Metamorphosis

{Etsy}

met·a·mor·pho·sis

• a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one, by natural or supernatural means.

Aside from sweating my buns off in the morning attempting to burn off those ice cream cones from the night before (it's okay to indulge once in a while, don't judge!), hustling at home to create the perfect villa to host my little sister's bridal shower and bachlorette party all in ONE full day (mind you this means ripping off our previous deck and building a new one topped with a gorgeous pergola) and planning a 5-day beach voyage with my family.......I woke up one morning and had an awakening: it's time for change. And since I simply do not have enough going on my life, let's just add another item to the list, eh?! All is peachy though :)


Have you ever had an epiphany? A feeling that washes over you and you can literally feel the difference within yourself, whispering, it's time. I have always been one to trust my intuition, that gut feeling or sometimes I will refer it to the planets being aligned, the stars are shining extra bright......something out there is calling my name. I might sound crazy to those that have never felt this way, but I hope one day you will. Its a pretty amazing feeling. As of that morning a couple of weeks ago, I have been on the edge of my seat, trying to keep alert and present for whatever the change might be.

I have a few area's in my life that I know for a fact will be changing (because, I just know). But I am keeping these in my pocket for another day to share with you (is the suspense driving you mad yet?!). Other aspects of my life that I have been diligently working on have already brought about change within myself and family.

Feeling fabulous on the outside. Coming to terms with the way I was born and cannot change.......like being half Irish and half Italian, yet being as white as a fresh blanket of snow and no matter how much sun I get, I cannot tan. If you tan, you may never understand the angst of us permanently pasty peeps. My best friend whom has the same exact heritage as I, bakes to the most golden glow.....what gives? As far as I can remember, I have always been self conscious of being so WHITE. Every summer I would spend money on self tanning creams (of which would make me look like an oompaloompa, thank you very much Jergen's), self tanning gels, then a membership to the spray tanning booth (one time I stood in the booth and unbeknownst to me the spray mechanism wasn't working right. As I stood there with my eyes shut tight waiting for the blast of my beloved faux tan,  I was dribbled on and the tanner ran down my body in streams leaving me a striped mess!!). Let's just stop the madness already!!! This summer, I am embracing my porcelain skin and rocking it like I own it! I am so over not enjoying summer to it's fullest or the person that I am because in my mind I have had this general perception that summer is correlated to being tan. In an attempt to boost my ego (LOL!), I have done my research of celebrity's or gorgeous models that rock the porcelain glow....have you ever turned off the lights on a someone who is pure white.....hahaha. But, what I find as a flaw, makes me who I am  and I am embracing them, as of now. My advice, embrace your differences and work on loving the body you were given. Let go of some of that peer pressure to be anything BUT you! Because, you're beautiful just the way you are.

And on to feeling fabulous on the inside. Liking the person you see in the mirror.  I want you to have an outter body experience with me for a moment......or however long it may take you to really envision yourself, outside of yourself. Yes, we are getting trippy here. But stay with me on this one. Don't allow me to scare you away!! Envision the person you are, your personality, your characters, your morals. Would you respect you? Would you become friends with yourself? Do you think if you met yourself in a group of people you would leave with an impression.....and a good one at that? I have been working on myself and working on those old skeletons in the closet. We all have our own inner demons. But do we feed into them more than we aught to and does it reflect? Now, take a step back and truly think to yourself, who do you want to portray yourself as? What life do you want to lead and whose lives do you want to touch? What do you want to bring to the table as a wife, mother or friend? How can we obtain these qualities or characteristics within ourselves? This may lead you to making some real life decisions. Cutting out people or a change of lifestyle. It has been a true awakening for me. I have made some changes within myself and I am not sure I will ever be finished with this project. I feel that we will always continue to evolve, but right now I feel like I am coming to terms with myself and loving the person I am more than I have months ago. And its a great feeling!

I am currently working on refraining form saying the words I wish.  I need to stop making excuses and take the steps to get to where I want to be within my career. One of my BIGGEST goals is to commit my time and energy into my blog. I love it here, this is where my passion is. Whatever your passions may be or whatever you feel drives you......set your sails to glide on its current! If you have passion behind you, you cannot fail.

Being gracious and showing gratitude to those I love and respect, making the time to visit, taking time to make a simple phone call and be present in their lives. Alot of times I neglect this area of my life because I am so focused on life within my bubble (home life). It gets hard for me to spread myself and devote that attention on others. But just like a marriage, friendships need to be nourished and given love. Relationships to me are like a garden, in order to grow, we need to be watered with love, fed to sustain and warmed with just being present.


These are just some of the currents that have been flowing through me. Like I stated previously, their are major changes taking place in my life. Some are behind the scenes that I haven't even become acquainted with. I embrace change. I live for the adventure of life and evolving into a better person, even if at times its painful. Never stop trying to be a better you. Never stop challenging yourself. And remember to surround yourself with those that love you and truly want the best for you. They are a rare breed, so make sure to show them your appreciation!

Thank you to all of you that have been supporting my blog, pushing me to be a better me, reminding me that I am doing my best and to STOP saying wish, and to start DOING. Ya'll  ROCK!

Love What is Free & Wild

{Romper. My new favorite piece for gardening and doing yard work! Looking cute while performing labor is a must, in my book anyway!}

I am a huge fan of recycling what is around us! I love to look at something and ponder as to how I can create something from raw material. For me, it is therapeutic. Rather than shop for a new side table to hold your outdoor cocktails or evening reads, why not re-purpose a tree stump! Or rather than hitting up Lowe's for a trellis to grow your pea's or green bean's on, why not search your brush line for fallen branches, trim them and create a "pea tepee"! As a child, I had a vast imagination, unfortunately as I aged that imagination or creativeness has suffered, I feel its a good thing for us to exercise it as much as possible. I also love to set an example for my son that being creative is FUN. Building is fun! These projects have been a great way to spend our weekends together. He has been my helper every step of the way. It is all about creating those memories and instilling a strong sense of being one with mother nature. We live in a world where we can purchase what we need right from our phones.....but creating something original has so much more fulfillment!!


My son and I had a great time trudging branches we had thrown down the bank after clearing an area earlier this year to start our tepee project. We dragged them to our driveway, broke off unwanted branches, trimmed them up together. He felt like such a big kid using the mini clippers (supervised!!) to cut the smaller branches for me. Once we were all done we then dragged them to our vegetable garden and I started creating our tepee while he plowed the tilled soil with his CAT bulldozers.....I told him he was helping daddy so that he wouldn't have to till the dirt again! After arranging the branches to my liking, I drove each one into the ground as best I could. I then used clear plastic zip ties to bind the branches together, creating a sturdy solid structure. Once I was done, I fetched our baby pea plants from our greenhouse and planted two plants around each branch of the tepee. I have to say, it looks great and thus far they are slowly taking to winding their fragile vines around each branch. They are still delicate and need some care. The weather in the Northeast has been keeping us on our toes, I know eventually the warmer weather will be visiting us for a few months. Until then I am crossing my fingers that my plants make it!

Last summer my husband had cut down tree's within our woods that weren't going to make it much longer. Some of them were monstrous and the logs that came from them were impressive. I am a huge fan trees and to have them come down really makes me sad, even if they are sick. I just have a keen respect for mother nature. So in honor of her, creating something from what we have reaped seems as though I am giving back and showing her due respect. Last summer I used the logs as seating around our bonfire pit for a party we hosted. I then rolled and lifted (be careful if you try to do so, I hurt my leg pretty badly doing this myself since they weigh a ton.....I need to figure out a better way to haul stumps) the stump onto our deck and has become a true statement piece to hold pots of flowers, drinks, etc. (or little boys, lol!) It goes perfectly with our lovely hand crafted Adirondack chairs! I absolutely ADORE this piece. We have alot of these logs and I have a lot of wonderful idea's for them! One of them involves drying the log out, peeling off the bark, giving it a light sanding and then using them as night stands within our bedroom! How awesome would that be?! I heard you can dry them out the quickest by hauling them up to the attic.....if anyone knows the best way of transporting these suckers, I am all ears (or technically eyes since I would be reading it).

Two weeks ago, when we were living it up like summer time folk in mid-80 degree weather, I drug a scrap board from the burn pile and placed it under the shade of a large oak tree. I then gathered the rocks my son and I had forged from around our property, placed them on the board along with paint brushes and paint and we had a grand time creating the markers for my herb garden! These are moments that I want to last a life time! I have no idea what I did with all my spare time as a single adult, because as a parent I value my time with my son so much, watching him grow into this individual and helping him along.....its similar to magic. I just love him to pieces!

{This is how we spend our summer as country folk living among the tree frogs away from society, without a stitch of clothing on!}

Another passion of mine is bringing the outdoors within the home. Using pieces from our property as art within our living quarters has a special and unique quality to it. Especially when they are pieces that as a family we forged on big adventures and hold memories. Two of the pieces came from a day out on the four wheeler with my son when we went treasure hunting and came back with some great finds. A birch branch and a large flat piece of birch bark. The birch branch I hung within my kitchen, which will be used to  hang and dry herbs when the time comes. Its perfect and beautiful!!! The birch bark, which is extraordinarily flat and perfectly square, I have showcased on my bookshelf. Eventually it will be framed and given full glory on a wall within our home.

I have so many more idea and cannot wait to keep you posted! I would enjoy hearing about all of your great outdoor finds, ideas or advice!

Juiced & Feeling PUMPED!

Hello Sunshine! Even though we may have skipped spring and jumped right into summer weather, I am not going to complain! I have been enjoying evening walks, gardening and having all the windows of the house open. Its incredibly refreshing after such a long drawn out winter and the balmy summer months only last so long, so let's take full advantage and get out the sunscreen! Along with the new temps, it has caused me to set some new goals as well as a few new challenges for myself. I am ALL about self help and evolving into a better you, are you with me?!

{Raw and Simple, Judita Wignall. You can find it here <3}

Personally, I had found myself in a funk. I felt icky on the inside, my skin was showing signs of dehydration, I was experiencing aches and pains. Something needed to change! I truly feel that no one knows how or what to do to heal your body or spirit more than yourself. I am pretty in tune with inner self and when I feel off, I know exactly what it comes down to: nutrition. For the most part, I eat very healthy. But those nasty foods filled with nasty fraudulent ingredients in manufactured foods can wreak serious havoc on your entire well being. I have a wild imagination and I just envision these impostors invading my body, layering my organs with a nasty film.....drain-o please!!! So after much researching and soul searching, I knew my body needed a good cleanse and detox. I wanted to start filling myself with nearly 100% natural ingredients, derived from the earth and start eating clean. Its always hard to break from a routine. But one day, I just woke up and was like, enough of the thinking its time to take control and start doing! I had always loved vegetables and at one point I had tried the raw diet. I do love the concept! The food is delicious. But I have a family of two me, one big and one small, and the diet just wasn't realistic for us. For me the best way to incorporate raw food into my diet in a quick way was to invest in a juicer and let me tell you, its my most beloved kitchen equipment! It was well worth the splurge. I didn't purchase a fancy juicer by any means, I didn't want to spend the money i wasn't sure I would truly love. I purchased a simple Hamilton Beach model and it works just perfectly! I have been enjoying my juices and reaping the benefits ever since! My skin feels great, I feel much more energetic and overall just BETTER. 

{Nothing satisfies my soul more than having an abundance of fresh fruit & vegetables at my finger tips!!! YUM!}

I am not one to work out, at all. In fact, I have never truly stuck to a workout regimen. Ever. So my biggest challenge for myself this summer was to figure out how to incorporate a workout routine into my crazy hectic work/wife/mother schedule! I simply have zero time to hit a gym. And for those that know me, I typically veer away from working inside the home. BUT something had to give because my energy level had hit an all time low and even though I was eating better, I still needed something. And along those same lines, I want to be toned for the first time and enjoy water parks, beach parties or pool gatherings with my family without being self conscious. After seeing two of my closest friends pumped and hearing the enthusiasm in their voices, researching the workout program myself and validating it for myself, it has been a perfect fit for my schedule and healthy eating, I too am know doing the 21 Day Fix Beachbody program! The fact that the workouts are only a 1/2 hour long, I am able to get them out of the way first thing in the morning before starting the day! And the eating program was super easy for me to accommodate since I pretty much have been eating the same way, but get this, NOT ENOUGH. Don't get me wrong, I have cut back my number one offender, wine. But I am eating MORE at lunch than I ever have and dinner as well! Just making a few adjustments. So between the juicing, working out and eating clean....I am back to feeling great and the energy from working out is so worth every cent spent! Not only physically, but mentally.

{Getting out for a walk to the playground is the best medicine for both! Do what makes your heart happy!}

Another goal (or rather challenge) of mine is to avoid wearing black ALL SUMMER. (notice the picture above, obviously I need to work a little harder at this! HA!) I am an avid fan of the color, but I feel its such a draining color. After donning it all winter long, I am over it! And like one of my closest girlfriends stated, it does not represent the fun personality I bestow. I want to portray who I am through my clothes, so vivid colors of pink, blues, oranges and greens it is! I also feel that it tricks our minds into happy zone!

{The best way to end a long day, with my boys!!}

I challenge you to do some soul searching. If you have been down and out, why?! Is it something you could take control of? As simple as eating healthier or doing a workout? If you haven't the money to splurge on a juicer or the workout program, why not plant a garden, eat all that you sow? Take a walk....a jog....search You Tube for workout videos. Find friends that will help motivate you along the way. Make it fun, set goals together as a team, set a date to accomplish the goal. My inspiration is my son, weddings and a vacation. All which I need to be energetic and healthy, not to mention being toned would be nice too! But I also have a great circle of girlfriends and family  who motivate me to be only my very best!!! Be the best you can be, it might be contagious and encourage those around you to be their best as well!