Thursday, September 22, 2011

This Too Shall Pass

As I look around my house at the piles of things to be cleaned and organized and put away, I try to remind myself that this too, yes - even all this mess, will pass.  Someday -- probably a day that is here before I can believe it -- I will look around and this life, this one that feels rushed and cluttered and overwhelming, will be nothing but a distant memory.

Something just on the edge of where I have gotten to, close enough that I can close my eyes and picture it in my mind, but far enough away that picturing it doesn't bring back the rush of emotions that I have now.  I will remember how the house was never quite spotless, the laundry was never quite completely finished, and how there was always a dish or five in the sink.  But I won't remember, I hope, the feeling of being overwhelmed when I think about that to do list on top of everything else.  I will simply remember that everything flew by, and then, in an instant, it was over and I was on the other side, mostly unscathed.  But still singed just enough to remember that it was...tough.

This is not to say that I am complaining about my life.  Far from it, in fact.  I have hobbies that bring me joy and fulfillment, an education that I am proud of, and a job that makes me wonder what I did right to get so lucky.  Even when my shifts are long and my patients are nuts, or my patients are sick or the outcome is awful, it's an incredible thing to do.  Which is the only reason that I can come up with why I am still doing it.  And the reason is...because I can't imagine doing anything else.

At least not at the moment.

Although I suppose that the decision about what to be when I grow up will have to be made soon enough.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Crafty Tuesday: Happy Housewarming!

For reasons that absolutely escape me, lately I have been completely unable to give a gift that was not handmade (or at least partially handmade). I have no real explanation for this, given that I am not exactly swimming in time, other than that I have clearly lost my mind. But, crazy or not, it is what it is.

Also, have I mentioned my love of Pinterest lately? Or the fact that my love of pinterest leads me to want to make things that I never could have come up with on my own?

A coworker of mine got married last year, and she and her husband just bought their first house. It's quite a lovely house, and I was searching the corners of my brain for something to get her as a housewarming gift. And while searching for ideas, I ran across some wreaths on pinterest, including one that I thought I could change a bit to match what I was thinking of.

Perfect!

Now all I have to do is figure out how to make a wreath. Luckily, it turns out that it is not only incredibly easy, but it is pretty quick too! It didn't turn out exactly as I had originally pictured, but I was still pretty happy with the end result!





I have to say, I was pretty happy with how it turned out. Which is good, since I bought materials to make several more over the next few weeks! Maybe next time I will think to take pictures of the process...I think this would make a great holiday gift!

See what other crafty goodness people have to share at Carrie's!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Saturday, September 10, 2011

A Collection Of Random Thoughts

*I have had the NICEST patients lately.  Seriously.  So nice that I hardly believe that anyone like that exists in real life.  Except that they not only exist, but they have ALL been my patients.  It's stunning.  And also awesome.  And reminds me that my job rocks...even on the nights that it's rough.  It also makes me slightly afraid that I am due for an absolute nut case of a patient...  Not to mention that I have the world's most fantastic coworkers.  Hands down, the best.

Beth's Shower - 1.16 (1)

*Why does my house ALWAYS feel dirty?  I swear I feel like I clean ALL. THE. TIME.  And then I blink and it's a disaster area.  Again.  Where does the mess come from...I hardly feel like I am home at all, let alone home enough to make a mess!  I told my coworkers last week that if I had to call 911 for something that I would have to throw myself in the neighbor's front yard, because I wouldn't want the paramedics to see my house.  That might be a little bit dramatic, but it's not completely false...

never done

*My insomnia has been absolutely awful lately.  I'm not sure if it's stress related or just bad luck or what, but it's really annoying.  And when I say insomnia, I don't mean poor sleep...I mean no sleep.  Example?  Yesterday finally fell asleep at 10.  IN THE MORNING.  Given that I am usually required to be places all day, this is quite inconvenient. 

2011-09-09-11-42-44_1000000320

*The weather here has been absolutely AMAZING.  Sorry East Coast dwellers!  For almost a week straight it has been almost fall-like weather -- windows down, sun shining, put you in a great mood, amazing weather.  It makes me remember how much I love living in the midwest -- I'm not sure I could appreciate this quite the same way if it hadn't been almost 100 degrees and humid 8 days ago!

*I adore where I live.  Every time I drive down the street I look around and remember just how much I love the area I live in.  It's an older part of town, and so there are HUGE trees that line most of the streets.  I think that it's absolutely lovely, and I can't imagine living anywhere else.

View down the street

*I can't seem to quit adding things to my "crafty things to make" list.  It's not all written down, which is probably a good thing...it would be a mile long!  There are just so many things I want to make -- and finding so many great ideas on Pinterest really doesn't help!  (this is to say nothing about the length of my to do list in general, but I am sure that goes without saying...)

Image Credit

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Addictions

Hi, I'm Maggie, and I am an addict. 

Addicted to what, you ask?  Lots of things!  But here are a few of my latest addictions:

Pinterest.  At first I didn't understand what it was.  But one night when I couldn't sleep, I poked around a bit.  And I haven't stopped since.  There are so many things to look at!  And pin!  And...well, you get the picture.  But seriously...I love it!

Applique Forum.  I have made no secret about the love I have of my embroidery machine.  It's probably one of my favorite things I've gotten over the last year or so.  I find sewing relaxing, and I just love the finished products.  I read about a new forum for applique on Applique Cafe, so I decided to check it out.  It's been, hands down, one of my favorite things about the internet.  The ladies are so crafty and wise.  And the free designs available each month are amazing!

Diet Coke.  Okay, so that's not really new.  But I still love it. 

Presets Heaven.  Which, as the name implies, is heaven.  I am not all that great at using lightroom yet -- I will use it to sort my photos, but most of my editing is still done in photoshop.  But I just discovered this website, FULL of presets for lightroom.  Which are awesome.  And will hopefully make editing go faster, especially as it gets closer to fall, which is by far the time I do the most photoshoots. 

So tell me, what addictions have you been feeding lately?  Please, tell me I'm not the only one...