Gratitude for a new week, with a side of inspiration

I just realized that we haven't left the property in 48 hours. How luxurious is that? Quite. Not sure I'm quite ready to break this little run of home time.

A whole weekend at home a bit unusual for us--there's typically something or other that will compel us out of our weekend cocoon. But this weekend I packed a bit of work home, and dedicated quite a bit of today toward getting my home office in better shape for me to actually want to spend time there. I have a problem when things get a little too piled up and stacked up--I just don't want to spend time in that kind of space. So clearing away always makes me feel so much more eager to sit down and get some work done. That, and I stole (I mean, borrowed) Seth's castoff monitor that he left behind, so now I have an extra (and much larger) screen, which is bonus for this aging lady's eyes!

I suppose with that lead up, you'd expect that I'd be here saying it was a kick-ass productive weekend. Um. Sort of? Definitely got a few things done, and made some really yummy end-of-summer meals filled with fresh-from-the-garden produce. And, I did get my office pretty tidy, so yeah, I guess. But there was also some delicious relaxation, and some telly binging too. I finished off The Tunnel, which I enjoyed pretty well, though I found the end a little unsatisfying. It begged a more climactic and twisty end, I thought. Ah well. Still enjoyable.

I'm grateful for all the joys of autumn. For everything between now and January 1, I am almost giddy with anticipation.

I'm grateful for the peace and quiet of our home, for the space to fiddle with hobbies and for our garden and chickens and room for doggies to roam.

I'm grateful for my thoughtful husband, who always considers us, and me, before him.

I'm grateful for music. For getting songs stuck in my head, and humming and singing along.

I am most grateful for the bounty that is so evident around us, every day. Right now the garden pretty much gets up and walks inside for dinner. Well, wouldn't that be lovely? It feels so close, really--tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, kale, squashes, okra... so delightful. 

We continue to have stunning sunsets. I never fail to stop and stare, slack-jawed, at our beautiful surroundings.

And having a farmstand to fill in the vegetable gaps (not many right now), and pretty flowers to boot is a fabulous bonus.

I saved up a few inspirations for my week, and of course I have to share.

From my Instagram wanderings...

 For laughter, following Apple's iPhone announcements this week...

And some words to call upon as the week begins...

 

Wishing you a joyful and peaceful week. 

Friday night grateful list

This has been a most excellent week with my guys. Very peaceful. Very quiet. Daily walks (I missed one especially rainy day, but that's only because I got caught up in my calligraphy and didn't notice it getting dark. I was still planning to go out, however briefly.). Good food. Naps. Netflix. Wii bowling. What's not to love?

The weather was generally quite lovely. Below are my panoramas, from about the same spot in the beach, each day. We also tended to walk all together around sunset, which is a lovely time on the beach--and the tide was out!

This could be one of my favorite places on earth. Top 5, for sure. And to get to chill with the guys, have good talks--I think we solved at least one of the main challenges of the world this week--and dial up another episode of Stranger Things... pretty blissful.

This week I also found myself grateful for:

Great home help while we're away. The house, the dogs, the chickens--they are all in excellent hands. We couldn't do it without that extra set of hands!

Technology. As much as I didn't dial in to work very much--both Alan and I consciously made an effort to disconnect as much as possible--it was good to be able to check on things as needed. 

Graham crackers and milk. All these years later, graham crackers and milk is still THE quintessential snack.

Pens and paper. In spite of all the technology, I still loooooove pens and paper. And making lists. In a moment of silliness, I talked myself into two online challenges: #rockyourhandwriting and #planwithme, both part of the Bullet Journal community. Not sure why I thought doing both would work, but the handwriting one should sort of write itself, right? And the planner one, well, I've been working on making my daily planner really work for me for quite a while, and I thought this would kick it up a notch. Time will tell. Check me out on Instagram if you're curious about the posts, but of course, they'll pop into the top right column every time I post, too.

Bonus people. I have friends who are friends because of we forged a one-to-one relationship--we went to school together, or worked together, or we met sometime in the past. But then there are people I met because of those primary relationships, who have become important in my life--friends of friends who became friends. Those are bonus people. Bonus people are awesome. I had a lengthy online conversation with two such lovely ladies this week that reminded me of all the things we have in common, in spite of very different circumstances. I love (and am grateful for) commonalities.

Seth. What can I say about that young man that I haven't said a thousand times before? He's delightful and so good to both Alan and I, and his relatives from his many families, too. We get to see him a few times this fall, so I'm feeling great about that. And his independence grows with each new experience he tackles, and I'm feeling good about that too. So grateful for this summer, for our time together, and his joyful presence around the house.

Reminders. I love to put myself in the path of good reminders, and part of my #planwithme challenge is going to be even more intentional with reminders that put me in the right space for good work, and a good life. These few reminders have been especially poignant for me lately:

(Stumbling is not falling, in case that's hard to read!)

Wishing you a peaceful and picking-daisies kind of weekend.