Bloom Where You Are and Let the Seeds Carry You Far...

My variation on Bloom Where You are Planted. Bloom and then bloom again where the seeds take you. Allow yourself the happy happenstance of enjoying new vistas, new horizons. Bloom where you land and allow yourself to keep on moving and blooming. 

It's been a weird week here. More about that in the next post. Let's just say that things did not go as planned, but there is learning and love everywhere you go. 

I wish you a week full of unexpected blessings and meaningful lessons. I hope it is full of joy.

What do you do when things don't go as planned? Do you roll with it? Do you embrace it? Do you fight it tooth and nail? 

Wearing Joy - Seeing Joy - Feeling Joy

There's been a lapse in my regular posting schedule over the past two weeks. 

Once I got back in the swing of blogging and making the rounds of blogs I wanted to get involved in everything. Some of that is good. Some of that is too much. So I'm reevaluating what I should be involved with. 

Not only that, but the Wear Your Joy course with Kelly Rae Roberts has inspired me in so many ways that I realize that I may want to change how I post. I'll be doing a whole lot of thinking in the weeks ahead. 

Meanwhile, I'm going through my closet and letting go of items that no longer serve me. You can see what is left in the photo above, though it is double exposed with a nature picture. The filter used is Sparkle Mama, which I thought was appropriate. 

I am filling my days wearing joy, seeing joy and feeling joy. This is the kind of thing I want to share with you. 

Pile on the glitter - Fashion Fridays

Last week I discovered that somewhere along the line I stopped wearing jewelry. What may have started as a decision not to wear jewelry that could be damaged when doing a messy project with students or when kneading dough or simply out of laziness, became a habit. It became my regular operating system. 

This week I rekindled my love of the glittery and found that it gave me a lift of my spirits. I somehow sat taller in my seat and am sure that there was a gleam in my eyes as I moved through the day. 

The photo below is a double exposure of several pieces of jewelry I love. I would never have realized it, but I have found that I love glass! Glass beads on my Troll Beads bracelet and this beautiful glass necklace made by a friend. 

What kinds of jewelry do you love? When you look at the jewelry you have, does any of it surprise you? What if you wore them in surprising combinations? 

Hope you have a sparkle-ful week. 

Cherry Blossoms - Self Care Saturday

The world seemed to blossom this week. Everywhere the flowers seem to pop up out of nowhere. Today I am giving myself the gift of taking the time to see them. Actually see them. So often in springtime I'm noticing them with half my attention (if that) as I drive by. This is a busy season for school employees. It's easy to get caught up and neglect to really enjoy the loveliness around. 

Today, camera in hand, I will stop and be mindful of the beauty in front of me. I will soak it up. 

This will not be the only extravagance of the day, but it will certainly be a part of it. 

Things don't last forever. I will enjoy them today. 

Ephemeral. Beautiful. Enjoy now. 

What things do you wish you spent more time appreciating? Enjoying? Savoring? 
Are your favorite flowers long flowering or do they have a short run? Are there seasonal foods that you try to enjoy during their season? Here we are having asparagus season. 

Many delights to you today. 

Wear Your Joy Course with Kelly Rae Roberts - Fashion Friday

When I saw the course by Kelly Rae Roberts called Wear Your Joy I just knew I had to take it. It resonated so well with this art journal. She provided a forum for exploring some of the very things I thought I'd put in this journal. So today's Fashion Friday is dedicated to Kelly. I started a few days late, so I'm still working on day two, but already I've identified one big thing that will make a difference in my style - actually wearing the beautiful accessories I have! 

You can see that my page features a blank spot - an unfinished area on the page. This is where I traced two beautiful pieces I wore today - both made of glass. 

Below you see the necklace I wore today - a beautiful piece of art made my a friend. 

The other item I wore today is my Troll Bead bracelet. (I do mix in beads from Camilla and Pandora.) I love the glass pieces especially.  These pieces of joy made me smile all day. Accessorize. That's the word this week. 

 Want more information about the course? Here's a link to the course description:
http://kellyraeroberts.com/wear-your-joy


I can't wait to see what's next!

Mother's Day Gelli Prints - Stamping and Printing Sunday

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers and to the fathers out there who have to fill in a mother's shoes. 

I wanted to send you flowers so here are a couple of gelli printed flowers. I don't know whether I will leave them as is or whether I will choose to fill them in. 

 My family had our meal out yesterday and so today was a lovely day for sleeping in. Just what I wanted! 

I hadn't gelli printed in a few weeks and I was eager to do some. Here are some of my favorites from today. 

I love the prints as they are, as part of my art journaling, and also as a layer in my double exposure photos. I love the way they combine with other photos. 

I hope you had a lovely Mother's Day. It was great for me to celebrate yesterday (less crowd in the restaurant) and have today to loll about. If you could plan your own Mother's Day event, what would be most meaningful to you? Now that you've thought about it, how about asking for it?

The Gift of Laughter and Books - Self Care Saturday

Laughter is one of the most powerful self care strategies I can think of. Others might prefer face masks or manicures. A good ole belly laugh that makes me snort and pound on the table while tears stream down my face…now that's the kind of self care I love best. It is extra good if I'm with a good friend. 

So today I indulged. I could tell you about the lovely lunch with my family at a nice restaurant. I could tell you about stopping for the first ice cream of the season from the local cone maker. The best part of the day, however, was the company and the sense of humor and the uncontrollable laughter. 

Ok, so books were a plus. I'm a librarian. 

Almost forgot to mention one of the things that led to hilarity were the Mother's Day socks I received. One pair looks like library check out cards from years gone by and the other was a pair for banned book week. One of the socks has the titles of commonly banned books. The other has words crossed out…censored right off the sock. Perfect gift. 

What makes you laugh? What is your favorite kind of laugh? Who can you feel comfortable to laugh messy with?