Welcome back!

Thanks for spending a few moments of your day with me. Each week I will share excerpts from my current writing, quotes from others that have really resonated with me this week, plus what I'm reading, listening to, watching, creating and excited about this week.

Morning Page Musings

(Excerpts from my daily journaling)

On Reminiscing: "Reading it back over and reliving that day made me realize what a magical time it was."

On Expectations: "I need to grieve my old life, or rather, what I thought my life might look like now."

On Dental Checkups: "I'm so grateful for good teeth at this stage of my life."

On Water: "There's something about being in water that soothes the mind and body, that feeling of ease, just being held and supported."

On Sweet Metaphors: "It turned out to be a full slice of cake vs. a cake pop, and that was a fantastic lesson to live out."

On Stress Management: "My new solution was to create a life so small and low risk that I wouldn't have to deal with the loss of my favorite stress reliever."

On Self-Reliance: "No one ever wondered what I needed because I was always so damn independent."

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Quotes from Others

"There is nowhere the attention can wander to, and no duration of distraction, from which we cannot completely let go, in a moment and begin again." Sharon Salzberg, Lovingkindness, The Revolutionary Art of Happiness​

"You have to be careful with the "ife". It's sharp." 2-year-old Clara explaining safely rules before we used toy "knives" to slice plastic fruit held together with Velcro.

What I'm Listening To

​Ten Percent Happier Podcast with Dan Harris. Rewire How You Talk to Yourself | Ofosu Jones-Quartey This was a great hourlong deep dive on self-compassion and taking an honest look at how we talk to ourselves, how we can include self-compassion in our meditation practice, allowing it to infiltrate every area of our lives.

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What's Cooking?

We took a day trip last Friday, and when we travel, we love to try and support local eateries, and get a taste of something new and different. We stopped by the Red Wing Restaurant in Groveland. The exterior was unassuming, and we probably would have driven on by if we hadn't read good reviews about the food. The interior was similar. Built in 1948 and there may have been some original decor and furnishings remaining. The restaurant is known for its interesting local game dinners, such as quail, frog legs and gator tail. I played it safe and had a fried green tomato BLT, which was surprisingly good. I wouldn't recommend stopping by if you are in a rush, but if you happen to find yourself in Groveland and fancy a bite to eat, you could check it off your bucket list.

How's it Growing?

On our aforementioned day trip, we made two stops to buy plants. Our first stop was at a bamboo nursery called Beautiful Bamboo. As we drove in, we were enthralled with all the different types of bamboo gracing the entry drive and couldn't wait to dive in. We grabbed an info sheet and walked around a pond that was encircled by bamboo of various types and ages. I loved that they had placards in front of each one so you could see how tall and wide the mature plants would get and also when that particular plant was planted. It gives you a good idea what to expect. Jennifer was a fount of knowledge and helped us choose a Dwarf Budda Belly bamboo for an area we are working on now. And we will be back for some Golden Goddess plants when we are ready to finish our property line landscaping.

Our second stop was a lovely nursery that specializes in native Florida plants and wildflowers, Green Isle Gardens. I'm over buying plants that say "full sun" on the info label, but the grower isn't taking into account what full sun really means here in Florida. We walked through all the rows of plants, and I could have walked out of there with way more than I did, but I have to prepare the landscape beds first, so I have a place to plant all of them! I did snag eight lovely 1-gallon Black Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) to kick things off. They were my mom's favorite flower, so I know I'll enjoy watching them grow and bloom and think of her.

Another Trip Around the Sun

My 57th birthday was this past Sunday May 5th, and it was an all-around lovely day. Started out with a dog walk, then coffee on the lanai with a bird serenade. Then the kids, spouses and granddaughter Clara came over and made me a delicious brunch. More coffee, then Clara told Papa to go get his "buitar" so we could sing Happy Birthday. Danny went and grabbed his ukelele and did a great job playing as everyone sang along. So fun! Then opened presents which included lots of art supplies and some Lego flower sets. My creativity supplies are fully restocked! We finished with slices of delicious cake (Publix of course), and possibly more coffee. I am blessed beyond measure. Looking forward to year 58 and beyond!

Until next week...I'll be finding happiness in the pursuit.

Betsy

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