Can I phone it in two days in a row? Is phoning it in better than not blogging at all? Am I forgiven for not having time to write a terrific post if I make you laugh? Here’s hoping!

I’m sharing this one because it’s pretty relevant in my world right now:

I’m sharing this one because I’m driving on the highway today:

And I’m sharing this one because it really made me laugh:

And I hope that isn’t what Jackie is thinking when he watched us do stuff!

Happy Thursday. It’s almost the weekend!

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It’s May! Sure, it’s still chilly and we’ve had lots (and lots) of rain but still . . . MAY. I’m ready to welcome this new month in 3 ways.

1. The Spiritual Rebels class that I’m part of has a different topic for each month and for May the topic is Intuition and the Body. We’re going to be focusing on loving and trusting our bodies and busting the things we’ve been taught by the beauty, diet and medical industry. I’m really excited for this topic and I’m hoping it will help me to not only embrace how I look but also use the tools I have at my disposal to feel stronger and more confident.
2. Gardening! All of the work we did last spring on our front bed (with thanks again to the fabulous Kym for the design help and advice) is paying off – everything is coming up and growing. That also includes plenty of weeds and moss (one side of this faces north) but it’s so nice to be building on what we did last year and not starting from scratch. One thing we are starting new is building another raised bed. This one is going to be for cut flowers only, no vegetables, and I’m so excited about it because I have wanted a cut flower garden for a long, long time. I took a class last month to get me started and I’ve got a whole tray of zinnias, cosmos, calendulas, and sunflowers that are going to be ready to be hardened off and then planted outside by the end of the month!
3. Outdoor living! Last weekend we borrowed Sean’s power washer and Dale power washed the house as well as the deck. He’ll be putting down a fresh coat of stain this weekend (I hope) and then the furniture will be out and we’ll be spending as much time as possible outside. Plus we will have a full season with our pergola and I cannot wait to (finally) host a dinner party under the pergola lights. I love when our outdoor living areas are usable, it’s like doubling the size of our house.

What’s making you happen about the month of May?

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I stopped on my way home from work yesterday and bought a bunch of daffodils at a roadside stand. I got home and posted a photo on Instagram and Facebook and thought, those bring me joy. And then I wondered, what else is bringing me joy right now? And just like that, a Three on Thursday post was born.

1. Our bedroom redo. After 2 1/2 weeks in our guest room (with a full size bed, ahem) we’re back in our room and it’s lovely. We still need new nightstands but we have a new ceiling and no more wallpaper, new bedding and curtains, and a beautiful soothing peaceful space. Pictures will come once everything is really in place.
2. Spending time with my family. Sunday was Easter and it was a lovely relaxing day. We didn’t do an extended family thing, we just had the kids and grandkids. We drank mimosas and ate a delicious meal, we had an egg hunt (Jack lost interest after the 2nd egg), and we told stories and joked and laughed together. Truly, nothing brings me more joy than these people.
3. Listening to music in my car. I spend most of my commute listening to podcasts but sometimes they just don’t cut it for me and I put my iPhone on shuffle all and see what comes up. I’ve got nearly 3,000 songs on there so it can be pretty . . . interesting . . . but when the song is just right nothing makes me happier than singing along.

I’ve found that simple things can bring a lot of joy.

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Today I’ve got three things to tell you that are sort of . . . in a roundabout way . . . connected by fire. Let’s go.

1. Our wood stove has been super smokey lately. It’s gross and stinky and the smoke detector goes off and it’s just . . . ugh. We both know it means the chimney needs to be cleaned but we were also both hoping we could get through until the end of the burning season without doing that. Yesterday, though, I called uncle aka the chimney sweep and they are coming to clean the chimney on Monday. It means we can’t have a fire on Sunday, which definitely blows, but it also means the wood stove will be burning brightly again soon.
2. I used to burn candles all the time. For the last several months, though, I have laid off the candles and I’m using my essential oils diffusers instead. I like this for many reasons, not the last of which is that there’s less smoke in the house (see number one) and also because I can change the scent daily – or even more often should I choose. Some of my favorite combos lately have been lavender/lemon/peppermint, bergamot/sandalwood/myrrh, joy/geranium/cedarwood, and frankincense/sandalwood/geranium. The company I get my oils from, Young Living, has some great blends, too, including joy that I already mentioned plus peace & calming, release, valor and so much more. I still burn unscented tea lights and there are twinkle lights everywhere so I’m not missing scented candles at all.
3. I lit myself on fire Tuesday night while making dinner. It was actually my sweater but still. Fire. ON MY PERSON. You’ll be glad to know I didn’t actually suffer any injuries. What happened was this . . . I leaned over the stove to get something from the cabinet above the microwave and my sweater, which is one of those cascade type styles with fringe, caught on fire. I didn’t even realize it at first and then I felt hot and looked down and . . . FLAMES. I know about stop, drop and roll but my kitchen floor is ceramic tile (and I’m old) so I went over to the sink and tried to smother the fire with a small dish cloth. Yeah, that didn’t work. Then I realized I was standing in front of the sink which has, you know, actual WATER, so I grabbed the spray nozzle and sprayed myself down. All the while I am yelling for Dale to come and help but he was in the bedroom with the vacuum cleaner going (nothing sexier than a man with a vaccum, I know, unless you’re on fire) and didn’t hear me. I got the sweater off and threw it in the sink and soaked it. But here’s the weird thing – aside from some of the fringe burning off, the rest of the sweater is absolutely fine. No singe marks. No burn holes. Nothing. All’s well that ends well but let me tell you, the song This Girl is on Fire will never be the same.

And that’s a wrap for this Thursday.

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