Monday, September 28, 2009

The Power of Place

I began to understand the "power of place" as a young child. Of course I didn't think of it in those terms as a child. But I understood that I felt better in some places as opposed to others. I really understood this when at about 13 years old we went to western North Carolina for the first time.



Being from Louisiana I had only seen flat terrain. I had traveled to Arkansas and that was the largest hills I had seen. I can remember all these years later just how I felt the first time I saw the beauty of the Smoky Mountains. I felt different while there than I did in Louisiana.



This was something that I also noticed when we would travel along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. I knew I loved the ocean, loved the sounds of the waves crashing onto the beach. Loved to look out across that vastness of the water. I loved looking for shells and playing in the sand. Add to that the fact that I could live on seafood, you can see how being at the coast would make me happy.



As I got older, I begin to really notice how differently I felt, depending on what part of the country I was in at the time. I love to travel and as I do, I notice what really affects my moods, and how I feel according to the environment.



When I was in college I found this book:

As I read the book, I connected what I had felt all those years with what the author was saying. And I begin to understand the power that geography has on our well being. Due to the type of job and the lifestyle that we have chosen to live, we don't necessarily have the ability to choose where we live...we go where the job is, but in that moving around I have had the opportunity to experience this incredible "power of place" and now understand why I feel awesome and feel like life is full of potential and possibilities, while in other places, I feel down and depressed unable to awaken my creative side. I feel stagnated and stuck, as though life is a chore instead of an adventure.

I am sure that each person has their own "place" where they love and feel connected to, a place they want to be. For the lucky ones, they get to live there, for others of us, we only get to visit those places where we feel our best.

As I said earlier, the mountains and the ocean are my places. But it wasn't until I visited the northwest part of our country, did I feel like I had found "my place". I love the Pacific Northwest and think I would do well there. I felt alive and energetic, full of creative energy...I loved most every aspect of the time I was there. However, the chances of moving there at this point in our lives is really slim. Although I know anything is possible, I don't see our moving out there anytime soon. So where does that leave me? Well I am trying to remember the saying, "Bloom where your planted!" And I spend as much time as possible surrounding myself with the things that I love, things connected with those areas of the country that I love. For now, that will have to do.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Time Again...





It's that time again! Time for the Cameron Antiques Fair. I am pumped. I am so looking forward to going. I went in May, but it was really hot, so I am hoping the weather will be cooler and I can really enjoy being outside on an antiques hunt. Not that I will really be buying that much, but I love just going and looking for that one thing that catches my eye. Last time it was this:





Which now hangs here
On my front porch
So we will see what catches my fancy this time. I am certain that I will find something, maybe several somethings that I will want to bring home. But I have gotten very picky about the things that I actually purchase and bring into my space. I know how quickly things turn into junk and clutter. I have cleared out quite a bit of clutter this weekend, so I don't want to just replace what I have purged from my life. I want to find meaningful pieces to add to the joy and peacefulness of my home.

Friday, September 25, 2009

My Crystal Blue Persuasion


A little something tasty...

I love baked crumbles...most any kind is good. But my speciality is an Apple Crumble or Crisp, whichever you prefer. I use granny smith apples pealed and chopped with some Cinnamon and brown sugar sprinkled over them. When I have blueberries and raspberries, I love to add those also. It gives a tangy, tart and juicy aspect to it.







Then I mix oatmeal and some flour with more brown sugar, salt, vanilla and butter. I cut the butter in until it is crumbly. Then I add it to the top of the fruit and bake at 350 degrees until the fruit is cooked and the top is golden brown. Mmmm good.






I forgot to take a photo of it after it comes from the oven, but I have to say, it was yummy!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

This weekend in Fayetteville

Arts Council

This weekend Fayetteville is having The Arts Council’s 31st Annual International Folk Festival.
If you click on the Arts Council link above you can see the schedule of activities that will take place downtown. Our church is going to have a booth there, meeting and talking to the 80,000 plus that are expected to attend.

Current Events...

Noah's trip to the fire station



21st Anniversary





Noah's 4th Birthday














Muskedime picking and jelly making


Megan's latest project

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Computer problems

Things are crazy around here...I got a virus on my laptop so I have been absent from Facebook, email, and blogging...I have to have my computer cleaned up so until then I may not be posting much. I am using our main computer in the house, which is technically Andrew's since the rest of us have laptops. Hopefully I will get my computer back by the end of the week...until then...

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

On The Homefront...or tales from the homestead

Happy Tuesday! Had a great weekend. Didn't do much, just enjoyed.

Got a busy week ahead and Noah's birthday is Sunday. Can't believe he will be four years old! Sometimes it seems impossible that he has been here that long.

Nothing much going on around here, just the usual daily life. Got to get Megan's school year going. High school is going to be different. I am enrolling her in a program from Bob Jones University. She will be doing online school. I think that will work out well for her. This way we can keep exact records of her progress and her high school credits. She will also have teachers other than myself to help her with the difficult subjects: i.e. Algebra, Algebra II, and Geometry. Did I mention I don't do those subjects very well? Anyway, I felt that she needed someone who actually understood those subjects to teach her. Lauren had a tutor at times to help with math, but since this online option is available, I decided to go with it instead.

She seems excited about it and seems to have a whole new attitude about school in general. Lets hope it lasts through the year!

I have Noah a preschool book to help him start to read. My goal with him this school year will be teaching him to read. Then next year we will start working on the other things. I want him to get a good reading foundation and learn phonics.

Lauren is working on her Medical Coding program and should be finished in the spring. Then I am hoping she will continue on and finish the Rad Tech program she had originally planned on doing. She says she would like to go to Bible College for a little while just for the experience at least. I hope if she is serious about it, that she can do that soon. She wants to go to Indiana Bible College. She has some friends there and has visited the area before. I just want what God's will is for her life. If she follows His plan then she will be successful and happy.

She is leaving Thursday to go to California with the Summit Youth group from church. They are going to sing and be a part of an outreach type thing over the weekend. She is excited about that. They fly out Thursday morning early, so if you would please be in prayer for them that they have a safe trip.

Tonight Andrew's company is doing an appreciation dinner for the employees, so we will be going to eat out for that. I will get to see Dick and Nancy again. We were in Kentucky with them and Nancy and I use to get up in the mornings and walk through the neighborhood together. Dick came back out of retirement to do this job, but I haven't seen either of them since we have been here. They have a home in Charlotte and he stays during he week here. She doesn't come with him often and there hasn't been an opportunity to visit with them since coming here.

Tomorrow Megan gets her bottom braces on. She has had her top ones for a couple of months. She is excited about that. Her top teeth are really looking good even after such a short time. So hopefully all will go well. She has been trying to put on weight. She finally reached 90 pounds! She doesn't realize that one day she will look back and be wishing she wouldn't have rushed the pounds on! Funny, I remember myself at close to her age. When I turned 15 I got my drivers licenses and told them I weighed 100 pounds, although I only weighed about 95. But all of my friends had passed 100 and I felt like such a baby weighing so little! Funny how I have spent many years battling pounds...

While cleaning out some things in the garage that had been stored, I ran across journal after journal that I had through the years and the one thread that ran through all of them was; I have never been happy with my weight and the condition of my body. I had written my weight and my goals and kept food journals for years...I was really jolted by this...

Apparently that is one thing I have grappled with for so many years...even at times when I didn't even need to lose weight, I wasn't happy with where my body was...I started thinking that apparently one goal for so much of my adult life has been to be a good weight and be in good physical shape. I'm not talking about like a model or the idea that we see in the magazines and through the media of how a woman is suppose to look. That isn't reality. But I am talking about feeling good about where my weight is but also being physically healthy. One goal I have always had was to run a marathon. To be physically able to have the stamina to run a marathon.

I remember as far back as the summer between my junior and senior year of high school, I started running. I wanted to be on the track team in my senior year of high school. I really enjoyed my runs. Of course, I had no idea of how to run correctly and ended up hurting my ankles. So I gave up on the idea. But through the years I have wished I could become a runner.

After reading through all of the journals I found that I had written, I realized that I had to work to obtain the one goal that has consumed so much of my adult life... even if I wasn't actively working toward that goal, I was dreaming of reaching that goal. If something has taken up so much of my life through the years, it much be something I really wanted. Now is the time to work hard to make that happen.

I started going to Curves in June, but slacked off through the summer. Now I have committed to it again and have been going regularly. I have changed my diet, and eat healthy and keep track of my calories. I quit Dr Pepper's and cut out the junk. I only fuel my body with good things...an have an occasional treat, such as the fried oyster Po' Boy I made the other day. But mostly it is lean meats, broiled, boiled, grilled or baked. I eat a lot of seafood! That's not a hard thing, since I could live on seafood. I have changed other habits and replaced them with good things. So far I have lost right at nine pounds! And I am feeling great! I am feeling very positive and know that I can do this...I am going to finally reach that goal of being a healthy weight. I am going to work on becoming the physically active person that I have always desired to become.

My dad always had a saying when I was growing up: Mind over Matter! It is actually quite accurate. 99% of accomplishing something is in your mind. If you set your mind to do it, you can accomplish it.

Success starts in your head, taking small steps forward. I tell myself; Just for today I will eat right and I will exercise. Don't worry about tomorrow, don't worry about the road ahead, just work one day at a time. Eventually you will reach that goal!

Friday, September 4, 2009

As of lately...

Today started off with a jolt. Noah woke me around 4:30 by getting in the bed with Andrew and I. Then about 5:30 he woke me again gagging. He started vomiting. He vomited everything from his stomach and continued to gag up everything I tried to give him to drink. This continued for a few hours. Then he had to make a trip to the bathroom...I won't go into detail...

We were suppose to go to the beach today, but needless to say, we didn't make the trip.

Noah just lay around most of the morning, every time he sat up, he would start to get sick again.

So I emailed some of my prayer buddies and had them help me pray. Within a short time he was feeling good. He wanted to drink something and then he got up and started playing around with Megan. At noon, he, Megan, and Andrew were swimming in the pool.

Thank you Jesus for healing Noah. I give you all the glory!

On another note; I decided since we couldn't go to the beach today, I would bring a little beach flavor to us. So I fried some oysters and made Oyster Po' Boys. They were pretty yummy also.




A few nights ago I fixed a homemade pizza but using my bread machine to knead the dough then rolling it out and adding sauce, pepperoni, and cheese. I use to make them all the time, but I suppose I got lazy and started buying pizza's ready made. I had forgotten just how much better they were homemade.
On Reading:

I am currently reading a few magazine I picked up in town. I have always loved Mother Earth News. They have been a continual source of inspiration and information.

Of course, if you have read my blog for very long you know how I adore Hobby Farm Home. This issue was no different, Wonderful! I love the idea of making my own cheese and plan to do it one day. So the article on cheese making was especially interesting to me.

Urban Farm is new, this was the premier issue. I found it very interesting and informative. I think everyone should adopt some aspects of sustainable living no matter where they live. I would love to have a few chickens and a small garden. Maybe next spring I will plant a raised bed garden here.

The health magazine was for inspiration to continue my healthy eating and exercise. I have changed my eating habits and started watching everything. I have been going to curves and exercising at least three days a week. So far I have lost seven pounds! I am very excited about it. Although today I did allow myself a fried oyster po' boy sandwich.

Well there isn't much else to report for now. I will post again soon.

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