today’s inspiration

February 26, 2019

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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lights beyond the holidays

February 22, 2019

Twinkle lights and candles are not just for the holidays!

Doesn’t special lighting make everyone feel special? So, why save it just for the holidays?

A great way to brighten up any décor is with a string of lights or a few well-placed, beautiful candles. And, now that there are realistic looking simulated lit versions, candles can be enjoyed without a fire risk or suffering any soot/paint damage.

For today’s Friday field trip, I am sharing some photos from a recent trip to Terrain in Westport as a way to inspire you to use special lighting at every time of year!

There is no better way to beat the winter doldrums!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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it started with sea glass sinks

February 15, 2019

My friend Phyllis is finishing up a remodel of the bathroom off her bedroom. I am so enamored with the results!

So, even though the bathroom wasn’t yet styled and the window coverings weren’t yet complete, I snapped a few photos when I was last over her house. This bathroom just made me so happy to look at, I had to share.

The level of detail on the trim work is beautiful. A mutual friend from back in our high school days is a master craftsman and was responsible for the designing/creating of these details.

The combination of a master craftsman and my friend’s great taste made the bathroom come together in a fabulous way!

The entire project was spearheaded by the selection of two beautiful sea glass looking sinks! They were the first item chosen for the bathroom and provide a fabulous little pop of color to the finished project!

The ‘cherry on the top’ is the view from the tub! But then, this is the yard I call a park…the landscaping is fabulous and the property adjoins a golf course. In the middle of winter it may be hard to imagine the gorgeous view during the rest of the year, but you can see it by clicking here.

Thanks for joining me today on Friday field trip. I hope you enjoyed seeing some little glimpses of my friend’s new bathroom!

My buddy, Sadie!

Have a marvelous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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inspirational actions for 2019

January 29, 2019

Today is the third of 3 posts on motivation for 2019. This final category is ACTIONS. Here are my top 5 inspiration points in this category for the upcoming year.

Fast from the internet 24 hours once per week. Reconnect. We are all guilty of relying too heavily on the internet. It is so powerful to give everyone your undivided attention for 24 hours! When I do this, I feel as though I’ve added valuable time to my life! An important 2019 promise to myself!

Define what wealth and happiness mean to you. Since we are all different, it only makes sense that wealth and happiness is defined differently by each person. To experience true contentment, we need to know what we want and not define our happiness on what others may want for us.

Do something kind for someone else daily. Helping people feels so good. I always go out of my way to help where I can. By promising myself this will happen once per day, it ensures no one day will go by without a good deed accomplished!

Give at least one guilt-free hour to relaxation each day. Do you ever feel guilty when you have some down time? I do. Even in my free time I am working on details for a project or taking notes for something coming up or sending work emails. I am going to try to spend 1 total guilt-free hour to relax each day. I am hoping to do this as a start to my day.

Check your email and social media at least 60-90 minutes after you wake up. Often, the first thing I do when I wake up is to check my phone. I guess it is true that practice puts me in a reactive state for the remainder of the day. I want to start waking up and putting myself first. Checking my phone first thing is eliminated from my morning routine for 2019.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you are inspired to create some new actions for 2019.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

*Although I have provided 15 inspirational points these last 3 posts, I am doing my best to incorporate 50 into my life going forward. You can read about all 50 in the article I read online that originally inspired me, titled 50 Ways Happier, Healthier, And More Successful People Live On Their Own Terms by Benjamin P. Hardy. I have recommended it to everyone close to me to read. I credit Mr. Hardy for providing a great outlook to live life’s best! I encourage you to read the article.

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inspirational reading & writing for 2019

January 25, 2019

Today, I continue with 2019 motivation. Today’s category is READING & WRITING. Here are my top 5 inspiration points in this category.

Read 1 book per week. Constant learning is what makes an extraordinary person and the world’s most successful people are avid readers. I love to read, but sometimes I opt for the latest on HGTV over the next book in queue. For 2019, I will spend more time reading and make a more conscious effort to listen to audio books during driving or exercising.

Write in a journal 5 minutes per day. This is such a wonderful habit to create. Journaling clears your emotions and enhances your creativity. It also increases gratitude. I have already started this in a small way with my sentiments jar. (See the DIY post by clicking here.) Documenting emotions can be powerful and by keeping your writing short, it makes it very doable.

Have no more than 3 items on your to-do list each day. I am a huge list maker and sometimes my lists get totally out of hand! The goal for 2019 is to do a few things incredibly rather than a million little things poorly!

Write and place a short, thoughtful note for someone once per day. I am such a believer in hand written notes. How much more meaningful is it to receive a handwritten note in the mail rather than an email? Do you hang your printed-out emails on the fridge? When my grandmother passed away, I found she had saved all the notes I had written her over the years. That is truly special. When my children were small, I made it a point to leave fun notes in their lunch bags to brighten their day and remind them they were loved. My children are grown, but I can still make people feel special by leaving notes to others. Plus, research has shown that writing by hand increases brain development and cognition more than typing can. (Why are schools eliminating handwriting?!) Making a promise to myself to leave handwritten notes can only be a great thing for 2019.

Listen to audiobooks and podcasts on 1.5 to 2x speed. Interesting! This is a new concept to me. The trend is called ‘speed listening.’ There is a software called FasterAudio that promises to ‘cut your audio learning time in half.’ I am intrigued by this concept and I am doing some more research and will give it a try in 2019.

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

*The article I read online that originally inspired me is titled 50 Ways Happier, Healthier, And More Successful People Live On Their Own Terms by Benjamin P. Hardy. I have recommended it to everyone close to me to read. I credit Mr. Hardy for providing a great outlook to live life’s best! I encourage you to read the article.

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inspirational eatings for 2019

January 22, 2019

I recently read some inspiring words that I took to heart for 2019*. So, my next few posts will be a little different than usual. For three posts, I want to share some of my motivation for 2019. I have divided it into 3 categories. Today’s category is FOOD. Here are my top 5 food related changes for 2019.

Stop consuming caffeine. Being dependent on caffeine isn’t good. I gave up diet colas years ago, but seem to have a tough time with coffee and tea. My goal is to switch out the beverages with caffeine to herbal teas. They say it takes 2 weeks to create a habit so it may be a rough 2 weeks! But, I am looking forward to getting rid of the false energy source!

Consume 30 grams of protein within the first 30 minutes of walking up. This keeps you full longer and keeps blood-sugar levels steady as well as eliminates white carbohydrate cravings. It is hard to do because it takes some planning. Not a big eggs person, a planned-in-advance protein shake is my best bet!

Stop consuming refined sugar. I have done this successfully in the past with amazing results. EVERYTHING looks and feels better without sugar! Studies have proven that even our brains experience a radical change when sugar is eliminated! I usually slip back to eating it when something rough in my life is going on…not good! It does take some work to avoid this stuff that seems to be in everything, but it is SO worth it!

Eat at least one meal with family each day. This was something we took seriously in my family when my children were growing up. We always made sure we spent our dinners together each day. Now that that the children are grown, I can’t have us all together every day, but I want to create a time when all my family gets together for a meal as part of my routine. I know It can’t be every day, but it will be on a regular basis.

Buy a juicer and juice a few times per week. I know how healthy juicing is – a great way to get tons of vitamins and nutrients from fruits and vegetables. I have wanted to make juicing a part of my routine for some time now. I love the idea of adding lots of greens into my system with something I can drink and I love the idea of making green drinks myself rather than purchasing them. The parts I don’t like? 1. It seems pretty expensive to buy all the organic fruits and vegetables to put into the juicer. 2. Making space in my kitchen to house the juicer. But, these things aside, I am making a commitment to myself to do more research on juicers for 2019 in the hopes that I may convince myself to purchase one at some point during the year.

I hope you are inspired to consider some changes in your eating habits for the upcoming year!

Thanks for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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diy sentiments jar

January 15, 2019

Do you keep a gratitude journal?

I am doing something a little different from a journal for 2019. I am keeping a jar of memories that document special feelings I have towards my children.

I am so appreciative of the two wonderful children I am blessed with and I created a way to collect all the special feelings I have toward them throughout the year.

The idea is simple. When I have one of those “aww” moments, I will write something down on a slip of paper to help me remember it and drop the slip of paper into my sentiments jar.

Those of you who have a vinyl cutting machine can easily use it to decorate a jar – maybe just simply the word “gratitude” affixed to the jar. Other ideas for jars are “laughable moments,” “2019,” “accomplishments,” “kids say the darndest things” …you get the idea!

In my case, I am very specifically documenting sentiments related to my children, so I created something appropriate to decorate my jar. And, since I don’t have a vinyl cutter, I designed and printed something on a color printer and glued it onto the front of a clear glass jar. Here is what I created, if you’d like to use it:

With Valentine’s Day coming up, a cool variation might be to create a “favorite romantic moments” jar for yourself or as a gift! If gifting, include pre-cut slips of paper and tie a pretty pen or pencil to the jar. For fun, add a few candy message hearts scattered on the bottom of the jar!

I hope I have inspired you to document some of your memorable moments in 2019!

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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new skills for a new year

January 4, 2019

To say I will try new things in this new year doesn’t seem like anything new! I’m always trying new things and can never seem to find the time to try everything I’d like to!

One of these things is calligraphy. When I was in junior high school, I excelled at pen and ink lettering and was surprised when parents asked to purchase my watercolor and pen and ink posters at the school’s annual art fair. Back then, we wrote quotes in Old English in ink on large sheets of parchment paper.

For a long time, I have wanted to do some lettering in a more modern way than my days of penning in the Old English typestyle! Lettering has made a comeback big time, even though new computer programs and cutting machines have made it easier than ever to create lettering digitally.

Lettering is the type of skill that requires a lot of practice – since consistency is key – and it is hard to carve out enough time to do so! A few hours in an afternoon probably isn’t enough time to master any skill, but that is all I have been able to allocate to lettering thus far!

Since I am such an admirer of old books, I had a DIY idea that is very personal to me. I want to create some quotes I like on old books. Unfortunately, there is not much room for error – once the ink is down, that is it! I tried one as a test. After only a couple hours of practice – not too bad. That first letter didn’t really come out the way I wanted. Oh, well! I think I need a lot more practice before I put any more ink to book!

Do you have any plans to try a new skill in 2019? Why not? Choose one and run with it!

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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happy 2019!

January 1, 2019

A new year. New? That is a real understatement in my case. Trying to come up with a word for the year that could possibly apply to my 2019 seems impossible. Renew? Not dramatic enough. Strength or something related to being super strong – like, super-hero strong? Maybe. I just can’t come up with a single word that seems just right.