That Time I Vlogged and But Then Didn't Post It, and Other More Positive Things!

(Vintage Halloween clipart courtesy of The Graphics Fairy!)

Hi friends!!!

I've written and re-written the following blog post several times in the past week or so. You know those times that many of us go through, when sad things happen or stressful things, many all at once And for some of us, we just end up feeling truly overwhelmed and blue? Well, that's how I've been feeling lately, which isn't normal for me, at least not the"blue"part.

I ended up making another "vlog" update for all of you, (thank you for your interest!) talking about what's been going on lately. But just before posting this "vlog", I re-thought everything. I worried that my post was too much of a downer and too personal, so I decided not to publish it.

Then I sat on the post for about five days, and now I'm back. I still don't want to publish a rambling "vlog" that I end up tearing up in,  Just know that we're fine, everyone is totally fine. Life is full of  a few challenges right now. Everything is work-out-able though. It just takes time.

(Here is a still from the vlog.)

I mentioned in the vlog that: "Life is life, you just do your best, do what you can."  \('-')/ So that's just what I am doing, trying not to stress when things don't get done around home like they used to. Trying not to stress when my anxiety rises or when I feel sad about my dear friend who is going through chemotherapy. Trying to roll with the punches of a new school year off to challenging start. I am attempting to slow down and to focus on the important things and the people and animals that need me right now. I'm also trying to figure out how to take care of my emotional self a little more. Which, oddly is much more difficult than taking care of others!
I FINALLY ordered my very own copy of my all-time favorite , Cheryl Richardson's "The Art of Extreme Self-Care." WOO HOO!  I've mentioned this book before many times. When your life feels a bit out-of-whack, like you're running, running, running and never catching your breath, this is the book for you!

The Art of Extreme Self-Care" has helped me to learn and understand important life skills like setting boundaries with others, asking for assistance when needed without fear or shame, and creating a successful daily routine. Now though, I need to revisit the book's principals. I need to check-in again, re-prioritize, re-balance my day to day life.

So, that is what I am pondering today. Life is such a gift. Within reason, we sometimes get the extra gift of having the ability to shape our lives. Isn't that wonderful!?

Ok! Enough about ME!

  This was Josie last week after falling asleep. My phone conversation must have been really boring to her. ;)

@labdurham - Thank you for the words of puppy wisdom and the puppy pep talk! I know this photo is grainy, but it's pretty dark in here. I think our phone conversation made Josie fall asleep, but I had fun! 😊😘

A photo posted by Lauren (@howbourgeois) on Oct 10, 2014 at 5:44pm PDT

(This past Friday, Jon and I took Noah to Hallowe'en at Greenfield Village. I talked about it a little in THIS post from last year. If you have the chance to go, do it! You walk through the grounds of Historic Greenfield Village and come upon lots of spooky and spectacular live Halloween vignettes. It's great. Noah wanted to be a wizard again this year. He added a beard and a flashing wizard's staff!)

We've only left Josie in her crate for about two hours or so at a time. She tuned four-months-old on Saturday, and I know if we needed to, we could leave her for a bit longer, but I just feel hesitant and badly about that for some reason. So, we needed someone to babysit her while we went to Greenfield Village. We're lucky to have my Mom and Stepfather just five minutes away, and they are big dog lovers. Josie ADORES going to their house to run and run and run in their large backyard with her Aunt and Uncle dogs, Lucy and Buddy! They have the best time together. It also wears her out, she plays like crazy the whole time. They fly like the wind!

Here is a group shot from the other day. Josie and Lucy play non-stop. It's kind of amazing how long they can play the same game. Hours!

Recently I purchased another Susan Branch book. For those of you who don't know Susan, she's wonderful! Susan is an author and illustrator who paints lovely water color pictures in all of her books and calendars and other gift items. She writes about seasons, good cooking, decorating, travel and all sorts of things. I loved her latest book: "A Fine Romance, Falling In Love With the English Countryside." You get to travel all over the gorgeous, quaint English countryside, learn about amazingly beautiful little stops along the way and hear about all of the food and cozy things that Susan and her husband encounter.

This time, I've bought the newly re-published "Autumn, From the Heart of the Home". It's full of delicious and warm autumn recipes, ideas for holiday entertaining and dressing your home in a cozy fall glow. I love Susan's watercolor pictures illustrating each page.

I can't get enough of Susan's blog posts about fall on Martha's Vineyard where she lives. Click on the previous sentence to see what I mean.  :)

I just took this picture of Noah before school this morning. I can't believe that my little boy is almost TEN!? Where did the time go? This has been the shortest, longest ten years of my life. One of my favorite sayings about parenting, or about anything for that matter, is "The days are long, the years are short." This is exactly TRUE! Exactly.

I'm feeling a little sad that the "little kid" years are over, especially because I have just one child, one chance to experience parenting at each stage. I'm glad that he's been, so far, slow to become a "tween." Noah doesn't seem to be in a hurry, and that's ok with me. :)

And I will leave you with this totally, random note: for my crochet friends, aren't these crochet maple leaves from Happyberry Crochet adorable!? I can imagine making a garland of red, orange and yellow leaves to decorate the house with! I tried making these the other day while sitting with Josie, but she kept biting the yarn, just like the cats!

Oh wait, one more random note, because we all love fall! I really enjoyed this post from Dwell Beautiful on 10 Cozy Home Ideas for Fall! We still have a third of fall left, so take a look for yourself and see some fun ways to make your home even more warm and welcoming for autumn.

Until next time, celebrate the happy and just do what you can!

xoxoxoxo, 

Lauren