure my bank account would be much higher if that was my forte.

OK, so did you make you list of traits that make you unique? Have you ever tried to hide your unique traits? Have you ever found yourself, deliberately trying to be less you. Yes, you have. Hopefully, that was back in high school. But if you find that you are still not quite comfortable flaunting your special skills –

START FLAUNTING NOW BABY!

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE!

Even if it is just a little thing, if it is something you take pride in. Start doing it more often. Maybe you make great potato salad, but one of the other Mom’s on the block thinks hers is the greatest, so you eat her tasteless concoction at the potluck in an effort not to offend her. Go for it! Make your SCRUMPTIOUS salad.

You don’t have to start with something monumental. It does not have to be grand or important or even public really. Find what makes you UNIQUE. A little something that fills your heart with joy. And do it more often. Stop holding yourself back. Little changes lead to big ones, and you will be amazed at how quickly it can snowball.