more and less.

Today I was thinking of the things I would be happy to have out of my life forever. And ever and ever and ever. Those things include: a job, humidity, speeding tickets, Miley Cyrus, periods, grocery shopping, flossing my teeth, cellulite, beans, bras, snakes, mosquito bites, sunburns, hearing the use of double negatives, and washing dishes.

Well, now that I've gotten all that negativity out, here are a few things I wouldn't mind havinga little, or a lot, more of in my life, in no particular order...

How about you, what would you like having more or less of in your life? I currently have more bullet necklaces in my life. I went stone shopping this afternoon, and I came home and made 5, five, muah ah ah, bullet and gem stone necklaces! That makes me feel productive!

altruism: pass it on

Okay, I'm going to warn you, this is going to be a wordy post, and even a little personal. Since Monday afternoon I've been thinking about an elderly man, and I can't help but wonder if I could have done something to help him. When Chris and I were on our way home from Culpeper on Monday, we stopped at Sheetz for gas and snacks. While Chris was pumping gas, I noticed a frail elderly man looking through a trashcan in front of the store. He first pulled out a sandwich wrapper, and when he realized there was no food inside, he continued searching. Next he pulled out a cup of coffee, drank what was left and searched for a minute more, without success, before walking into the store. I told Chris that I saw the man searching for food, and that we could give the man the crackers and drinks we had with us. I stayed in the car with Flojo and the kitties while Chris went inside Sheetz to ask if he could buy the man some food. After talking for a minute, Chris noticed that the man most likely wasn't completely lucid, but he bought the man two apple pies and told him to take care.

Right now Chris and I are going through a bit of a difficult time financially because of troubles at the office Chris works for. While we're having to find new ways to make some extra money, discontinue our satellite service and cut back at the grocery store, I realize just how rich we truly are. We always know we'll have a home to call our own, a vehicle to take us where we need to be, food for every meal, and even things we don't need to survive...like the internet. I never pity myself, but sometimes I don't realize how much I really do have until I see someone who has almost nothing, and I think that's true for most of us. That leads me to the next part...

A while back, Chris told me about this idea he had that he said he hoped would change the world; a tall order, yes, but a noble goal. He wanted for one act of kindness to be passed on, and on, and on, and on. While we've been "altruism-ing" people in town and out, we haven't really gotten any response to the project. I'd like to think that even if we never hear anything, that first altruism has been continued and is still going around. Today I was reading about a study of kindness, and I'd like to ask you to help me "breed kindness." Seeing that old man searching through the trashcan not only upset me, but made me think that if there were more kind acts being passed on, maybe there wouldn't be so many people who were hungry. And it's not just food related; I think kindness can fix a lot. So, even though true altruism is a deed done without expecting anything in return, I'm more than happy to spread a little love in the form of a surprise mailed right to your door if you can help me out. Do something nice for someone, and it doesn't have to be something that requires spending money (you could help an elderly person unload their groceries, share your umbrella with someone in the rain, donate your time or expertise, and the list could go on), then give them one of these cards, and just let us know how you passed on a little kindness!

It may seem like I'm begging, and maybe I am, but I'm not above kicking and screaming on the floor if it means someone else will receive something, be it a smile or a surprise free lunch, without expecting it, or even earning it!

wishlist wednesday!

My days are all mixed up. I kept thinking today was Tuesday, then when I got to work, my office buddy thought it was Thursday, so I was all mixed up, but now that I'm sure of the day, it's time for wishlist wednesday!

While I'm usually the palest person this side of the Mississippi (or both sides for that matter), I'm happy to announce that I have a tan! It's not a dark tan mind you, but it's color nonetheless, and I'm happy I can finally wear shorts without looking like one of the Cullens! I'm currently loving floral shorts, although I don't yet own a pair, and I also threw in a cute romper for good measure.

shorts can be found at: ruche, nordstrom, forever21 and swanee grace.

What do you love wearing (or would love to wear) this summer? Do you have a wish list you'd like to share?

how we celebrated

It just so happens that Chris' aunt & uncle were vacationing on the west coast and needed someone to housesit for them over the holiday weekend, and our weekend was open, so our plans were made! Their house is a large log cabin tucked back in the woods away from pretty much everyone and everything. They have the best pool (organic shape like it was meant to be there) with a waterfall, a hot tub, a large pond (story about that further down), a gym, and lots more to keep us occupied! Of course my favorite part was swimming. I've always loved the water, and I'm better in that than I am on land! Side note, we wrote Chris' aunt & uncle a note before we left, and I made Chris write this, "Danielle's stealth and speed are unrivaled, and I (Chris) am jealous." I made him put his name in parenthesis so they'd know who the jealous one was. I kept making Chris race across the pool with me, and I honestly can't believe he kept doing it because I won every time! I'm a mean wife, and he's a good sport.

A little underwater camera action, and of course the infamous hand heart. What can I say, I heart swimming! I haven't been practicing my handstands for a while, so could only walk on my hands for a few steps before I flipped over. A few years ago I got so good I could walk on my hands half way across the shallow end!

We brought Flojo out to the pool with us in her travel cage, and if there's one thing she inherited from me (besides her love of eating), it's her love of playing in the water, so we set the hose to mist and let her flap and shake until her little birdie heart was content!

Now, onto the pond story. So the pond is really quite large, and a nice, relaxing addition with it's gentle waterfall, pretty goldfish and lush water plants. Having said that, it's also the place where I could have been viciously murdered by a copperhead. On Sunday evening, I was feeling sort of irritated (thanks, PMS), so I decided I'd go sit by the pond and watch the fish and the frogs while I switched back from monster to human. We'd been told that snakes occasionally visit the pond to eat the goldfish, and at first I had my guard up, but since I didn't see any the first few days, I got comfortable... big mistake. So I was sitting there looking around when I noticed a copperhead to my right poking its head out of the water watching me. I told Chris a couple days before that, as he was going back in the house, and I was walking around the pond by myself, "if you hear a scream, either I fell in, or I saw a snake." So I started screaming and basically made one huge record-breaking long jump from the pond to the house and told Chris, "A SSSNNNAAAAKKKKKKE!" So he went outside thinking he'd use something to sling it into the woods, and he realised it was a deadly copperhead. So yeah, I used dirty language and refused to visit the pond again. Ever.

I'd said something to Chris about getting sparklers so we could have a little celebration, so after we finished dinner on Saturday night, he surprised me with regular sparklers, and a kind called "morning glories" which changed colors as they burned. He was a pro and spelled his name, but I'm really not sure what I was doing in that picture!

So, that's how we spent our Independence Day, how was yours? What did you do to celebrate?

just a peek...

I know I've not been so great at blogging over the last few days, but Chris and I have been in "The Wilderness." By wilderness, I mean Locust Dale, VA. Don't get me wrong, Culpeper, Madison, Orange and the surrounding towns really are nice, but they're quite small, and the house we're babysitting is nestled waaaaay back in the woods, so it feels like we're in the middle of nowhere (and we are, kind of). But don't let our location fool you, we've got all the modern amenities! It's actually a really nice, and quite large cabin with a pond right outside the front door, flowers galore, a hot tub and our very own pool hidden between flowers and towering hardwoods. I was lucky enough to receive an underwater digital camera back in June from Auntie Amy, so we've been having fun with that. I'll show you more pictures once I'm back home!