Friday, March 2, 2012

Happy Friday!

So many of you enjoyed the postcard last week that I thought I'd share some more tulips.

Tulip Postcard


From the back of the postcard:
"Cut flowers from Washington's Skagit Valley are shipped overnight across the United States almost year-round."
Roozengaarde Garden, Mount Vernon, Washington
The photograph was taken by Jon Gnass/Gnass Photo Images

A big thank you to the lovely Beth for being our hostess each week for

***

Sometimes Tiny Buddha just hits the nail on the head. I have edited the original down, but I wanted to share with you:


YOUR MOST IMPORTANT TO-DO LIST

This is a contribution by Jen Saunders
“What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.” ~Pericles
Every day we are swamped by tasks. Catch up on work. Buy groceries. Reply to those emails. Do the housework. Hand in that project. Pick up the dry-cleaning. Make that appointment. Go to the gym.
The constant connection to social media, as amazing and valuable as it can be, adds even more tiny tasks to our never-ending to-do-lists. Upload. Download. Tweet. Reply. Blog. Comment. Follow. Pin. Update. Check-in. Watch. Like. Read. Send.
With all these never-ending tasks consuming me all day, it’s easy to become stressed, irritable, and negative, and to forget what is most important: love, happiness, kindness, laughter, and gratitude.
YOUR MOST IMPORTANT TO-DO LIST:
1. Smile at yourself.
“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
How many times do you see your reflection in a day? And how many times do you see yourself actually looking happy?
Smiling at yourself can make you feel just as good as when someone else smiles at you. You smile at your friends, your family, colleagues, peers, even strangers, so why not show that same love to yourself?
2. Smile at others.
“Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” ~Mother Teresa
There’s a pretty good chance that anyone you smile at will smile right back at you. (And if they don’t, keep smiling anyway!)
Whether you smile at a loved one or smile at a stranger, it’s a great happiness booster for all involved. It will leave you feeling so good about yourself that you won’t be able to wipe the smile off of your beautiful face!
3. Commit an act of kindness.
“Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.” ~Lao Tzu
Give up your seat on the bus. Pay for the order of the person behind you in line at Starbucks. Buy someone flowers. Give compliments. Leave a love note on a bathroom mirror or on a seat on a train or in a clothing store fitting room.
Today, with the awesomeness of social media, you can perform a kind act for a stranger without even leaving the house! A great example of this is the DropALoveBomb crew, who write supportive comments every week on the blogs of people going through a tough time.
Whatever you do, being kind to others is a win-win situation, and one kind act can often lead to another—and another, and another—creating a ripple effect of kindness and love.
4. Laugh.
“A smile starts on the lips, a grin spreads to the eyes, a chuckle comes from the belly; but a good laugh bursts forth from the soul, overflows, and bubbles all around.” ~Carolyn Birmingham
Everyone loves to laugh, and with all the scientific research showing just how much we benefit from it, there’s no reason not to enjoy a good giggle everyday.
Watch your favourite funny movie or sitcom, hang out with that friend who always puts you in hysterics, or search for “laughing baby” or “sneezing panda” on YouTube, and let the soulful laughs roll!
5. Say thank you.
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~Melody Beattie
Taking time every day to think of, or write down, everything you are grateful is an amazing way to boost your happiness and see the world in a more positive light.
Gratitude shared is even better, so say thank you to someone who helped you out.
Thank whatever higher power your heart connects with, for all the blessings in your life today, and for all the blessings that are on their way.
At the end of your day, whether you have completed all your tasks or not, if you have checked everything off this to-do list, you have succeeded.
***

Farm House Delivery

Farm House Delivery
I need to eat more veggies. A baseball buddy told me about Farmhouse Delivery. I could have veggies in season delivered to my front door every other week. Everything is organic, grown locally on small to medium sized farms. This is my first bushel and I'm eating well! Mustard greens, spinach, arugula, purple carrots, turnips, sweet potatoes, a head of cabbage, oranges, grapefruit and tomatoes! The tomatoes didn't last two days. They were so sweet and delicious ... just the way home grown fresh tomatoes should be. The grapefruit disappeared quickly, too. I am enjoying the greens and am going to try the Arugula And Pasta recipe on the Farmhouse website. That's the other thing that I like. Farmhouse provides hints on how to store the veggies and lots of recipes to try.

Arugula Pasta with Bacon and Parmesan


1 pound fettucine or spaghetti
1/4 c. chopped green garlic
1 strip bacon, cut into 1/2" pieces
1/4 c. grated parmesan
2 c. arugula
olive oil

Saute bacon in small skillet and cook till just done; place in large bowl with arugula. Use same skillet to saute green garlic and add to bowl with grated parmesan. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta to al dente. Drain and reserve 1/2 c. pasta cooking water. Add pasta and water to bowl with arugula and toss all together. Season wit salt and pepper. Easy!!

But veggies aren't the only things available at Farmhouse. I can order dairy products, grass fed beef, lamb, pork, chickens, eggs, bread, desserts! Oh, my! I'll be sticking to veggies while I find my way around Farmhouse.

Thank you to my baseball buddy and thank you to Farmhouse Delivery!

Wishing you WELL and a JOY filled weekend!




18 comments:

Cezar and Léia said...

You gave us ideas!!!This post has so many things to think about, beautiful message and colored flowers. Thanks so much for sharing!
hugs
Léia and little Luna

Brenda said...

Oh, Snap! Your post is beautiful from start to end. Happy Friday to you!! Your advice to everyone is very positive and wonderful. I plan to do what is on the list to ensure a happy Friday and everyday. I think it gives peace within and helps others moods to also change for good. SWEET! Very sweet...
I didn't know that Austin and Houston had a Farmhouse Delivery. I have heard of other people talking about this kind of thing from other states, but had no clue it was closer than I knew! Thank you so much for this information. I plan to thoroughly check it out.
Dearly love your post today!! Your photos, your message, your style. Lovely...
Brenda

Debra She Who Seeks said...

Words to live by! Smiles and tulips just go together naturally.

Ruth Kelly said...

Wonderful post. We should all make a list that is meaningful.

Heather said...

Commit and act of kindness. My sister and I try to do that at least once a week by mailing out postcards. I have a contest on my blog today for a nice Black History Month card. Thanks for entering.

Sheila @ A Postcard a Day said...

I think tulips must be one of my favourite flowers. Admittedly I like a lot of flowers but tulips are special.

So I thank you for showing us the card as I start your wonderful to-do list. :)

Maria said...

Brightly colored tulips and a nice to-do list in one post is just awesome!

Happy weekend!

Wildflowerhouse said...

I just posted a new header for the blog and one of the pictures I took at Roozengaarde one Spring. It is a beautiful place to visit.
I love your to do list. I try to practice it everyday!
Have a wonderful weekend. I am smiling at you. :-)

Janet said...

This post is chock full of good stuff. And those fresh veggies have me drooling. I wish we had something like that around here.

Barbara said...

such words of wisdom. Thanks for sharing.

LiT Web Studio said...

oh my! so MUCH to think about here...a truly wonderful post... tulips are my favourite flowers too...am also a vegetarian so the need to eat veggies rang true with me as well! happy PFF!

Barb said...

Your post is a good reminder on how to live mindfully, Snap. Good luck with the veggies - it would be wonderful to have fresh delivery of local produce.

Unknown said...

Thanks for the to do list. That pasta looks pretty good too.

Beth Niquette said...

Aawww...I love it when you say I'm lovely! (grin) My darling gave me tulips for Valentines Day, so I adore this postcard. (sigh)

Happy PFF!

Pondside said...

Wow - you have stepped out with this post! I enjoyed it so much - as much for the content as for what it conveyed about you.

Clytie said...

I can hardly wait for the tulips to show up here - they are so beautiful! But since they haven't yet shown up in my yard, I'm thoroughly enjoying yours!

Happy PFF!

Steph said...

Oh, so so true and a wonderful lesson.

Rosa said...

How true, how true. We all need to print this and read it every single morn. I'm not a big veggy person either, unfortunately. And thus why my belly is getting bigger and bigger! UGH!!! Happy weekend!