perfect friday

Had the day off, and boy was I glad, it was perfectly sunny and enjoyably warm! The morning held a couple of errands which I ran on bike. I made this pink lemonade card to enter a contest on Paper Crafts. Info about the contest can be found here : http://www.flickr.com/groups/pc_go-to_sketch_challenge_4/


As you can see I stuck with the lemon theme I've been on all week. To really enjoy my day off, I picked up a couple of my favourite magazines to read whilst I sat in the shade, dipping my feet in Daisy's kiddie pool, while she daintily dipped her paws to cool off. I also made a light summer snack, Lemon Jello (yeah i bought store brand cause i'm cheap...sadly, they didn't have a light version). We also spent a delightful hour at the dog park, which I think has become my favourite place.

In the evening, after years of preparation, I finally went public with my singing & guitar playing. We had a talent show at church, and I signed up to do a couple of songs.

Playlist :

• Meant for me by Jewel
• All You Wanted by Michelle Branch
• Good Mother by Jann Arden

Judging by the reception, I'd say years of practice worked off. I was uber nervous, and yet, so excited to finally have a chance to share my love of music with others. This pic was taken after the show once I was home and the nerves had disappeared.

All in all, I'd say today was a perfect Friday for me, and now I'm looking forward to the weekend. I hope everyone has an amazing weekend. Be sure to check out this post : http://fdwdaisy.blogspot.com/2010/06/daisykisses-giveaway.html to enter for a chance to win a dazzling pair of LemonDrop LolliPop earrings from my Daisy*Kisses line of handmade jewelry!!

Cheers.

February is heart month

Isn't Valentine just too cute (unfortunately she's probably bacon by now, I know I didn't eat her). So you may already be aware that February is indeed heart month, or the month for heart & stroke awareness. I was reading the latest issue of SHAPE magazine the other night, and came across an article about lessening our risk factors for heart disease.

Well, the article got me thinking about how I had allowed my good habits to decline. And I began wondering what sort of affect this was having on my heart. I asked my Mum about our family history, and if heart disease or strokes were scattered in there. I have an uncle who suffered a stroke on my father's side, but that was it as far as we knew.

So my genetic risk factors seem fairly low. But I know genetics aren't the only factors. My day to day choices today will affect how well my ticker works in ten-twenty-fifty years. Should I be proactive, or reactive?

I hope the answer to that is clear. So after much thought and rereading of the article, I decided to make some positive changes. Mum and I made an agreement to try to eat our healthiest for one month. Now, we don't eat horrible anyway, but there are some processed foods that maybe should be less frequent in our home. I was surprised that Mum was so willing to accept the challenge, but she is totally up for it (after all she's not the one addicted to her nightly bowl of ice cream...that is my own demon to face).

The great thing is we've planned out the month's meals. We've found that making up meal schedules ahead of time, makes a huge difference in the quality of the food we eat (no lazy pizza or fries), and the grocery bill gets affected for better (less food wastage, and its cheaper because we don't run to the store and just pick up anything frequently). I'm excited to cook meals every night, some old, some new recipes. I'll be certain to document a few of the new vegetarian ones we'll make.

So think about YOUR heart this month, and give it a little lovin. I'll be writing more about the topic througout the month.

Cheers.