Life at a "Swell's" pace

Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This soup.

I made homemade chicken noodle soup this week, but I added a little something extra to it - Turmeric. I found an old recipe in a cookbook that was given to me years ago and followed it for the chicken noodle soup. At the bottom of the recipe it gave ideas to add to the soup and one of them was turmeric. We loved the taste of the soup and honestly, we love turmeric any time we can incorporate it into things. I will be making this recipe again, but if you wanted to duplicate it, it's a simple chicken noodle soup recipe and add turmeric powder to taste.

2. This sunset.

Always love seeing a pink sky at night. We call these sunsets "Meierz Sky" for personal reasons

3. These gifts.

These seed bombs came in a box from Kiwi Eco Box and this week I planted them. I hope they survive, because I am curious to see what pollinator plants sprout.

4. This doorknob.

Our doorknob has been an eyesore and irritation ever since it was installed several years ago with the new door. We hated it, mostly because it would get stuck, and at times wouldn't let us open the door. We even had someone try to pick our locks and break in a few times, while we were away. (Our neighbors haven't been the best of neighbors and the people that visit them are worse) We finally did an upgrade and we are so pleased with how it turned out. The best part about the new doorknob and deadbolt, it has extra security features that are linked to a doorbell camera, too. It's easier to open, and harder to break into. You can get it with or without the added security features, too.

5. This path.

We created a pathway around our fence line, so we can have a trail around the area and a walking path. We are working on the surrounding fence line to make it more private, and when we don't want to walk through the city, or drive somewhere to walk outside, we can just use our own backyard. It is a work in progress, but I am excited about it, for sure. Sometimes being an introvert with social anxiety is hard, but when we have other options it makes us feel less vulnerable. 24 times around the fence line is a mile, so it's a start. I would love to create a labyrinth, but for now, this is great!♥

One last thing:

Isn't that the truth. A lot of foods that we depend on are because of pollinators like the honeybee. We should respect all living beings, but especially the ones that help us to survive.

Positive affirmations this week:

Always make time for your energy givers, even when your mental health isn't bad. The more selfcare you give to yourself daily, the better the bad days will be to get through. Always show yourself as much love and care as you can. You can do this! 🌈

Have a nice week.

Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This pie.

I decided to attempt to make a blueberry pie this week. I bought a premade pie shell, mixed some blueberries with some sugar over the stove until I guessed when they were done, dumped it into the pie shell, and threw on top some crushed graham crackers. It was pretty good, if I'm honest. I really had no idea what I was doing, but we wanted a pie, so I came through. Definitely will be repeating this soon, because hot pie with vanilla ice cream can't be beat.

2. This gopher.

Little shit has been tearing up our yard lately. We setup a live trap to try and get him, but after two weeks of no trap, he stopped coming around. We aren't sure what happened to him, but he disappeared. Hopefully, he just moved on and wasn't killed.

3. These tarts.

I am addicted to these St. Claire's Fruit Tarts. I love the sour lemon and the raspberry flavored ones, but they do come in peppermint, wintergreen, key lime, tangerine, watermelon, and peach, too. They are plant-based, gluten free and vegan. And the tins they come in can be reused for other things after the tarts are gone. I use the tins for travel sewing kits, and travel first aid kits.

4. This dashboard.

It got pretty toasty this week and my car registered 103 on an early Tuesday morning already. Global warming is taking its toll on Oregon, it seems. Whether people want to admit it or not, things are definitely changing with our planet.

5. This appointment.

I had my three month hair appointment this week and I always laugh at how awful I look in the salon mirror. It makes me laugh at how many people actually see themselves terrible in a hair salon mirror. You would think they would have a mirror that just blows your mind at how good you look getting your hair colored and cut. But for now, we will all just continue to look like lizards draped in clothing. ☺

One last thing:

This technique is called Progressive Muscle Relaxation and it does work. It takes a bit of practice to learn how to tense and relax each muscle, but it works great for restless legs, tense shoulders, and even tight butt cheeks, and calves after walking or running.

Positive affirmations this week:

You can do this! 🌈