| today |

my visitor

| wednesday |

good evening kittens

↮↮↮↮↮↮

I am well enough for a quick post.

Tomorrow is another procedure and then I can 

start to heal.

Today I had a visitor.

This sweet dove who would peek in on me

from time to time.

It was lovely and I truly believe that it was my mom.

So I made sure to take care of myself.

This is a time of introspection for me.

It is a chance for me to go over my priorities.

Winter can be a time to reflect, a time to look inward and attend to 

things that need the quiet and focus of a slower paced lifestyle

to heal.

That is exactly what I am doing.

Living a life of purpose, with compassion and empathy for people 

&

living creatures while enjoying my family & dear friends.

That is a life.

I am loving a simple life, the eggs that the chickens feed me every day,

the feelings of happiness when I am completing a task and the joy of

planning for the future.

Perhaps that is the lesson...

to care for myself as my mother would want me to.

To establish a life and move forward with plans left on hold.

Perhaps that was why she was hanging around me today.

I think a lot.

But these thoughts are more...

they are truths.

Time will tell.

↮↮↮↮↮↮

I am stocking my healthy recipe file  with new

recipes.

Simple is better in lots of ways.

This shrimp recipe is all that.

I sprinkle EVOO on a roasting pan.

Sprinkle with salt & pepper

Oven- 350*: 5- 10 minutes, turn 1/2 way through

They will be done when cooked through & slightly crispy

sprinkle with lime juice

I like to make an aromatic rice { Jasmine} or wild rice to put the rice on and garnish with

clementines & scallions.

Simple.

Yummy.

&

a wonderful Winter's supper to share

with loved ones.

Blessings.

xxxooo

| good morning kittens |

| tuesday |

good morning!

↮↮↮↮↮↮

By the time you all read this.... I will be in the O.R.

and the misery of not being able to breathe out of my nose will be behind me.

I will be on the road to recovery.

yay.

Most of the comments that I get from this blog deal with the

photos that are mine or that I cull from the internet.

You seem to like the stories that you find within them.

& 

what is interesting is that they mean different things to everyone.

Below I have added some that I find peaceful.

I hope that you enjoy them.

& I hope that I will be dreaming of them.

{ last time, I awoke speaking in a deep southern drawl... lol! }

I should be home today if all goes well.

Thank you for your support kittens, I hope to check in soon.

xxxooo

Count those blessings! 

~R

| no bake GF pie crust .... Happy Monday! |

| monday |

good morning

↮↮↮↮↮↮

Mr. Cardinal sang his sweet song outside my window at the break of

dawn this morning.

It is encouraging to hear.

Could Spring be so far behind?

Today is my last day to button up everything that I will need to

do for a week or so.

Clean the coops, bring out my sewing for the new year & put the new costumes on the mannequin 

to sew & embellish.

I will write out instructions of how to take care of the animals

and have quick suppers ready for the Mr.

The back fields ...look at how blue the sky was!

Yesterday we visited the Country House.

It was wonderful.

I wanted to catch the Farmers Market but I also wanted to avoid people.

My nightmare would be having the flu after sinus surgery & the flu is

making a huge impact on this area right about now.

So he drove while just looked out the window and occasionally 

stopped the Jeep to take photos of cows.

They were just so chatty! Mooing at me.

So me.

That tiny dog looks so adorably brave.

I need to remember him tomorrow.

I need to let myself know that this is the start of me feeling better

and that from tomorrow on...

it just gets super.

It is always ok to be afraid.

It is natural.

But what you do from there, defines you.

I choose to not become stuck or overly bothered by it.

I choose to see only growth and health.

~ but that is me & my Pollyanna self.

Below is the most lovely pie recipe I have seen in a while.

It is GF ( the crust) and whatever you add to that is up to you.

I have been having cravings for strawberry milkshakes, so

some strawberry ice cream would be yummy.

Simple but yummy.

I must get along now, so much to do & with a 

tricky back I must get it all done without wrenching it out again.

Much love kittens!

xxxooo

Happy Monday!

|Chicken Francis' & how to decipher your emotions

| sunday |

good morning

↮↮↮↮↮↮

When life gives you lemons....

yeah, my sweet wonderful back has decided to

pick this time of all times to spasm on me.

I have so much to do to prepare for the coming week

yet I afraid to do anything at all for fear that it will

start spasming again.

Life is not always fair.

My mother never told me that it would be.

Though over the years I have learned to temper my

expectations.

I focus on the positives and try

to learn from the not so positives.

This pain, it is telling me that I have been doing too

much.

and...

that I better get my butt back in shape.

okay.

I posted this once before but I need it now.

Perhaps I will copy it and set it next to my mirror so I can refer to it every day.

I have felt all of these things and never knew how to get by them.

This is an excellent cheat sheet for doing just that.

Some days we all feel like throwing in the towel and giving up.

When those moments come, I sure do hope that you have 

loved ones around to pick you up.

They also remind me of who I am, how far I have come 

and how important I am in their lives.

Self care is also important.

That was a hard lesson for me to learn.

It felt selfish to me at first.

Truth is people will only treat you how you treat yourself.

Last week I used a gift card from Christmas to purchase this:

Yes, it is a sheep body pillow.

Yes, I could have purchased something really practical, like always.

{ black out curtains, a portable heater or warm boots}

Instead, I got this.

I am hoping that it will help me after my surgery resting while

sitting up.

After last night, it will also come in handy for when my back goes out too.

It is simple & silly but useful.

Aren't these just gorgeous?

My favorite color.

I used to have a huge bush of them until we tried moving the bush

& broke the tap root.

It broke my heart to lose it.

Someday I will plant another.

One of my all time favorite meals is Chicken Francis'

I use chicken stock & GF flour and sometimes eliminate the parm cheese.

{ this & chicken kiev....my mother would make on special occasions}

Time to move forward in trust.

Trusting that it will all work out.

&

Fear & pain can not keep me from being happy & grateful.

Have a relaxing day kittens, embrace the warmish weather

that we have been gifted with.

&

Count those blessings.

xxxooo

~R

| with props to C.T. & Susie, friends are everything |

| saturday|

↮↮↮↮↮↮

good morning

thank you.

You, who responded to my post yesterday are very kind.

I am looking forward to feeling better.

I have lived most of my life in a suburban setting.

I loved the proximity to culture, libraries and small shops 

as well as the pace of life where nothing is ever boring.

I loved trends and not following them because I was different.

I loved the community and the beach life ...

ah! those summers spent every day at the beach

while my mom read books on the sand and chatted with her friends,

I went off into the the water, collected stones & seaglass,

met my friends, ate candy necklaces and went home happy & tired.

I never realized that the small  manicured gardens & woodsy areas that

I existed in were not "the wilderness" until my mom purchased a vacation

place in Vermont.

That changed everything.

That made me feel like I was coming home.

The pine trees, the clear water .....

everything was perfect.

The greens of the ferns & the mosses were so vibrant and beautiful.

I remembered hearing an owl for the first time- magical

The quiet of the nights up there was deafening and the black of the sky

was velvet black & all of the stars so clear, like diamonds.

I never wanted to leave.

Since then I have found solace 

in the seasons that are celebrated in the wilderness around Moonshadows.

It is still "urban" but also woodland..20 acres surrounded by 

the creep of suburbia & "progress".

u g h 

I feel it, and it makes me uncomfortable.

That is when I get to dream at the country house.

The organic farm that exists in my mind for now 

and the healthy way of life for us sits waiting for us.

upper pasture where I will grow lavender & wildflowers & the Mr. will have his bees.

trust & hope & faith

Three things that you have to rely upon

when mixed with the hard work and perseverance  & time that

you have invested in a dream.

If you do one thing every day towards your goal well then you are

achieving it.

My dear friend Susie told me that once & I never forgot it.

So every day as I work towards daily, monthly

work & health goals...I do one small thing towards 

that goal.

When it finally happens I will be able to look back with

gratefulness and a bit more wisdom than when we first started this journey.

I can actually canoe there, every day...I just may! 

Dreams are meant to be chased.

The Mr. well, he dreams big enough for both of us.

I would be a happy little mouse in a village by the sea 

reading & gardening with

my pups and chickens for company.

But him.... well, he is a Viking & they dream HUGE.

I am grateful that he drags me along...

Most days...

;)

So today I stole a friends recipe for Rice flour waffles.

I never steal things without asking

{ how rude}

but I was just so excited about this, I felt he would not mind.

I am a notoriously bad waffle maker even with the best waffle makers

gifted to me

{ sorry susie - I ruined the 2 you gave me }

These may just redeem me.

Thank you C.T.~ much love!

Have a fabulous day kittens!

I am cleaning & nesting for my upcoming days of healing.

Keep counting those blessings!

xxxooo

~R

| little organic me. |

| friday |

good morning.

↮↮↮↮↮↮

Sorry to have missed you yesterday.

It was another day of tests & appointments.

&

a small amount of frustration as I explain the way I live.

I live an organic, chemically free life.

This includes meds as well.

I only take them when it is absolutely necessary.

I would rather mitigate whenever I can my surroundings, lifestyle or diet.

Luckily, I have a primary care, ENT & allergist who get why.

I am through with having to explain it to everyone else.

So I have been saying this amazing word more & more

{ with a smile but firmly }

No.

It works. Wish I had learned this sooner.

So I have mitigated most of my allergy issues.

I clean the house a lot because my triggers include dust mites, mice droppings,

mold and tree & grass pollens.

I walk outside because it activates my lymph system and helps

keep my lungs clear.

I eat my nutrients because my body is designed to do this.

I drink filtered water.

Now here is where I get tripped up...

I live in a pretty air polluted area.

{ which explains the country house }

it triggers my asthma big time.

add to that other factors...like I was taking tylenol

for a sprained back a while ago & eating too many things I should not...

it all just snow balls.

Once the whole allergy thing starts amping up, it is hard to stop it

unless I make bigger changes like returning to this restricted diet for a month.

These are the bad guys...found in a lot of foods- especially unripened fruits.

I have a condition I inherited from my dad,

Sampter's Triad.

In addition, I also have an allergy to wheat.

I can die from anaphylaxis if I ingest it.

So I always keep my kit close by.

When I am reactive, even the touch of wool or a cat nearby can put me into

an asthma attack.

It has been managed for years, but for whatever reason, it has gotten worse again.

It affects my immune system & I become sensitive to new things like poison ivy which I was never allergic to before.

I have gotten mono, hepatitis twice, shingles three times in just the past few years.

Sounds complicated, but properly managed it was not hard at all.

Until now.

I grow nasal polyps like crops of tomatoes.

It is part of the syndrome .

& why I have no sense of smell.

I will be going into the hospital the beginning of next week to 

have them harvested.

{ this is where most patients will have a steroidal stent inserted to help healing and

keep the polyps from returning}

Instead I will lower my histamine levels by adjusting my diet

and surroundings.

I choose to believe that I would be a whole lot sicker if I 

ingested all of the meds they wanted to feed me.

That is just my opinion.

When I went for my pre-surgical testing I was told more than once

other than being slightly over my ideal weight, I am very healthy.

So the proof is in the pudding I guess.

I will just keep on doing what I do.

Simple.

Like my Gramma's used to do.

So I want to share what works for me through this new journey into health again for me.

I use this in my Neti pot/spray thingy every day

with distilled water , & saline

It is wonderful.

{ for colds, sinus infections etc...all natural too }

Lots of remedy's I find are from Europe, who Rx herbal healing

methods before pharmaceuticals. 

So starting next week, my posts may be a bit infrequent at first

but I shall return with re-newed fervor for all things healthy

and green and organic and lovely.

I am excited to regain the health I felt here:

Daisy: The best murdering villain I ever played.

Lots of love from me to you all.

Without you all, well, I am sure I would not be as happy as I am.

Count those blessings~ every day kittens!

~ R