Some simple things that make and keep me happy...

Let me start by stating that I am not a Pollyanna...

I am by nature an optimist

I lean towards sappy

I am very much a family gal

 I befriend for life

my ties are strong

 I defend my beliefs...

(I can be stubborn)

I have not always been in a happy place

I went through a patch of poutiness and darkness in early menopause

I felt profound sadness

and didn't know why

I spent many years tending to the needs of others

my family

my job

working here to keep the home fires burning 

 working at school

my life was fast paced

demanding

and I was in constant

fight or flight

mode.

I put my own needs aside in a corner  

I would ignore them 

I felt that all the other things required of me were of a high priority

until...

one day I felt very blue

and weary

laden with a heavy burden

WHY?

I had questions and no answers...

I went through the motions of work

home keeping

mothering

entertaining

volunteering

attending meetings

balancing the cheque book

grocery shopping

cooking

weeding the garden

and I felt

something was amiss

What?

I read self help books

ate chocolate

and settled upon the book

Simple Abundance 

by Sarah Ban Breathnach 

which was instrumental in my healing.

she has a website! who knew?

I found myself 

savouring

noticing

taking time to get to know what I liked and enjoyed

time to

honour and nurture

myself

Hello Me!

That was quite a few years ago and I have never looked back.

I have grieved the death of both of our fathers

supported 2 family members with cancers

and

have had to find my own way

and not get bogged down with negativity.

Some simple things that make and keep me happy are:

My

love of the ocean

 the fresh salt air

the sound of the lapping waves

The waterfront walk

not far from The Bungalow

it

calms

refreshes 

recharges

I can sit and ponder

reflect

and de-stress

and look at the view 

beyond

breathing in beauty

The ocean changes with the tides and weather

the colours can be bright or grey and dull

it can be warm and calm or stormy and cold.

as long as I am dressed for the weather

I am happy to be walking

There are so many simple things that contribute to my well being

and most of them are free

Hunting and gathering

from nature

"found items"

things that I do not set out to look for...

seem to find their way into my gaze

and I am pleased

and often surprised

shells

feathers

driftwood

foliage

flowers

stones

Gifts...

unexpected

out of the blue

significant when made by the giver

Arts and Crafts candlesticks designed and crafted by darling son

in shop class at school

made of oak

with copper tops

and only pure beeswax candles can live here!

I adore and honour beeswax

the scent

the warm and gentle light

and that all those wonderful industrious bees co-operated to make the wax.

I use these often

and when I light the flame

I take a moment to reflect and give thanks.

I love a  phone conversation

with my BFF

it can be a short or long call

sharing life and events

checking in to see how she is doing

what's new

what might be troubling her

what her family is up to...

 the sound of her voice

checking in and connecting

we laugh

we cry

it's pure

and honest

it's what we do....

My Family...

my children

my husband...

and Isla

 grand daughter 

of 12 weeks

whose smile can light up a room

she is such a sweet little girl

who has entered my world 

and given me such immense joy

that it is hard to describe...

I would love to see her everyday

just thinking about her puts a smile on my face

my brag book is full!

I know that life has many twists and turns and I have no idea what is around the next corner for me...

but I do know that how I react to these events

and the tools that I employ to get me through the rough bits

are key for me.

More another day.....are your thoughts of gratitude?
So much greatness....in unexpected places.

Hugs from the Hostess

Bounty in the Humble Bungalow

Our raised vegetable beds have been a huge improvement in the way that we grow our food.
It has been a delicious and rewarding success.
I have been so pleased that I am asking Mr. HB to put in a third one next spring.
We had a fine feast using our home grown vegetables...

Cherry tomatoes

drizzled with olive oil 

sea salt 

and fresh ground pepper

ready for the grill.

Onions at the left, zucchini top right and cherry tomatoes bottom right.

Baby new potatoes boiled and then topped with butter and dill.

(I prefer to use fresh mint as it has a sweet tang that goes so well with potatoes)

Rhubarb pie, 

second crop of rhubarb

the crust was a bit cracked 

but gladly the taste was not affected!

I have had a bumper crop of Sweet Peas...their scent is so divine.

I have decided that what keeps me happy is to have fresh flowers in my home.

I can have dust bunnies, and my floors in need of sweeping

the dishes may be dirty and the laundry hamper overfull

and yet...

if I have some blooms in a vase

I am able to put things in perspective.

I also love

a freshly brewed cup of tea

 it's a ritual that soothes

time to sit for a bit and sip

slowly

savouring

the fragrance of the blend

the heat

as it warms

and restores.

I do treat myself to a proper cup and saucer

when I feel that I need some TLC

a simple cup of tea when served in a beautiful cup

tastes better.

Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future.  ~Thich Nat Hahn

I plan to write more on the simple things in life 

of which I partake 

and the joy that they bring to me in my daily round.

Hope that you enjoyed Labour Day

it's pouring rain here

and cold so we have put the furnace on!

Busy times...

I will be busy getting things in order here in the Bungalow and garden

  I will be walking away from the computer for most the weekend.

I have the garden almost ready for the sod delivery.

I removed and replanted a few sections of the Bungalow Garden

to reclaim some greenspace.

I am streamlining my plan and attempting to cut back on the amount of time required to keep all tidy and tended in my patch.

I also am getting my head around the concepts here in Brain Rules.

It's very heady stuff...

I hope that your weekend has some pleasant surprises

and that you can savour some sweet moments

just for you!

Metscan's Blog Challenge...my bag wardrobe.

A challenge was issued to show off our bags...
by mette as seen here

Her bags are very chic....YSL and  Chanel....
I am not one that walks away from a challenge so here goes...

Bag 1

 Furla Carmen Shopper 

Embossed Leather Mahogany

Bag 2

Elliot Lucca

Black Leather

Bag 3

Berge Italian Black Leather Tote

Bag 4

Roots Brown Leather Saddle Bag

Bag 5

Vintage eelskin

Bag 6

Vintage leather embossed evening bag by Koret

Bag 7

Aldo small leather mahogany clutch

Bag 8

Banana Republic leather clutch

Bag 9

Vintage eelskin envelope 

Bag 10

Tory Burch Leather Messenger Bag

Bag 11

Michael Kors Santorini

Leather and Raffia

Anyone else want to show us their bag collection?

David Austin Roses...make me swoon everytime!

If you have been following my blog you will recall that I am passionate about roses.
My favourite roses are the David Austin varieties.

Charles Rennie McIntosh

In my early days of gardening back in 1978, I fell head over heels in love with a delicious and highly perfumed mauve rose.
My elderly next door neighbour, a gardener herself, told me it was a Lavender Rose.
(my Royal Albert China shares the same name)
The bush was old and established and was performing beautifully with very little TLC, in fact it had been thriving on neglect.
We were living in a rented home 3 houses from the waterfront at the time. The area was an older section of the city comprised of large roomy Edwardian and Victorian homes.
Most of the gardens were established and well tended.
(our rental was weedy and overgrown)
I did not want to have our patch looking shabby so I was learning all that I could about gardening...the wise advice and encouragement that I received from helpful neighbours really got me enthusiastic about mucking and pottering about in the soil.
I was surprised by the generosity of gardeners, both with their willingness to chat as well as their gifts of cuttings and seedlings.
I am happy to say this hasn't changed over the years!

I have attended many meetings, tours, joined Horticultural Societies and Clubs, read books, attended lectures, and basically jumped in and got dirty.
I am not a neat and tidy gardener, not at all like my former neighbour across the street who I might add...gardened in pearls, wore a straw hat and carried a trug for her freshly picked blooms.
I frequently am hatless, wear serious gardening gloves, am dressed in a casual, but matching, pair of Yoga pants and a jacket. My hair is a bit on the windblown side...that's what happens when you live close to the ocean...and I usually have some dirty smudge on my face!

Often I'll just go out and have a "peek" at how things are doing and end up getting messy...
I have been seen dead heading roses in a white dress wearing heels!

Roses are my greatest love in the garden...

Gertrude Jekyll

I grow them for their perfume...I do not understand why anyone would buy a rose if it lacked fragrance.
I place freshly picked garden roses in vases throughout the Bungalow from May until October.

I prefer the repeat bloomers

they are hardy

and reliable.

Roses are heavy feeders and like lots of water.
I use aged manure and I'll occasionally dig banana skins near the roots of the roses.

Epsom salts work well too.

An award winning local grower swears by Rabbit food sprinkled once a month during blooming season!
(I think my local raccoons would be dining well if I followed that regime)

I won Best Rose in Show one year at our local Horticultural Event with a Peace Rose bloom.
No one was more surprised than I was... gobsmacked indeed.
I had the honour of having my name engraved on a silver rose bowl and was able to keep the bowl in my home until the next year, when someone else won the title!
Alas that rose bush is no longer with us, it grew gnarled and woody and was hit very hard by a cold snowy winter. It was a star performer and gave me many years of lovely blooms.

I also love being able to take bouquets with me when I am an invited guest in someone's home.
I buy vases at Thrift Shops and save them for the very purpose of having pre-arranged flowers so the hostess merely needs to find a spot to set them down.

My thoughts are running amuck and I have been quite abstract tangental...apologies forthwith!

Do you have a favourite rose?
Is it scented?
What is the colour of the bloom?