I know we are already in to the new year by one week but that is OK. I have ten areas I want to work on and will briefly overview below; Relationships: In February B and I will have been together for 11 years. I want to strengthen what we already have. I also want to rekindle some old friendships that have waned and create some new friendships. Weight Loss: I want to lose 40 pounds [I need to lose more but I am starting with this number as a goal]. Over 12 months that is 3 pounds a month. I know, not a super huge reduction but down is down and this number takes the pressure off. It’s totally a ..read more

Has anyone ever done a no spend year? I have not but I decided I think 2024 is the year for it. The concept behind a no spend chunk of time be it a month or up to an entire year is to not spend money for a specific amount of time on non-necessities such as eating out, clothing & services on non-necessary items. So, I am throwing my hat in the ring and trying this out. Initially I think a year is a LOT to do for my first time but I will see how it goes. The impetus for this challenge is that I have some debt I wish to pay off. Often people choose to budget more stringently and there are sug ..read more

A couple of days ago I mentioned I just joined Post Crossings. You may be wondering what this is all about. Well, you sign up for an account. It’s “a project that allows you to send and receive postcards from random people around the world”. It’s really simple; Request an address and postcard ID. Mail a postcard to that address. Receive a postcard from another postcrosser. Register the postcard ID you have received. Rinse and repeat! I first heard about this from Geocaching friends. I love ephemera, stickers, washi tape, etc. But I never have had a reason to really acquire said items. This i ..read more

I have been MIA but missing this space as of late. Although I have gone down the Rabbit Hole of YouTube I don’t think that is a format I would enjoy creating. I like the simpler life over here in the old school blog world and decided to come back. I’m not sure what I expect from my little corner of the world but as 2023 wraps I have been doing a lot of thinking about 2024. Quite honestly I have gotten myself a bit overwhelmed lately. I’m looking forward to a simpler 2024 and tracking seems to help keep me focused. So, what do I have planned for 2024? Here is the short list. Make time to write ..read more

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful. ~William Morris I have been a fan of the minimalist movement for a long time. It speaks to the practical side of me. The part of me that wants less decision fatigue and more freedom for the experiences and things that are most important to me. As I alluded to yesterday, I have chosen to explore and apply the words simplicity & intention in 2022 to all facets of my life. I think these two words will help guide me in making decisions as I continue to declutter. In my health and weight loss ..read more

It’s been a while. I guess I have not had much to say. I came back here like you do with an old friend you have not spoken to in a while. Blogging at one time was such a comfort to me. Then it got a little overwhelming. I have come back to this space with a fresh perspective. I hope you will enjoy what I have to share. This last year went by fast! B and I still enjoy Geocaching and it was definitely a way to safely get out and about, especially hiking in the woods. We didn’t do too much camping this year. We now own kayaks which we enjoyed in the warmer months [B has ventured out in colder wea ..read more

Summer seems to be officially in motion now. The weather has finally gotten it’s act together and its been really pretty hot. Yesterday I was poking around the yard to see what was going on and noticed a lot of my blueberries were ready to pick. I was able to get about a cup and a half. Years ago I had a friend who was a chef at a local French restaurant. He would make this amazing blueberry cayenne sauce and I decided I would try it. I searched for a recipe and found exactly what I was looking for. The recipe I found called for two cups of blueberries so I went to the store for more to augmen ..read more

Happy Memorial Day! As I mentioned in my post from yesterday B and I have a pretty hardcore Geocaching habit hobby. Basically, caching is “using billion dollar technology to hunt for Tupperware in the woods”. But it’s not just the woods. It’s everywhere. You likely pass by several in your daily travels. The awesome thing about this game that I love is you can do it anywhere in the world [except North Korea]. The home to Geocaching is local for us, Fremont, WA [the center of the universe] and we are lucky enough to be friends with several lackeys [Geocaching HQ employees]. It’s prett ..read more

Hello friends! I hope your Memorial weekend is going great! On Friday I posted about my favorite blogs and today I wanted to share some go to recipes from some of these bloggers. I love to cook and get friends together for a meal. A few years back B and I actually competed with friends in a local Iron Chef competition. What a blast that was! We have a pretty small house but a huge yard so get togethers generally happen in the warmer months. I have always loved the idea of a monthly get together of good friends and food. I read an article last summer on this company in TX called Neighbor’s Tabl ..read more

A lot of people go camping on Memorial weekend. Generally B and I do not but thought this weekend would be a great time to post about our camping must haves. Independence fireworks over Lake Lucern I’ve mentioned before that we camp…A LOT! We camp in a VW bus about once a month rain or shine [or snow, or wind….we have pretty much camped in every kind of weather]. Over the years there are products that we have purchased that just really make the trip every time and are so worth the expense. In fact, they live in the bus so we have no need to repack them. Camping with the Lagrou’s at Larrabee St ..read more