“It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants.
The question is: what are we busy doing?”
Henry David Thoreau
I just came across an article by Elizabeth Withey that I saved in 2006 because it really made an impression on me. I did make several changes in my life at that time but it is so easy to become too busy again. I will now always choose to spend time with family and friends instead of doing chores or other mundane tasks. The house cleaning can wait and so can the laundry. Grocery shopping – there is always tomorrow.
Ms. Withey points out that it seems that the word ‘busy’ has replaced the word 'stressed' as busy suggests something more positive. “Busy – with its suggestion of ambition, production and energy – sounds much better. You’re busy? Wow. You must be going places.” But what are we so busy doing?
It is o.k. to work less, earn less, achieve less, want less and own less – Prioritize. Choose carefully how to spend your time.
I can also confirm Ms. Withey's statement that when you are sitting in the nursing home, sipping warm prune juice, you will ask yourself "what was I so busy doing?" - this is most seniors biggest regret.
Next time I say that I am too busy to do something fun or spend time with a friend, stop me and say “so are the ants” and I will try to snap out of it.
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Friday 24 June 2011
The Big Picture
Your life is like a canvas, in the centre is you and from there you fill in the rest of the canvas with what you want from life, you decide how big it will be. How big can you think?
We really need to ask ourselves a lot of questions about what we want out of life and how to get it. Where do we come from? What kind of baggage do we carry with us? What is it that will make us happy? If we made a mistake, how do we fix it?
The nice thing about a canvas is that you can start over at any time. When you are younger the canvas has not been filled in yet but 20 years later it gets pretty full of events that has happened, both good and bad.
If you are even a little bit artistic this could be a very interesting picture and for the rest of us it is just for our own use. Get out a piece of paper and start filling it in, with you in the center and then all the past and future events surrounding you. A diploma, a horse, first car, house, dog, husband, kids, trips (mine has an elephant representing my dream of a safari), owning your own business, a train and an airplane. You can sprinkle the picture with hearts, rainbows, flowers, mountains and sunrays - all the things that make you happy. It is your picture/life - you decide what its going to look like!
We really need to ask ourselves a lot of questions about what we want out of life and how to get it. Where do we come from? What kind of baggage do we carry with us? What is it that will make us happy? If we made a mistake, how do we fix it?
The nice thing about a canvas is that you can start over at any time. When you are younger the canvas has not been filled in yet but 20 years later it gets pretty full of events that has happened, both good and bad.
If you are even a little bit artistic this could be a very interesting picture and for the rest of us it is just for our own use. Get out a piece of paper and start filling it in, with you in the center and then all the past and future events surrounding you. A diploma, a horse, first car, house, dog, husband, kids, trips (mine has an elephant representing my dream of a safari), owning your own business, a train and an airplane. You can sprinkle the picture with hearts, rainbows, flowers, mountains and sunrays - all the things that make you happy. It is your picture/life - you decide what its going to look like!
Thursday 23 June 2011
Homemade treats
Yesterday when my son and a group of friends came home, John charged ahead of the group and went straight for the glass domed cake stand on the counter and yelled “I get the last one!”. These kids who love anything artificial also love homemade stuff which I find very promising. They love slurpees, skittles and twizzlers which horrifies me, but they also love homemade stuff so there is still hope I guess.
I will continue my fight against crap in food, especially in this house with three teen-agers and their friends.
Preparation time - 10 minutes
Chocolate Banana Cupcakes:
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1 cup milk
¾ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup corn syrup
3 tbsp. canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. lemon juice or white vinegar
1 ¾ cup flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup chocolate chips
Makes exactly 12 cupcakes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and lightly spray muffin pan with cooking spray. In bowl, mix together bananas, milk, brown sugar, corn syrup, oil, vanilla and vinegar. In another bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips. Mix with wet ingredients until just blended. Spoon into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 20 minutes until cupcakes feel firm. Let cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes before removing from pan.
I will continue my fight against crap in food, especially in this house with three teen-agers and their friends.
Preparation time - 10 minutes
Chocolate Banana Cupcakes:
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1 cup milk
¾ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup corn syrup
3 tbsp. canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. lemon juice or white vinegar
1 ¾ cup flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup chocolate chips
Makes exactly 12 cupcakes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and lightly spray muffin pan with cooking spray. In bowl, mix together bananas, milk, brown sugar, corn syrup, oil, vanilla and vinegar. In another bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips. Mix with wet ingredients until just blended. Spoon into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 20 minutes until cupcakes feel firm. Let cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes before removing from pan.
Tuesday 21 June 2011
S-L-O-W down and smell the lilacs
Spring/Summer is finally here so make sure you don’t miss it!
June has been a blur of activities and I fear that if we don’t consciously slow down we might miss Summer. Remember snow, cold and darkness? Well now is the time to sit on the deck with your feet up reading a book or just closing your eyes and thinking about nothing. Ignore everything inside and enjoy being able to be outside as much as possible. We eat outside every night unless it is raining, no exceptions.
Go for a walk every night after dinner, even if it rains, get a bike and use it and encourage the kids to play outside as much as possible. Invite family and friends over for a BBQ this week-end and ask them to bring a dish and don’t worry about everything being perfect.
Pick lilacs and place them throughout the house, their sweet fragrance is a nice reminder of summer.
Go for a drive this week-end and bring a picnic, Sheep River Falls is a perfect place to spend a day or head to Cochrane and treat the family to icecream after lunch. Take lots of photos as you are creating wonderful memories that will help you get through the next long, cold winter.
June has been a blur of activities and I fear that if we don’t consciously slow down we might miss Summer. Remember snow, cold and darkness? Well now is the time to sit on the deck with your feet up reading a book or just closing your eyes and thinking about nothing. Ignore everything inside and enjoy being able to be outside as much as possible. We eat outside every night unless it is raining, no exceptions.
Go for a walk every night after dinner, even if it rains, get a bike and use it and encourage the kids to play outside as much as possible. Invite family and friends over for a BBQ this week-end and ask them to bring a dish and don’t worry about everything being perfect.
Pick lilacs and place them throughout the house, their sweet fragrance is a nice reminder of summer.
Go for a drive this week-end and bring a picnic, Sheep River Falls is a perfect place to spend a day or head to Cochrane and treat the family to icecream after lunch. Take lots of photos as you are creating wonderful memories that will help you get through the next long, cold winter.
Thursday 16 June 2011
5 Compliments every day
Kids need 5 compliments every day!
I am not sure where I read this but I thought about it after writing about "You can't cram on the farm" yesterday because it also pertains to building self esteem in kids.
In raising kids you need to be consistant and that also goes for building self esteem, kids need to know that they are doing well in addition to being loved.
I often find myself telling/reminding my kids about what to do every day and not as much praising them. "Do this" and "don't do that" is part of many interactions with the kids, especially teen-agers and I don't think I praise them enough.
Today my kids will get at least 5 compliments each, I promise!
If you have any comments, you can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com
I am not sure where I read this but I thought about it after writing about "You can't cram on the farm" yesterday because it also pertains to building self esteem in kids.
In raising kids you need to be consistant and that also goes for building self esteem, kids need to know that they are doing well in addition to being loved.
I often find myself telling/reminding my kids about what to do every day and not as much praising them. "Do this" and "don't do that" is part of many interactions with the kids, especially teen-agers and I don't think I praise them enough.
Today my kids will get at least 5 compliments each, I promise!
If you have any comments, you can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com
Wednesday 15 June 2011
You can't cram on the farm
I am reading “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey and I really like this quote “You can’t cram on the farm”. He goes on to explain how ridiculous the concept of cramming on a farm is. “To forget to plant in the spring, play all summer and then cram in the fall to bring in the harvest. The farm is a natural system, the price must be paid and the process followed. You always reap what you sow; there is no shortcut”.
This is the point of planning – In trying to follow my 30-60-90 day plan I can be reasonably assured that my chosen priorities and tasks will be done by a certain time. If I give the task priority, it will get done. The only obstacle to this plan is me, I decide if I really want to do something or not.
Change takes time and the bigger changes often takes more time but that is o.k. – the point is to start and to decide to follow through then whatever it is you want to accomplish will happen.
You can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com if you have any comments.
This is the point of planning – In trying to follow my 30-60-90 day plan I can be reasonably assured that my chosen priorities and tasks will be done by a certain time. If I give the task priority, it will get done. The only obstacle to this plan is me, I decide if I really want to do something or not.
Change takes time and the bigger changes often takes more time but that is o.k. – the point is to start and to decide to follow through then whatever it is you want to accomplish will happen.
You can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com if you have any comments.
Monday 6 June 2011
Message in a Movie
I watched a delightful movie yesterday called “She’s having a baby” starring Kevin Bacon and was not sure what to expect with a title like that. The movie is about a young couple living in the suburbs and the main character starts to feel that there is something missing in his life. His friend tries to tell him that his life is dull and boring and slowly he starts to believe it.
He is unhappy at work and feels that he had to settle into an unfulfilling job in order to buy a house. He is unsure about his relationship and even starts to toy with the idea of having an affair after his wife starts to talk about having a baby. Struggling with fertility problems they do eventually become pregnant and when something goes terribly wrong during the delivery he finally gets the message – he has been selfish and has not been contributing to the relationship. He says: “I took more than I gave, I was loved more than I loved, I was trusted more that I trusted and what I was looking for was not the be found but to be made”.
Why is it so hard to be content with what we already have? Do we only value something if it is about to be taken away?
Try counting your blessings every day for a week (write it down) and then after 7 days look at the list of all the good stuff in your life. You are probably pretty blessed!
You can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com if you have any comments.
He is unhappy at work and feels that he had to settle into an unfulfilling job in order to buy a house. He is unsure about his relationship and even starts to toy with the idea of having an affair after his wife starts to talk about having a baby. Struggling with fertility problems they do eventually become pregnant and when something goes terribly wrong during the delivery he finally gets the message – he has been selfish and has not been contributing to the relationship. He says: “I took more than I gave, I was loved more than I loved, I was trusted more that I trusted and what I was looking for was not the be found but to be made”.
Why is it so hard to be content with what we already have? Do we only value something if it is about to be taken away?
Try counting your blessings every day for a week (write it down) and then after 7 days look at the list of all the good stuff in your life. You are probably pretty blessed!
You can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com if you have any comments.
Saturday 4 June 2011
Is your life good enough?
If you have a family, a home and money in the bank, experts say you have the most important things in life but it seems that a lot of us strive for more. When will we be happy? It is important to slow down and ask yourself that question and listen to the answer. Is it “when I get that promotion”, or ”when I lose weight”, “when I get a new house” or “when the kids leave home” that life will be better?
Are you happy right now? I think it is a simple question, either “yes” or “no”. If it is “yes” – good, but if it is “no” you have to figure out why.
Happiness will never be attained if we keep raising the bar every time we accomplish a goal. Celebrate your accomplishments now and do not constantly replace them with new ones.
It is o.k. to live a ‘good enough’ life - being healthy, solvent and connected to good friends is what it’s all about.
Let me know what you think at www.ullameredith@gmail.com
Are you happy right now? I think it is a simple question, either “yes” or “no”. If it is “yes” – good, but if it is “no” you have to figure out why.
Happiness will never be attained if we keep raising the bar every time we accomplish a goal. Celebrate your accomplishments now and do not constantly replace them with new ones.
It is o.k. to live a ‘good enough’ life - being healthy, solvent and connected to good friends is what it’s all about.
Let me know what you think at www.ullameredith@gmail.com
Thursday 2 June 2011
Protect your biggest investment
According to financial experts you should plan on spending 3% of your home’s value on repair and maintenance annually. We have never allowed for this and now I can see how nice it would be if we had an account with 4 years of accumulated savings for this specific purpose. We live in a 20+ old house and will soon have to deal with big ticket items like a new roof, siding and replacing carpets.
Since we are working hard on simplifying our life we have decided to sell our house next year. The plan is to spend a year getting it ready and then to list it in May as that is the beginning of the busiest time for real estate.
In trying to assess how much it would cost and how long it would take to get our house ready to sell, I did a critical walk through and made note of everything that should be done. The first walk through was more of a de-cluttering process in which I took ‘stuff’ to the garage and got an area ready for the Salvation Army. I dislike garage sales so instead I take everything to the SA and I consider it a charitable donation. There was lots of old clothes, books, toys, dishes rarely used and all of the misc. stuff that had accumulated in the basement.
I then had a look at the house from the street, does it have curb appeal? Does it look inviting and does it appear well kept? We need to repaint the garage door and power wash the siding and install a new mail box. Once I opened the front door, I stopped and had a good look around – you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression – it is so true. What do you see from the front door? Is the room tidy and inviting? We need new light fixtures throughout the house as everything is brass and very dated. Now walk slowly from room to room and make note of what needs to be done in order to sell. From watching real estate shows you quickly get an idea of what people are looking for when purchasing a home. New colorful pillows for the couches and a large buque of fresh flowers for the coffee table always helps.
Watching home improvement shows and real estate shows like House Hunters will quickly give you an idea of what should be done to appeal to as many people as possible. The home should be free of clutter and very clean, hardwood floors are very popular and is something we are considering.
Our main floor washroom – we need a new toilet and sink, paint and a new mirror and accessories - $500. Plan on doing one room at the time so it is not so overwhelming.
Master bedroom – the bed is the focal point – does it look luxurious? I need new matching side tables and lamps and I am going to buy a new duvet and pillows.
Landscaping - make sure the grass is cut and everything looks tidy.
Make a list of repairs and upgrades needed and decide on when to do it. I came up with a two page list and and I then put dollar amounts after each one to see what it would cost to get ready to list the house - total $5,000.00 plus hardwood if we decide to do that. I will now take the list and start to schedule all of these improvements into our One Year Plan starting with the more time consuming ones in the Fall. September - painting the spare bedroom, October - replace light fixtures throughout the house etc. Whether you are going to sell your home or not, a critical look once a year is not a bad idea.
If you have any comments you can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com
Since we are working hard on simplifying our life we have decided to sell our house next year. The plan is to spend a year getting it ready and then to list it in May as that is the beginning of the busiest time for real estate.
In trying to assess how much it would cost and how long it would take to get our house ready to sell, I did a critical walk through and made note of everything that should be done. The first walk through was more of a de-cluttering process in which I took ‘stuff’ to the garage and got an area ready for the Salvation Army. I dislike garage sales so instead I take everything to the SA and I consider it a charitable donation. There was lots of old clothes, books, toys, dishes rarely used and all of the misc. stuff that had accumulated in the basement.
I then had a look at the house from the street, does it have curb appeal? Does it look inviting and does it appear well kept? We need to repaint the garage door and power wash the siding and install a new mail box. Once I opened the front door, I stopped and had a good look around – you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression – it is so true. What do you see from the front door? Is the room tidy and inviting? We need new light fixtures throughout the house as everything is brass and very dated. Now walk slowly from room to room and make note of what needs to be done in order to sell. From watching real estate shows you quickly get an idea of what people are looking for when purchasing a home. New colorful pillows for the couches and a large buque of fresh flowers for the coffee table always helps.
Watching home improvement shows and real estate shows like House Hunters will quickly give you an idea of what should be done to appeal to as many people as possible. The home should be free of clutter and very clean, hardwood floors are very popular and is something we are considering.
Our main floor washroom – we need a new toilet and sink, paint and a new mirror and accessories - $500. Plan on doing one room at the time so it is not so overwhelming.
Master bedroom – the bed is the focal point – does it look luxurious? I need new matching side tables and lamps and I am going to buy a new duvet and pillows.
Landscaping - make sure the grass is cut and everything looks tidy.
Make a list of repairs and upgrades needed and decide on when to do it. I came up with a two page list and and I then put dollar amounts after each one to see what it would cost to get ready to list the house - total $5,000.00 plus hardwood if we decide to do that. I will now take the list and start to schedule all of these improvements into our One Year Plan starting with the more time consuming ones in the Fall. September - painting the spare bedroom, October - replace light fixtures throughout the house etc. Whether you are going to sell your home or not, a critical look once a year is not a bad idea.
If you have any comments you can contact me at ullameredith@gmail.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)