Happy Mama 2015

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How was your Mother’s Day?
Juliana decorated the kitchen for me when I got up and there were flowers and cards and gifts on the table to enjoy. Jeff brought me coffee in bed and Charie came in to snuggle.

I was happy and frustrated and sad today but mostly happy. I say that to keep things real because I share mostly the happy parts of my life but want to be clear that there is work and struggle behind the happiness.

I have a lot of expectations and hopes and dreams and sometimes those are hard to manage and live by. And I wouldn’t change a thing!

I was really sad that I wasn’t in Southern California with my family and my mama who were all gathering for a family early dinner.

I was sad for Laurie who’s celebrating her first Mother’s Day without Chase. This day has got to suck for her.

I was sad and frustrated that my kids didn’t really want to go for a hike with me, and that we had to make them go anyway. In my imagination, we all want to do the same thing and live happily after. I have raised independent and confident teens who have other ideas than mine and sometimes this creates conflict. It’s healthy and normal and presents a struggle that I’m not quite good with just yet. I’m still learning.

Luckily Jeff is good at negotiating or maybe cracking the whip. Thank goodness for him and getting everyone on board because once we all got out and to the hills, we were smiling again.

I loved walking with everyone and enjoying the views and sharing stories. It reminded me of our time exploring in Europe together and us walking everywhere. This made me happy and we got almost 10,000 steps in.

I was happy that we all had breakfast together and sat on the couch to watch a family movie together with popcorn.

I love that we all love Japanese food and that they made a reservation for dinner out tonight.

I loved that we stopped at Philz for a coffee and mochas before heading home and relaxed on the couch together. Christian took a selfie of us, that he never does and shared it on FB. This made me smile because even though we get frustrated with each other, we still love each other and are best friends. We say we are sorry and quickly forgive and forget which is awesome. I love this kid.

Charlie wanted to play cards before bed and beat me almost every hand. I love playing games and loved that he wanted to play with me. It was on my wish list today and he listened.

It was a full day of togetherness and I am content and grateful. I got to text and talk with friends and family and enjoy everyone’s FB Mother’s Day love stories. I hope your day was good and that you felt loved.

Life is good.

nAMaste

18Apr2015

Day 6 – Scott’s Valley

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Charlie had a soccer game today in Scott’s Valley. At first I was concerned about traveling for competitive soccer games, but today I was thankful for the opportunity.

I loved the drive down highway 17 and discovering a new part of the area that I would not have known about had we not had a game here.

The soccer field was surrounded by playgrounds, BMX bike trails, skateboard park, dog runs and a farmer’s market. We explored all around and enjoyed people watching, open space, and the cool breeze today.

While Charlie was warming up, we wandered over to the farmers market where we enjoyed breakfast and taking in the sites.

We came back afterwards to pick up a strawberry rhubarb pie and fresh caught fish and mixed greens for dinner on the grill tonight.

We bought ahi tuna, yellow tail, scallops, and steelhead trout. The flavors were delicios!

Life is good, especially when you slow down to enjoy it. I hope you had an enjoyable Saturday. Juliana comes home tomorrow from Japan and I am anxious and excited.

nAMaste BeLoveRs

xoxoxo

We found happiness on the way home!

15Apr2015

Day 3 of Break

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hello BeLoveRs

I just love that word – how simple would the world be if we were happy just BEing? We could just BE Love in all its forms. We could BE Lovers of life, of ourselves and of others and of whatever we love. There’s the simple secret all wrapped into this pretty little made up word. I don’t think it’s a real word, is it? But now it is to me and you.

Today I was happy just sitting outside doing nothing. I ate a late lunch out on the sunny back patio, all by myself. I talked to my sister about her nursing applications and was so happy that she was happy and on her way. I am proud of her.

Soon Charlie came outside to be with me. We moved to the couch and just sat together for probably an hour with nothing to do and just enjoyed being. We laughed and sang made up songs and texted Juliana, exchanging pictures between what we were doing in the USA and what she was doing in Japan.

He worked on putting baseball stickers all over his new toothbrush and he told me I’m the best mama and that he loves me. What more do I need?

I’ve learned that when you slow down and create space, really good things can happen.

Finally on Day 3, I am happy that we are home for spring break. I enjoyed shopping with Charlie this morning and bringing Christian to his appointments and meeting Jeff for dinner in Mountain View and family FaceTiming with Juliana.

These are the days that make up the simple life. These are the days that represent just being and going with the flow and create peace. These are our days. Here I am.

nAMaste. Enjoy your days.

11Apr2015

Small Infinities

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It’s the little things in life that bring me joy, yet sometimes I get stuck thinking we need to be doing bigger things, having shared experiences and seeing the world while we can. I want to do it all.

I want to flow and I want to create opportunities and sometimes the yin and yang of this is confusing.

I’m talking about spring break. I wanted to plan a family trip together but my family had other plans. They wanted to stay close to home for various reasons. I always want to go places, but I’m the one who is home the most so this makes sense. I want to go and they want to stay.

We were generously offered a week in Tahoe and we regretfully decided to decline. This was a hard decision for me, yet it was best for my family, and so it was.

I love spending time with my favorite people, yet sometimes what they want to do is just to do nothing. They are happy to be home and relaxing doing what they do. This is okay with me for a little while and then it drives me crazy. Except for today.

Today I was thankful that they just wanted to chill. I decided to chill along with them, which means I did the dishes, and cleaned up the clutter again. I went through the stack of papers on my desk and made an updated to do list, and filed and shredded papers. While we were sitting together, Juliana FaceTimed from Japan and we all sat on the couch and shared stories.

This made me incredibly happy and finally I could appreciate what Jeff likes to call the small infinities, those little things that mean everything. If we were busy running around, we may have missed the opportunity to all be together.

I was finally content to be at home and was happy that my paper stack dwindled.

I then began working on my photo backlog and Jeff helped me solve a problem, while we sat on the couch and watched Charlie play outside. This made me very happy! This was another small infinity, that I would not have experienced if we were driving in a car some place or on vacation some where.

The last little thing that made me happy just going with the flow, was when we decided to walk over to April’s house to pickup Charlie. It felt good to feel the sunshine on my face and the cool afternoon air, walking hand in hand.

Love wins. Small infinities are sometimes just as good as big infinities.

nAMaste – live it up – big or small and enjoy what is.

With love,

Adriana

19Feb2015

Togetherness in Full Tilt

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I love my crazy family.

We have been together in hotel rooms for the past 4 nights and have had messed up schedules and are still going strong. We’ve had our woes of togetherness but are still in love and ready to keep on exploring.

Today we moseyed on home and stopped at places we wanted to see along the way. We enjoyed the journey and didn’t focus on the final destination.

Our first stop off the beaten highway was Santa Margarita. We wanted to see where the Pozo Saloon was located. The drive out here was gorgeous.

It was fun to drive down roads we’ve never been on before and to imagine what it would be like to live in a remote part of a town.

From here we continued on and stopped to tour the Firestone Walker Brewery. Again, this is a place we always want to visit, but we are typically focused on the destination and don’t want to stop and slow down. Today we slowed and enjoyed a tasty lunch and brewery tastings.

As we drove, we were invited to celebrate Chinese New Year with April’s family. We were then excited to be home, but weren’t done just being on the road, as we had one more curiosity to explore.

ML and her family were camping at the beach and we decided to stop in for a quick happy hour and to wrap up our vacation with friends. This happy hour did not include food nor drink – just an hour of togetherness walking and talking and watching the sunset.

I loved that my family rallied to stop at the beach one more time and to visit with friends! I am lucky!!

And finally, we hurried up to make it home in time to enjoy dinner with April. She had prepared dumpling fixins’ and we arrived in time to help with the assembly. We all had a blast!

And now, even I am tired and am so happy to be back in my own nest again with all my little chickens in their coops. We are fully baked! Time to rest.

Life is good, living it up every day, every way I can. Hope you’re doing the same. xoxo

18Feb2015

Central Coast – Avila Beach

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We felt like we had the beach to ourselves today. The sun was shining and there wasn’t any wind. We were lucky to have nothing to do. I love this sleepy little town.

We dipped our toes in the ocean and walked along the sandy shore. We loved the feeling of the million little rocks under our feet and seeing how the high tide created a mini-pool higher up on the beach.

Some of us built rock art and others played three flies up. We walked in the little shops and admired creative sand sculptures.

I’m so glad my parents came to spend some time with us, doing “nothing” together and being perfectly content.

Life is good.

15Feb2015

Big Sur

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I love California and feel refreshed and relaxed being outdoors and soaking in the sunshine and natural beauty, especially when we are near the ocean.

Today we explored the coast and the majesty of Big Sur. We stopped at Nepenthe to see what everyone was talking about and it didn’t disappoint.

I just thought I’d share some moments from the day.

We enjoyed watching the fog roll in and watching the sun set. It’s the simple things, really that make life great.

Life is good. Be well, BeLoveRs.

1Feb2015

Superbowl Sunday Fun

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Today was Superbowl Sunday. We were excited to watch the game with friends and family and to consume as many calories as possible! I heard that the average American would consume at least 2000 calories while watching the game. That is more calories than most women and children consume in one day.

When the Weight Watchers commercial came on during the show, I felt incredibly guilty and wished that they would disappear.

We loved watching Katy Perry perform and entertaining us. She was awesome. The lion she came in on was magical. She is so powerful and didn’t even need Lenny or Missy to complete the show.

We enjoyed the American spirit, eating great food, drinking adult beverages, and enjoying the game together.

This is our life and we’re living it up the best way we know how.I am thankful that Laurie shared her favorite appetizer recipes with me.

I am thankful that April and Steve had us all over to celebrate together.

I am happy to be living in the USA.

Life is good.

Hope you had fun relaxing on this marvelous Sunday and that you have a fabulous week ahead.

Be well BeLoveRs.
xo

19Jan2015

Wanderlust – California Coast

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I wanted to see the ocean today and step my feet in the sand. I didn’t really have a plan except to be there, wherever there might be.

We all got up early to work on a service project at our church in honor of Martin Luther King day today. We bought and brought supplies to support our local homeless shelters and our town’s local community services center that provides clothing, school supplies, food, toiletries, towels, gloves and socks to provide warmth and comfort. We were going to help sort and bag the donations but by the time we arrived, 30 minutes after the event began, the work was mostly done. We were able to still write letters to soldiers and veterans which was humbling.

We finished earlier than expected which allowed us to drive over the hill to Santa Cruz. We went on yelp to find a new place to eat. The only suggestion I had from the family was they wanted seafood. We found a Hawaiian poke place that we enjoyed. It was kind of funky and different and probably a place we’ll only visit once, as the food sounded and looked better than it actually tasted.

I kind of liked not having a definite plan and no one to coordinate logistics with as we were able to just wander and see and discover what ever came our way.

Before you think this was a day in paradise, let me just tell you it wasn’t perfect. It was perfectly imperfect as I like to say, with lots of bickering and disagreements, trying to get everyone to agree and not touch one another nor say mean things. We are a modern family with lots of opinions if you know what I mean. We finally found our rhythm, but some days it takes awhile. Just keepin’ it real. And once we do, it’s awesome! Thank God for patience and perseverance!

We walked around downtown Santa Cruz and then headed North to admire the coastal views first along Cliff drive and then heading towards Davenport. We pulled off Highway 1 at one point, to walk along the cliffs. This was breathtakingly beautiful.

We walked down the path to the sandy part and Jeff walked through the arc.

This connects to my perfectly imperfect vision of life. I was so excited to get down to the water and discover the path through the arc and to the water but if you look behind Jeff, there is a dead whale! The smell was so bad, I almost cried! I had to get out of there before throwing up. So much for putting my feet in the water! I had to run!!

We were happy to get back in the car and to admire the coastline from a nicely enclosed space. We drove towards Pescadero and fondly remembered our first trip to Harley Goat Farm with Michele and her kids. We took the time to go say hi to the goats and to pick up some of the most delicious organic goat cheese. I love this place and the sweet memories of visiting here when our kids were little.

Our next stop was Half Moon Bay. We found this cute little shop called Oddyssea, which is an interactive retail shop with an outdoor creative garden. We had fun touching the toys and exploring and the kids made dog tags with hammering tin type letters into the metal tags and then rubbing black shoe polish into the debts to make the letters stand out. They had a lot of fun and it was something we didn’t expect to experience.

The craft project took a little longer than we thought and by the time we were done, the sun was setting and we missed watching it set, which was ok. We decided to drive back over the hill and had dinner at a place that Jeff has been wanting to take us to in Menlo Park, called Refuge. They are known for their pastrami and Belgian beer. It is definitely a guys place and was really loud. I’m glad we finally tried it but it was not my favorite place. I really loved their roasted root vegetable soup though.

We drove back home and all of us were tired and happy, having spent the day together trying and seeing new things. I’m glad that we had time to explore again, just like our days in Holland. I miss our expat days and am thankful to be able to enjoy our California.

Hope you had a good day and enjoyed California with me!!

15Jan2015

Sticky Resolution?

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Did you make a New Year’s Resolution or two or choose One Word to focus your life? If so, it’s been 2 weeks and a day since the turn of the year and I was curious how you’re doing so far.

Here are a few things that help us keep our resolve, thanks to Karen and her wonderful program this week about this topic:

1. Make them actionable. It’s great to have a big goal and then break it down into the “how to” parts to make it actually work.

2. Set up reminders in your calendar so that you practice the things that are important to you.

3. Find supportive friends and hang out with them and share stories related to your goals.

4. Read about the topics you are interested in and become knowledgable.

5. Immerse yourself. Make sure you’re choosing to change for you and not for someone else. Dive in.

6. Write down your thoughts and resolutions. Seeing them in writing makes them real and more sticky.

7. Spend money to achieve your goal. It feels like you’re paying for your success when you put money out.

8. Does your resolution make you happy? Do the work it takes if it does.

9. What steps do you need to take to meet your goal? Are you setting up an action plan that is doable?

10. What’s your path to success?

11. Focus on the process and not just the end goal. Start over again and again even if you mess up.

12. Know how to handle pitfalls and distractions. Have an action plan for recovery.

13. Be gentle with yourself.

14. Be specific.

15. Plan.

16. Want it.

17. Commit to it.

18. Take action.

19. Reevaluate.

20. If you fall, get back on track.

21. Enjoy the journey.

My resolutions were to stop swearing and to accept people as they are without judgment. I’ve cleaned my potty mouth probably by 50% or more and it feels really good. When I slip up, it feels really weird and I don’t like it. It makes me want to start over and try again, so that’s working for me.

As for the accepting people where they are at, this is awesome. I’ve changed the way I react to changes and unexpected surprises and this is so liberating. I love this feeling and it makes me happy so I will continue practicing this.

And finally for my one word, togetherness, I’m loving this choice. I’ve written it down on our kitchen chalkboard and I think about it every time I walk by.

I notice the moments of togetherness and feel fulfilled.