the perfect day series continues ~ be yourself...everyone else is taken

happy thursday sweet friends...

can you say BURST? :)

i'm just bursting to share Beth's 'perfect day' with you.
i'm sure loads of you know Beth...and visit her beautiful blog 'be yourself, everyone else is taken' often.

she has the most wonderful following.
and a lovely photography blog, ruby lunas, as well,
you are going to LOVE Beth's 'perfect day'

it's completely INSPIRED. :)
and the images she has shared....
WOW. 

deep contented 'sigh'

beth is an fabulous photographer, completely INSPIRED, a super mom, she's gorgeous and cool and oh so FAB.
and can i just say... the ways she shares her words..her stories..
be still my heart.

enjoy!

.....

my perfect day

thanks kim for asking me to write “my perfect day”
and
since i truly believe anyone can make any day perfect
~because it’s a choice~ well, i know i’ve already lived hundreds of them
and for that i am grateful.

~~~~~

as the cool air reaches into my recently opened bedroom window

it drugs me and forces me back to bed

but

only after it fluffs my pillow and gently kisses my forehead

~

upon rising a few hours later

i see that mother nature is entertaining me today with animal shaped clouds

and

i pray that somebody else notices them

too

~

i walk quickly towards the boardwalk and as the ocean waves good morning to me

i can tell she’s been waiting patiently for me to arrive

so that her cold salty water self can play tag with my ankles

back home

even though it’s way past my breakfast

my hot cup of tea refuses to be left behind

so it’s the two of us that decide to cut and bring in

the

yellow flowers

today

since the red ones got the invitation

yesterday

after a few pages in my slightly dirty summer read

have been soaked in to the point of coloring my cheeks to a perfect shade of pink

and

hugs from all my loved ones have warmed my heart

i set off for a drive in hopes of trespassing

someplace new

where the cows want to come closer than their electric fence will allow

and

the ivy covered barns

beg me to stare

saying

“it’s okay

everyone does”

and

when evening falls and i’m being kept warm by the arms of my lover

as

we watch the fireflies

flit

in the grass where the butterflies sleep

i know that i have been blessed

once again

with another

“perfect day”

*

oh beth... really truly thank you.  what more can i say?

LOVE.... truly LOVE.

xxo,

 .....

you can find Beth here:  

Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Taken & Ruby Luna's

p.s.
i shared a list of '10 things' inspiring me this week on the stay-cation site.
there's some 'gooders'..... 

the perfect day with kelly - the blue muse

good morning,

happy canada day..... :)

i'm so thrilled to have Kelly Letky from the blue muse sharing with us.

Kelly is a graphic artist, an incredible jewelry designer and an amazing writer and photographer. 

sigh.....

she actually has 2 beautiful blogs

they are a must visit....really wonderful!

the blue muse and mrs. mediocrity

oh and kelly also guest posts over on vision and verb.

i know you will love her thoughts on the  'perfect day'.

......

When Kim first asked me to share my perfect day, of course I said, "Thank you, I am honored," and then I said, "yay!" and then I started to think… “Geez, what would make up my perfect day?”

And the possibilities rolled through my mind, and I pondered and I pondered, and you know how it is when you go window shopping and you have no money in your pocket, and you see so many things that you absolutely love and want and need, but then when you go shopping and you actually have money to spend because you've saved up your pennies, you never find anything that seems quite right and you don’t buy anything?

That is how it went for me, as I shopped for my perfect day. The possibilities spread out before me:

My perfect day would start with tea, because every day starts with tea (don't even talk to me until I've had tea!). And of course, on the perfect day there would be blue skies…

And there would have to be reading, since I was very young that has always been my favorite way to spend time. A whole day before me with a fabulous book and a comfortable chair and nothing else to do would be wonderful…

There might be some gardening, I love to putter out there with the sun on my back and time on my hands and some music in the background, Joni Mitchell or Bob Dylan, and as time slips towards dusk, Ben Webster…

And there would be some time to write the perfect poem, or start that novel, or finally, paint my masterpiece. If not with paint, then with words. (Or perhaps with photoshop). This is my favorite attempt, so far…

There would definitely be a long, long run and nothing would stop me, nothing would hurt, and I would fly down this path with a smile on my face…

And there might be some with extra dark chocolate and strawberries and a glass of red wine, a quiet evening with my family, outside by the fire, my husband and I holding hands as the moon climbs high in the sky…

I gazed through all these windows that could be my perfect day, and there was more, so much more that I might choose: a trip to Alaska, a nice long massage, dinner and a movie, exploring in an antique shop, climbing a mountain to see the view. All things that would be part of my perfect, perfect day.

But I realized, as I peeked in and out of each pane, each one a wonderful, beautiful possibility, that my perfect day, really... is today.

This day, the one I am in, right here, right now.

I might be working too hard and washing the dishes and folding the laundry and struggling for time to myself, but I am here, living and loving and smelling and tasting and thinking and feeling and running through life with arms wide open, hair flying, lungs filled with precious air.

Yes. Just that.

Exactly. Perfect.

.....

thank you so much for this kelly!

i truly enjoyed every morsel....both words and images....
you have such an amazing gift.

all of the images are WOW! 

just beyond.

truly!!

here's to our perfect days, each day... in its own way....

xxo, kim

the perfect day ~ divas & dreams eDition

It’s that time again.... my friends... another ’perfect day’ guest.

I’m so excited to introduce my friend Christina Grieve.  

i'm sure many of you totally love and admire her already. 

i'm just so thrilled she could pop over and share. 

Her lovely blog divas and dreams is really so inspiring.

Her photography is mind-blowing amazing.

Christina is from Denmark.  isn't that just so fabulous!?!  :)

She shares really awesome photography tips, and so much more on her blog...

you just have to pop over.... seriously GOOD stuff.

she also has an awesome flickr stream.  that's how we 'found' each other.  :)

you are going to LOVE Christina’s 'perfect day'

she's an amazing dreamer..... 

So I will stop here and turn it over to the sweet and lovely Christina...

.....

My Perfect Day

I wake up early in the morning feeling rested and peaceful. Through the window I see the overwhelming blue sky and the dreamy pink sunlight, there are no curtains in my bedroom, cause I wanna wake up with the sunrise. I look at the love of my life, lying next to me. He sleeps with a smile on his face and I know why...I kiss him on his forehead before I get up. Everyone in the house is sleeping, this is my quiet time.

After a glass of fresh pressed juice, made of lime, apple, ginger and mynthe, I go outside into the garden, I have a special place for yoga right next to the pool. I stand still for a moment breathing in deeply, feeling the fresh mediterian breeze touching my skin, and I take in the smell of the sea. Our house is located in Spain, in the mountains, overlooking the ocean. Everytime I stand here looking at this view I feel blessed deep in my heart. I do about an hour of silent yoga and meditation, feeling totally in balance with my body and soul.

My kids are up now and already playing in the pool. I am getting ready to go to Barcelona for a photoshoot with Spanish Vouge. They just hired me to take portraits of Penelope Cruze. The shooting location is a beautiful art nouveau style penthouse. I take off wearing flip flops, big dark sunglasses and a hip, but casual dress. After a little bit of driving in my Mini Cooper convertible I reach the city and meet with the crew.

The shoot is fun and we laugh a lot, every one are very friendly and helpful. My creativity rushes through my veins and I feel high and happy. I work completly in flow. After the session I meet with a dear friend for sushi and champagne. We sit in a hip cafe overlooking the Barcelona skyline. We both agree that life is amazing and we talk ideas and share inspiration.

I hug my friend goodbye and walk to a gallery near by, wich is hosting my artwork. The owner tells me, that they just sold 4 of my art pieces to a company in the New York. For a moment I`m thinking about how my life has turned out.... how everything has fallen into place...and in that moment I´m happy that I did dare to follow my dreams and goals in life. I knew already as a little girl that I was an artist, but it took me 35 years to live by that gut feeling and belive in the possibilities for succes.

I drive back to my place and walk down to our local beach to meet my kids and hubby. We kiss and hug, we swim, play, read and laugh. For hours we just enjoy each others company - no time table to follow - no work - just being in the moment with love.

Back in the house I shower and my personal physiotherapist comes by and gives me half an hour of massage. Afterwood my teen girls and I have fun playing loud music and dressing up. We have the same taste in clothes and share most of our outfits. I go out wearing a stylish Ralph Lauren dress, big earrings and stilettos.

The kids, my hubby and I meet up with friends and their kids in a nearby Lounge and Chillout resturant. The table get´s loaded with georgeus spanish tapas dishes of all kinds. We drink Mojitos and Red wine while enjoying the music and our friends. As we sit there the sun goes down... for a moment I get quiet...stunned by this amazing life of mine.... suddenly but carfully, my husband takes my hand and I look into his eyes... in that moment nothing really matters but the love we feel for each other and our kids....everything is perfect... all is well...

I love my life and may my perfect day never end....

Christina Greve

......

pretty amazing ... i love how christina knows how to dream big.

i'm pretty sure we will be seeing christina in vogue, very soon.

and christina i've been wanting a mini cooper FOREVER. 

thank you so much for sharing....

happiest thursday friends....

xxo,

'the perfect day' series....continues

good morning,

happiest thursday my friends.....happiest 'perfect day'
the series continues..

(what is this 'perfect day' you ask?  .... i shared the back story here.)

.....

i'm soo excited to have christina from soul aperture here with us today.

i think you may just wanna borrow her 'perfect day'.....

it's sooo good!

....

christina has the most amazing spirit...

she shares her thoughts and images soooo eloquently...

and, she cooks...  like really cooks....

she's actually trained in culinary arts...

(gosh i love that...'culinary arts'.... what a beautiful ring.)

christina shares her days in a most eloquent way.

sooo very inspiring.

so with that said...  let's get on with the show....

so excited to have you here, christina....

thank you...truly...

.....

the perfect day would begin with the sweetest floral breezes, blowing through my window, swaying my curtains, just so... gently the breezes would wake me, guiding me to clasp my hands, and give thanks, to The Most High.

i would have all the time i wanted, to sit in prayer. inviting light and love into my life. remembering those without and accepting suchness and stillness, to lead my day.

i would shake the sleep and stars from my eyes, and shower beneath one of those outdoor showers. many island properties, have these beautiful showers, nestled beside their homes. and since were speaking of perfect- i would choose to live my perfect day, in Hawaii- with a beautiful outdoor shower, with a pull string and all.

yes, Hawaii. ; )

i would sit down with pen in hand. no writers block and the words would flow, freeing my soul of poetry and prose. finally finishing the book, that has lived in my heart, for so long.

sipping slowly on a hazelnut coffee
writing love notes to those i love
my doggie at my feet
reading cookbooks like novels

i would grab my camera, as the sun began to dance on the water, and i would invite, life, to find it’s way through my lens.

a little thrift store shopping wouldn't hurt, so why not? ; )

converse sneakers

an old messenger bag
maybe a bike with a basket to fill with flowers

heading to the market, fresh fruit and vegetables would make their way, into my bag. and or course flowers.

the day could include rain, that would certainly be alright. i love rain.

i would lazily head back home, stopping to talk to friendly faces, and giving vacationers my opinion of the best restaurant on the island. i would smile at the thought of my days as a chef, sweetly traded in, for my love of writing and photography.

deep sigh, for beauty.

i would hear my family’s laughter before i saw them, as i approached home. our home with the big, wrap around porch. we would spend time in the kitchen, making vanilla bean and macadamia nut, puff pancakes. we would look into one another’s faces, keep up with all sorts of different conversations and break off pieces of pancake for our dog, miles. my day wouldn't be complete, without my family and miles.

there would be a hammock waiting for my husband and i out back, with books stacked beside it, just in case we wanted to read, ourselves into an afternoon nap.

as the sun went down, we would dip grilled pineapple, into melted caramel, and speak about the friends who we missed.

faith
health
love
laughter
days that seemed as though they would never end
family
dreaming
slow
slow

Aloha, my friends.

one love~

thank you, Kim! you are the sweetest, for inviting me over, to dream and gather, what i feel would be, the perfect day. xo

all textures, are by kim. ; )

.....

pretty amazing 'perfect day'

don't you think?

thank you christina... truly.... so happy you could visit..

xxo..

the perfect day

good morning my sweet blog friends.

thanks for popping by today. 

you are in for a lovely surprise..

i mentioned yesterday i was going to have a special guest over for a 'visit'.

but i didn't tell you who it would be.....

well let me tell you now...

insert 'smile'

sweet Gigi from the magpie's  fancy is here.

i'm sure lots of you know and love her already.....

but if not, you are in for a fabulous surprise.

Gigi's blog is so inspiring and thoughtful. 

she's super encouraging..  i mean truly such a kind soul.

every visit to her blog is like a little piece of pick me up.....

i love this post she wrote a few weeks ago. 

'what my heart knew'

it's completely inspired....really good stuff!

  but enough of my rambling...

let's get on with the 'show'...

.....

I have been greedy. For the past couple of weeks since my friend Kim invited me to share my idea of the perfect day here on her beautiful blog, I’ve dreamed up many, many perfect days, each more delicious than the next. I couldn’t stop myself. As soon as one magical day took shape, another equally lovely confection of a day popped up and demanded my attention. The result: at least a couple of weeks’ worth of perfect days--maybe a whole month--clamoring for the number one spot. Most of them involved travel, meeting people, trying new foods, exploring new places, learning (or teaching) new ideas. Venice appeared in more than a few; writing showed up in several; and food was a main feature of each and every one.

But the more I thought and doodled and daydreamed, the more I realized that I am, at heart, a simple girl. My idea of a perfect day boils down to a few key things:

• time spent by myself thinking, reading, writing, and tinkering;

• time spent outside, preferably with my hands in the dirt/sand/water/grass and my knees wet from photographing tree roots and wild flowers;

• time spent cooking with whatever ingredients are local, fresh, and organic;

• time spent with my husband and other folks I love.

I think in truth I have already lived a pocketful of perfect days, against which all future perfect-day candidates will be measured. A couple of those days occurred just last fall when I had the great joy of living for four months in a tiny cottage on an island off the coast of my home state of Maine. I watched the sun rise there nearly every morning and then watched it set again in the evening, listening to the sound of the ocean waves that crashed just a few yards from my front stoop. I made rose-hip syrup from the hips of the wild rugosas in my yard, and I pedaled my bike down an ocean road each day, waving to neighbors and stopping to visit with island cats and dogs along the way. I took rides on the island ferry even when I didn’t need to go to the mainland, just for the fun of it. I collected enough sea glass to fill several mason jars.

And I wrote. I wrote every day, and often long into the night, sometimes with the sound of a storm hammering at our window frames, other times with a calm sea and the moon’s reflection to keep me company.

One late-autumn night I brewed a strong pot of Earl Grey, then my husband and I wrapped ourselves in quilts and headed outside to watch the Leonids meteor shower. We stood on our deck in the dark and cold, warming our hands with the mugs of tea, and watched the sky streaming stars all around us. How small we felt, and yet how much a part of it all. I’d catch a golden streak shooting past the corner of my eye, and I’d point and call out. Then he’d spot one and do the same. The whole night filled to brimming with wonder and possibility. It opened up, the sky did, like a question I couldn’t answer, but one that I knew I would never stop asking.

Albert Einstein once said, “The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when one contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.” And that is my perfect day exactly, it’s one spent asking questions, one that’s laced with small joys; it’s a day that smells like salt and tastes like wild roses, a day when hours pass without my knowing as I photograph chickadees and catbirds in the crabapple tree; it’s a day when I write a good sentence, and when my love and best friend is just a room or a sandy stretch of beach away, ready and willing to hear each word.

Oh, and a nap. My perfect day would definitely include an afternoon nap with my cats.

Thank you, beautiful Kim, for your talent, inspiration, and generous spirit. It is a pure joy to visit here with you.

.....

Gigi, i can't thank you enough for sharing this.

gosh i would love to slip away to that beautiful cottage 'sigh'....
what a 'dreamy' opportunity.

i truly enjoyed...every morsel.

much love,

dreamin..... in so many ways

hey there,

happiest Wednesday my friends....

i'm popping in with some exciting news.....

i have a new feature coming to my blog.... it starts TOMORROW.

i am calling it

‘the perfect day’

sooooo....

let me tell you a little about how it all came to be.

i was reading an amazing manifesto by the incredibly brilliant Chris Gillibeau. His blog, the art of non-conformity is completely INSPIRED!

Oh my gosh... brilliance, i tell you... BRILLIANCE!!

He offers several amazing free manifestos on his blog.
a few months ago, i was reading
‘a brief guide to world domination ... how to live a remarkable life in a conventional world’
chris mentions an exercise in the manifesto... about imagining your perfect day.
more details on that here.

basically the exercise asks you to imagine in great detail what your perfect day would be like....
after you go through the exercise you can make little steps toward living that ‘perfect’ day.

I love the idea... the concept... the possibilities.

insert

'sigh'

i will be sharing my perfect day in this series....
but tomorrow, we have an amazing woman coming over to share her ‘perfect day’ with us.
she is beautiful, brilliant, a published author.
she takes amazing photographs... her spirit is incredibly warm and giving.
i simply adore her!!

sooo who do i speak of?? you ask?

it's a surprise....

come back tomorrow to find out... i promise you will LOVE her!

soooo i can no wait to share her perfect day here with you!!
 can NOT wait.

pop back tomorrow... pretty please.

.....

Just a few more tidbits.

the new texture collection has been selling like crazy! totally awesome!
YAY... thank you so much to all of you who have ordered.
check it out...
can i say i am sooo loving it?

and my new eCourse the art of texture starts Friday!! Have you signed up?

the dreamy daisy image above is part of the lesson material...
it’s going to be fabulous!! truly!

finally, are you on my ‘peep list’?
if not, head up to the right hand corner to check it out.

lots of list goodness to share!! i promise.

....well i must sign off for now...

Love to you.....