Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Discover Me Wednesday

This weeks Discover me Wednesday is a wonderful artist that I found on ETSY.  Her shop is called Garden Jewels and her name is Julie DeGroot.


Julie lives in Alden, New York where she creates her one of a kind stained glass artwork which is inspired by the nature that surrounds her.  She is a self taught artist who has been creating her stained glass, paintings, mosaics and murals for her gardens for over 20 years.  

 
Julie believes that "a garden should be filled with not only plants & love, but little surprises throughout it. Something to catch your eye & drag you in to sit awhile to stop and smell the roses."

 Be sure to stop by her ETSY shop Garden Jewels to browse or purchase one of these truly magical items for yourself or as a gift for someone special. You can also find Julie at her website Jewels in the Garden.com or here on Blogger at Jewelsinthegarden.blogspot.com or on Facebook at Jewels-In-The-Garden



Monday, August 29, 2011

Cleansing Journeys End

Okay so I know I said I was going to cleanse for 28 days.  I know I told you how good for you it is.  The first time I cleansed it was GREAT for me.  I felt wonderful...and did not get sick for two whole years.  I mean not even a sniffle.  

However....that was about 10 years ago and I don't know what is up with my body now, but cleansing is just not for me anymore.  This entire past week I have felt terrible.  It could be that I am older...it could be that I am 40 pounds lighter...it could be that since I last cleansed I had my gall bladder removed...it could be any number of things.   

Whatever the reasons; it just was not working for me.   I have decided to continue to eat healthy for the duration of the time that I was going to cleanse for.  Fruits and Veggies with an occasional healthy protein thrown in.  Still no caffeine, sugar, salt, alcohol or processed foods.  I am committed to cleansing my body, just not in the way I had originally intended.   I guess you could say that I am cleansing my body the way God intended.  

I am supposed to be de-stressing my life and "The Cleanse" week was the most stress I have felt in over a month.  Since I stopped I have felt much more calm and back in control of things.  O'well live and learn right?


Give your stress wings and let it fly away.  ~Terri Guillemets


Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Discover me Wednesday


"You are my sunshine...My Only Sunshine...You make me happy...When skies are gray....You'll never know dear....How much I love you....Please don't take my sunshine away."

Singing has always been a great stress reliever for me and this song has been a part of my life as far back as I can remember.  My father plays guitar and this was probably one of the first songs he taught me to sing.

DDOTS
I have a card sitting here in my office from a dear friend of mine whose shop is on ETSY.  It is called DDOTS.  I keep meaning to send it to my sister, but just can't seem to part with it because it makes me happy just to look at it.  

I have decided to feature a bunch of artists this week in a Discover me Wednesday I am calling "You are my Sunshine"  Enjoy the art and please stop by and patronize their lovely shops some time.
Design and Create







In Blue
 





Corduroy Cricket








Holly Christine
A Dorana Design






















beehive Kitchenware Co.





Fish and Lotus
Galway Designs

















Kathy Panton
Heavenly Primitives

Monday, August 22, 2011

Arise and Shine....a Cleansing Journey

So I am beginning my cleanse today.  What is a cleanse?  You might ask....well it is 28 days of fruits and veggies plus a few herbal supplements.  Why would anyone do that?  This will be my third time cleansing and I can honestly say my motives are purely about health and wellness and not to lose weight.  

About 12 years ago my Grandfather (my Dads, Dad) fought and beat colon cancer.  At the time I remember thinking that cancer is not something that younger people usually get.   Then about 5 years ago my mother called me and told me that she had colon cancer.  She was only 50 when they found it.  Just recently my other Grandfather was diagnosed with colon cancer (My mothers Dad).  What are my chances of getting it?  Well, I'm not really sure of the exact statistics, but it does not look really very good for me.  
After my grandfather was diagnosed, my sister and I decided to do a cleanse and "clean" our engines ...so to speak.  She had some experience with the Arise and Shine cleanse and said that it worked very well for her in the past.  I wasn't sure if I could do it or not.  I mean 28 days of not being able to enjoy ANY of my favorite things like dairy, bread, a cold beer, meat, caffeine, salt....I mean REALLY!!!   But then I thought to myself, "I have two young kids and if I get colon cancer and die I won't be enjoying anything at all".  So I did it.  It was a sacrifice, but one worth making, and it really wasn't all that bad once I looked back on it.

About two months ago I got a virus.  It was pretty bad and towards the end I ended up in the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack.  I really believe that sometimes we can weaken our immune system to invite these nasty viruses and bacterias to take hold in our bodies by living stressful, crazy lives.  

I recently picked up a Betty Crocker Cookbook called "Cookbook for Women - A complete guide to Women's Health and Wellness at Every Stage of Life".  In the book are wonderful recipes, relaxation techniques and tons of great information.  The most intriguing thing I read was about Challenges in our daily lives verses Stress.  "Challenges in daily life are beneficial", it read, but "When there are too many challenges at one time, you may feel overwhelmed and experience symptoms of negative stress."  "Stress is the body's response to the perception that you are somehow under attack.  That feeling may arise if you sense a threat to your physical or emotional well being.  When the brain senses a threat, it signals the release of stress hormones that prepare the body for fight or flight.  These stress hormones release a burst of glucose that gives the body energy to deal with the threat at hand.  Stress can cause physical reactions that make it harder to fight infection and for cells to use their nutrients wisely."  She goes on to say that "When you become overstressed, you tax your immune system and you can get sick." 

That is what happened to me and that is why I am beginning my cleanse today.  I will check in periodically to let you know how I am doing, but I would really appreciate any supportive words you can give. 














   

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Discover Me Wednesday

Although I have changed my Blog up a little bit I have decided to keep up with Discover Me Wednesdays.  Bouncing around on Etsy is something I love to do to relieve stress.  I always discover something beautiful that makes me happy and to be able to share it with you also makes me happy, and being happy and relaxed is the name of the game these days.

Woven Soft Blue Hemp Bracelet
My latest discovery is a brand new artist to Etsy.  The shop is called East Street and is run by Emma Knudsen located in Newton Massachusetts.  Her shop has only been open since August 1st of this year.  In a search for hemp I discovered this beautiful Blue bracelet in her shop.

Blue is one of my favorite colors and the silver accents really make this a thing of beauty that I could gaze upon all day and be swept away to warm island breezes, palm trees, and an ocean as clear and blue as this bracelet. 

I loved all the items in this shop, but here are a few more of my favorites.

Salmon, Sky Blue and Dusty Green Delicate Cotton Bracelets
Dusty Rose Hemp Four Wrap Bracelet
Woven Scarlet Hemp Cuff

  Be sure to pop on over and check it out for yourself. 

Monday, August 15, 2011

My List...Your list

So I thought I would start my journey with a song.  For those of you who know me, I know what your thinking..."A song??? From Heather???  How Shocking!!!"   This song called "My List" by Toby Keith is a wonderful way to begin to think about what is really important.  Spending quality time with my family and my Savior is the most important thing to me.  I need to remember every day to tell them how much I love them and how thankful I am to have them in my life.  Enjoy the song and please share something from your list.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Don't Forget about me

Hello there my tiny group of followers.  I am so sorry that I have abandoned you.  It was a long and busy winter, a baseball filled spring, and a family visiting from all corners of the world summer.  I think about my blog often and wonder if anyone is disappointed that I have not been around.  I am planning a comeback though.  Please stay tuned.  In the meantime, here are a few photos I snapped during the Winter, Spring and Summer.