weekend snapshot - mother's day edition

Emma

best part of the week

end of mothers day meal celebrations, can you name a part of the body with only three letters? the first word out of her mouth was a word they both thought was rude.

Emma

This didn't happen this week- but the best part of my week was being sent this photograph as a surprise. It made me smile and tearful in one go, as the memories came back. A lovely gift with added poignancy as I remembered my 'little' mum today.


Jane

seven things i learnt in march

march, the official start to spring - no matter which data you use. have you noticed how all of a sudden the colour yellow is everywhere? to me that's a sure sign that spring has sprung. after the last three months of crazy-busy i officially tried to slow down - it kind of worked - at least i noticed things i was learning, i just didn't write them down. so here goes, from memory seven things i learnt in march

1. you can shake your iphone to delete a text. i'm super blown away by this. ever typed a text and decided to phone instead? don't sit with your finger on backspace - just shake and you'll see this screen.

phone engaged? shake again and it all comes back.

volia!

2. drinking water from plastic bottles that have been left in cars is dangerous. when heated the plastic of the bottle releases dioxin and endocrine distruptors which react with the water. apparently affected water is a common cause of the high levels of dioxin in breast cancer tissue. we should also be careful about using plastic bottles in the freezer and plastic containers or wrap in the microwave.

3. ever wondered why english cider is spelt either cyder or cider? the first press of the apples produce a more alcoholic fermentation and is called cyder, the second press of the same apples produces a less alcoholic fermentation and is called cider.

4.  have you heard of arunachalam muruganantham? he is the man who has created a sanitary pad revolution in india. his story blew my mind this month. i read this article on 4 march, (which apparently became the most shared article on the bbc website that day), and have thought about it most days since. a newly married man he discovered that if his wife bought sanitary napkins monthly she would be unable to buy milk or run the household. he set about impressing her by changing that - his story is an extraordinary one. the bit i have thought about most? the fact he created a product that could bring him riches yet he chose to share it. he chose to make womans lives better, creating female run cottage industries saying "anyone with an mba would immediately accumulate the maximum money. but i did not want to. why? because from childhood i know no human being died because of poverty - everything happens because of ignorance." i urge you to read the article or watch his ted talk.

5. do you wear eye liner? want to appear younger? a tip i received this month is don't go anywhere near the corner of your eye (by the tear duct). start in the middle of your lid heading outwards and then go back to the middle to paint a fainter line but only half way towards the corner. it produces an eye that looks larger and younger as a result. can't guarantee we'll all look like angelina but this image shows what i was taught.


6. what i've learnt about slowing down this month? like the safety information on a plane - fit your own oxygen mask first before assisting others.

7. i've found the voice that has moved me to tears at first hearing.  last night i went to see goldfrapp live and for the first time in my (almost) forty-five years my tear ducts sprung a leak as soon as alison goldfrapp opened her mouth. her voice is beautifully ethereal. click here to enjoy for yourself.

Emma

linking with emily freeman at chatting at the sky

thankful thursday

this week i am thankful for what i take for granted - education, a safe and secure home, not being treated as a second class citizen because of my sex, living in a country that allows freedom of expression, being able to work and support myself, having access to healthcare, a tap with running water and food readily available in supermarkets. may i never forget how privileged i am.

Emma

a fathers love for his daughter - obedience unlearnt

last week i followed elizabeth gilbert on facebook as she got ready to speak for the second time at the ted conference.  there she spoke of how she cried listening to ziauddin yousafzai speak about his daughter malala. as she said you will know malala - she is the girl who got shot in the head by the taliban for standing up for a girls right to an education and survived. today in my inbox came the video of his ted talk, i understand why she cried. have a look (subscribers click here), the answer to his last question? something i'm sure we could all try to exercise to anyone we may have influence over.

Emma

best part of the week

the only time this week i was in a passenger seat enabled a few minutes shooting the largest and brightest double rainbow i have seen in ages.

Emma

Day off in the middle of the week. Coffee, cake and a paper in my favourite cafe, perfect.

Jane

thankful thursday

today i am thankful for time alone to recharge, read, think and dream - in a week that has handed me varying degrees of illness on various days - it has reminded me to soar above circumstances, to remember who i am at soul level and to not be defeated by situations that might not always go my way. above all i have been prompted to remember we control how we react to life and what it throws at us and how powerful that is. may i always remember to be thankful - that stance alone has helped me on more days than i care to mention.

Emma

Gratitude

Sometimes you can just watch things, and they catch you totally by surprise. Last week as I pressed play on a video that came through on my newsfeed I wasn't expecting to be in tears 5 minutes later- or inspired to show someone how much I appreciated them this week.

Have a watch.

Jane

best part of the week

Emma

This week I caught the running bug again, so much so that yesterday the entry for the half marathon was completed. It felt good.

Jane

thankful thursday

this week i am thankful for time away from routine, for blue skies and sunshine, for time to catch up with old friends, for overdue conversations of things old and new - i'm not sure anything trumps face to face conversation, for encouragement given and received, for timely reminders and for the starting of new projects.

Emma

weekend snapshot

Emma

thankful thursday

this week i am thankful for sleep, nine hours straight in one stretch - bliss. for early morning exhaustion keeping me prostrate in bed long enough for me to hear the birds sing and to realise it had been a while since i had been listening. for flowers in a neighbours front window; a rhapsody of yellow and violet that i have watched unfurl further each morning. for bright sunshine encouraging the already budding trees to show off their wares ever earlier. for overdue plans finally coming to fruition this weekend with a journey to old friends, affording me a much needed few days off and a sense of adventure.

Emma

love idol

this week has been one of those weeks. not enough rest and as an introvert on the myers briggs scale - not enough time alone to recharge. a week where i've had to sort out a mouse (although i suspect mice) that is clearly gaining access to my house judging by the gnawed kitchen waste bin under my sink and wrestle a wasp into a towel and out an open window before taking my morning shower. it's also the week where i realised at 5am the dress i planned to wear to work the next day was actually hanging up in my house and not in the bedroom of my friends house where i was staying, don't even ask me how i managed to forget it and not realise. a week where thoughts were plagued with all that is bad about myself, in my view of course. i've discovered my resistance is around three months - three months of busyness with little time to myself turns out to be end of my road.  

thoughout this week i have been reading on friends blogs about what they are either giving up or what challenge they are taking up for lent, today the one that hit me square in the face was jennifers. jennifer has written a book called love idol and in it she writes about letting go of our need for approval and seeing ourselves as god sees us. she has a whole love idol movement going on right now and has made available free printables to visually remind you. i've printed and framed mine and it's currently residing here

but jennifers is residing here

(photo courtesy of jennifer dukes lee)

this fearless lady is giving up mirrors for lent. you can read about it here. now i have to be honest, this has got me thinking the most. honestly? because i don't think i'd be able to do it. just last night i stood in front of my full length mirror trying on outfits as there isn't one in the bedroom of the friend with whom i am staying this weekend. 

i realised whilst reading her post that the printables have already helped me this week. when an old friend came a-calling - good old negative self talk - telling me i'm not worthy of love, not intelligent enough, that there is no way circumstances can be changed towards my dreams - what was i thinking? after a sustained period of listening to this little voice of not enough i stood up and read the words reminding myself i am beloved, preapproved, cherished. we all know to keep physically healthy it's important to eat right and exercise regularly it's no different for our spiritual and mental health and now i have a physical reminder of the healthy food i should be taking in daily.

thank you jennifer and may this kicking of love idols continue beyond lent, up to the books release and beyond.

Emma