The end of another summer...

By the end of August I am always ready for FALL (whose real name is Autumn!  And I really want to call my favorite season by it's real name, but I am so used to saying FALL)

Highlights this summer:
Our first 'real' garden. Tomatoes, green peppers, onions - basil, oregano, cilantro. I really wish we would have planted lettuce - but there's always next year. And the pink rose bush I got for Mother's Day is gorgeous.  I love seeing it right when I pull in the driveway.

Making delicious water!  Super easy and refreshing. By just adding any of the following... lemons, limes, cucumbers, blackberries and lots of ice. A pretty glass and a straw make it even better!!

The beach. Gulf Shores, Alabama.  We all piled into my parents gray van and drove for 12 hrs. Passengers included:  my son Alex (11) my niece and nephew...Nicole (20) and Andrew (17)  The only one missing was my sister, but she had just gotten married and was in Texas :(  It was a lovely week of riding bikes, walking up and down the gulf's longest pier, swimming in the ocean, family time, laying out in the sun on the sand and reading ...

We also went to the Naval Aviation Museum (actually in Pensacola-about 30 miles away)  Tons of WWII, Vietnam, and Blue Angels planes. You don't have to be a military buff or into aviation AT ALL to be highly impressed and amazed with how cool this place is.  It's a must-see...and it's FREE.

And then the lighthouse tour. I am a huge chicken and only made it 20 steps out of about 250.  It was a wrought iron spiral staircase and you could see thru the steps while climbing!
Vertigo + Heights = Forget It!

Last but not least (sigh) a tropical petting zoo ... where the only (minor) family quarrel broke out.

My fave concert this summer was John Mayer-12th row center!  My niece and I are huge fans and this is the 2nd time we've seen him together.  It's been 3 years since JM's been to STL...and it was an awesome show!! Oh, and here is some cool art that fans submitted for his new album "Paradise Valley" Not sure how I missed this fun artistic little project...I would have loved to submit something.

SPRING CLEANING

Yes, I know it's June...but still wanted to post these simple, great (and cheap) tips! A big part of feng sui is cleaning, so here you go. Have fun!!

6 AIR PURIFYING HOUSE PLANTS

• Bamboo Palm  Removes formaldahyde; acts as a natural humidifier
• Snake Plant  Absorb nitrogen oxides and formaldahyde
• Areca Palm  One of the best air purifying plants for general clean air
• Spider Plant  Great for removing carbon monoxide and other toxins or impurities. One of three plants NASA deems best at removing formaldahyde from the air
• Peace Lily  Could be called the “clean-all” often placed in bathrooms or laundry rooms as they’re known for removing mold spores. Also know to remove formaldahyde and trichloroethylene
• Gerbera Daisy  These gorgeous flowers remove benzene from the air, and are known to improve sleep by absorbing carbon dioxide and giving off more oxygen over night

CLEAN YOUR MATTRESS

Pour 1 cup baking soda into a mason jar and add 4 drops of lavender essential oil. Shake. Using a kitchen strainer, sprinkle the baking soda mixture all over the mattress & let it sit for an hour or so. Thoroughly vacuum the mattress. Bye-bye dust mites and other nasty things. The baking soda helps draw up any moisture & deep dirtiness. It deodorizes and leaves the mattress smelling fresh and clean.
For more great tips>> http://bit.ly/Motivate-Me

 
 









HOMEMADE FEBREZE ... ahhhhh
OK, talk about easy and cheap - can't wait to try this!
1/8 cup of fabric softener
2 tablespoons baking soda
Hot tap water
Spray bottle

BAGUA MIRROR

Hang this somewhere outside to bring good energy and balance to your yard!  Help balance the negative energy from power lines and street cross walks near your property...bring good health to your plants and flowers, or promote good energy between your house and your neighbors. Of course you need to help create your own 'good energy' in your space/yard.
*I have not made one of these yet...and need to look up if there are specifics with the colors you use, etc.

A random thought...from a Rock Star

Ahhhh - some words of wisdom that I really like from the interesting (and strange) Jack White. As much as I love all things technical...the internet, i-tunes, blogging, Twitter, Flickr, FaceBook, Instagram, Pintrest, etc. I dis-like there is less balance. That is such a simple - yet key word - for me! I hate it that bookstores and record stores are almost extinct. That almost everything is replaced by a techy gadget. That we are always plugged in. I still want to buy the actual CD sometimes...and flip thru the booklet, look at the design - turn the actual pages of a book....get a 'real' card or invite in the mailbox with a stamp on it!  Talk on the phone vs - only texting/emailing. Stuff like that. Some studies have shown with all this internet interaction - alot of people are actually lonelier, even with their 724 FB friends. And that's just kinda sad.

"Why go to a bookstore and get a real book? You can just download it. Why talk to other human beings, discuss different authors, writing styles and influences? Just click your mouse. Well here's what they'll someday learn if they have a soul; there's no romance in a mouse click. There's no beauty in sitting for hours playing video games (anyone proud of that stop reading now and post your opinion in the nearest forum). The screen of an iPhone is convenient, but it’s no comparison to a 70mm showing of a film in a gorgeous theater. The Internet is two-dimensional…helpful and entertaining, but no replacement for face-to-face interaction with a human being. But we know all of that, right? Well, do we? Maybe we know all that, but so what?  Let's wake each other up.

The world hasn't stopped moving. Out there, people are still talking to each other face-to-face, exchanging ideas and turning each other on. Art houses are showing films, people are drinking coffee and telling tall tales, women and men are confusing each other and record stores are selling discs full of soul that you haven’t felt yet. So why do we choose to hide in our caves and settle for replication? We know better. We should at least. We need to re-educate ourselves about human interaction."

-Jack White

'My suffering left me sad and gloomy...'

The Life of Pi has become one of my favorite movies. You hear people say...oh, that story about a boy - trapped on a boat - with a tiger. Yes, that's part of it ... but it's SO much more than that. A captivating story, spiritual, adventurous and sad.  Part of it is present day...told by Pi as an adult to a reporter who is writing about his surviving the shipwreck as a teen.

And the cinematography! The visuals are beyond belief (glowing fish, millions of meerkats, a beautiful botanical garden in India)  As a young boy PI is both fascinated and confused w/ religion and ends up becoming a Christian, a Muslim and a Hindu, all at once. Which sorta sounds like me, as I am Catholic but am also fascinated with Buddhism and Hinduism. And I really loved how he found something good in all of them!

Another amazing thing ... the main character (Pi) has never acted before!  And although he is ferocious, mean and hungry - you will also end up loving his sidekick - the bengal tiger "Richard Parker"  The way their friendship is forced to develop ... between the fear, the hunger, the endless ocean and the desperate struggle to survive. This small thing that Pi says regarding their relationship is so heartfelt and full of despair! 
“Dare I say I miss him?  I do. I miss him. I still see him in my dreams. They are nightmares mostly, but nightmares tinged with love.  I still cannot understand how he could abandon me so unceremoniously, without any sort of goodbye, without looking back even once. That pain is like an axe that chops at my heart."  ~Pi

So, if you haven't seen it, rent it.  And the book is worth reading, too.  Here is some great art I found!